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He Sees My Heart
Andrea Lende • March 13, 2021
John 2:25
He Sees My Heart
You can also listen to the devotion and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/He-Sees-My-Heart-ese47v
John 2:25
“And He did not need anyone to bear witness concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in human nature. [He could read men’s hearts].”
The Lord knows our hearts.
At first glance, this was intimidating to me.
Initially I thought I don’t even know what’s lurking around in my heart.
I wondered what the Lord would find.
Would He be pleased or distressed?
After all, the previous verses in our passage today were about the hearts of those who were unclean.
And Jesus was displeased with them.
I began to think about my thoughts which aren’t always of a higher nature.
I thought about being too easily frustrated, too easily offended, and often too fearful.
I thought about my actions being less than perfect.
But then I felt God’s grace pour over those feelings and shortcomings as He covered me in His love.
The Lord assured me that my heart was His.
He assured me by showing me that my heart was given to me by Him.
He showed me His Spirit lived in my heart and was, therefore, holy.
Not holy because of me, but holy because of Him.
Because of the gift of His Son’s life and the blood that was shed for me.
My actions, feelings, and thoughts are not always aligned with my heart which is made holy by Him.
But my true being – my heart – is His.
And I find myself being so grateful.
Grateful for a God Who loves me for my heart and forgives my less than perfect actions.
Grateful for a God Who sent His Son to die to cover my imperfections.
Grateful for a God Who made it possible for me to be completely His.
He is the God of the universe and God of my heart.
As I reflect on our passage today, I find the Lord to be compassionate in every way.
He is love.
Pure love.
He loves all the time.
Even when I cannot.
There are times love is almost out of reach.
I only need to reach for Him.
The purity of His love transforms my feelings which change who I am being.
The fullness of His love fills my soul and leaves me no other choice but to love others as well.
And I am grateful once again.
Today I choose to bask in God’s love for that is where He changes every fiber of my being so I can be more like Him.
May you find the Lord loves you and that He loves your heart and fills you with His love so you may love others.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for showing me more about Your love. Thank you for showing me how much You love me. Thank You for showing me You see my heart because You made me and know every detail of my being. Thank You, Father, for making a way to see me in all Your perfection. Thank You for sending Your Son to cover me in grace by His blood. As You fill me with Your love and Your Holy Spirit You change who I am being. You change my actions and reactions. You change my feelings and calm my fears. You mold and shape me so that I may serve You and bless those around me. Thank You for giving me a glimpse into the fullness of Your love. Help me be fully transformed by You, Father. Keep me at Your feet. Keep me Yours, Lord. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: You are Mine, sayeth the Lord, and you are beautiful to Me My child.
Response: Undeserving of Your love and grace, thank You most merciful and loving Father.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.