Category: Bible Reflections

Why should I be concerned about discovering God’s heart? And what does “God’s heart” even mean?

In the Bible the word “heart” is used to refer to the inner part of a person where emotions and desires start, and which ultimately affects what we do. Depending on what commentary I consult, the heart is the center of intellectual activity or the center of our being and personality. At the very least it is the part of us in which we experience desires and affections and which motivates us to take certain actions. 

Although God is not a human being, the Biblical authors use human terms to describe Him. So God’s heart is the source of His desires and affections, which are described throughout the Bible. God’s compassion and mercy, His faithful love, His desire to be with us, all come from His heart. And His rules for living our best lives also come from His heart; since He created us, He knows how we function best and therefore gives us guidelines to live a full and satisfying life. Learning more about God’s heart will bring me closer to understanding what God desires for me and for others.

When I think of discovering God’s heart, I am usually reminded of David, who was described as “a man after God’s own heart” in I Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:27. Other translations describe him as “a man who shares my [God’s] desires” (CEB) or “a man whose heart is like mine” (EXB). I am so happy to have David as a role model for myself because David was far from perfect, so I can identify with him. He was an adulterer and a murderer and yet he never stopped being a man after God’s own heart at his core. He admitted his sins and turned away from them, and through a painful and sorrowful time, he was restored to a close relationship with God. Learning about some of the flawed main characters in the Bible (think of Abraham, Noah, Jonah…) reinforces my appreciation and gratitude for the mercy and grace of God applied to all of us who desire to be and do what God wants for us. 

So my “WHY” for the journey of discovering God’s heart is to become a woman after God’s own heart. To me that means two things: First, I want to grow closer to God’s heart, understanding His desires, why He created us, how He views us as humans and as followers after Him, understanding His compassions, values, standards, etc. I want to know more about God, but primarily I want to experience Him more in my life, becoming more aware of His presence and love and loving Him in return.  And second, I want my heart to become more like His so that I will love the things He loves and hate the things He hates. I will see other people the way He sees them and I’ll have compassion for them. I will understand God’s pain at anything that separates us from Him. When my heart reflects God’s heart I will love Him with all I am and all I have, and I’ll love others as myself.

One of the greatest blessings and most unanticipated surprises for me over the last 15 years has been the realization that God is still patiently teaching me more about Himself and what He wants me to know of His love and my purpose on earth. This has been a surprise because I had thought that after being a follower of Christ for over 60 years, I would have “arrived” at some elevated level of spiritual maturity. I thought I would have developed a full understanding and experience of the love of God, be consistent in my compassion for others, be free of nagging sins, and more fully understand the deeper things of God. While I am grateful for the spiritual growth I have experienced, I am increasingly aware of how far I am from the Christlikeness that I yearn for.

Actually, in some ways finding myself in this state has been a pleasant surprise. I consider my desire to learn from God and become more like Him to be a precious gift from Him. I am glad that God is still speaking to me, opening my eyes to scriptural truths that I can apply to my life. He is showing me layer upon layer of what it means to be loved by God. He is increasing my desire to love others and therefore to appropriately love myself. He is lovingly impressing me with practical wisdom and personal encouragement for growth that I find in the Bible. I am grateful for the deep hunger He has given me for intentional spiritual growth, and the challenging experience of searching for answers to questions that arise from reading the Bible.

Over the years I have kept notes of my quiet times, mostly daily, sometimes in journal form, sometimes just a few words or phrases that are meaningful to me for that day. (And sometimes just the Bible reference of the few verses quickly read before dashing out to work.) I occasionally write out very brief prayers responding to what I feel God is teaching me through a particular passage. 

More recently I have been revisiting some of the great hymns of the past that have been meaningful to me, describing my experience and expressing the praise and gratitude I wished to communicate to God. As beautiful and poetic as some of these old hymns are, I have found that if I translate these lyrics into my contemporary heart language, these old songs turn into prayers and conversations with God that convey my current thoughts and feelings. 

A few relatives and friends have encouraged me to share what God is teaching me as an encouragement to other women (and men?) who are also hungry for learning and becoming what God designed for us to be and do – those who might want to walk with me through my exploration of Bible passages, topical Bible studies, reflections on what I am learning from sermons I hear and books I am reading, etc., listening for what the Holy Spirit wishes to reveal to me and discovering more of the heart of God. 

I have been quite vulnerable in some of my quiet time notes, including the good, the bad, and the ugly. I do not intend to write impersonal devotionals for a general audience. I am documenting what God is teaching me and how I can apply these learnings to my life day by day. The topics may or may not meet the needs or match the interests of any one reader; they are notes on how God is feeding me personally. But it may be that there are others who have similar needs, interests, and questions and a hunger for knowing God better and growing spiritually. My plan is to post mostly brief “blogettes” at least once a week to start. I welcome any who wish to follow along with me.