Guard Your Heart!
The other morning before church, I ran an errand to a well-known “Stuff Mart” type store (shout out to Veggie Tales and Madame Blueberry). I was there to buy something for a specific and time-sensitive purpose. You might say I was on a mission! I had barely rebounded from the day before when I ran a ridiculous amount of errands in a short span of time, contending with self-inflicted low blood sugar (and zero tolerance for nonsense), so I was careful to smile at everyone I saw and be salt and light as we as Christians are called to be.
Everything was going swimmingly until I went to self-checkout to pay for the stuff. I kept holding my phone up to the card reader and nothing happened. This seemed weird, as I pay with my phone through my wallet everywhere I go. Literally, I don’t carry any type of card and haven’t for a while now. Exasperated, I hollered over to two employees who seemed somewhat oblivious to my plight, asking if one of them could help me. One of them walked over and confirmed my fear, which is that this monstrous well-known chain of a store (which shall remain nameless, lest I slander) doesn’t accept any form of payment without a physical card! When the employee offered to void the transaction, I reacted with sarcasm and frustration and I stormed off, shaking my head. So much for salt and light!
Just a short time later at church, I noticed my worship seemed strained, as if there was something blocking it. That “something” was a troubled heart! While I had muttered a half-hearted apology to God on the way to church, it was riddled with excuses and justifications.
Cue the sermon that was heavy with scripture (my favorite kind), not the least of which was Proverbs 4:23: “Guard your heart above all else, for everything you do flows from it.” (NIV). Now, I know this verse. I love this verse! I believe this verse. But this particular day, it hit me in a different way. I realized that I had been holding onto resentment and I’d been dishonest in my own heart, toward myself and others. My heart was burdened, which made me an easy target for being offended. And made a “Stuff-mart” employee an easy target for my bad attitude.
Proverbs 19:11 says, “A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense.”
I knew what I had to do. I still needed this item and it was needed by a certain time. But, learning from the previous day that errands and low blood sugar are a bad combo, I ran home, crammed down a sandwich, and headed back to the store. The “scene of the crime”, if you will. To make things a smidge more complicated, I’m terrible with faces. So when I came back to the self-checkout area, I looked the two employees over and said, “Did either of you help me this morning?” One said no, like maybe she just came on shift. The other wasn’t sure until she saw the item in my hands and, no doubt, remembered the incident. She said yes and I said, “Oh! Then I owe you an apology! I acted really ugly to you and that wasn’t right.” Later- the shift girl said, after a stunned pause, “You are amazing!” To which I replied, (wait for it….) ”Thank you, but really, it’s that I serve an amazing God. He lets me know when I’ve behaved badly and I need to apologize, so that’s what I’m doing.” I also cracked a joke that I don’t always listen to him as I should, but that I’m trying, which is completely true.
Takeaways:
Guard your heart. Any unconfessed sin or resentment/bitterness can fester and will inevitably spill out to others around you.
Keep a credit card hidden somewhere in your car in case you have to do things the old-fashioned way or carry a wallet or purse like a normal person.
Obey God, then walk in the awesome peace that comes from a close and intimate relationship with him!
Holy Spirit, please make us so aware of your presence. Please remind us to keep short accounts with others, realizing that Jesus died once for all sins and that we have been forgiven of so much. God, keep us clear of offense, big and small because you paid the ultimate price and canceled the debt of all who will call on your name and repent of their sins. If you, who is perfect, can forgive all of our disgusting, vile sins, we must also forgive others for theirs. Help us to remember that your standards are impossible to measure up to and that we all fall short of the glory of you, God! Please empower us to surrender to you. Your ways are perfect, Lord and you love us despite our flaws. Thank you for loving us unconditionally. Help us to love others the same. In Jesus’ name, amen.