Heart Keeping
The systems of the human body are so interconnected that it is hard to say that one part is not essential, but I think we can agree that the heart is one of the most outstanding and vital organs we have. Our heart is perhaps the most amazing workhorse on the planet. The heart simply never stops--it truly works 24/7. The average adult heart beats around 100,000 time per day, pumping around 2,000 gallons of blood through 60,000 miles of blood vessels every single day. (Amazing facts about the heart Health and Disease, by Stephen Watson, Jan 11,2015)
If you were to turn the kitchen faucet all the way on, it would take forty-five years to equal the amount of blood the heart beats in a lifetime. (36 interesting Facts about the Human Heart, Jan, 11, 2015)
The heart creates enough energy every day to drive a truck about twenty miles over a lifetime, that would equate to driving to the moon and back. (Top 10 fact about the Human Heart. Jan. 11 2015)
Despite the Amazing energy and efficiency of the human heart this marvelous organ can give out. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for nearly one million deaths annually—more than AIDS and all other cancers combined, and by 2020 it is projected to be the leading cause of death for the entire world. (Heart Disease Scope And Impact. Jan. 28, 2015).
Clearly, in order to keep our incredible pump pumping, we must take care of our hearts.
Not only is the heart a remarkable organ, it has been used for thousands of years to represent our innermost being. From Ancient Egypt to Babylon to China, each culture had its unique but similar thoughts on the heart. The Bible also uses the heart hundreds of times, normally referring to the thoughts, affections and feelings. The first mention of the heart in the Bible is found in Genesis 6:5.
“And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” Genesis 6:5,6 Man’s heart had become corrupt, and it brought sorrow to God’s heart. Solomon exhorts us: “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” Proverbs 4:23 Not only are we to “keep our heart,” but to keep it “with all diligence”! Could this apply both to the truly astounding anatomical organ that literally gives us life every moment and our metaphoric heart—the seat of our thoughts, emotions, and feelings. “Diligent heart-keeping is essential to healthy growth in grace. The heart in its natural state is a habitation for unholy thoughts and sinful passions. When brought into subjection to Christ it must be cleansed by the Spirit from all defilement.” “In the work of heart-keeping we must be instant in prayer, unwearied in petitioning the throne of grace for assistance….The Christian cannot always be in the position of prayer, but his thoughts and desires can always be upward. Our self-confidence would vanish, did we talk less and pray more. Our High Calling 161, Sons and Daughters of God 99 May we truly be diligent heart-keepers—physically and spiritually.
Cody Francis