GUARDING THE WELL

August 09, 2023

Water is the source of life. We can go 40 days without food but only three days without water. When your body (which is about 60% water) is dehydrated, your vital organs begin to shut down … quickly.

Knowing this, most great cities of the world were settled along rivers, for everything depends upon water. Where there is no river, wells must be dug if possible.

YOUR SPIRITUAL WELL

The spiritual life has but one true source: Christ Himself. Christ often reminded us of this truth.

Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:37-38)

GUARDING THE WELL

The wise Proverbs writer gives us a powerful reminder of how carefully we must guard the entrance to that Well.

 Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life. (Proverbs 4:23)

Our heart is the seat of our affections. What we love and value. Everything in one’s life is determined by their heart's affections. Whatever you think is valuable is what you will pursue, whether right or wrong, good for you or detrimental.

The Proverbs writer is not admonishing us to guard Christ, but to guard that in us which determines whether or not we will value Christ. What well are we looking for and drawing from? Do we love Christ? Do we value Him? Do we want an intimate, vibrant relationship with Him more than anything else?

Or has the world pulled our hearts away? Do we love the world and things of this world? Do we love fame and reputation and the applause of men? Do we value comfort more than Christ? Our worthless sins more than the Savior?

This is why God gives the “first and greatest commandment,” to love the Lord with “all your heart.” Not some, but all. If you have other things you love more in your heart, to that extent you will not pursue the only Source that gives life.

We must guard this well-door with “all diligence.” It must be constantly protected, for our hearts can stray with one look of the eye, one turn of the head, one random comment from a friend or enemy. We must intentionally guard our hearts, for if we casually turn our hearts from Christ, we will go in “silent search for other lovers,” as one has said. “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,” the songwriter observed.

BUT HOW?

How do we guard our hearts?

• By deliberate, intimate time in His Word and prayer, listening and waiting on Him every single day. By gazing on Him until our hearts are satisfied.
• By serious and regular self-examination and accountability with others. What has crept into our hearts affections? What have we begun to value more than Him?
• By immediate confession and repentance when we find something we think is more important than Christ.
• By a life of worship, humility, and gratitude which guards us from the foot of pride.
• By instant obedience to the promptings of His Spirit and the illumination of His word (for as we obey more and more, we increasingly see the value and joy of following Christ).
• By the consistent fellowship and teaching of His church, through which we let others remind us of the beauty of Christ when we forget.

Spiritual dehydration can happen quickly. Without constantly partaking of Christ, our lives will shrivel and die. Guard your heart so that no affection leads you away from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.

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