A Letter from Bishop Chris (October 2024A)

Friends,

Do you ever find yourself complaining and then realize you really don't have much to complain about? Yeah, I know. Me too.

As singer-songwriter Joe Walsh once sang, “I can't complain but sometimes I still do.” (Life’s Been Good). When you find yourself complaining, dissatisfied, or discontent without any apparent or substantive reason - you’re probably dealing with a spiritual issue — an issue of the heart.

One of the most important Old Testament verses is found in Proverbs 4:23. It reads, “Above all else, guard your heart; for from it flow the issues of your life.”  Everything in life flows from the heart. In fact, the whole outcome of your life is determined by how you care for your heart. 

When God’s word speaks of the heart, it almost never speaks of the physical muscle in your chest. Rather, the heart is the entirety of who you are in your inner person. Your heart is the real you, the true self. It’s the seat of your mind, will, thoughts, feelings, imagination, memory, desires, and conscience.

It is with your heart that you commune with God. Your heart is where you hear from the Lord and where you engage in spiritual realities. It is the new heart - the born again heart - that has fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Thus, it is crucial that we guard our hearts, protect our hearts, and strengthen our hearts above all else.

King David was called, “a man after God’s own heart.” What set him apart from everyone else was that he pursued God throughout his life. In his joys, he sought God. In his sorrows, he sought God. After his conscience was awoken following sin, and through his repentance, he sought God. And most importantly, when no one was looking, he sought God.

In this season of cultural anxiety and political tension, in the run-up to the November’s election, I want to encourage you to guard your heart. This may require spiritual practices like solitude, fasting, silence, confession, worship, and prayer. It may require you to go out of your way to do good to your enemy and to love those who are most difficult in your life.

If you find yourself complaining, dissatisfied, or discontent, I suggest it’s time to get alone with God, your Bible, and perhaps a journal and have an honest conversation with Him about the condition of your heart. As the Message translation states in Matthew 6:6 - “Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.”

When that happens, you’ll find your heart is being renewed.

Blessings,

+Chris Warner