I’m Bored

When I was about 7 years old, my aunt, Anne, came by taxi to our home. My mom was down the street and I was in the house alone. Mom would be back soon. My aunt came to the screen door and rang the doorbell. I need to say here that Anne was very formal. She lived on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and fancied herself as a French (her last name was De La Rue) aristocrat.

I greeted her through the screen. She waited for me to open the door. I did not. I told her, “Mom said I should never let anyone in the house when she was not here.” After some thought, Anne sat down on her suitcase and we talked through the screen till my mom came home.

We are good about telling our children to guard themselves from danger. Most everyone who works with children now is subject to a background check and training. We buy locks and guns and alarm systems to protect ourselves. We make our stuff, our families, and our homes as secure as possible. We even invent bizarre passwords to guard our internet privacy.

But do we guard our heart as much? God says…

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines

the course of your life. (Proverbs 4:23 NLT)

So, how is your heart today? Here is my check. I pick one of these to describe the state of my heart at any giving moment.

• ·         Bored
• ·         Busy
• ·         Content 

If I answer “Bored,” I need to focus outward. Is what I will use to satiate this feeling wholesome? Will it lead to contentment or simply a deeper craving?

If I answer “Busy,” I need to focus inward. What am I trying to escape from? Why have I let this run my life? How will I need to change my mind in order to be content?

If I answer “Content,” I ask myself if this contentment comes from all my circumstances working in my favor (I am lucky) or if I owe my contentment to my relationship with God.

When God fuels my heart, I am at peace, no matter what.  What fuels your heart?