The pure in heart, the innocent? Remember when you were? Probably a very long time ago, but still today you always look for the best in others. You expect good things are going to happen and you have hope for tomorrow. That sounds pretty innocent and even naive. The world around you always looks to the bad news. Everywhere you go people report what is going wrong?
This is quite a dilemma! How do you keep yourself from being jaded by the gloom of our culture? The latest gossip and the current world crisis? Fear, anxiety and even panic threaten at first, but you quickly turn back to the innocence of your faith. The unwavering belief that you have in your faithful Father. The undeniable conviction of His unconditional love for you and the unfailing promises to keep you from harm. This is where your pureness is.
James 1:27 tells us: True spirituality that is pure in the eyes of our Father God is to make a difference in the lives of the orphans, and widows in their troubles, and to refuse to be contaminated by the world’s corruption. Yes, this is where you find your pureness of heart in keeping clean before your Lord reaching out to help and encourage others.
This comes back to the importance of the time you spend with Him the time you commit all to Him and the time you determine to go and do what He leads you to, through His Spirit. The time you commit to your relationship with God will, in fact, make His presence real to you. You will see God in all the circumstances surrounding you. Even when the outside world is falling apart around you, you see God in the love He gives you in a Savior, the peace He gives you through His Sprit and the joy He gives you in His protection and provision. James says it this way: Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 4:8) When you press in and get close to God, He will get close to you. The closer you get to Him, the closer He gets to you. By talking and listening with Him, reading His Word and getting to know Him better through His Word, you are drawing near to Him. You are the one who purifies your heart by replacing your worldly habits with ministry and God time. The more you hang out with God, the less of the world you will have inside of you. Now you can see Him.
Today I want to encourage you to purify your heart by replacing all the activities that take your attention away from you Father. I’m not talking about your family time, your family is your ministry, but I am talking about the things you give your attention to when you do have some down time. Don’t fill up with news, social media and movies, instead fill up with the Word, with messages and quiet time talking things out with Him. He wants us to be pure in heart, but we are the ones that make it happen.