Proverbs 4:23
So above all, guard the affections of your heart, for they affect all that you are. Pay attention to the welfare of your innermost being, for from there flows the wellspring of life.
I remember one day sitting in my car in the grocery store parking just weeping over the thought that so many people walking in and out of that store may not know Jesus. They were going to Hell if they didn’t hear the Truth! The thought broke my heart and all I could do was weep. I could barely utter words to pray. My heart was so in tune with God’s heart at that time in my life. I was so tender to His leading and prompting and felt so close to Him in everyday life. Fast forward a few years and pulling into that same parking lot I had a flashback to that day and thought, “why does my heart not break for these people anymore”? I was more annoyed by everyone who could not drive correctly and by those who were walking SO slow in the middle of the lane and GASP, those people who would not put their carts back in the right place.! What happened to me? Why was my heart so hardened? How did it get so hardened? When did this happen?
For me, I believe that being so focused and busy in doing the work of ministry, or life in general, that we stop paying attention to the little nudges that come to us by the Holy Spirit. We push it aside because we are busy and stressed about our long list of tasks we need to accomplish. Or we’re overwhelmed with pain or emotion someone or something has caused us that we don’t want to acknowledge anything else. The more we ignore His promptings, the quieter His voice becomes to us. We become callus to His voice.
The definition of a callus is: “Calluses are caused by repeated pressure or friction on an area of skin. The pressure causes the skin to die and form a hard, protective surface.”
Wow, ‘repeated pressure or friction’. Just think about that for a minute. What is causing repeated pressure or friction in our lives? Hmmm… that’s a loaded question for some of us. Where do I start? I’m sure we all could list some things or people that would fit this description.
So what do we do now? How do we get back to that place of having a tender and a soft heart?
We start by calling out to Lord!
There are many, many scriptures on calling out to God for help. David set an example for use by calling many times for God's help! Our Father is as close as the mention of His Name. Just as you would want your child to call you if they were in need or hurting, how much more does our Father want us to call on Him? God, I need help! He is a Good Father and before you can finish your words, He is there, open armed and ready to embrace us.
Psalm 86:5 (NIV)
You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.
Psalm 50:15
Honor me by trusting in me in your day of trouble. Cry aloud to me, and I will be there to rescue you.
With humility, ask Him to search your Heart.
After we have run into His arms calling on Him for help, let’s ask him to search our hearts. Give him that callused area of your heart and ask Him to show you where you’ve missed it.
Psalm 139: 23, 24 (TPT)
God, I invite your searching gaze into my heart. Examine me through and through; find out everything that may be hidden within me. Put me to the test and sift through all my anxious cares. See if there is any path of pain I’m walking on, and lead me back to your glorious, everlasting ways— the path that brings me back to you.
Be ready to acknowledge those areas you may have “missed it”.
Proverbs 20:27 reads, 27 The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly.
He will show you, but you need to have a humble and teachable heart. We may need to ask others for forgiveness or offer our forgiveness to someone that has hurt us. Maybe we need to prune or set boundaries in an area of our life that’s causing friction or repeated hurt.
Our Father ONLY wants what is best for us. It’s our responsibility to keep our hearts soft and tender. When we do this, we have created ‘good soil’ which allows God to do a good work through us and in us.
Mark 4:20 20
“But the seed sown on good soil represents those who open their hearts to receive the Word and their lives bear good fruit—some yield a harvest of thirty, sixty, even one hundred times more than was sown!”
Start today to renew your mind and let God began a restoration work in your heart? Ask Him to reveal and remove those calloused areas.
Good stuff!