Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life (Proverbs 4:23, NLT).
The Bible considers the heart the seat of life or strength. Hence, it represents the mind, soul, or spirit. Everything we do, including our behaviors and emotions, flows from our hearts. Simultaneously, the heart is the most important organ in your body. As the heart beats, it pumps blood containing nutrients and oxygen to all other parts of the body. Think of your heart as the power supply for your entire body. Once the power supply is cut off, for example, during a heart attack, everything else in your body starts to shut down and die. Therefore, whichever way you look at it, spiritually or physically, it is crucial to guard your heart above all else.
Why should you guard your heart?
Physical reasons to guard your heart
Heart disease is very common. Moreover, conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, obesity, unhealthy diet, and physical inactivity are also very common and can lead to heart disease.
Furthermore, heart disease is the number one killer of women, accounting for 35% of deaths among women worldwide. For more, check out “The Number One Killer of Women.”
Spiritual reasons to guard your heart
Your heart is the wellspring of life, and everything you do flows from your heart. If your heart is polluted or corrupted, everything you do will also be contaminated. Therefore, you must guard your heart against pollution and corruption.
Also, biblically, the heart is where we make decisions. And your decisions flow from what you feed your heart or mind. If you put in the right content, you will produce a sound decision, and vice versa.
How to guard your heart physically
Physically guarding your heart means taking the steps below to reduce your risk of heart disease.
1) Eat healthy
Eat more fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and healthy protein sources, such as legumes, nuts, and seafood. Also, limit processed foods, sugars, salt, and alcohol.
2) Stay active
Regular physical activity is the most important way to prevent heart disease. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity 5 days a week.
3) Quit smoking
Nearly 20 percent of deaths from heart disease are due to cigarette smoking. In addition, secondhand smoke is also an important cause of heart disease. So, to guard your heart, quit smoking and avoid exposure to secondhand smoke.
4) Control your blood pressure
High blood pressure accounts for almost half of all heart disease worldwide. Therefore, it is important to check your blood pressure regularly. If you have high blood pressure, practice a healthy lifestyle, and take your blood pressure medications, if needed, to control your blood pressure.
5) Control your blood sugar
Check your blood sugar and get screened for diabetes regularly. People with diabetes are twice as likely to have heart disease than people without diabetes. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you can reduce your risk of heart disease with proper exercise, diet, and diabetes management.
6) Manage stress
Being under a lot of stress for a prolonged period increases your risk of heart disease. Find healthy ways to manage stress, such as planning a vacation, reading a book, hanging out with friends, visiting a spa, watching TV, etc.
How to guard your heart spiritually
Fortunately, the last few verses in Proverbs 4 provide some tips for guarding your heart. So, here are those tips and a few more.
1) Watch what you say, watch, and listen to
What are you being influenced by, listening to, or looking at? In this age of social media, the internet, videos, etc., our spiritual heart is being bombarded by anything and everything. More than ever before, we have to put up boundaries and filter what we allow in. In addition, what we say is equally as important. We must avoid corrupt speech because it will eventually pollute our hearts.
2) Have a goal and a purpose
Our minds need a goal or a vision to focus on. Find your purpose and passion, and plan to achieve your goals with God’s help.
3) Avoid distractions
The Bible warns us not to get sidetracked. Distractions are everywhere, and influencers are ready to influence you at the drop of a hat. Being influenced is not bad, so far as it is a positive influence. So, determine in advance who you will allow to influence you.
4) Practice forgiveness
Forgiveness improves your heart health and lowers your risk of heart disease. For more on forgiveness, check out “10 Heath Benefits of Forgiveness”.
5) Take hold of your thoughts
Research shows that people prone to negative emotions have a higher risk of heart disease. So, learn to think and talk positively. Also, being optimistic reduces your risk of developing heart disease.
6) Avoid toxic relationships
Studies show that adverse relationships may increase your risk of heart disease. Moreover, toxic relationships are not good for your mental health. Therefore, staying away from such relationships is crucial if you want to guard your heart.
Final thoughts
So, how well are you doing with guarding your heart? The older we get, the more critical it is to guard our hearts. The good news is that it is never too late to start. Being healthy is not just about our physical health but also our mental, social, psychological, and spiritual health. So, when you physically and spiritually guard your heart, as described above, you improve your overall health.
Physically guarding your health is a lot more straightforward to follow. On the other hand, spiritually guarding your heart can be more challenging. For example, you may need to figure out what to let in and leave out. Therefore, to make this easier, I want to leave you with this Bible verse:
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8, NLT).
Finally, please use this verse as often as possible to guard your heart spiritually, and do all you can to guard your heart physically by practicing a healthy lifestyle!
Please feel free to comment below and also share this article.
Yours in health and fitness,
Doctor Abi
