Keeping Your Heart, Part 1

Proverbs 4:23

“Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” KJV

Devotion written for the Owasso CC Parent Practicum 2018, Day 1

(Brief personal background: My husband Joshua and I have homeschooled our children since 2008. We started with Classical Conversations in 2014 and for the past 3 years I tutored foundations. Joshua and I were both homeschooled ourselves for the greater part of our pre-college years.)

One Mother’s Day Josh compared his mother to a placid spring or pool of fresh water, a place where the whole family knew they could come with their needs or for refreshment. Isn’t that beautiful? I pictured a green pasture with fluffy white sheep grazing near a gentle stream and pool, Psalm 23 style- 

“He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.” 

It’s a lovely picture of what a giving mother can be for her family. Isn’t that what we want to be? While it’s true that our days as homeschool moms are filled with a thousand interruptions that push us to our limits, those interruptions usually represent one of those sheep-children coming to us- a safe place where they know they can find help and love and shelter-and we then can direct that soul on to the One who is the true and everlasting safe place, Our Sheperd Jesus Christ who can give peace and keep the soul in a way no human mother ever can.

But what if the peaceful pool’s fresh water source runs out or gets clogged up? The picture can all too quickly turn ugly as the nice pool goes stagnant and gross or starts to dry up. Just as this picture of a fresh pool in a green valley needs a source to remain lovely, so our souls need a continuing and well-tended source too. 

Proverbs 4:23 says

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” ESV

The NASB version says to “Watch over your heart” and the NIV translation reads

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

Our regenerated hearts need care. We are here at this parent practicum because we want to provide the best education possible for our children. 

A key component of providing well for our children is the Keeping of our own Hearts.

I know, it can seem overwhelming to add one more thing to our busy days. You already have a mental list too long to see the end of and the thought of adding “heart keeping” just seems like too much.

I really don’t want it to feel like just one more thing to add to my already packed schedule. 

I want it to be- and It should be -THE Best part of my day! Meeting with my Savior is better even than serving my family and teaching my children. Certainly better than getting that first load of laundry going or keeping my kitchen clean in between the 52 meals that get prepared in a homeschool day (are all homeschooled kids like hobbits?!), infinitely better than sinking into my mattress at the end of the day or turning Netflix on and my brain off.

It is good and right to put Christ above all else in my life.  

But when I’m not consistent with my quiet time, what do I tend to do? Beat myself up about it. Just another thing I’m failing at as a mom. Or, and I think this is worse, I may become apathetic or think I don’t really need that. I’m fine. 

That’s a scary thought because my heart is not fine left to itself. My heart wanders too quickly, becoming discouraged or distant when I am not tending it, when I am not taking my heart to My Savior and asking Him to search it out, to know it (Psalm 139:23), to show me what needs to be dealt with. Laying myself bare before The One who sees it all anyway, being willing that He should shed His light on it all, showing me where I need to repent, reminding me of Who He is in My life and what He has done for me, asking for His wisdom to guide me through this homeschool day. 

I want this to be a sweet time I look forward to with anticipation, a time of refreshment every day. 
{repentance is refreshing}

But my heart grows rebellious when it is neglected. What if it’s not desiring this sweet meeting but longs to give in to my body that just wants to stay in bed or do anything else?

Just as we know our children will rebel at being told how bad they are doing at something or resist being told they MUST do something (I picture sheep-children being dragged unwillingly to the pretty valley with the sweet stream and that scene doesn’t even make sense), but are much more likely to come willingly when they are led gently to the source of peace, we can gently lead ourselves. 

If you find yourself in a place where you are feeling spiritually dry or clogged up, if heart-tending has taken a backseat and your soul is a bit stagnant and gross, here is one practical thing you can do to lead yourself gently to your Savior- 

Application: The most gentle and effective way I have found to lead myself into worship and heart-tending is music.

Music is a gift God gave us probably from the very creation of the world. My favorite scene in The Chronicles of Narnia is from The Magician’s Nephew where Aslan sings the creation of Narnia. C.S. Lewis may have written this scene because it’s possible that God used song when He used words to bring the world into existence.

Have you ever been grumpy or blah and had a song lift you from that mood? Music distracts our hearts from worry.

Music is disarming. It breaks down our walls and opens our minds. Have you noticed how music is used to do this? Your church may use pre-service music to help people prepare for worship. Music is used to set the tone for weddings, funerals, even movies. I guess elevator music became a thing in an attempt to ease the tension of standing in a small space with utter strangers without knowing what to say. 

Use music to disarm your own heart and ease it gently into that place where it is ready to do the work of heart keeping and meeting with God.

Choose songs based not only on the musical style that appeals to you, but with lyrics that speak the Gospel to your soul and encourage you to go to meet Your Savior in a quiet place. 

And it doesn’t have to be just for you, it can be for your whole family. School mornings start with music in our home. I start the worship music before I go to wake anyone up. I open the kids doors and let them have a few minutes to come to consciousness as the music softly plays. After breakfast our music continues until school starts. Maybe I didn’t get up in time for an extended quiet time that day, but my heart is hearing the Gospel through song. My children are hearing too. 
All our hearts are being gently lead. 

If you would like a few song suggestions you can go to this playlist I made on YouTube: Keeping My Heart. It starts with a song called Morning Song (a good one to wake up to) and then moves into some songs that remind my heart of what Christ has done for me and nudges my soul to long for time with Him.

Day/Part 2