Hello friend, it's a joy for me to greet you. Today, we are meditating on the promise verse in Proverbs 4:23: "Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life." Yes, it's important for us to guard our hearts because everything flows from our hearts.

Life springs forth from our hearts. When we see a gardener tending to his garden, he plants all the flowers. As time goes by, he makes sure that there are no weeds that hinder the flowers from growing. When he sees weeds grow, he plucks them right from the root. He doesn't just cut the tops or trim the flowers, but he pulls the weeds right from the root so that they do not grow again. This helps to ensure that the weeds do not pull nutrients from the nearby flowers, allowing all the flowers to grow and bloom beautifully. In the same way, our hearts take in a lot of things every single day. We consume both good and bad. There are flowers that grow, and there are weeds that grow, but we must make sure the flowers continue to grow in our hearts. The bad words that we hear, the negative influences in our lives, and the thoughts that we allow to grow must never affect all the flowers that are growing in our hearts. We need to focus on nurturing the good qualities, characteristics, thoughts, and pure, holy elements growing in our hearts. So, every day, we must make sure to pull out the weeds that are growing in our hearts: the bad thoughts of pride, jealousy, revenge, impurity, and those that do not please God. We must remove all the influences in our hearts that cause us to stray away from our relationship with God.

In the Bible, it is said that "out of the fullness of the heart, the mouth speaks." When someone is angry, they spew out so many things that they are carrying in their heart for a long time. Some people believe that moments of anger reveal a person's true character. In such moments, it's important to show the goodness in our hearts - good intentions, good words, and good qualities. So, it's important to ensure that our hearts are filled with goodness, the character of Jesus, good thoughts, and good words. Most importantly, the Spirit of God in our hearts. So, please take a moment today to reflect on your heart and remove everything that does not please God, just like pulling out weeds from a garden. Ask God to help grow goodness in your heart and make it into a beautiful garden.

PRAYER: 
Loving Lord, I pray that You will take control of my heart today. Show me all the weeds that are growing in my heart and help me to pluck them out from the root. All the thoughts of lust, pride, jealousy, greed, and all the unholy things in my heart, Lord, enable me to pluck them out so that all the good things that You plant in my heart will grow and bloom beautifully. Please help me guard Your Spirit in my heart and keeping my thoughts and intentions pure before You. Let me show Your character and qualities in all my words and actions, bringing forth life. Thank You, Lord, for working in my heart and for putting Your Holy Spirit and Your qualities in me today. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.