Ecclesiastes 10:2, “A wise man’s heart is at his right hand; but a fool’s heart at his left.”
Several years ago I visited my son’s elementary school. At the beginning of the class, everyone was asked to say the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. The teachers, because some of the students reached with their left hand to the right side of their chest, had to go around and tell the students that their hand was in the wrong place. As I pondered upon the event, the verse previously cited was stirred in my memory. I quickly understood that Solomon was saying the person void of understanding has his heart in the wrong place.
It is of great importance for us to have our heart in the right place. Every so often I speak to individuals who look back on their lives with disappointment. The words I usually hear are, “I should have done this” or “ I should have done that, but I’ve been foolish, my heart was in the wrong place.” The greatest way to prevent us from having so many of those experiences is to get our hearts fixed on the right things. I pray that our hearts would be continually fixed on:
(1) Jesus Christ our Lord. In Galatians 3:1, the Apostle Paul called the Galatians foolish. Why, you ask? Because their hearts had been turned from trusting in Jesus Christ, to trusting in their works under the law. Paul affirms in this chapter that the Holy comforter (Spirit) that they had received was not by the works of the law, but by them hearing and believing the truth of the gospel concerning Jesus Christ our Lord. Brothers and sisters, if our hearts are in the right place, we will confess that Jesus Christ is all our righteousness and hope of heaven.
(2) Our service in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Matthew 6:19-21 Jesus Christ said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Jesus, in these verses of scripture, is exhorting us to give more to His service and less to the world. Those things of the world are easily lost, destroyed, and taken away, but the spiritual things of God will help us. My daddy used to say, ‘the Spiritual things of God will stand even when the world is on fire’. I love the verse of scripture found in Psalms 57:7 which reads, “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.” May our hearts be fixed on giving praise to Jesus Christ.
(3) The reading and study of the Word of God. In 1 Timothy 4:15 the Apostle Paul exhorts Timothy to give himself “wholly” to reading, exhortation and doctrine. Even though this portion of scripture was directed to the man of God, it will find application, to some degree, with all children of God. Our hearts should be given to God’s word. The Apostle Peter would say, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:…” The greatest way to improve our ability to answer, is to give our hearts to the Word of God.
(4) The family that God has blessed you to have. I trust that every reader understands the blessing of having a good family. With that blessing comes responsibility. I pray that God would convict all our hearts to give more to that responsibility, that we may be saved from saying, I’ve been a fool, my heart was in the wrong place. Amen!