Heart Walls

     "Hard-hearted"
     "Tender-hearted"
     "A person with a big heart"
     How's your heart?
     I'm in the chapter of The Life Model: Living From the Heart Jesus Gave You that deals with my HEART. We've all had heart pains --- not necessarily the physical kind, but the emotional ones, when someone made a comment that hurt deeply or when someone we cared deeply about stopped caring about us...the scenarios are limitless. We can develop defenses which are like building brick walls around our hearts. Nothing coming in and little going out. We can be very careful with our hearts and stay safe.
     I've done that; now I call that "existing" not living. It can help us survive, which is a good thing! But I want more --- to really live, don't you?  
     My mother had congestive heart failure, which ultimately took her life. There was some thickening and hardening of parts of the walls of her heart. It has been a helpful picture for me as I work on my emotional/spiritual heart.
     Sometimes I allow pain to "toughen" my heart, and I need the Spirit of God, the love of Jesus, to soften my heart again -- toward myself, toward others who are struggling, toward those who are irritating to me.
     Lord, heal my heart!