Pray First Updates

Purpose In Your Heart

“…Choose you this day whom you will serve…” ~Joshua 24:15b

Like many of you, I grew up watching Disney movies. I loved the music and the animation. One of the common themes in these movies is to listen to your heart, or to “follow your heart”. This seems like great advice when you’re unsure about which direction to take. After all, your heart must know the answers. 

The Bible, on the other hand, has a very different opinion on the ways of the heart. Jeremiah 17:9 says, “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”

I believe Daniel cracks the code when he is first taken to Babylon as a captive. The context in the first chapter of Daniel is that he is taken away from a destroyed Jerusalem and Israel at the age of about 16 or 17 years old.

Babylon’s method of subduing the nations they conquer was to take the young men, the ones who are educated and able to be influenced, and train them up in the Babylonian culture. They raise them up in BU (Babylon University). Everything changes for them, even their names. The goal is two-fold: one is to bring them up as Babylonian advisors who have a knowledge of their homeland and also to keep the homeland in line with potential hostages.

This would be a difficult position for a young man. If they don’t stay in line, it would mean their lives and possibly the lives of the other people taken captive. Daniel and his friends had to make a choice to follow God or go with the flow. We can see their answer in verse 8 of chapter one, the ESV says Daniel “resolved that he would not defile himself,” but I like what the KJV says, “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself.”

This is the effort that we need to place on our lives everyday when interacting with the worldly culture. Often, whether at school, work, or among friends, we are pressured into going with the flow. If we don’t, we may risk our jobs, social status, or friendships.

This pressure can convince us that if we keep our heads down and live like everyone else, we can simply get through it. However, that’s the deceitful and wicked heart speaking.

It seems our heart wants us to do whatever feels the best or is the easiest for us to do. I believe the heart is synonymous with the flesh, and the apostle Paul has a good list of what the works of the Flesh are. Instead, we should follow Daniel’s example and risk everything to purpose in our hearts everyday so that we won’t defile ourselves.

Let’s begin making that intentional choice today.

PRAISES

• For God’s gift of salvation and the joy of seeing people we love come to Christ, like we did during Family Camp and Ignite!
• For our volunteers who give so much of their time to serve our guests and help the camp thrive.
• For the many ways God is shaping and growing Maranatha through all the different seasons of life.

PRAY FOR

• Our upcoming Couples’ Conference; that God would bring men and women through our doors to be equipped with tools for their relationship, whether they are already married or preparing to enter the covenant.
• Our staff and volunteers: that they would be refreshed both physically and spiritually this month while we have fewer events on the calendar. 
• The next generation of ministry partners; That God would stir the hearts of families and young people around New England and give them a desire to serve with us.