Read: Proverbs 4:20-27
Memory Verse: Proverbs 4:23
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
Being told to stand guard means different things depending on what branch of the military you are in. If you tell someone in the Marine Corp to secure a building, they will surround it and protect it against attack. If they are Army, they will surround the building and attack it. The Navy will lock all of the doors and all of the safes and go home. The Air Force will secure a four-year lease.
All joking aside, the soldier on guard duty has a grave responsibility. He is protecting vital secrets, valuable equipment, and most importantly the lives of those he serves with. He needs to be alert to what is going on around him, watching for the enemy’s attack. I Corinthians 16:13-14 sums it up this way; “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. Let all your things be done with charity.”
God tells us that we need to put a guard (keep thy heart) on our hearts. It is important to protect our hearts in order to keep it right with God. A guard needs to be maintained 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Psalm 78:37 tells us “their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.”
Keep watch over your heart at all times. Limit access to only those things that are good and right. “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8
Meditation for the Day: What kind of things do you allow into your heart? What are some areas of your life that you need to “restrict access to”?
Assignment: Make a list of five things that you need to specifically be on guard for in your life.