I am so thankful that God is patient.  And kind.

I’ve been going through some changes lately that I thought I’d share. They are changes that I don’t think anyone else would notice, at least not right away, because they are occurring in the hidden, invisible part of me – my heart.  Lori wrote about her heart in the very first piece she wrote for this blog. I just read it again and it made me smile. The changes that have taken place in Lori’s life over time continue to amaze and inspire me.

There’s a verse in the Bible that creates a vivid, visual picture of what happens at the moment we become true believers in Christ. He gives us a heart transplant!

I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations. (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

I didn’t realize when I was young and first became a Christian that the full benefits of this heart transplant – having my stony, stubborn heart replaced with a tender, responsive heart – would continually occur over time. I, like Lori, knew immediately that my life had changed when I took the leap of faith and placed my trust in Christ. What I didn’t know is that it would take a lifetime for God to excise all of the stony, stubborn places out of my oh-so-human heart, and replace them with places that were tender and responsive towards Him.

When I became a believer, God truly changed my heart. I have written about this a little before, but I experienced some changes overnight. First of all, I wanted to read the Bible, and it started making sense to me. I knew I was reading the Truth and I was so excited because all of a sudden I could see things I’d never seen before. I found I didn’t want to keep doing things I’d been doing that I knew deep down were wrong, instead I wanted to please God because I was so thankful to be cleansed. I know it may sound strange, but I actually felt clean! I knew I was forgiven! And the thing is, not once did it enter my mind that I had to clean up my act before I could pray to receive Him as my Savior. Yes, I admitted I was a sinner and accepted by faith that He forgave me for my sin, but it wasn’t until after I prayed that prayer of faith that my desires started changing from the inside out. I didn’t even understand it at the time — I just knew I’d been changed.

The thing is, I’m still experiencing that transformation, and I’ve come to realize that as long as I’m in this body, God will keep working on the areas of my heart that need changing. And I’ve learned that sometimes the distance from my head to my heart can be traversed suddenly and quickly — like when I first became a believer — and other times navigating that short distance of 18 inches from my head to my heart can take years!

And that is why I’m thankful God is patient. And kind.

The Bible teaches us that we are to examine our hearts. I try to do that, at least I tell myself I do. I know it’s important, because everything we do flows from the condition of our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). So recently I sincerely asked God to examine my heart and show me any areas that needed changing. Well, let me tell you, that’s a prayer you can count on Him answering with a big yes! He knows our hearts more than we even know our own hearts. In fact, His Word says that “the human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9). Yikes! Really? My heart is desperately wicked?

Let me answer that by saying that when I asked Him to examine my heart, He started showing me some things about myself I didn’t even know! And looking in the mirror, I didn’t like what I saw. I was mortified to see some things about myself come to light – the light of His Word, which “is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12). For example, He pointed to some areas in my life where I was selfish, even when I thought I was acting reasonably. He also pointed out that I grumble and complain (a lot), even though I’ve thought of myself as being a pretty grateful person. Beneath God’s gaze I began to see the thoughts and intentions of my heart for what they were and came to realize I needed an attitude adjustment, big time!

But the thing is, God has been so kind, patient, and gracious with me throughout this process! He loves me, and He doesn’t show me certain areas of my heart just so He can sit up there and point His finger at me and say, “Aha! You there — Yes you, Lisa! — You’ve got a rotten attitude!” Not at all, and I can’t describe how it feels to be under the magnifying glass with my heart laid bare, while also knowing my Heavenly Father, the Great Physician, is looking at me through loving eyes! He probes and exposes some stony, stubborn parts of my heart, yet He does it gently and precisely, with the ultimate purpose to make me whole.

No one likes it when others point out areas in their lives that need to change. I think most of us get defensive and want to make up excuses, or hide, or simply run away. I want to tell you firsthand that when you put your life in God’s hands, He always has your best in mind. He knows your heart better than you do, and He knows what will bring healing to your heart and set you free to be all He created you to be. He’s in the business of performing heart transplants. He sent His Son Jesus into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world, and to ultimately transform each one of us into all He created us to be, and that is like Jesus.

Now, if you don’t know Jesus, you may cringe at that thought. I don’t know what your mind conjures up when you think about Jesus, but as I get to know Him more, I find following in His footsteps is a tall order! But I also know my heart now belongs to God, and He will do the work of changing my heart until it becomes more like Christ’s, as long as I keep my heart teachable and tender toward Him, and allow Him to fashion my heart after His.

Think about it. Jesus gave up everything to lay down His life for us! He came to seek and save the lost. He came to serve. He came to forgive. He trusted His Father to make all things right. He never lashed out or sought revenge. He submitted His will to the Father’s will. The Christian life would be impossible for us to live without a heart transplant — without the Holy Spirit writing His laws on our hearts, changing us from the inside out. But Jesus is our example, and God desires that we have the same attitude or mindset that He had.

Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave, and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. (Philippians 2:3-8)

I believe that we can know a lot about God, a lot about His Word, a lot about prophesy and God’s unfolding plan, but until we allow Him to change our hearts, making His truth a reality deep within us, we will not experience the transformation of becoming all He desires us to be. We’ll stay stuck as long as we only have head knowledge. The true joy of living the Christian life is found when our head knowledge travels the 18-inch distance to our hearts, and we begin changing from the inside out, experiencing firsthand that His Truth, written on our hearts, sets us free.

Holding fast,

Lisa

The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).

^{Photography by Jordan McQueen}