Someday I Will Hear This Heart Again

Heart_Book Cover_PressReadyOn March 4th, 2000 our 22 year old son Paul and his fiancé Amy were struck by a drunk driver going the wrong way on the interstate. Amy was declared dead at the scene. Paul was airlifted to the hospital where he was declared brain-dead 3 days later, and we signed his body over for organ donation. (That was an easy decision because he had made his wished clear at 14 when is older sister was signing up for her driver’s license.)

Fast forward now to November of that year. I answered the phone one evening and I thought I recognized the voice on the other end as a friend who had moved to New Mexico a couple of years earlier. He asked if he and his wife could come over. I said, “Sure, it will be great to see you.” A half hour later the doorbell rang. When I opened it I faced a couple with their 5 children and I had never seen them before in my life. While my wife took the kids downstairs, I brought the couple into the living room and asked, “Who are you? Why are you here?” The wife’s name was Linda and she was Paul’s heart recipient. Recognize that the organ donor organization discourages contact, but a friend of Paul had left the funeral and was driving through the city where Linda lives. He stopped to visit another friend there and mentioned Paul. The friend knew of Linda and put the dates of Paul’s death and her transplant together.

Just before leaving the hospital we had each taken a few minutes to say goodbye to Paul. When I was with him, I put my head to his chest, listened to his heart and declared, “Someday I will hear this heart again.” That night eight months later, I heard Paul’s heart again.

Ezekiel 36:26 (NLT): “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.” The first heart transplant by men occurred in 1967; God has been doing them for 2000 years. The recipient of that first heart lived 18 days; God’s transplant brings eternal life. Of course, I’m not talking about the cardiac muscle that pumps blood through our body. God’s transplant affects the essence of who we are, the spirit and the soul.

You may say, “But Gill, I am born again.” The reality is that we each have stony places in our heart. I may come to God and say, “I surrender all… expect the pride. I give you my heart… but I’m not ready to look at the unforgiveness just yet.” Today we might be soft hearted or hard hearted, open and loving or distant and untrusting of God with a heart grown cold. The good news is He loves you just the way you are. But He won’t leave you there.

The cells in my fingers and in my toes receive oxygen and nourishment from the blood pumped from my heart. The old spiritual heart was corrupt. Mark 7:21 warns, “For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, etc.” What happens to a body that has been in the grave several days? In John 11, Lazarus, a friend of Jesus, has died and been in the grave 4 days. When Jesus asks that the tomb be opened, Martha objected, “There will be a stench.” Decayed, putrid: that is our condition with the old, dead heart. 2Corinthians 5:17 declares that I am a new creation, the old things have passed away. With a new heart I receive life and peace throughout my spirit, soul and body.

Let’s look at some Bible stories where God caused a change of heart:

  • Gideon (Judges 6) was so fearful of the Midianites that he hid his wheat in a winepress. In his heart he was already defeated. He wasn’t just in the pit of a winepress; his heart was in the pit of despair. When an angel showed up and called him a “mighty man of valor” he needed a new heart to believe it.
  • Elijah (1Kings 18) experienced a great victory against the prophets of Baal but when Jezebel threatened to kill him, he lost heart and fled. In his heart he had given up. Despite the victories fear dominated. God ministered to him in the wilderness to restore his heart.
  • Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1) heard about the destroyed city of Jerusalem. The dreams and hopes of the Jewish people lay in ruins, but God gave Nehemiah a heart to work and rebuild.
  • Jesus designated Peter as His right hand man yet when the pressure was on, he caved and denied even knowing Him. (Luke 22) He was consumed by guilt and self-recrimination that overshadowed everything he had experienced in his years with Jesus. His heart had sunk into a pit of failure. And Jesus reached out with forgiveness and restoration.
  • The Apostle Paul had a religious heart that lacked intimacy with God until he had an encounter on the road to Damascus. (Acts 9)

But not everyone will accept a new heart:

  • Cain had a jealous heart that pushed him into a choice to kill his brother Abel. (Genesis 4)
  • Korah and Dathan had rebellious hearts that chose not to accept Moses’s leadership and it resulted in the earth opening and destroying them. (Numbers 16)
  • Saul was selected by God to be the king of Israel but his proud heart lead to his defeat. (1Samuel 31)
  • Judas realized his sin in betraying Jesus but his unrepentant heart resulted in suicide. (Luke 22)

Matthew 22:37 tells us to love the Lord your God with all your heart. That doesn’t leave room for the old man, the old thinking. God does not tolerate competition. Matthew 6:24 (NIV) warns, “No one can serve two masters.” The old heart has to go.

