The Narrow Roads

Lie, lie, lie! The truth is stated in Jeremiah 17:9. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? This is something that has been on my heart for several weeks now. My oldest just graduated high school and during this time of year, we hear people tell students to follow their hearts. A speaker at baccalaureate asked the seniors as well as the congregation if any of us had a shirt that said, “Follow your heart”? She then said, if you do, burn it. So true!!! It was the perfect thing to say to kids going out into the world. I know, the word also says that God gives us the desires of our hearts, but that is only if we delight in Him (Psalm 37:4). If we delight in Him, His desires will be ours. So, hang out with me for a bit and I will explain the whole God wants us to be happy part. A lot to unpack today, so find a seat, get comfortable and I hope to maybe make you a little uncomfortable 🙂

First, I will finish with the follow your heart lie part of my title. My oldest has a beautiful singing voice. She can send me right into tears when she sings. I did encourage her to pursue music, not because I wanted her to follow her heart necessarily, but because it’s a gifting that God has given her. I felt she would be wasting it by not sharing it with the world. That is a desire God put into her heart. When you have a gifting, you are to use it for God’s glory, so it doesn’t get taken away like the story of the talents in the bible. With that being said, there are many times in our lives when people say, “Go with your gut” or “What does your heart tell you to do?” I don’t know about you, but when I follow my heart, I tend to fall right into sin. The reason being is, I am being directed by my emotions more than by the Holy Spirit. When my heart is broken, I tend to be bitter, and unforgiving. All those things are sinful behaviors that come out of my heart. Sometimes, I allow my heart to be my god, and not the true God. I will let my heart tell me where to go and not go where God wants me to go. The heart is deceitful and is often times led by emotions rather than truth.

Proverbs 3:5-7 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Meaning, completely surrender your heart to Him and He will direct which way to go. It doesn’t say follow your heart, it says trust in the Lord with your heart, all of it.

So, now for the God wants me happy part. That’s a hard one, because God doesn’t want you to be unhappy and miserable. That isn’t what I am saying at all. However, God is more concerned with your holiness than with your happiness. God is more concerned about us having joy rather than happiness and yes there is a difference. Happiness comes from circumstances and worldly treasures. True joy comes from the Lord, and we can have joy in Him even in days when we are suffering. We have it in our heads that God just wants us to be happy and that we won’t suffer because of it. Today’s sermon in church was about our suffering on earth is going to happen. We will suffer, we will have trials and we will go through times when we wonder if God is even there with us. Romans 8:18 says, I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. John 16:33 says, I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. We will have pain and suffering on earth, but it’s only temporary for those who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It is through our sufferings that we learn to draw near to Jesus. Spoiler alert, if we follow Jesus with all our hearts on earth, we spend eternity in heaven!

Does God want us happy? It’s not His number one concern, holiness is, living for Him is, and surrendering to Him is. Something I have really learned in this season that I have been walking in is, God is preparing me for the next season. He is prepping me for something bigger than myself. I can’t say that I have been happy or loving this season, but I am learning to have joy even in the hard days. I have been really struggling with a specific trial I am going through in this season, wondering why God won’t stop it? I have wondered, what possibly could I learn from this trial? Today, I realized in Sunday school, it’s because, He is teaching me to be content with just Him. I am not enough, but Jesus is and that’s what He has been wanting me to realize for decades! He has shown me that all I need is Jesus. He is also teaching me to run to Him first and not the world. That is so hard for me and I am so stinking hardheaded!

In summary, don’t follow your heart, follow Jesus’ heart. Don’t lean on your own understanding, surrender to God. Don’t focus on being happy, but focus on finding joy in God and walking in holiness and righteousness. Thank you once again for reading the thoughts God has put on my heart. I pray this helps one of you in some way. Remember, God will make us uncomfortable to help us grow closer to Him. Be blessed!

James 1:2-4 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

Coming soon (I hope), Why women are important to God and the importance of and the power of accessing the Holy Spirit.