Guard Your Heart
Good evening! I’m glad you’re here tonight. We have another opportunity to hear from God’s Word—specifically from the book of Proverbs—as part of our “Summer of Solomon” series.
Let me start by saying: I love Solomon. I especially love the book of Ecclesiastes. That book is incredibly sobering, because it gives us insight into the reality of life—how short, abrupt, and brief it is. That truth brings perspective.
Solomon, as you know, was the son of David. When he was given the responsibility to lead Israel, he recognized his inexperience and asked God for wisdom. Because of that, God blessed him with wisdom and many other things as well.
But here’s the truth: like Solomon—and like us—we all have a mind. We all have a heart. And Solomon says very clearly in Proverbs: “Guard your heart.”
Now, when we talk about the heart, we’re not referring to the organ that pumps blood. We’re talking about your mind—your inner self. Who you truly are before God.
The Bible teaches us to guard our minds because we can be influenced by things outside of God. God told Israel to constantly read His Word—when rising, walking, eating, going to bed—because they were entering a land where people weren’t thinking about God. He warned them: if you don’t guard your heart, you’ll become just like the people I’m driving out.
And sadly, they did. They fell into the same behaviors as the nations around them, which led to Babylonian captivity.
So today, we still need to guard our hearts. That means:
- Watch what you watch.
- Watch who you listen to.
- Watch the narratives you believe.
- Guard against mental noise.
- Guard against ill motives—both in yourself and in others.
Here are three key takeaways for tonight:
- Watch false narratives
- Watch your mental noise
- Watch out for ill motives
Someone recently pointed out to me how the Torah gives us commands—“Do this”—while wisdom literature, like Proverbs, gives us commendations—“You ought to do this because it leads to blessing.”
Take this proverb for example: “Answer a fool according to his folly.” In other words, never argue with a fool, because from a distance, people can’t tell who is who.
I used to love debating—my background is in religion and philosophy. But the Bible teaches a better way to engage. “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath. Because human anger doesn’t produce God’s righteousness.
Tonight, I want us to focus on the father’s wisdom to his son in Proverbs 4. Let’s read starting in verse 20:
“My son, attend to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh. Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.”
Let’s pause on that last line: “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.”
That verse is profound. You can read one chapter of Proverbs a day, but the best way is to take it verse by verse—let it soak into your life.
Guard your heart. Guard how you think. Because how you think determines how you live. Most of the issues we face in life are connected to our thinking.
Be cautious: - Who are you spending time with? - What are you allowing into your mind? - Are you listening to people who misunderstand or misrepresent the Bible?
Let’s talk more about false narratives. The devil is the father of lies. He told Eve, “You won’t surely die,” when she absolutely would. That lie was devastating.
Then there’s mental noise. Ever had your child talk to you and you totally missed it because your mind was somewhere else? That’s mental noise. It happens in conversations, relationships, decision-making. We create outcomes in our heads, and often we’re wrong.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” You’ve tried to figure things out before and been way off, right? That’s why we must guard our thoughts.
And then, ill motives. Sometimes we do the right thing for the wrong reasons. When I was young, I’d clean the whole house hoping my parents would let me go out. But that was manipulation. That was an ill motive.
Jesus said in Matthew 12, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” You want to know what’s in someone’s heart? Listen to what they say.
We’re all human—we mess up. But the goal is to grow. To recognize when we’ve let the wrong narrative, noise, or motives shape our responses.
Joseph is a great example. His brothers sold him into slavery out of jealousy. Years later, when he had power to get revenge, they were afraid. But Joseph said, “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.” That’s wisdom. That’s a guarded heart.
So here’s the challenge: Guard your heart.
Don’t let false narratives, mental noise, or the ill motives of others control your life. You’re a child of God. You’re a saint. You’re sanctified. You’re justified. You’re cleansed.
Let your thoughts reflect that.
Let’s be people who: - Think on what is true, noble, right, and praiseworthy. - Spend time in prayer. - Let God regulate our minds, not the culture.
If we’re going to change the world, it starts with our hearts.
Let’s close with prayer.
Father God, thank you for the chance to be shaped by your Word. Help us guard our hearts from false narratives, from overwhelming mental noise, and from ungodly motives. Let your truth regulate our thinking and define how we respond to others. May we reflect the love and grace of your Son in all things. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
