Our polarized society seems to operate in clusters where people only consider the voices which match their own lifestyle and opinions. 2 Timothy 3:2 warned of a time where “… people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred.” We seem to exist in such times.

Yet, Mark 12:30-31 states that we are to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” God commands us to love. But what does this love mean? Society at large uses the word love all the time, usually relating to possessions, destinations, or activities. We seem to apply energy in selfish, futile directions, then wonder why we feel so frustrated and discouraged.

Whenever we feel troubled in our minds, we must examine the condition of our heart. The mind is the powerful battlefield that controls the filter through which we view the world. Sometimes circumstances can skew our filter. The heart is our innermost being. The soul is our eternal spiritual being. We often feel troubled when our mind, heart, and soul is in conflict. Our mind thinks something different than what our heart feels. Our soul is saddened by something which seems like a logical decision. The core of the issue is a heart condition. Since He created us, the Lord knows all about us – mind, body, heart, and soul. Psalm 139:13-14 says “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” We can often give others the impression that all is well, but the Lord knows our motives. 1 Samuel 16:7b reminds us that “the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 

Praying to ask for God’s forgiveness as well as godly wisdom, healing, restoration, unity, love, faith, hope, and the fruits of the Holy Spirit are the best cures of any heart condition.

^“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” – Galatians 5:22-23