Reflections of My Heart

My Point

What do people see when they see me?

Me

There is a moment early on in the movie Titanic when Rose, now over 100 years old, exclaims that these are her things from the ship. When she picks up the mirror and sees her reflection says, “well, the reflection has changed a bit”

Many years had passed since she had looked in that mirror and her reflection was very different.

I have often thought that just as our bodies and minds age and we must care for them or they will break down, the same is true of our hearts.

We

If we look closely when we look at our reflection in a mirror, its not just our physical appearance that we see.

Do we smile easy?

Do we have that look on our face that says we are permanently smelling something foul?

Do we look tired or wore out?

Do we look like someone without hope?

Do we look lost?

Do we look angry?

When we look at our reflection, it is one of the rare times that we get to see what others see.

What do people see when they see me?

God

Jesus tells us that what people see, our reflection, is not just physical.

Luke 6:45 ESV

The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

What do people see when they see me?

Our reflection, or what others see in us, flows from the abundance of our heart?

Cynicism

Anger

Hostility

Impatience

Arrogance/Pride

Judgement

Negative Spirit

The good or bad person is not defined by what is seen on the outside but what is present on the inside.

“good treasure of the heart” vs. “bad treasure of the heart” relates to sowing and reaping once again.

What you put into your heart, is what will eventually overflow out of your heart.

“out of the abundance” this means something that is overflowing to the point of not being able to be contained.

Examples:

The person whose heart is filled with joy cannot contain it; it just flows out of their heart; it’s contagious.

The person with a critical heart cannot help it, it just flows out of them.

The hypocrite is the one who tries to disguise what is truly in his/her heart by manipulating what they allow to flow out of their life.

If we do not guard our hearts we will find ourselves drifting away from being like Jesus and more like the world around us.

You

Earlier this week we celebrated Thanksgiving and if you are like me it is pretty easy to be thankful because you are focused on it.

Challenge: Think of Thanksgiving differently. Not as a day to celebrate but a life to live out.

Psalm 9:1 ESV

I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.

“I will” indicates a decision to be thankful has been made

The act of being “thankful” acknowledges the power and sovereignty of God

“…with my whole heart” means in every situation, in all things, completely

There is no room for pride, cynicism, selfishness or worry in a thankful heart (Explain)

Illustration: Example a jar that overflows· Whatever is inside of it flows out of it

Just like the mirror, people see what your life reflects, what flows out of you?

“I will recount all of your wonderful deeds”

“Recount” means to count (quantify) and remember

The key to a thankful heart is to remember what God has done

In Hebrew this phrase “wonderful deeds” means extraordinary, astounding

This God in whom we entrust our lives is wonderful, extraordinary & astounding

What do people see when they see me?

When we fill our lives, our treasury from Luke 6:45 with thankfulness as in Psalm 9:1 our lives will reflect thankfulness above all else…

We

Louis B. Armstrong sang a song called “What A Wonderful World”

He names off a series of things that makes him smile and enjoy the world around him.

The truth is our world is broken and will never be wonderful until Jesus returns but in the meantime if we fill our hearts with thankfulness of all he has done, our world will be wonderful unto he returns.