Keep the Heart

In Christ Unconditionally: Heart Conditions Bible Application Study

Teachback Tuesday-Signs of a Controlling Person Jul 18, 2022

Show notes

Welcome to Teachback Tuesday, where we replay the most popular episodes from the previous season. "Signs of a Controlling Person" was downloaded thousands of times over the past year. Could it have anything to do with the reality that this is a common struggle? The desire to control the outcomes and people in our lives truly is a frequent temptation. It’s a flawed thread that runs throughout the fabric of our lives, making us tense and anxious. Why would anyone want to be high-strung and controlling on purpose?

I don’t think we really want to be controlling. It’s a tendency that comes with our carnal nature, and it feeds off of imaginations that we think we know what’s best.

We can trick ourselves into believing that if we manipulate situations just right, things will turn out according to our desires. The problem with this plot is that we’re out of line. People with control issues also have major trust issues, and the lack of trust starts with God and then works its way down into other relationships.

How can we learn to let go of our controlling tendencies? Let’s just consider three signs of a controlling person, followed by suggestions on ways to abandon this draining habit.

Mirror Talk: A Journey from Hurt to Healing Through God's Redemptive Love

Encouragement for Women: 30-Day Devotional

NEW! Olive Snap-Flap Compact Bible

Build Your Bible Habit-Proverbs Chapter 26 Jul 14, 2022

Show notes

BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter 26 on Build Your Bible Habit. This chapter is filled with commentary about the fool. The term “fool” seems harsh, but it’s more like a diagnosis than a label. One of the plagues of a fool is imagining that they are wise.

Did you know that the word “fool” also carries the meaning of an arrogant person? We tend to think of a fool as someone who is a simpleton or silly, but arrogance is woven into the word as well. This makes sense when we remember that beneath any foolish action is a root of pride. The absence of Scripture creates a void that is often filled with self-centered philosophies.

The less time we spend in Scripture, the more opportunities we have to make things up as we go along. Beware of our own human tendencies to think that we are wiser than God. This chapter is full of word pictures, and as usual, we’ll find additional instructions about other issues of life as well.

PERFECT GIFT: Pink & Brown Compact Bible

SO UNIQUE! Rose Gold Embossed Compact Bible

T-SHIRT: "Be Like Jesus is Better Than You Do You"

Books & Bibles in the Shop at Keep the Heart

We Don’t Have to Be So Broken Down Jul 11, 2022

Show notes

It’s becoming so common to live broken down spiritual lives that spiritually healthy people are often seen as unusual and maybe even slightly abnormal. We keep trying to fix the surface things in our lives, failing to see the connection to what’s going on inside our hearts and minds. The more we try our self-help techniques and experiments, the less money and time we have, but we’re still living broken down lives. This doesn't make sense.

So much of what happens in our lives begins internally, not just externally. The external things will happen daily, but our responses to the dailies are coming from our spirits. Having a meltdown is merely a symptom of the need for more spiritual health. Instead of looking at that negatively, why not tilt the head and consider another angle: we all need God’s help to become spiritually healthy. We weren’t born that way, so God has to teach us how to master this fine art of biblical living.

How can we stop being so broken down? We'll consider four areas where we can cooperate with God as He trains us to increase and improve our strength.

In Christ Unconditionally: Heart Conditions Bible Study

In Christ Unconditionally: New Testament Bible Study

In Christ Unconditionally: Old Testament Bible Study

In Christ Unconditionally: Heart Conditions Bible Application Study

Build Your Bible Habit-Proverbs Chapter 25 Jul 07, 2022

Show notes

BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter 25 on Build Your Bible Habit. This chapter reads like an instruction manual on how to interact with others, both in public and private situations. The key to benefiting from Proverbs is to put these verses into practice. Wisdom without application keeps people stuck, but when wisdom is applied to daily living, that’s when we see positive changes.

Are you beginning to crave more Bible study? If so, here’s a suggested system to add to your daily Proverb. Read five chapters of Psalms, 30 verses apart, with your Proverb of the day. For instance, if you’re reading Proverbs 25, you’ll add Psalm 25, 55, 85. 115, and wrap it up with Psalm 145. That’s five chapters from Psalms, 30 verses apart. Of course, you could simplify this and just put your book mark in Psalms and read five chapters in a row instead of using the 30-verse system, but either way, you will have finished both Psalms and Proverbs by the end of 31 days. You will notice a difference in your habits, thought processes, and relationships. Building a Bible habit enriches our lives.

