“And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple.” 2 Kings 11:11 KJV

Imagine if we guarded our heart and mind like a soldier guards a king. It would be like a fortress that cannot be penetrated. The decisions we make would be different due to the protection that is surrounding the most vital parts of our being. When I read that scripture it made me think over my life. If I would have guarded my heart and mind like the guard with weapons in hand; from the right and the left of my temple (body). I would have made better decisions and experienced a lot less brokenness in my life. I say to myself, if I only knew back then what I know now. But when I look deeper; I think about God’s Word. What was intended for bad; God will make good out of it to help other people (Genesis 50:20). 

What do you do to guard your heart and mind? Do you isolate yourself from others? Do you put on a facial expression that non-verbally warns people to avoid you at all costs? Or do you shut down completely in an attempt to protect yourself? Oftentimes, when we attempt to guard our heart and mind in our strength, by using our defense mechanisms. It does not work out well for us. We end up doing more damage spiritually, emotionally, and mentally to ourselves. 

It is important to take care of the spiritual part first and then everything else will fall into place. Bible scripture is one of the best ways to learn how to effectively guard your heart and mind. David is a perfect example of someone who was going through a challenging time while he was hiding in a cave. He knew how to rise above by trusting that God would help him make it through when Saul wanted him dead (Psalms 57). When we have a relationship with God and study His Word. He begins to teach us life principles and gives us instructions on how to implement those life principles into our everyday lives. 

Changing our mindsets will enable us to change our hearts. The Bible states that we are to carefully and persistently control what we allow our hearts to focus on (Proverbs 4:23). We are obligated to refrain from hurting others and letting others hurt us (Luke 6:31). To aid in implementing this concept. We need to keep from being offended. The Bible says that we are to look over an offense (Proverbs 19:11). When we get offended or mistreated, that is when we begin to guard our heart and mind. Because someone has done something to us; that we believe has hurt us in some way. We need to keep our mind focused on things that are positive (Philippians 4:8). Due to our perception of how badly we were offended. It can be difficult to train our mind from rehearsing the hurt over and over again. Which leads us into stinking thinking. To keep our minds in a positive direction; we can call on Jesus Christ to help us. He said that anything we ask in His name, He will do. So that the Father may be glorified in the Son (John 14:13).

Asking Jesus to help us keep a positive mindset will bring glory to God. When our heart and mind are in alignment with God. Good things will begin to flow out of us. We can begin to produce good fruit out of our hearts. Those good fruits bring blessings to us and it can bring blessings to others as well. Some of the fruits that can be produced from having a well-guarded heart and mind are hope, empathy, compassion, forgiveness, patience, kindness, peace and love. Those are just to name a few. 

I want to share some ways to help you guard your heart and mind in a spiritual way that will benefit you in moving forward:

• Read and study your Bible. You can use a Bible app like You Version to search words like heart and mind. Then begin to meditate on those scriptures. Get the Word of God engraved in your heart and mind to help you bring the scriptures back to remembrance when you begin to sense yourself going into a dark place (2 Timothy 2:15). 
• Praying and asking God for strength. Asking for a hedge of protection around your mind to help keep out anything that may hinder you from having peace (Genesis 49:24-25). 
• Have friends in your life that genuinely care about your wellbeing. Chose individuals who will uplift you and are honest with you (Proverbs 18:24, Proverbs 17:17).
• Have wise counselors in your life. The Bible states that where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors, there is safety (Proverbs 11:14). 

I pray that this post may help someone who wants to begin to guard their heart and mind using biblical principles. Until next time, may God bless you and keep you!

Click on link to schedule a free 30-minute consultation to learn how a Christian Spiritual Life Coach can help you in your spiritual life. https://bit.ly/2VnJEEL

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