Guarding Your Heart

 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? 10 But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”  Jeremiah 17:9,10 (NLV)

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” v23 Issues are defined by Strong as: boundaries, sources, out goings.  Heart: the kernel of the nut.      i.e. the heart of the matter

Read:  Proverbs 4:20-27

I. The Inner Life 
v. 21-23  Keep thy heart is not optional, the heart is to be guarded at all cost;  “with all diligence”
Psalm 112:7  set your heart on the one who knows all things -  this requires a lot of spiritual warfare and a lot of spiritual energy

How can we do this?
1) v.24  Keep your mouth right - ‘froward’ has to do with all that is bad
Colossians 3:8,9  don’t let foul speech be a part of your life
Proverbs 6:2  be careful, your words might come back to haunt you
2)  You become like what you talk about
Proverbs 6:12   you are what you speak
Matthew 12:34-36  Christ’s assessment  of the Pharisees
Your speech reveals much about your character

II.  Keep Your Eyes Right 
v.25  what your eyes see will affect your heart-  temptation is usually brought on by what you see with your eyes
Psalm 81:11,12  the nation Israel walked apart from God

III.  Keep Your Feet Right 
vs.26,27  ‘ponder’ means to weigh mentally, choose well, don’t make rash, uninformed decisions, use wisdom to choose your path
Genesis 13:12 ,18  Abraham and his nephew Lot-  Lot’s feet took him to the city of shame, Abraham’s feet took him far away from it

“Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; 
Wait, I say, on the LORD!”           Psalm 27:14 (NKJV)