Measuring Your Heart

As I write this message late Tuesday afternoon, I am experiencing the true inconvenience of wearing a Holter monitor as part of a larger scope of test my doctor is running, and, quite frankly, I am not at all happy about it.  Even though these devices are much small and less intrusive than they used to be, having a bunch of wires strapped to my chest and a pack on my belt is a pain.  Every time I twist and turn, I am reminded that my heart is being consistently measured.

Waxing philosophically and theologically on this, I am wondering if we realize that how we live our lives each and every moment is a measure of what is going on with our heart?  We may not have a nifty device to record every beat, but our thoughts, words, and deeds are much more accurate than some medical device invented in 1949.

What do our calendars, our checkbooks, our friends, our families, our co-workers, the stranger in the store, the rude driver on the causeway, the people of the Midwest needing relief from our UMCOR missionaries, and all the other things that make up our lives say about the condition of our heart?

Lent is a perfect time for us to measure the condition of our heart through this season of self-examination, confession, repentance, and self-denial.  A great way to test our hearts is to look at what we are 'giving up' and asking if we are more excited about how this has drawn our attention to God or if we are excited that today we are one more day closer than yesterday to getting back our indulgence?

Grace and Peace, Lamar