Heart Work: Tips for Engaging Your Heart in Everyday Moments

I am so thankful for this encouraging post by my new friend, Elizabeth. I hope it will be as much of a blessing to you as it was to me. Be sure to leave her a comment here and visit her over at Seasons with Soul.  -JM

I have some heart work to do.

I don’t know about you, but my mind often gets me into trouble, where my heart gives me peace, joy, and that precious divine connection.

It’s pretty obvious if I’m living heart first or head first.

Take the dishes. With our family of five, my sink and the nearby countertop spend a lot of the day filled, covered, and otherwise cluttered with crumbs and drips and messes. It seems that no matter how often I do the dishes, the kitchen still ends up messy an hour later. When I’m feeling frazzled, I dread the dishes, my mind viewing them as time-consuming drudgery. But, when I cease worrying and invite my heart into the mix, I count my blessings along with the flatware; I pray, and I find that God meets me, even in the dirty dishwater.

My mind takes me into dangerous territory when:

• I spend my Sunday morning pew time writing a mental grocery list, instead of worshiping.
• I begin cataloging my spouse’s flaws.
• I compare myself to others who seem to be more together or have it easier than me.

My heart redeems my flawed mind when:

• I feel God’s presence all around, despite the spilled milk.
• I find myself bursting with gratitude, for no particular reason.
• I look at serving my family as a gift I offer freely with love, rather than a burden.

Recognizing the importance of bringing my heart along in day-to-day life, I’ve been blogging this February on the Heart Full Life and my challenges as I work toward this new way of living.

I’ve come up with a few strategies that help me engage my heart, and I hope they speak to you too:

1. Pray. Having trouble quieting your mind so you can yield your heart to God fully? He wants to hear about it. Pray very specifically for God to open your heart, and don’t forget to detail the things that get in the way. Ask for His guidance in surmounting these obstacles, big or small.
2. Obey. Maybe you think your heart is open to God, but you just aren’t feeling that connection. Could there be sin you need to confess? Or, maybe there’s a spirit nudge you keep ignoring? There’s nothing like total obedience to lay open the floodgates and let His grace pour into your heart.
3. Memorize. Scripture is a powerful tool in the struggle to yield our hearts fully to God. Find a verse that speaks to you and the specific heart work you need to do. While your verse certainly doesn’t have to be a verse that mentions the heart specifically, here are two of my favorites, in that category. Deuteronomy 6:5 and Psalm 139:23-24.
4. Observe. Become a keen spectator of your heart vs. mind struggle. Learn to recognize the warning signs of an under-used or hard heart and head it off with one of the tools above.
5. Nurture. Cultivate heart habits. As you’ve prayed about your struggle, sought and memorized scripture to further inform you, and intently observed when you’re successful in yielding your heart and when you’re not, you should start to gain insights. You may begin to see patterns, times when your heart is particularly open to God {say, for example, first thing in the morning, before the distractions of the day set in} or times when it’s not and you need to seek a heart-opener to help the process along {like calling a trusted friend, listening to an inspirational CD, attending a Bible study}. Find and nurture these habits that help you live a more heart-full life.

What challenges you when you try to live heart-fully?

About the Author: Elizabeth grew up on a small, 220-acre farm in the Midwest and lives today in the suburbs with her three littles (9,7, and 2), her husband, and their ditsy but lovable English Springer Spaniel. She’s a food freak, lover of all things DIY, and a reformed perfectionist She also has a habit of training for and running a half-marathon in the spring and then eating chocolate the rest of the year and avoiding exercise. A professional writer who’s worked in higher education and health care for the past 15 years, Elizabeth gave up her paying clients in September to work for a new boss. {She’s says He’s divine.} You can find her writing about faith, family, and nature at www.seasonswithsoul.com or follow her on Twitter @seasonswithsoul.

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