Proverbs 4:23 “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

Guard your heart. Imagine standing guard outside a gate. As the guard, you decide what comes in and what stays out. And this is exactly what God’s word is telling us to do with out hearts. Guard it. Be diligent in care over what you allow into your life. Not everything that comes knocking on your door should be allowed entry.

As the guard over your heart, you must carefully consider what enters in. Some translations of this scripture exchange the word heart for mind. Guard your mind. If you tell me what you think, I’ll tell you who you are and how you live your life. Your heart and your mind represent your power and both must be guarded.

When we allow the wrong things to enter into our source of power, our very well being and futures are threatened. Why are we not asking, as the guard of our heart and mind, where does this thought come from? Who is the author of this story I’m believing? What is the intent of this person? Where will this lead me? Does this serve me?

We’ve stopped asking these questions, and therefore as the appointed guard over our heart and mind, we’ve stood down and allowed entry into our control central by unholy and corrupted thoughts and actions. And just as this scripture says, everything we do is flowing from it. Could this be why we end up doing the very things we say we don’t want to do? Could this be why we don’t do the very things we know we should be doing? Could it be because we have failed to guard our heart and minds?

Your thoughts are powerful. God warned us to take every thought captive to obey Christ. As the guard of your mind, when you become aware of a thought that is not in alignment with God’s grace, mercy and love then you take it captive. You arrest it. You bind it. You evict it from the sacred space of your mind.

The truth is, sometimes we allow crazy thoughts to run wild in our minds. We allow painful reminders to have a rave in our hearts. And the result is chaos in our lives. We go to bed upset and we wake up overwhelmed before the day even begins. AND THAT IS NOT GOD’S WILL FOR YOU. That is not his best for you. He wants better for you. Don’t you want better for you?

Everything you do is flowing from your heart and your mind. Guard it. Relentlessly protect what enters your life and what you accept as your truth. The enemy wants your heart. If he can’t get it, he will settle for your mind. And oh how often he wins that battle. He keeps you wrapped up in a plethora of your own thoughts, unable to take action. He keeps you confused and uncertain, bound in uncertainty and lack of confidence. He plants seeds of worry and doubt which create a harvest of depression and anxiety. All because you failed to keep guard. You let him in. You gave him access.

Take back the authority over your own life. God gave you this life to live, now live it. Anything that is not in alignment with exactly who you were created to be has got to go. Banish it’s presence from your life. What are you watching? What are you reading? What are you listening to? Who are you hanging out with? Where are you going and what are you doing? How are you spending your time? Who is speaking into your life?

Girl, you need to start asking for some identification from the thoughts knocking on your door. You need to ask for the ID of things which want to come into your life. Where are they coming from? Who sent them? Your ID please.

You’re the guard. You have the power to allow or deny their entry into your heart and mind. And from your heart and from your mind, everything you do flows from them. Everything. If you’re not doing what you should be doing, struggling with making the right choices and taking action, then check what you’ve allowed to come into your heart and mind. Anything without the proper ID has got to be kicked out!