Good morning,
The God who knows our hearts
We live in an amazing time in history. Not since the world began have people been able to stay in touch with each other world wide, day and night, and feel like they are having some control in their lives. Of course we have been told by other people that the same phones that allow us to talk to one another can also be used by other people or governments to listen to and watch what we are doing at the same time. There are a lot of people who spend a lot of time and money to make sure that this does not happen to them. Those of us who are God’s children can find comfort in verses like, O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. And even when we fail to meet God’s standards, we still know that we have a forgiving Savior, You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my every thought when far away.(Psa139:1,2) That wonderful Psalm can fill our hearts with thanksgiving and hope and peace knowing that our Heavenly Father is always with us, carrying out the plans for our lives here on earth that he put together for us even before we were born(139:16)
But when we think about how God handles all of us we don’t seem to understand that God isn’t just doing that for his family. When the Lord was talking to Jeremiah about the problems that he saw that was going on in the minds and hearts of the people of his day, he said, “The human heart is most deceitful and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?(Jer.17:9) What God sees and knows is what is going on in every person’s mind and heart all the time. What the Lord said in the next verse begins with, But I know! I, the LORD, search all hearts and examine secret motives.(v.10) What never seems to occur to us when we see bad people doing bad or cruel or unbelievable things, is that the Lord sees all of that from the inside out. He hasn’t missed a thing. In that same verse he makes a promise. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” Knowing this much about God helps us to understand when he says to ungodly people, “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans and turn their hearts away from the LORD.(Jer.17:5) Then he goes on to say, They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, on the salty flats where no one lives.(v.6) When people insist on living life their way, their lives will end here on earth fear driven and frustrated. Then they must face their Judge and King to hear his verdict for their future. However, for those of us who give up our stubborn rebellion and surrender our hearts and minds to our Savior he says, “But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence.(v.7) When God takes over, even in the worst of conditions he promises that, They(we) are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Then he goes on to promise us, Their leaves stay green, and they go right on producing delicious fruit.(v.8) Thank you Lord that you know all of us, good and bad, and you will never make a mistake in how you deal with us in time or eternity. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!
Jeremiah 17:10 But I know! I, the LORD, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”
Roy Wisner
