Check Your Heart

By Pastor Bob Rasmussen

Good morning everyone and welcome to those watching online – YouTube, Facebook, Roku, CWM, and our website.

Pastor Jeff shared a message last week called “Check your vision” which I really enjoyed. There have been a lot of thoughts swirling around in my mind on different things to preach on or about. There is one that has been bearing down on my spirit, since the beginning of the year.

Jeff mentioned a little spiritual dryness at the end of last year. I, too, felt there was a bit of spiritual dryness at the end of last year. I know that my “feeling” spiritual is not something that I can fault God for. There are times when we go through things that can make us feel like that.

We had the holidays, which seemed more like work for me than something I enjoyed. Something was just a little different. Which leads to my topic this morning, and that is checking your heart.

As most of you know, I had to take Diana to the ER. We had some concerns so we had to get her checked out. Praise the Lord, it was not what we thought it might be. But in all the tests and blood draws, they did find something else.

They decided that they had two options, they could keep her overnight, or they could send her home with a heart monitoring device. If you know anything about Diana, she took option two and said “we are out of here”!

I don’t know if any of you have worn a halter monitor with the leads attached to your chest with the wires all over. It all connects to a device, it’s bulky, and the leads come off all the time. It was messy.

The device that they sent Diana home was made by Phillips and it is called the Phillips Mobile Cardiac Telemetry. It was quite an upgrade compared to the older system.

Diana had a small device. She had to apply a holder that had some leads that were built into a single unit. She would plug the device into the holder, and it would then communicate with a paired phone via Bluetooth. They provided the phone, and the device had to be charged daily.

She had to wear that for a week. She would groan every time she walked away from the phone while wearing the device, because it was supposed to stay within 30 feet while it did whatever it did.

One time we could not find the phone, and there is no “find my device” like our iPhones so we had to look and find it.

Anyways, after a week, she placed the device in a box, and we shipped it off for them to get the data downloaded and reviewed by a cardiac team. We found out that she was in the process of cardiac triage.

I think we were both happy that part was done, probably Diana more than me. The greatest comfort I had was that if they were willing to wait a week for the data, it was something we might have to deal with, but it was not an emergent situation.

I thought a lot about that device and how it would be nice if we all had one of those for our hearts, not the physical, but the spiritual, amen. The heart of each and everyone of us is important. It is what makes humans who we are; it is the core of our existence and purpose. And the condition of our hearts impacts our relationship with God, amen?

Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

That word diligence in the Hebrew is mishmar, which means to guard diligently. It is a strong word letting us know how important it is to keep our hearts focused on God.

One of the things that the device Diana wore was that it was recording any anomalies, and it would alert her. But it only happened once, if I am not mistaken.

And I thought, wouldn’t that be nice, if we could have a device that when we were not within the will of God with our hearts, we would get a notification saying hey, check your heart!

Luckily, we do have that, and that is the Holy Spirit that dwells within us. We really emphasize Acts 2:38 not only because it is the way to salvation, but also because of that gift of the Holy Ghost.

Ephesians 1:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Until Jesus comes back, we are promised He is with us.Now, I have had quite a challenging week last week. A lot of late nights, not planned by me.

The worst one was on Wednesday when I was working in Monroe. I was working on a blood pressure machine kiosk of all things.

I was there to replace a cellular antenna and a computer. The scope of work seemed clear to me until I got there.I swapped the antenna easily. But when it came to the computer, it was as if all of the enemies’ minions attacked me!

I have been pretty sick with whatever has been going around, really, really congested. This thing was located in the pharmacy, by the readers, you all know what those are? And next to the cold medicine.

Also, what the scope of work did not tell me was that I had to use AI to swap the computer. I pulled the unit out enough to get the door open and keep the aisle clear for what seemed like half the population of Monroe, who were also as sick as I was.

The very first thing is that this lady steps right where I am working and proceeds to pick out 5 pairs of readers after comparing at least 20 of these things. I could feel my blood boiling.

As I started using the AI on the internet, it kept looping. I would complete a step and then send me back two steps. And it kept doing it. And then it would randomly zoom xtra large then xtra small, so much so that I almost bought a pair of those readers.

Some of the steps required me to get on the floor and add or remove some of the associated cabling. But people, because they are so kind, would run their carts into me, or their walker, or even one of those motorized carts.

I was beyond furious and was going to lash out when the Holy Spirit stepped in and told me to step away. Take a breath, put on some worship music, and pray for strength. When I was about to pray, I was reminded of Romans 8:26

Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

I was praying in the spirit, because what I would have prayed would have been too fleshly, too full of me, so I yielded to Him, and prayed.Because of that moment, you will not see me on some reel or video called “man freaks out and yells at people at WalMart”. Thank you, Lord. The Lord calmed me down, and I was able to get right spiritually.

But take note, there were a couple of key takeaways from this adventure for me.

One, that is my last Kiosk Job I will do for that company.
Two, that no matter what we are going through, the Holy Spirit will help – if we let him.

That can be a challenge. When we are angry, when we are sad, or when we are frustrated, we are so focused on our situation that we are less sensitive to the Spirit. It can be a filter against it.

That is why I think it is so important to listen to what the Word tells us so that we are more in tune with Him.

Galatians 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

The word is telling us to habitually, routinely, and daily walk in the Spirit. Seeking Him and looking for His guidance. Because all of the sinful nature areas, like anger, hostility, and envy, are the opposite of the Holy Spirit.

We have the manual on how to do it – it’s God’s Word. If only we would read it and walk it in our lives. We can train ourselves to be spiritually mature by being faithful in walking out that Word, daily.

