Dear Daughters, Don't "Follow Your Heart"

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"Follow your heart and your dreams will come true."

"Stop thinking so much and follow your heart."

"Do what you know in your heart is right."

"Follow Your Heart."

What a great thought…what a detrimental way of life.

Now, I know most people's intention behind this statement is to "be true to yourself," "do what you love," "find what makes you happy, and go for it!" The problem? 

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9

"When a man's folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the Lord." Proverbs 19:3

My heart and your hearts are not trustworthy. The reason many of us feel like we are riding a roller coaster through life with no sense of security or steadiness in view is not because we failed to follow our hearts, but rather, because we choose to trust our foolish, sinful hearts above the thoughts and desires of our Creator. 

Our hearts fall right in line with this world when left to live in our fleshly, human state:

"For the world offers only the lust for physical pleasure, the lust for everything we see, and the pride in our possessions. These are not from the Father. They are from this evil world. And this world is fading away, along with everything it craves. BUT if you do the will of God, you will live forever." 1 John 2:16-17

There was a wise, rich king in the Old Testament. When he was young, he asked God for wisdom above all other things. God honored his request and granted him wisdom, along with all the riches and earthly possessions he could have wanted. His name was Solomon. Though Solomon started out honoring God with his life, he allowed his lust for more of the things the world had to offer to trump the wisdom he'd been given. What did the most powerful, wealthy man with more wives and women at his disposal than he could count, have to say about life at the end? 

"Meaningless, meaningless…utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless." Ecclesiastes 1:2

This is a common story among the "rich and famous" today as well. We always want more. Our hearts are never fully satisfied. 

So, what is the answer?

"Trust in the Lord with ALL YOUR HEART and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5,6

Daughters, it is my prayer for you, and for myself, that we would not honor our "hearts" above the Creator of our hearts. 

He is the only sure foundation for our lives. He does not "change like shifting shadows" (James 1:17). 

Let it be your goal in life to know the One who knows your heart better than you ever could. He wants to be known by you. He wants to direct your steps. He wants to give you the intimacy your heart longs for. 

Yes, He made you just the way you are with the gifts and abilities you have for a reason. When God is the Author of our dreams and aspirations and we make our decisions in light of His plans for our lives, only then will we be standing on solid ground…even if everything around us seems to be shaken. 

Lord, we give You our hearts. We know our human hearts can't be trusted. Our hearts, unlike You, do shift and change and deceive us. Help us to seek to know You, to stand on Your Word and truth, and to allow You to be our guide…even when it might not make sense to our "hearts."