“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23

Proverbs is a book about the importance of wisdom, how to live in a wise manner, and how to view the world through the lens of wisdom. 

The proverbs are not promises; proverbs don’t work like that. Instead, they are descriptions of the way life generally works in the way God has set it. They are principles for living wisely. And there are a lot of them.

There are proverbs about work, money, time, parenting, and a host of other subjects. And in Proverbs 4, in the midst of all the other proverbs, we find today’s scripture reference::

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23).

Above all else…

That is, if you don’t listen to anything else or if you aren’t paying that much attention. But if you only hear one thing, hear this – Guard your heart. 

And why does this action take such precedence? The proverb continues and tells us it’s because everything flows from the heart. Our actions? Our speech? The way we interact with others? Our relationship with the Lord? Yes. These all find their source in the heart. 

But how exactly do we guard our hearts? 

Here are 3 suggestions:

1. We guard our hearts by examining our intake.

If we think the things we are exposed to in our environment have no effect on us, then we are very foolish indeed. If we are constantly taking in cynicism, fear, anger, profanity in all its forms, or other destructive things, it is inevitable that we will be affected. If, then, we are serious about guarding our hearts, we should take a hard look at what we are voluntarily exposing ourselves to.

2. We guard our hearts by checking our investments. 

Disappointment is inevitable. Countless times and in countless ways, we will find ourselves with unmet expectations. But while that is inevitable, it’s also a chance for us to recognize that many times our disappointment runs so deeply because we are too heavily invested in that particular opportunity or conversation or even that relationship. It’s not wrong to look forward or hope for some kind of change in life; it is wrong, however, to place the full weight of our joy and satisfaction on anything other than Jesus.

3. We guard our hearts by checking our identity.

As human beings, we have the tendency to tie the core of our self-worth, validation, and personhood to things. These become the ways by which we define ourselves, but most of those things go away. When they do, it can feel as if we are floating aimlessly on the sea with no anchor.

Who are we? 

As Christians, the question has been answered once and for all. Regardless of what else changes in our circumstances, the answer remains that we are, at the core, children of God. He is our true source of security, our true source of validation. 

It is from our hearts that everything else flows.

So let us protect our hearts. Actively.

Written by Michael Kelley, Guest Contributor

LEARN MORE by reading “Why do you need to guard your heart above all else (Proverbs 4:23)?” from GotQuestions.org.