Heartily part 3
David was known as a man after God's own heart, right? Which didn't necessarily mean that he HAD God's heart. On that side of the cross it was, at best, a type and shadow of what would be available after Jesus finished the work. So what we see in Paslm 51:10 is the cry of David's heart. We see that he was AFTER God's heart. He WANTED God's heart. "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me." Now, as a real quick aside, I think there is a lot t be said about that word "renew." Especially in the context of what we're talking about in regards to the cross. To renew something means to bring it back to what it originally was. To restore it to how it was always meant to be. So this idea that man started out as "bad" and needed to be turned to "good" doesn't always hold a lot of water with me. Man was created in God's image in the beginning. What needed to happen was not a change from bad to good, but a shift from dead to alive. We needed to be conformed into what we were created to be. Which, of course, is a big part of what the cross was all about. Stripping away everything that didn't line up with our true identity as the Son(s) of God. Burning away everything but the consuming fire itself (Himself). Purging us. Cleansing us. Washing away all of the surface dirt that hid who we really were the entire time. When it's dark out, it's hard to see clearly. But when the light of the world shines we see that we ARE the light of the world! It doesn't just shine ON us, it shines IN us, and OUT of us! So we don't have to cry out the same way David did. That's the point I'm trying to make in my roundabout way. We don't have to search after God's heart. Because we have it. And we KNOW we have it. Look at Ezekiel 36:26, "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh." That's the shift that took place on the cross. We traded our ashes for His joy. Our stony heart for His heart of flesh. And when we understand that we don't have to be after His heart--because we HAVE His heart--that's when we can begin to do things heartily. That's when we can really experience the joy of living from the inside out. Because we DO live from the inside out whether we know it or not or believe it or not. Whatever you believe is inside you will come out. It has to. Your faith in it makes it too big to stay inside you. So the key is knowing and believing what is really in there. Understanding that we HAVE a "new" (true) heart and a right Spirit. Understanding that what is inside of us... is God. Love! And knowing and believing that love is inside is what allows us (equips and empowers us) to fill ourselves to overflowing with what we've already been filled with. To let what's inside come out BY knowing and believing that it's in there. Receiving and releasing the love of God is the key to everything. The secret of life is receiving and releasing the love of God. Keeping your heart by keeping it open! Understanding that God HAS filled you with His love and then filling yourself up to overflowing WITH that love by loving the people you come into contact with. Doing things heartily (as unto God and not unto men) means doing things to the best of your ability, and because they are in your heart to do them. Letting love guide your way. Doing everything we do in love. Out of love. Because of love. For love. If you let love guide your way you will always get to where you're supposed to be. Love never fails. God knows the end from the beginning. He--love--will carry you through. And that's not something you need. That's something you have. That's what (and who) you are!