June 28, 2025 -Head and Heart Matters

ISAIAH 28:1-29

2 KINGS 17:5

2 KINGS 18:9-12

2 KINGS 17:6-41

ISAIAH 1:1-20

Chronological Bible Readings

Isaiah 1:13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!

    Your incense is detestable to me.

New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—

    I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.

14 Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals

    I hate with all my being.

They have become a burden to me;

    I am weary of bearing them.

This made me think of when you try to teach your children to apologize or to be thankful for things. I did what was done to me which was make them say it. I knew that they didn't mean it and they didn't care about it but that is how I was taught. As they got older and were at an age to understand what it means to really be sorry or to really be thankful, I could tell when they were just saying the words, and it wasn't from their heart. It is heartbreaking when someone says or does something that they don't really mean in their heart. We know it because their words and actions that follow will reveal their heart. God knows our heart. He knows when we are going through the motions but don't mean it. When we sing a worship song about how great God is and how we trust Him if it's just words, we will turn around and do things that prove we don't trust Him. When we pray a prayer of confession and turn around and immediately look for a way to justify that sin and repeat it, it's not a confession of the heart. When we give our offering but it's just what we are comfortable giving, or we are giving it grudgingly then our heart is not right. God does not want our offerings, worship and rituals when they are meaningless. In fact, they are "detestable" to Him.

Isaiah 1:15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,

    I hide my eyes from you;

even when you offer many prayers,

    I am not listening.

Your hands are full of blood!

When our hearts are not right, He won't listen to our prayers. I have a real-life experience with this truth. There was a time when my heart was not in line with my words and actions. I was very disciplined. Spending time in bible reading prayer and study for at least an hour every day. Participating in and/or leading bible studies all the time. Attending conferences and fellowshipping with believers. I thought I was doing everything right. I was hearing from God in many ways and being obedient to what I heard in most of them but there was one thing that I kept telling God that the time was not right for. I was claiming to trust God and want to live according to His plan for my life but was living the truth of my heart. I was living in fear and a desire to not have to do a really hard thing. It was something that I couldn't have any control over the outcome of because it had to do with another person. I had no way of knowing how that person would react and thought I had good reason to believe that it would not be good. So, I was praying for a change of that person's heart when I should have been praying for a change in my heart. I was asking God to wait till I thought the timing was right instead of asking Him when the timing was right. When the timing was right according to God He spoke. Loud and clear. During my prayer time I had come to the place of praying for that person. As soon as I prayed that prayer God spoke in an audible voice "You aren't listening to me. Until you do, I am not listening to you." I knew without a doubt it was the voice of God, and I knew exactly what He was talking about. Now I know that He spoke when He did because that was the time that He was preparing me for. He knew all along what it would take for me to do what He wanted me to do because the outcome was nothing that I could have imagined, and the timing was PERFECT. Of course. But I NEVER want Him to tell me that He is not going to hear my prayers ever again. I would like to hear His audible voice again but not in urgency just in clarity. I just recently felt that He was telling me to share something with another person. I agreed that this was something that needed to be brought to light but it was also something that I didn't think would be taken very well. This time I waited a short amount of time looking for confirmation because I did not want to act on my feelings that it needed to be done, but as soon as I was confident that I had confirmation I did it. I don't know the other persons reaction yet, but I had no hesitancy because I now not only believe in my head that God is sovereign and uses all things for His glory and my good, but I believe it in my heart. So, whatever the outcome it is in God's hands, and my response of obedience is for His glory.