Teachback Tuesday-Escaping the Envy Trap Jul 04, 2022

Show notes

Welcome to Teachback Tuesday, where we replay the most popular episodes from the previous season. Proverbs 27:4 makes a statement and then asks a question: "Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?"

Who is able to stand before envy? No one. Compared to wrath and anger, envy comes up as the hardest of the list. It’s like a self-inflicted gunshot wound, causing pain that could have been avoided. There is nothing good about this consuming emotion. It’s such a spirit crusher.

One of the easiest ways to keep your life stuck in a dark place is to allow envy to creep in and color your world. Regardless of what caused the envy, exposing it to the light helps us to call it by name and face this foe. This episode shares three ways envy warps our world, and what we can do to escape the envy trap.

Mirror Talk: A Journey from Hurt to Healing Through God's Redemptive Love

Encouragement for Women: 30-Day Devotional

Build Your Bible Habit-Proverbs Chapter 24 Jun 30, 2022

Show notes

BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter 24 on Build Your Bible Habit. The overall theme of Proverbs is wisdom, but this chapter in particular focuses on the how vital wisdom is to our lives. When we try to manage our lives in our own wisdom, we often create expensive messes that we wish we didn’t have to clean up; but when we choose biblical wisdom, we’re choosing strength.

We do need more than the book of Proverbs to fully understand the Bible. When you’re ready, add a chapter of reading from either the Old or New Testament to go with your audio Proverb. Before long, you will have read your entire Bible. Take your time, but flex your reading muscles beyond the pages of Proverbs. As it says in Proverbs 24:5, "A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength..."

In Christ Unconditionally: Heart Conditions Bible Study

In Christ Unconditionally: New Testament Bible Study

In Christ Unconditionally: Old Testament Bible Study

There’s a Proverb for That Jun 27, 2022

Show notes

It’s no accident that the book of Proverbs is right in the middle of the Bible, and it reads like a flawless roadmap and a recipe book combined for our benefit. Verse by verse, Proverbs addresses the issues of life and what to do about them. You’ll find that these verses speak to many areas, making it possible for us to read, study, and then apply what we’re learning right away.

God is able to give us direction in ways that we could never come up with on our own. This episode takes several verses from Proverbs chapter 16, demonstrating how to put Bible application into practice.

Rough Patches: Temporary Marital Tensions

Ponder the Path: A 31-Day Devotional

Keep the Heart on Facebook

Build Your Bible Habit-Proverbs Chapter 23 Jun 23, 2022

Show notes

BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter 23 on Build Your Bible Habit. This chapter has a focus on temperance woven throughout the verses. Learning to control appetites and passions is a lifelong course. The key to mastery is practice through application. We aren’t merely building a Bible habit to store up information. We’re learning so that we can live it.

The more we develop excellence in our Christian lives, the more we wonder why we didn’t do it sooner. Many things that are healthy for us are not our favorites at first, but we wouldn’t trade the benefits. That’s how it is with Bible habits, too. When we apply biblical principles to daily living, we reap the benefits of wise choices and decisions. As it says in Proverbs 23:12, "Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.”

Ponder the Path: A 31-Day Devotional

Teachback Tuesday-Stop Talking to Yourself Like That Jun 20, 2022

Show notes

Welcome to Teachback Tuesday, where we replay the most popular episodes from the previous season. Have you ever criticized yourself? Many of us have done this at some point. It’s a common part of what I call the NHS: "Noisy Head Syndrome.” The problem with habitually speaking to ourselves negatively is that we run the risk of making our lives worse, not better. The episode, “Stop Talking to Yourself Like That” helps us to examine a habit that needs changing. Would you speak to a dear friend the same way you talk to yourself? Let’s hit the replay button and catch this lesson again.

“When we make our lives performances rather than acts of service, it’s not surprising that we’ll suffer from stage fright.”—Francie Taylor, Teachback Tuesday: Stop Talking to Yourself Like That

Ponder the Path: A 31-Day Devotional