There is a saying, As he thinks in his heart, so is he. Growing up with that proverb in mind created some sense of awareness within.
You may be wondering why I had to bring that up. It is simple: we will be dealing with the same thing but from an instructive standpoint. That is, Guard your heart with diligence.
The instruction sometimes comes this way: Above all else, guard your heart. We will examine the statement to help you understand why this is necessary.
Meanwhile, have you read our previous message, The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things? If not, you should give it a read!
Guard Your Heart Scripture
Several Bible verses speak about guarding the heart, but the one that instructs with all diligence or above all else is Proverbs 4:23.
Below are the renditions of the verse in five well-known translations.
Proverbs 4:23 KJV, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”
Proverbs 4:23 AMP, “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life.”
Proverbs 4:23 NASB, “Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.”
Proverbs 4:23 WEB, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it is the wellspring of life.”
Proverbs 4:23 NIV, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
Note the differences in each version or translation; they can help you understand what the verse is saying.
If you noticed, one phrase is common in those translations put together. That is, Keep or guard your heart. And one would wonder what it means to keep or guard your heart. Stay with me.
What Does “Guard Your Heart” Mean?
The Hebrew word translated as guard is the word Natsar (נצר). It means to observe, watch over, keep from dangers, or preserve. It refers to keeping something safe from danger.
Your heart there is a translation from the word lib-be-ḵā (לבך) in Hebrew. It also refers to your mind or yourself. It has much to do with your thoughts, thinking, emotions, or conscience.
The words translated for above all else or with all diligence are Mik-kāl and Miš-mār. The transliterations for the word Mik-kāl are of all, from all, of every, as well as all. The word Miš-mār (translated to diligence) refers to imprisonment or confinement. It is more about limiting from many to one place.
A better understanding of the terms together is to prioritize the safety of your mind from all.
Therefore, to guard your heart means to watch over, protect, or preserve your mind from danger. When the scripture says above all else, guard your heart (or) with all diligence, it refers to prioritizing the safety of your mind or state of being.
In the United States, we have the Secret Service, known as the authorized body responsible for the protection of the president, his immediate family, and other officials of the office of the presidency. They are the bodyguards because they watch over the president above all else.
They are the Guards of the presidency as you are the guard of yourself. And in your case, it is your heart that you are guarding. The question now would be why you need to guard your heart and how to do it.
Why Do You Need To Guard Your Heart Above All Else?
Take note of this: you are your own boss. You are responsible for what goes in and comes out of you.
To my short story about the US presidency and the Secret Service, you may ask, Why does the Secret Service watch over the president and the presidency above all? The reason is simple: the president is the number one person in the country and is responsible for making decisions that either take the nation forward or backward. Therefore, his safety is a priority as the security of the nation.
If the leader of a country or nation is in the Lion’s den, that country is likely to fall or lose its hold. It means no one is safe. Therefore, the safety of the number one, in a way, assures the people of some form of security for the nation. That does not mean the security of lives and properties are left out as there are other security bodies, the police, marine, and the army, responsible to the general people.
The point I am trying to make from the above instance is that you and I are responsible for watching over our minds and protecting ourselves from foreign and dangerous objects. The reason is because everything we do flows from it. The King James Version would say, For out of it are the issues of life.
The phrase ‘out of it’ comes from the Hebrew word mim-men-nū (ממנו). It is translated many times in the Old Testament as at, any, some, of it, from it, and the like, depending on where it appeared. In this case, the term refers to the issues of life being at or proceeding from the heart.
THE ISSUES OF LIFE here is a translation from the word תוצאות, a noun word translated as RESULT in English. It means the outcome, product, or effect of something. That is to say, your life is a product of your mind. That is how powerful the mind can be.
The Hebrew word translated as life is חיים, pronounced as Haim in English. It means livelihood, the time that one lives or is alive.
You can understand the dynamics of the reason in this way: You should guard your heart with all diligence because from it comes the experiences of your livelihood, or the things you do while living are primarily a product of your mindset or soul. It further ascertains that as he thinks in his heart, so is he.
Does it mean that anything that comes to mind affects your life? Not necessarily. It is more about what you allow to settle in your mind: the thinking that is an intentional flow of thought or something you reason at will.
The idea is that initially, it may not be the case (as with what you say or do), but over time, you will find yourself replicating your thoughts in reality. Therefore, what you allow to stay in your mind shapes your life.
The sure thing is that selfish, evil, and sinful thoughts will come against good ones. They will come to damage your livelihood as well as that of others.
For instance, you could be thinking about yourself and what you can do to make life better for you at the detriment of others. Or you could be thinking about something you would do or produce to destroy another person and human lives in general. You could even allow other immoral thoughts that would lead to an addiction, making your life miserable.
Little did you know that all these are but a threat to you and the world. That is why you need to protect yourself against those thoughts. But how do you guard your heart with all diligence?
How To Guard Your Heart With All Diligence
The greatest battles in the world are said to take place in the mind, with many people losing the fight. They lose either because they refuse to guard their hearts or do not know how to do it.
Years ago, I wrote a not-so-perfect book, Three Things To Consider In Life Plus Their Influencers. They include the things you see, hear, and think. And their influencers are what you see and hear.
To guard your heart with all diligence, you need to focus on the influencers because the outside influences the inside to procreate.
So here are two main things to do to protect your mind from dangers or threats:
- Pay attention to what you see or watch. Watch the moral, discard the immoral.
- Pay attention to what you hear or listen to. Listen to morally sound things, and discard the immoral.
Engineer Desmond Ewa told us years ago, “What you behold constantly, you become.” It is not about the picture but the effect it has on you. It is not about the message, chat, or music but the aftereffects they have on you. That is why I identify them as influencers.
Also, what you see and hear produces food for thought, leading to the act. That is why selecting what you see and hear (pay attention to) should be a deliberate movement.
If we go back to the beginning, we would see that man saw and heard, and those two senses influenced man to the deceit and the fall. Not much has changed from then till now, but you can be the change.
Let us return to the anchor verse of this discussion and see what the context says.
“My son, attend to my words. Turn your ear to my sayings.
Let them not depart from your eyes. Keep them in the midst of your heart.
For they are life to those who find them, and health to their whole body.
Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it is the wellspring of life.
Put away from yourself a perverse mouth. Put corrupt lips far from you.
Let your eyes look straight ahead. Fix your gaze directly before you.
Make the path of your feet level. Let all of your ways be established.
Don’t turn to the right hand nor to the left. Remove your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:20–27 WEB.
To live a righteous life and be established in the way of truth, you must guard your heart by submitting your sight and hearing to the word of God. That is living in obedience to God.
The Psalmist said in Psalms 119:9–11 WEB:
“How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.
With my whole heart, I have sought you. Don’t let me wander from your commandments.
I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”
In 1 John 3:23 WEB, John admonished the people, saying, “This is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he commanded.”
“Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think about these things.”
