The Undivided Heart!
I've had so many conversations with younger girls who are tired of living a double life. They love Jesus, but they're exhausted from trying to follow Him while still holding onto the world.
A double life can look different for everyone. For some, in high school it could look like giving into temptation on the weekends and posting a Bible verse on Instagram the next day. In college, it could look like getting hammered on Saturday night and showing up to church on Sunday morning. Those are just examples, but the root is the same. At the root of a double life isn't simply behavior of temptation. It's a divided heart.
"Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." Proverbs 4:23
Not some things. Everything.
Every word. Every relationship. Every decision. Every desire.
We spend so much energy managing our actions while ignoring the condition of our hearts. We compare ourselves to strangers on a screen. We strive for achievements that never seem to be enough. We search for our worth in people's approval instead of God's love. Little by little, our hearts become divided. Not because we stopped loving God, but because we've allowed too many other things to compete for His place.
Jesus started with the heart because He knew our lives always reveal what our hearts love most. Our words, choices, and actions are simply the overflow of what fills our hearts.
A divided heart is an exhausted heart. Part of it longs for God, while another part longs for the approval of people. One part trusts His timing. Another clings to control. We wonder why peace feels so distant when our hearts are being pulled in opposite directions. You can’t have one foot in and one foot out.
The invitation of the Gospel has never been to try harder. It has always been to draw nearer. The closer we come to Jesus, the more He begins to change what we desire. The things that once captivated us slowly lose their grip, and we begin to want what He wants. Holiness becomes something we long for instead of something we force.
When our desires begin to change, our lives begin to change. Our words become gentler. We become quicker to forgive, slower to compare, and more content in Christ. We don't change because we're trying harder—we change because the One who has our hearts is transforming them.
An undivided heart doesn't mean we never struggle. It means that, even in the struggle, there is only one voice with the authority to define us, lead us, and satisfy us.
"Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name." Psalm 86:11