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“A perverse heart shall depart from me” (Psalm 101:4).

Susan had wanted the photo to be perfect. But it came back distorted and she realized she had moved at just the wrong moment.

Distortion is subtle. We often don’t know its happening. It’s a bending or twisting out of shape. It can happen in conversations, in creative projects, in paintings and in photos. It often isn’t even noticed at the time.

My husband laid some hardwood floor in our house last week. At one point several rows were down and we noticed an end in one of the boards had twisted out of place and a sharp edge appeared where it should have been smooth. Immediately he reworked the area to remove the distortion. It seemed small but in the overall view it would have distorted the look of the whole floor.

It’s much the same with our hearts. Jagged edges pop up of resentment, anger, negativity, self pity and any number of little things we rationalize away. Left alone they will create a distortion in our hearts that will interfere with the picture God wants to paint of our heart in connection with Him.

Psalm 101:4 says “A perverse heart shall depart from me.”

In the original Hebrew language the word “perverse” means “distorted” and the word “depart” suggests to “sour” or “decline”.

Normally we would never view our Christian hearts as perverse and departing from God.

We recoil at the thought! But here we are warned to be careful we don’t let our hearts become distorted. It can cause a heart to become sour and decline away from our God. Distortion is so subtle.

Are you feeling a sourness in your heart? Is there a slight decline away from your God and you are puzzled by it? Ask God today to show you if there is a distortion in your heart that you have allowed to come in by resentment, hurt, or some emotion or circumstance that has caused your trust in your God to falter just a bit. Ask for forgiveness and let God know you want a pure heart so you can see Him undistorted.

Father God, I confess to You that I have allowed distortion of my view of You to creep into my heart by some relational or circumstantial difficulty I have experienced. I recognize my potential for a sour heart that can decline away from You. I don’t want that Lord. I ask that You would forgive my wrong attitude and heal my hurt. May I see You clearly and draw near to You with a pure heart today. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Questions: Do you find yourself drifting away from God? Has your attitude become sour over time? Let’s spend some time asking God to forgive us and to heal our hurt so that we can again draw close to Him.

About the Author Gail Rodgers

“He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God…” (Psalm 40:3).

As we listen to the people around us and even to our own thoughts and words, it seems that it is time to look afresh for the song in our hearts. God is the one who puts the music of hope and peace and love into our hearts and He alone enables us to navigate the twists and turns of life with true joy that is not conditional on our circumstances.

Time in His presence is the very first thing we need in finding afresh the music of our hearts.

There are also 5 simple, practical steps we can add to our days and encourage others to as we seek to lead those around us to higher ground.

L……Leisure
Make sure you schedule some leisure time for yourself.  Especially in the midst of economic change it is important to look away from the pressures now and then and find some refreshing leisure activity.  Get creative. Make it simple. Take the kids for a hike, cook a meal with your partner, have some friends over to play a game and laugh together, build something. Give yourself permission to take little leisure breaks.  It may seem trivial to think of it now, but it can become a lifeline during stressful times.  It will also help kindle the relationships that sometimes get strained with the daily challenges that face us. Plan mini breaks.

A……Affirm
Look around you and intentionally find the good. Affirm the positive things you see and hear.  Negativity is so easy to slip into and it can permeate you life like smoke permeates a forest. It clouds your thinking too. Affirm your loved ones regularly. When pressures in life mount up we tend to take it out on those we love the most. Be intentional in affirming the relationships you treasure and guard them in changing times. Look for the positive.

U…..U-turns
Allow yourself the freedom of making a U turn in life. If the direction you are going needs changing then make the change necessary. If you want a different job, take an online course and begin to work in that direction. If your marriage is feeling tense read some books on relationships, plan some positive times together or get some counsel. If your body is discouraging you make a plan to eat less and move more. Concentrate on the things in life that you have the power to change and focus some energy there rather than dwelling on the things you have no power over. Change what you can.

G….Give
Find ways to give. When life gets challenging our tendency is to hoard our resources. Give of your time to help someone out; coach a kid’s team, or do some repairs around the house. Give time to listen to those you love and hear the feelings behind the words. Give encouragement. Give kindness to strangers.  When you are feeling depleted, intentionally choose to give and you will be surprised at the refreshing it will bring to you. Be generous without using money.

H…..Hope
Dare to hope in tomorrow. Fan the flames of hope in your heart.  When hope feels scarce dare to hope in God to give you the strength you need when the road feels hard and rough. We all need hope in something beyond ourselves. God can provide that hope and that help when we simply ask Him to join us on the road of life and walk with us. He is the ultimate source of help and He is the one who can bring hope for tomorrow. Reach out for hope.

Lord, Help me to make time to be in Your presence where You can stir a new song in my heart. Help me to be an intentional influencer in these challenging days. Use me, Lord, to help those around me find firm footing in Your strength. Help me to bring joy to my corner of the world. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Questions: What step do you need to focus on yourself today? Are you making time to be in God’s presence so He can give you a new song in your heart?

About the Author Gail Rodgers

Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, Hiding Among the Trees, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog

Being famous is a trade. It has a cost. There is sacrifice involved when you gain an ounce of fame and find your picture pasted next to Jessica Simpson’s in US Weekly.

“You don’t know who is here for the glamour, for the gossip factor. You really just want to know that somebody loves you for you. It’s a difficult thing when you really like an ATM machine with a wig on it.” – Mariah Carey

“It can make you feel very lonely. You’re constantly wondering if people are using you.” – Kirsten Dunst

“The biggest detriment of my life is tabloid fame. It removes me from people. When I first meet someone, it is so hard for me to overcome everything they’ve read about me. It’s not fair.” – Reese Witherspoon

“I never imagined that worrying about what other people think of me would be a big part of my day. But when you get that much negativity thrown at you, you go, “Whew! I’ve got to cope with that.” Nothing I heard in the press resembled the truth. What an insight for me.” – Meg Ryan

So apparently it’s not all glitz and glamour. It would be fantastic to fly on private jets and attend lavish premieres, but I’m not sure I could take the crazy social bubble and tight emotional strain

Do you ever wish you could be famous, despite all the pit-falls? Why would you want to be famous?

image credit: lobstar28