Whenever God wants to do a thing, He plants the seed of His Word in our hearts. The devil on the other hand, cannot do anything except he manipulates and influences what is in your heart. This shows that the heart is a sensitive part of our human component, in actual fact it is the manufacturing centre for our future.
The Bible in Proverbs 4:23 talks about us “keeping our heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life”. Our hearts must be well guarded so as to prevent them from the prevailing deception going on in the world today. It must also be well nourished by the Word of God so that we can be able to rise above the formidable opposition that is coming upon the Church. Many times we think we know all that is in our heart, but a lot of times, we do not know it all. Like Saul, in 1 Samuel 9:19-20, he did not know all that was in his heart until he had an encounter with Samuel who said in vs. 19 “1 will tell thee all that is in thine heart”. This means that Saul was ignorant of what God had sown in his heart. The Bible says in Jeremiah 17:9 that “the heart of man is deceitful and desperately wicked who can know it”. This shows how deep and delicate the heart is.
The heart is the overlap between the soul and the spirit. There is also the conscience, which pricks you anytime you violate the truth. When we get born again, our conscience is reactivated and this can be safe guarded to the extent that our spirit is trained. If you keep violating the truth to the extent that your conscience no longer pricks you, your heart has entered into a state of deception. A deceived heart is one that knows the truth and will not do it. Your conscience is the voice of your spirit. When your spirit is connected to the Holy Spirit you have divine inspiration. Your spirit can be contaminated, and it depends on what you expose it to, once it is contaminated, the voice of your spirit will not be reliable again. It will take a series of repentance and breaking away from sin and certain relationships for the power of God to break in upon you.
You need to guard your heart by exposing your spirit to the Word of God. You must meditate in the Word constantly. The Bible says in Deut. 8:3b.... “man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live”. This means that our very sustenance springs from living by the Word of God. It is absolutely vital to train your spirit because that is one guarantee that you will do God"s will. If you want to be a person of victory, you must feed your spirit with the Word of God. With this you enrich your inner man, thus increasing your Word level, your energy and light levels. When this increase is there, your inner man is strong and your soul is fed, thus making your mind sound. You remember that, your heart is the overlap between your spirit and soul. So when your spirit/inner man is strong and your soul is well fed on His Word, you can be sure that your heart is well guarded. Give attention to the Word by reading, studying and meditating on it. (Joshua 1:8, Prov. 4:20-27).
You must also practice the Word you"ve fellowshipped with. When you"ve filled your heart with the Word, when any opposing situation arises, it is the Word you"ve hidden in your heart that will answer that situation, if you make an effort to practice it.
Another way to guard your heart is by respecting God"s Word, giving it first place in your life. You must also obey the voice of your spirit constantly. If your conscience is no longer tender, you need to repent before God.
Remember that your heart is the manufacturing centre for your future; you need to give all diligence to it by guarding it. Expose it to the Word of God because that is the main source of its sustenance.