Psalm 51 I believe is the most heart wrenching Psalms. It’s a heart filled and genuine account of David’s guilty, repentant heart. You see David knew he did wrong, he knew the sin he committed, and he felt bad because of it. Not bad because he got caught as many would feel guilty for, but bad because he hurt God’s heart. He knew the sin he committed displeased the Lord and David was a man after God’s heart, and the last thing David wanted to do was hurt God’s heart.  

 

Listen how David started his psalm with…

 

1 Have mercy upon me, O God,

According to Your lovingkindness;

According to the multitude of Your tender mercies,

Blot out my transgressions.

2  Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

And cleanse me from my sin.

3  For I acknowledge my transgressions,

And my sin is always before me.

4  Against You, You only, have I sinned,

And done this evil in Your sight—

That You may be found just when You speak,

And blameless when You judge.

 

This Psalm is a heart’s cry. And it’s actually a mirror of our own heart when we fall into sin as David did here. Sometimes things that we have done or have been done to us gets tucked away in dark closets of our hearts and forgotten about. And if they are not dealt with they will accumulate dust bunnies and grime and yucky stuff. Many times, we carry those things in our lives for years until one day without warning it’ll show its ugly face. So, we need to check our hearts and make sure that there is nothing in our hearts and lives that is hindering our walk with God. 

 

So, here are 5 ways to check our hearts and begin the process of a healthier you, physically and spiritually! Now remember, these are ways that have helped me, and I’m praying it will help you too. So, be sure to write them down along with scripture and anything that jumps into your spirit. Ask Questions if need be. 

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1. Examine our hearts

 

First thing we must do is sit down and evaluate our heart and life. We need to see what areas in our lives need cleaning. If there is any unforgiveness or sin in our lives that we know of, let’s get rid of it. If not, it will only create more mold in our lives, and mold is not pretty! And only you and of course God know the areas in your life that need cleaning or need to be worked on. I believe that we all know if there are things in our lives that are doing us more harm than good, and those things that are doing more harm, we need to get rid of. Only you and God know the areas that need to be worked on in your own individual life. 

 

• What needs to be improved?  

• What needs to be cleaned and thrown out? 

 

Evaluate everything in your heart and life. If you don’t know what it is, pray and ask God to reveal to you those things. He will, because He loves us and does not want us to continue to live that way. When we ask God, is it pleasing to Him? Because you are acknowledging that you know there are some things wrong and that you need help. And God can work with a heart like that. So, evaluate your heart and life…this is a start! 

 

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? —unless indeed you are disqualified.

 

Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me. And lead me in the everlasting way.

 

Psalm 26:2 Examine me, O Lord, and try me; Test my mind and my heart.

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2. Get rid of junk.

 

The only way to make room for the good things that God has for our lives is to get rid of the bad. Right! We can’t keep junk in our lives and expect God to keep blessing and blessing our lives with all the junk we have in it. God loves us, yes…but He wants us to get rid of anything that may be hindering our walk with Him so He can do new things in our lives. God today wants you to come to Him and lay all your junk at His feet, because He cares for us, and if we do, He promises, he will gladly take them from us and give us rest.

 

Matthew 11:28-30 says… “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” 

 

When we hold on to that junk whether it be a grudge, unforgiveness, anger, jealousy, envy, hatred, anything that hurts God’s heart we allow an open door for the enemy to come in and make himself comfortable in our hearts and lives. And when we don’t get rid of that junk, it will fill us with pain, anger, doubt, confusion, frustration, disappointment, and sadness. We become depressed and feel so lonely. That junk will create chaos instead of peace in our lives, it will diminish our joy, and can even cause us to lose hope in the only One who can give us hope…Jesus! 

 

Peace, joy, and hope are all things God wants us to have in abundance, but there is no room for all that good stuff when we are full of the wrong stuff. Holding on to all the ways we have been wronged or the ways we have wronged others does nothing but bring us into deep depression. And God does not want us to live that way. We were created to do great things and depression and junk is not part of that plan.  

 

• Are there things in your life that are just junk and cluttering up your life?

• Are there things getting in your way of serving Christ to your greatest potential? 

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If so, today get rid of that junk by coming to Jesus and laying them all down at the feet of Jesus. Get rid of your junk today!

 

Philippians 4:8 says “…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

 

Luke 6:45 says, “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart his mouth speaks.”