Diana’s device also had another function; if she felt anything out of the ordinary or she had a symptom, there was a button on the phone to record that event.We all know ourselves pretty well, we know when we don’t feel well, we know when something is out of whack.

I mentioned I was sick last week. There were symptoms. I should have bought some stock in Kleenex or whoever makes them. Boxes and boxes. My van was full of them. There were symptoms that I was ill.

The same thing can be true of our own heart conditions. Now that we are one of His children, the things that go against His Nature and His Character, they just don’t feel right.

When in the past we welcomed anger and drama in our lives, now we treasure things like grace, we treasure peace, and love that which is good.

So we know that when there is a heart event spiritually, the button that we need to press is the prayer button. To ask God into the moment, into our hearts, to help us.There is no better heart doctor in the Universe than Jesus Christ. He can instantly minister to our hearts and bring us closer to Him.

We can also read His Word to bring it into our hearts.

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. 27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

And another of my favorite scriptures:

John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Hallelujah and amen.That is why I and every preacher before us and that will come after us will tell you to read the Word on your own. To read it with that Holy Spirit, so more of who He is will be revealed to you. There is a time coming that we may not have it if the enemy gets His way.

That is something most likely will not do, sad to say. In this day and age of snippets, reels, and video saturation, the ability and desire to seek the truth are waning.

Diana and I like to cook different things, but now it seems you really have to seek a little harder to find a recipe on the internet that doesn’t have a video, rather than words you can just use.

So what they end up absorbing and putting in their hearts is only what they are told or see.

There is an up-and-coming Democrat in Texas who is an example of how people are being led. His Name is James Talarico.I came across a video of him talking about the Apostle Paul

“The Bible is all over the place when it comes to marriage,” he claimed. “Paul tells us not to get married, and you certainly see many different kinds of marriages throughout Scripture. The same with gender. Paul says that in Christ, there is neither male nor female, which is pretty woke for the first century.”

This kind of language will not attract God’s children; we know the truth. But it will attract those who are lost. It will attract those whose identity is in the world, not in the Word. It sounds good, and it feels good for some, but it is not the truth.

That is why I cling to this scripture:

Psalm 119:10 With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. 1 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

Yes and amen, it’s only going to get crazier.

That third thing that Diana’s device did was it took everything from the heart monitoring, and sent it to her cardiologist for review and a care plan.

Now we are playing the waiting game. We are hopeful and trusting God during this process. Diana had her heart healed once; I believe God can do it again. But no matter the outcome, we will get through it together with God, amen?

Now our Lord Jesus – He is always ready and able to deal with the matters of our hearts. I want to share a scripture with you this morning that I have felt the need to share since the beginning of the year.

As we read this scripture, we have a business meeting after church this morning. It is a time to review the year from a financial aspect and see where we are at for the upcoming year.

I would argue that it is also a great time to take a moment and pray for direction, pray for revelation for the will of God as it applies to this body of believers. To pray for what God would have you do for the kingdom this year, amen?

At the beginning of Joel 2, we are given a very vivid description of the judgment that will come in the form of a mighty army. We do not have time to read it all, but it is very powerful imagery of the day of the Lord.

In verses 6-11 it paints a very powerful judgment that will be delivered by this army of the Lord and ends with these words:

Joel 2:10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: 1 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

Yikes, that should put the fear of God in anybody. Because He is so great and so powerful. But then in Joel 2:12 we hear this:

Joel 2:12 Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

The Lord is saying, even now! Turn, come to me! Come to me, lay your heart out. Sincere repentance means turning to God away from sin. Sincere repentance requires all of our hearts, amen?

There is a warning here that real repentance requires action that includes fasting or weeping. I think some Christians can get too comfortable in their lives, thinking they are doing everything right, without giving time to God in prayer or fasting. He will reveal what is not right or what needs to change, if we give Him the opportunity.

If I want to know if I am doing everything right, I’ll just ask myself. If I need to know what needs to change, I’ll ask God.

Joel 2:13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

If you are or were Jewish, something that they do in their culture when they are very sorrowful is rip their clothes. It was an outward projection of how they felt internally. The Lord is not looking for outward demonstrations, but internal.

The Lord does not want fake repentance. That word ‘rend’ in one of my reference materials means ‘cut it out’! Open heart surgery with Jesus has no side effects and only positive results, amen. I think this is so beautiful in that Jesus wants all of us, and His response will be what? Merciful, it will not be angry, it will be gracious.

Some of us, some of us think I will give him 80% of my heart, because 20% might be shame, or 15% guilt, or 20% anger. Some of us love to hang on to anger; we like to keep it tucked in there and let it out once in a while because it feels good.

Some of us are too ashamed to give God all of it. Maybe it is something we did, or maybe it is something that was done to us. Here’s the thing, He already knows.

AMP Psalm 139:4 Even before there is a word on my tongue [still unspoken], Behold, O Lord, You know it all.

Whatever you have been through, whatever you have done, He already knows, and He wants to free you from it, if only you will rend your heart to Him.

If things are going great and you think all is well, take a moment anyway and ask Jesus if all is well.

Psalm 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Our relationship with Jesus is not data-driven with monitoring devices, phones, or technology. Our relationship was paid for with the blood of Jesus as payment for our sin debt. We could not do it ourselves.

When He defeated death and rose again, He sent His Holy Spirit to be with us until His return. We have His Word, and because of all He did, we have access to the Father. Jesus wants that for everybody.

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

If that is you this morning, you must do a little more than just believe. The bible tells us what to do in Acts 2:38-39. As we open up this altar this morning, let us think on that scripture:

Psalm 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.