Guarding our Heart, Part 2

Ezekiel 36:26; "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" (NLT). Do I truly possess a heart that is seeking to be responsive to God? Does my heart truly desire to respond to God in obedience? Does my heart desire for God to lead and direct my steps and surrender to His Lordship? The spirit of this culture (at least in my opinion) seeks to bring hardness and toughness to my heart when it comes to the things of God. The enemy of my soul wants me to become disconnected from the heart of God which seeks to do a "good work" in my life. I must choose between these two forces; which one will win out in my life? Which force will rule and reign in my life? What voice will I follow in these days of spiritual decisions? I sincerely feel that God is calling for action on our part; I must open my heart to Him so that He can deposit the power of spiritual transformation. The Spirit is performing open heart surgery on my life and the lives of many of you across the world. He is removing the stony, rebellious heart and replacing it with one that is tender and respectful to the things of God. The price of this surgery was paid for at Calvary; Jesus died that we might have an opportunity for a new life. The new life bring us into a relationship with the Lord God Almighty who will provide the strength that we need to face the challenges of life. But for this "surgery" to be successful I must be willing to submit to the Chief Surgeon who knows exactly what I need to be removed and He knows what I need added to my life. The question we must answer is this one, "Am I willing to submit to His process of transformation for my life?" This surgery may be painful and we may have to make some adjustments to our lifestyle once the surgery is completed. But I challenge you to stay focused on the end result of this spiritual procedure. I desire a "new heart" that is submitted to God in all areas of my life. The meeting this week at Hackleburg has been a great blessing in which we are seeing a great response to the call of the Spirit in the lives of the youth of this church and community. The Spirit of repentance, confession, and renewed commitment to Christ has been very evident in the altar services. We have seen young men and women responding to the heart transplant procedure of the Spirit. We must continue to intercede for the children and youth of this generation. God has not given up on them and the believers in the "church" must not give up on them. Speak a word of encouragement to a child or teenager today. You will be blessed and they will be blessed by the interest that you shown in them.