“Above All Things, Guard Your Heart” Proverbs 4:23

Proverbs 4:23 is easily one of my favorite Bible verses, and I refer to it often. It’s no coincidence that the Bible advises you to protect your heart, the quality of your life stems from how your heart feels. The way that you view yourself, the energy that you give off, how you treat others, how well you do at work, essentially every area of your life, are all direct reflections of your heart. I can’t emphasize enough the importance of the caution you should take before allowing someone to get close to you. When I say this, I don’t mean live your life with a guard up. What I do mean is, pay close attention to people’s characters and be careful with what you allow them to dictate in your life.

I’ve witnessed so many people down and out for weeks and months at a time because they let someone undeserving into an emotionally fragile place, only to leave them distraught and picking up the pieces. I’ve seen beautiful spirits die down after allowing themselves to care for people who drained them emotionally and mentally. I’m sure each of us can think of an instance where had we been more careful and paid closer attention, we could’ve saved ourselves a heartache. For whatever reason, we’d often rather ignore the warning signs people give us in hopes that they will be who we wish for them to be instead of who they actually are. I get it, reality can be a tough pill to swallow but there is nothing more valuable than the truth. Quit feeling so obligated to protect other people’s character at the expense of your own peace of mind.

You have to understand that the people you allow in your life have a direct influence on how you perceive yourself. When you allow your heart to care for the wrong people you’re doing yourself an injustice. This isn’t the first time you’ve heard this but life is SO short. That is a reality, not a cliche saying. We have no time to waste in dark places because of how someone else has made us feel.

While many view the heart as the seat of our emotions, I look at the heart to be the center of your being—not just the source of our feelings, but also of wisdom and perspective. In essence, the heart refers to who you are as a person and I want nothing taking away from the woman that I’ve worked hard to be. For me personally, guarding my heart entails praying over my relationships; not just intimate ones, but friendships as well while asking God to have His will done as he sees fit. That way no matter how things pan out, I have complete confidence that things are exactly the way they’re meant to be. Take your time. Observe traits without feeling the need to try and change people and once you feel you don’t have to change a person, your heart is safe.

Enjoy your weekend, xx.