Devotionals

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Basic education lays the foundation of the necessity of hygiene. The essence of hygiene is keeping filth away from our environment or our bodies that might otherwise bring ill health. Hygiene makes the environment and the body clean and healthy.

As much as we understand the necessity of hygiene of the body, some have not yet grasped the importance of spiritual hygiene, which takes care not of the body or the environment but the internal environment. Its focus is not to keep clean and pleasant to the eye the external but the inner life of the heart. The human heart is like your living room with furniture within like sofa, flat screen TV and the rest. So the heart also contains its ‘life issues’ within like joy, standing besides peace, happiness etc. It could also contain sorrow, adultery, backbiting and the rest. The human heart is an internal world on its own. As we care for the living room to be pleasant and healthy to our eyes and those of our visitors, so does our hearts need our care to make it healthy for the God who is the One concerned with it, no more our visiting colleague or friend.

But does it matter what is in our hearts even if we never say it or do it? Yes it does matter. In fact it is most important to God and probably least important to men. Men will want to see the RIGHT actions and not even care whether the heart is right or not. But God wants a right heart-set.

But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart( 1Sa 16:7,KJV)

The heart is the control centre of human life. The outward life is an outpour of the heart life. What fills the chambers in a man’s heart is what he will say or do.

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life (Pr 4:23,KJV).

A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things (Mt 12:35, KJV).


For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies (Mt 15:19,KJV).


Jesus meant it, that the evil thoughts or thefts or adultery did not just happen. It was in the heart like a TV set is in the living room. Sometimes it could take as much as 10 or 20 years for the heart issue to move from the heart to the action. So before the adultery got to the action, it was first in the heart. The circumstance of occurrence was just an occasion and not the origin of it. This is why the heart is so powerful, for our thoughts, words, and actions stem out from it as Jesus says in verse above.

Spiritual hygiene takes care of the heart, making it a healthy internal environment. We do not need a hot theological lesson to teach us all that even believers who have had a ‘new heart’ can still live now on the earth with filt within them. If one presumptuously opens up some hearts now, like a door into a room is unexpectedly opened, what shall he see inside? For some, he will see joy on the sofa, peace on the stool besides and righteousness on the carpet watching the TV! This is the godly heart. Some other hearts will have kindness there, gentleness here but some bitterness and hatred lingering by the wall. Yet for some others, it is outright unhealthy. There is stealing here with hatred, jealousy, drunkenness, adultery… and lying there.

Maintaining spiritual hygiene entails keeping the filth of anxieties, fears, adulteries, evil thoughts, hatred, sorrow, bitterness, unforgiveness etc from our hearts. As you know, we call our genitals our ‘private’. The truth is our genital is really not our private because there are times when that privacy will be broken like for medical reasons. The true private of a man, that no other man can ever see, is his heart. A man can lead two different lives : an internal heart life and an external life that men see. This is what hypocrisy is essentially all about. It is a dissociation of the heart and the outward life. Hypocrisy pains, you know. It hurts to do what is not from your heart as your lifestyle. Some Christians have found the Christian life almost hypocritical to them. They try to do what is not in their hearts probably to conform to the group in which they belong. God does not want His children to live like this. He wants the Christian life to spring from the heart. There are many reading this article who will attests that you can actually experience the joy, peace and righteousness promised in the Bible right from the heart without trying to make it up.

In this road of keeping our hearts, there is good news.

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life( Pr 4:23, KJV).

Did you notice the first part of the verse above? It says ‘keep your heart’. Who should keep the heart? Us! The good news is that what goes on in our hearts, including the thoughts and feelings are under our power. Really? You mean I can control my thoughts? That is exactly the point I am making. If you let go the control of them, you are in real trouble. This should be an encouragement to anyone who is just feeling overwhelmed with some thought or feeling and probably saying ‘ I can’t help it Lord’. No, you can help it. He has given us the power to rule our hearts. If we cannot rule our hearts, how can we rule the world around us? If a man cannot control his household, how can he control the Church? As you empower your heart with the Word of God and prayer, you strengthen it and you will grow to fully take authority.

The verse above says our hearts should be kept diligently. Mount guard around it to put away any intruding sorrow, fear, lust, hatred, adultery, wrath, bitterness etc. Do not offer your heart as their dwelling place! Kick them off at the door. Mount guard! As we all come from the world, we come in with thoughts, memories, feelings that need to be cleansed by the water of the Word. Some could be believers for years with the old memories of hurts that happened even before they got born again. The Lord needs to wash that out with the Water of the Word. There must be spiritual hygiene in the kingdom. We are all encouraged to allow the Lord deal with any unhygienic issue of life still sitting in our hearts because it might just be a matter of time for it to manifest. What about that brother faithful to his wife but carrying lust in his heart since 3 years? Yes, the Lord says that must be cleaned. There should be hygiene in the heart. What of the servant, faithful financially but covetousness is sitting and watching TV in his heart since 5 years and he keeps fighting and resistant the temptation to stretch forth his hand into the offerings? Yes, this too needs to be cleaned. Hygiene is also important there.

Keep your heart with all diligence, above all things because your ministry, family life, finances and all the issues of your life will stem from it. The good news is that it is under our power. It is not above us. We have the Word and the Spirit to establish our control and grow in it. The basic education fact remains steadfast. Hygiene is important.

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