SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES

"and so it may not happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he blesses himself in his heart, saying, 'I shall have peace, even though I will follow the dictates of my heart' - as though a drunkard could be included with the sober."
Deuteronomy 29:21 NKJV


First this is not a post about alcohol.
Not even going to touch on it.
It is going to be about our hearts.
Well, mine, anyway.

I shall have peace, even though I will follow the dictates of my heart.

According to my notes, that phrase "follow the dictates" can be translated to mean "walk in the stubbornness or imagination".
All I have to do is think back to high school or junior high (or perhaps last week) to think of a time when I followed the stubbornness or imaginations of my own heart.
I just know he is the boy for me.
I just know we are going to get married and live happily ever after.
It didn't matter what sound advice others gave me, in my heart, I envisioned a glorious romance culminating in a Cinderella wedding and happily ever after. Oddly enough, I envisioned this with more than one Prince Charming. Seems my heart was a bit of a "playa". You want to talk about stubbornness of heart...
nope I am going to try to hold onto this person or relationship or job because I know in my heart of hearts I need to....I need them.
My heart kept telling me to do this or that and many times it backfired. Peace it did not bring. Many times I made an idol out of something or someone because "my heart" told me so.
Here is a little fact about my heart.

It is "deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" (Jer. 17:9 NKJV)

My heart is fickle. When it feels loved, it loves back. When it is hurt, it pulls away. It guards itself viciously. It holds itself in high regard. It is self-seeking. It can be easily influenced. It can be pulled in many directions at the same time.
I think there is a reason Christ told us to love God with not only all out hearts but also our minds and our souls (Matt 22:37 NKJV). Our hearts will turn when we feel God has let us down. It is our minds that will speak the truth, our minds that will recall scripture to defend against the enemy. Our souls that know rock solid who we are in Christ and Who He is in us.
Yes, my heart has great capacity to love, but it can also have great capacity to hate. The other two keep it in check. Without the other two being lined up with God, my heart is on a self-destructive path, taking the rest of me down with it. I need all three (heart, mind and soul) working together serving the Lord.
Do I ever listen to my heart? Sure I do. However, I have to take what it says and compare it to what the Word of God says and what I know about God to be true. At times, I may have to take what it said and seek godly council.
Sometimes it is right on.
Sometimes it is broken as I allow the Holy Spirit to bring it in line with God.
I can't trust my heart.
I can trust the One who gave it to me.