ONLY GOD KNOWS THE HEART

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can share its joy.

Even in laughter the heart may ache, and rejoicing may end in grief.

Proverbs 14:10, 14:13

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Think about your closest relationships in life. Maybe it’s a relationship between you and a spouse or significant other. Maybe it’s a relationship between you and a parent or other relative. Maybe it’s a relationship between you and a dear friend. Hopefully, we all have at least one person we feel near to in life.

But no matter how close you think you are to someone, I would submit to you that you really don’t know how that person is feeling unless they confide in you, and I have had a lot of close relationships where I discovered just how easily people can mask how they are really feeling inside. On the surface, they become good at disguising how they really feel within.

This is why I say, as the title of this devotion indicates, that only God knows the heart. For only He sees into the depths of our souls and is fully aware of everything we go through good and bad. Only He sees our every thought and motivation for saying what we say and doing what we do.

We should always remember this when we try and conceal things in our hearts and minds and souls. Nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, is unknown to God when it comes to how we live. He sees every joy and every sorry. He sees every righteous thought and every sinful consideration. He’s there when we rejoice and when we grieve. No one else in our lives is like God, no one.

The proverbs for today support the matter of mortal man not knowing what our immortal God knows when it comes to the heart. Look at these two verses:

Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can share its joy. Proverbs 14:10

Even in laughter the heart may ache, and rejoicing may end in grief. Proverbs 14:13

God’s word is clear. For every heart knows its own bitterness as well as its own joy. No one else might know but the one going through these feelings knows all too well because it’s their heart. Indeed, a person may engage in laughter even though they are hurting inside and a rejoicing heart could find itself grieving within the same day. I just had a Christian friend have this happen. Fresh off the celebration of a successful venture this weekend, an event that she had worked with the Lord’s lead to put on, she returned home to the news she had lost a loved one. Rejoicing gave way to mourning all within a day’s time.

Is there good news in that? Can we find comfort in the midst of life’s circumstances that can change our experiences on a dime, taking our hearts on a rollercoaster ride of emotions encompassing a spectrum that can range from jubilation to bereavement, euphoria to heartache and heartbreak, elation to total deflation?

The answer is an absolute “Yes”!

For God is with us, no matter what we’re going through ready to share in our victories and comfort us in times of loss. When times are good, He rejoices with us and revels in our blessings. When hard times come, He knows what we’re going through and feels our every hurt. He and he alone is right there with us in those lonely solitary times when we feel alone and despondent. He always stands ready to show us hope when the way ahead seems hopeless.

Friends, as we approach the day dedicated to thanksgiving, let us give thanks each and every day for having a God who loves us so very much that He will never leave us nor forsake us, a God who can do all things, a God who is the best friend and advocate we could ever ask for.

Yes, only God knows our hearts and we need to give Him all our praise for that truth.  

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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