Heart and Heat

This is what the Lord says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:5-9

Jeremiah was a young prophet facing an old problem. Israel’s history is littered with moments of great success in following and relying on God as well as many times when their hearts were adrift. From the very beginning when God laid the framework for the promise, they were at a crossroads. Two notable factors come into play: heart and heat.

When the heat of the circumstances are turned up, what does it reveal about a man’s heart? According to the words written in Jeremiah, both the cursed and blessed experience the heat. One finds himself in a wasteland, the other confident and without out fear or worry. The position of the heart determines the confidence of the man experiencing hard times. When his heart trusts in God and difficult situations rise, fear and worry can be overcome.

DO THIS TODAY: Start reminding yourself to trust in God.