I spoke with your doctor and the prognosis is grim. Your only hope is a new heart. What is required for a heart transplant?

Diagnosis

  • A heart transplant is reserved for the most critical cases.
  • I must recognize the devastation of my life brought by sin. Our original state is that our heart is sick, diseased and filled with sin.
  • I do not need an adjustment but rather a transformation. In Romans 12:2, Paul calls for us to be transformed, metamorphosis. It is the word used to describe the change a caterpillar undergoes to become a butterfly, no small thing.
  • Once the diagnosis was clear, Linda had to be ready at any time. Once the heart is removed from the donor it begins to die so there is no time to lose. She even had once where she was made ready for surgery and then the medical team decided it was not a good match. Am I ready for God to move on my heart?
  • If my physical heart were that diseased, if I was that close to the reality of death would I hesitate to put my name on the transplant list? Why do we draw back from spiritual rebirth? Romans 13:11 (NLT): “This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.”

Doctor

  • Transplants are performed only by highly trained and specialized teams.
  • In the 70’s I owned a VW Bug and with it I had The Idiot’s Guide to VW Repair. Today you can get an idiot’s guide to investing, politics, world history, even quantum physics, but there is no idiot’s guide to heart transplants. I can’t perform the surgery on myself. “Nurse, hand me the scalpel.”
  • I can try to change behavior on the outside, but that doesn’t go deep enough and as a result it doesn’t last. That is why in Psalm 51:10 David cries out, “Create in me a clean heart.”
  • God already knows what is inside me. He is looking to do major surgery.

Donor

  • The donor must be carefully matched to the recipient for a transplant to be successful.
  • Jesus the only one with a true heart of flesh. A transplant requires a donor’s death. Our son Paul didn’t die voluntarily but Jesus did.
  • Heart transplants are extremely expensive, over $1 million. (How is your medical insurance?) I am a total charity case. There is nothing I can do to pay for a spiritual heart. I must depend on God’s free gift.

Diligence

  • If your heart fails because of the high fat diet or your lungs are destroyed by smoking or your liver succumbs to chronic alcoholism and you are able to get a transplant but don’t change your lifestyle, the new organ will likely fail as well. Whatever lifestyle choices that led to destroying the first heart will destroy the new one as well. I recently flew to Orlando. I walked down the jet way, into the terminal and who did I find there? Me! Wherever I go there I am. A change of heart without a change in actions will lead back to destruction.
  • Exercise will strengthen the new heart. Spiritual exercise is prayer, worship and meditation. I must develop a hunger for God. That is not a hunger for church, but for the presence of God in my life and for His Word. I attended church for over 30 years but I did it out of duty and social acceptance rather than a true relationship. 2Timothy 3:5 (NIV) says, “Having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.” Since I received a new heart, do those around me notice a change in my lifestyle? Would anything change in my life if I truly let Jesus be in control?
  • I had better take my medicine. The transplanted organ faces enemies: infection and rejection. The body will attack the new organ. Our old beliefs will attack the new beliefs. The medicine I need is Gos-pills.
  • Checkups with the medical team will detect problems. Ecclesiastes 4:9 promises, “Two are better than one.” We need others to give us perspective, accountability and correction.

With a new heart I can have peace in spite of circumstances, joy amidst tragedy. With a new heart, His love directs my choices, His priorities control my actions. Philippians 2:5 “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ.”

March, 2000 was a time of great loss for our family but we take comfort in the knowledge that out of our loss came life. Before the transplant, Linda was confined to a hospital bed, barely able to get up and walk across the room. Her days were numbered without that heart transplant. If I hadn’t received a spiritual heart transplant, I would be dead spiritually, without hope.

