Change my Heart
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can
know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man
according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” (Jeremiah
17: 9, 10 KJV)
Have you ever noticed that many times we pray for God to change other people’s
hearts rather than asking Him to change our own hearts? One of my pastors used
to say in his sermons “If you will concentrate on keeping your own heart right
with God, you won’t have time to criticize and judge someone else.” My pastor
was so right. It is a full time job making sure that my own heart is pleasing to
God.
Instead of praying for God to change people’s hearts, let’s ask Him to change
our own hearts. We should ask God to let the people we are praying for feel the
unconditional love, mercy, grace and compassion He has for them. Until people
feel in their hearts that they are loved, they will never change. They can know
that they are loved with their intellect but it is only when they feel it in
their hearts that they will believe it. We can’t change people. Only Jesus can
change a person’s heart and life.
We need to live our lives in such a way that others will see the difference that
Jesus can make in a heart and life. We must love our families and friends to
Jesus not only by our words, but especially by our actions. We can tell them
that we love them but it is only as we prove it to them by our actions that they
will believe us. Are you loving others to Jesus by your words and by your
actions? Are you asking Jesus to change your heart by making it tender,
forgiving and understanding?
Joanne Lowe
January 10, 2009
joannelowe8@cox.net
www.fromtheheartofjesus.blogspot.com