The Heart is as Precious as Gold-Guard it and Keep it Safe | Previous Challenge Entry

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TITLE: The Heart is as Precious as Gold-Guard it and Keep it Safe | Previous Challenge Entry
By Lois Hewitt
06/15/12
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The news today is full of disturbing information and images. Tragedies unheard of years ago, such as human trafficking (it was happening, but there was no everyday term for it), are now commonplace on television, the Internet and newspapers. Daily we, as a society, are bombarded with stories of neglect, dishonesty, betrayal, and other crimes to heinous to think about. We cannot forget about the natural, and the not-so-natural, disasters that plague this planet either.

In order to learn to live with the information and the images of these horrible things, it becomes necessary to learn to desensitize ourselves to them. I remember a time in my life, quite a few years back, when any story of the killing of a whale sent me into a depression spiral that could last weeks. I wept for the plight of the whales as I sat helplessly on my sofa. After some time, I learned to not feel that way anymore. I could not save one whale and that realization hardened me. It is easy to do the same thing when you see seas of starving children in distant countries or when pictures of war are shown in graphic detail.

Over 2000 years ago, Jesus wept as He watched the stories of illness, corruption and ill deeds unfold in front of Him. I often wondered why, and how, He continued to care when His heart had to be breaking with each new day. He knew the turns His life would be taking and He continued to move forward with compassion and grace. If I knew how my earthly life would end, I sincerely doubt that I would be as graceful as Jesus and I highly doubt my end will come like His.

Jesus had a knowledge that we cannot fathom. He had a view of Heaven that is outside of the human capacity to understand. He was able to understand that this time is temporal and that Heaven is eternal. We, as humans, can say we “get” the concept but it is not an easy concept to truly “get.” There are no brochures showing the sandy beaches of heaven or websites that have video of what your stay will be like. Heaven is not a resort that you may get to visit for a week once a year, it is forever and better than anything we can pretend to imagine.

How does the knowledge of heaven make one’s heart not harden? I cannot answer that. I only know that knowing that beauty personified, that evil eradicated and joy abounding are ideals I have to believe in. Knowing Jesus walked this earth fully aware of all that would come and yet His heart did not harden inspires me. Seeing the “big picture” can help put the smaller pieces into perspective. The more I read about heaven and the more I try to understand Jesus, the softer my harden heart becomes. Jesus should be our benchmark for behavior and His heart was like gold but even more precious. Look to Jesus for inspiration and guard your own heart as if it were a precious metal or a prized possession because it is truly more than that.

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