I got to hear Paul’s heart beating inside Linda. God wants to hear the heartbeat of His Son in each and every one of us. What is that area that God wants to revive? Maybe there is a relationship that has been severed by betrayal. God can revive that relationship or entirely new one is on the way. There was a dream of reaching new heights but the dream has fallen to the ground and God wants to breathe new life into it. Perhaps it is the hunger inside to be right with Him but you have never felt a real connection. God can restore a joy of life and a sense of purpose. Listen, listen. Thump thump. Thump thump. That’s the new heart. Are you ready to accept it?

In conclusion, let’s reflect on Psalm 51:1-2 (ESV)

 “Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.”

If I Change

racoonIf someone gave me $100, would that change my life? One night out to dinner and a movie and that is gone. What if I had a new job? Give it a month and I’ll probably find something to grumble about. On the other hand, one thought can change my life. For me one of those thoughts was Romans 8:1: “There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ.” Those words began my journey to understand who I am in Christ.

My confession can say “I’m in trouble” or “I’m in Christ.” If it’s “I’m in trouble”, who am I blaming? My wife, my boss, my parents? Colossians 3:10 (NIV) tells us, “(We) have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” It’s time to put on the new man. That means to put on new thinking. Here is the Key: If I change, everything changes.

We have all heard of the witness protection program on police dramas: a witness whose life is threatened is given a new identity. They have a new name, a new home, new ID, but are they a different person? Without a change on the inside, they will go back to the same habits resulting in the same outcome wherever they go: stealing cars, doing dope, whatever. We recently traveled to Florida. I got off the plane, proceeded to baggage claim and guess who was there? Me! Wherever I go, there I am. I can’t get away from me.

What words define my life? Stress, financial pressure, anger, frustration, rejection. We need a new vocabulary. Ephesians 1:4-5 describes the new man, “Even as He chose _____ in Him before the foundation of the world, that _____ would be holy and without blemish before Him in love; having predestined _____ for adoption as a son/daughter through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His desire.” Here we are described as chosen, holy and adopted. Verse 7 tells us we are redeemed and forgiven. Often our attitude is, “I’ve always been this way.” “I’ve always thought this way.” “It’s so hard to change.” Who ever said it would be easy? But the reward is worth it. If I change, everything changes.

Have you ever see fun house mirrors? One makes your stomach balloon out, the next gives you a watermelon sized head. We grow up never seeing a true image of who we are. Words from friends or teachers, abusive or neglectful parents, a home broken by divorce, a dysfunctional family have left an imprint on our soul. I remember my parents saying, “You never follow through on anything.” That has always made it hard for me to push through to the end of a task. “I can’t…” “I’ll never…” It is time to get a new image of who you are. The Word of God is the only accurate mirror that can tell you who you are.

What is our excuse for not trying? ADHD, I can’t read, I failed in school. A tattoo artist had just completed a tattoo on a man’s arm saying, “Loser.” He was asked why anyone would want that tattoo. His response was, “It first must be on their heart.”

Let’s get our focus on a new self-image.  The world is trying to pull us off course, distract us from God’s purpose for our lives. James 1:8 warns that the double minded man is “unstable in all they do.” Here is a key to recognizing double minded: “but”. If I say, “I am in Christ BUT…” I am double minded. “But” is a U-turn. I am headed toward the in Christ reality, then the “but” jumps in and turns me the other way. The “but” cancels out everything before it.

Acts 17:28 (NIV) tells us, “In Him we live and move and have our being.” In Christ is our connection to life. I have rights as a citizen of the United States. When I travel overseas, I can expect help and protection from the local authorities as a US citizen. As a citizen of heaven my rights are exponentially higher: child of God, destined for heaven, protection from the evil one. In the natural, our identity may be from family history: divorce, addiction, abuse. 2Corinthians 5:16 says we are no longer identified according to the flesh. Paul goes on to say in verse 17 we are a new creation. We have a new identity, a new passport.

Ephesians 4:22-24 commands, “that _____ put away, as concerning his/her former way of life, the old man/woman, that grows corrupt after the lusts of deceit; and that _____ be renewed in the spirit of his/her mind, and put on the new man/woman, that like God has been created in true righteousness and holiness.” Success depends on change. Bottom line, I can’t change anything but me.  My past is my fault, but so is my future. I may want to blame others or blame the past, but the truth is it is up to me to change my future. Philippians 3:13-14 encourages us to step forward and don’t look back. If I change, everything changes.

Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re probably right.” If I am expecting my life to be the same (or go down hill) it probably will. Why not expect a miracle. In Psalm 23:6 David said, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.” Have you ever lived looking over your shoulder for a bully or a bill collector or maybe the police? Why not look over your shoulder expecting goodness and mercy? In Mark 2:3-5 four men brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus. They came expecting, so much so that when they couldn’t get in because of the crowd they tore a hole in the roof to get their friend to Jesus. Expectation is a magnet for the blessings and miracles of God.

Proverbs 4:23 warns us to guard our heart. Good News Bible puts it this way, “Be careful how you think, your life is shaped by your thoughts.” Are those thoughts in line with new creation reality? If I don’t believe it, I will never live it. Winning the battle in my mind will lead to winning in life. If I change, everything changes.

Surfers watch for waves. We have seen them in Hawaii, sitting on their boards for hours waiting for “the” wave. Demons watch for words and they will ride those words right into my soul. I can’t afford to say what my feelings tell me, what my family says, what friends think of me. Philippians 4:8 tells us to keep our thoughts on “whatsoever is true, noble, just…” We are to think on these things, speak these things. Next time you find yourself in a lousy mood ask, “What have I been thinking about?” There will be thoughts that led to that mood.

“My Mama taught me…” “Uncle Joe always said…” “My friend James told me…” What does God’s Word say? Deuteronomy 30:19-20 points out the choice: “I call heaven and earth to witness against _____ this day, that I have set before him/her life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore _____ should choose life, that he/she may live, he/she and his/her seed.” Choose life! Right thinking attracts the blessings of God. It doesn’t matter how many sermons I hear if I don’t change my mind. My life may change because of a miraculous touch of God but that isn’t the norm. However, if I have changed my mind, I’m ready for a miracle. If I change, everything changes.

What is the most important thing we can do as Christians? Pray? Witness? Serve the poor? Those are all good but I submit the most important thing is to change. All those other things are good but they will follow naturally as we change to be more like Him. We want life to be easy; God wants to grow us up. We want God to do something for us; God wants to do something in us and through us. If I change, everything changes.

One of my favorite things about the Bible is how honest it is about the shortcomings of the men therein. I think that is so we can realize that we can overcome our shortcomings too.

  • Jacob – In Genesis 27, he used deceit to get Esau’s      birthright as firstborn. Blessing will not override a lack of integrity. Jacob      continued to pay for that character flaw because character is the steering      mechanism for our lives.
  • Moses – He suffered from low self-esteem. He spent 40      years in the desert as a murderer, rejected and isolated. In Exodus 3:11,      Moses whines, “Who      am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”      Yet he went on to be a great leader.
  • Gideon      – Judges 6 describes how Gideon is hiding in the wine press when an angel      shows up and calls him “a mighty man of valor.” When Gideon gets the      understanding that he is God’s mighty man, he becomes the leader God needs.
  • Peter      – When Jesus first met him, Peter’s reaction was “Depart from me for I am      a sinful man.” Later he denies even knowing Jesus. Yet he is the one who walks      on water in Luke 5. At Pentecost he speaks as the leader of the church and      thousands were brought in.
  • Paul,      David, Elijah, Noah, Samson, Jonah… They all had their faults but they      didn’t stay there. Can you live as an overcomer? Luke 1:37 promises, “With      God, nothing is impossible.”

What is required for mind renewal? Joshua 1:8 commands, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Meditate on the Word. Like a cow chewing her cud, get everything out of the Word that you can. Part of Biblical meditation is speaking the Word. As our pastor calls it, “Mutter-tate.” As we declare the Word with our mouths, it takes stronger root in our heart.

I want to conclude this study with Psalm 1:1-3:

“_____ is blessed because he/she doesn’t walk in the counsel of the wicked,

Nor does he/she stand in the way of sinners,

Nor does he/she sit in the seat of scoffers;

But _____’s delight is in the LORD’s law;

On His law _____ meditates day and night.

_____ will be like a tree planted by the streams of water,

That brings forth fruit in its season,

Whose leaf also does not wither.

Whatever _____ does shall prosper.”

What was the key? If I change, everything changes.