 

3. Gather your weapons

 

As you are examining your heart and getting rid of all that junk in your life that is weighing on you, you gather the tools you need to keep your heart and mind clean. Just as we would gather together cleaning tools to keep our physical home cleaned, such as scrub brushes, mops, and brooms etc.  All you need to clean your spiritual house is one thing - the Word of God.  It is your all-purpose cleaning tool and contains everything you'll need. God’s word says in Hebrews 4:12, For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 

 

God’s word is powerful and can smooth any rough places you have in your life. It can make what the enemy has brought into your life for bad, into something good! God’s promises in His word are for us and they are all “yes and amen!” No ifs, ands, or buts. You don’t have to clean yourself up first….no, you come to Him as you are and let Him clean you up! God never changes Y'all, He is the same yesterday, today and forever... He is not a liar. You can believe every word that God says about us and our situation. Every word that is between Genesis and Revelation is a sure word! God’s word is guaranteed to clean all our filthy dirt and grime in our lives. 

 

But, one thing we must do is confess our sins. The bible says in 1 John 1:9 that… “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” So, God is faithful to His word. God is faithful to His faithful. And What He said He would do, He will do! If we trust and obey Him. 

 

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

 

Ephesians 6:10-11 "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes."

 

4. Keep your home clean

 

After you have evaluated your heart and with the help of God you are able to identify those things that may be hindering your walk, or that junk that is harming your life and you have gathered your weapons for warfare then you should be mature enough to keep up with your home and keep it clean. Don’t get me wrong, we are not perfect, and we will fall, we will make mistakes, and at times we will feel like giving up. And what we have to do in those instances is use the supplies or weapons we have gathered to keep our spiritual home safe. Which is the word of God and prayer. God gives us His Word to use in warfare, but we must use it to keep our lives clean and to keep the enemy away. The Word of God says in Psalm 119:11… “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” 

 

If you are reading the Word of God daily then you are hiding God’s word in your heart. You have to be on guard at all times, because the devil is a sneaky, slimy liar who will slither his way into your life if you have any door open in your life. But you have to make a choice to not allow him to enter your life by keeping your home clean and closing all doors. Determine not to let it get to you, yourself God's Word and being sensitive to the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. Galatians 5:16 says… “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”

 

Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

 

Romans 12:2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. 

 

5. Stay connected to other Christians 

 

Life is not meant to be lived on our own, we need friends for companionship and fellowship. We need them to help hold us accountable. We need them for encouragement and to encourage. And sometimes the support we need can only be provided by our friends or other Christian women in our lives. The Bible, especially Proverbs, is full of principles on how to connect with people at the deepest level. It's one of life’s most important skills. Human connections are good medicine! This shouldn’t surprise us. In the Bible we read Proverbs 27:9 which says, “A sweet friendship refreshes the soul.” There’s something about a close relationship that refreshes us spiritually.  We were designed for intimate, loving relationships in which we’re enjoyed simply for who we are and not what we can do for others. You need people who understand you, who relate to you and who can connect to you.

 

When we encourage one another, we are sharing Christ. Fellowship among believers is vital for your spiritual growth. There’s something that happens in our hearts when we share in each other’s lives. We grow. We strengthen one another. Fellowship keeps our hearts tender.

 

Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. Hebrews 10:25

 

 Paul says in Ephesians 4:3, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” 

 

• Do you have that kind of fellowship? 

• Are you in community with fellow believers? 

 

If you had no earthly family—no parents, no brothers or sisters, you’d be an orphan. Don’t be a spiritual orphan. Fellowship with other believers is one of the greatest joys on earth.

 

Closing!!! 

 

So, as you are beginning the cleaning process in your life, take time to sit quietly with God and allow the Holy Spirit to direct you and you follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. Trust that God will never lead you in the wrong direction. I can’t say that you will never again have to do a deep cleaning, but if we don’t allow our life to get so cluttered with junk then the next time the enemy comes at us with a dart, we know exactly what to do. And then at least you will know how to clean it up. And just remember, we will never be perfect until the day Jesus comes for His bride. So, when you fall or make a mistake, just get back up and dust yourself off and keep moving forward!

 

Let’s make a commitment this week to sit down in a quiet place and pray and ask God to reveal to us anything that He wants to show us about ourselves that is not in line with Him. And let’s listen to Him!!!! And obey!!!! Amen!!!