Keep the Heart

Welcome to Replay Thursday, where we play the most popular episodes from the previous season. 

Have you ever almost side-swiped a car because they were in your blind spot? We often "side swipe" people in our daily lives for the same reason: they were in our blind spot.

When new cars added the Blind Spot Warning System to vehicles, it really helped drivers to know when someone was in that zone. The system detects vehicles in the blind spot and notifies the driver of their presence, often with a light in the sideview mirror and an audible warning ping.

It's great that there's a warning system to help us avoid car crashes. Too bad there’s not a Blind Spot Warning System to keep us from human clashes.

This episode covers three common blind spots, and what we can do to avoid side-swiping other people in our lives.

Apply: Living What We Learn--Daily Devotional by Francie Taylor

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

NEW! Encouragement for Young Women: A 30-Day Devotional for Teens by Charity Berkey & Team

What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

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Welcome back to Build Your Bible Habit, where you can listen to a chapter of Proverbs in about five minutes! "Little is much, when God is in it." If you need a way to develop a daily Bible reading habit, this will help. Invite a friend to do the same, and you can compare notes on what you've learned from each chapter.

Why does it seem like people are becoming cruder, ruder, and lacking in basic courtesy? This is a result of living for self while disregarding God and His "Instruction Manual" for how to walk in this world. You'll open the chapter with a verse that explains it well:

"Whoso loveth instruction loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is brutish." (Proverbs 12:1)

Embrace the instructions from the Word of God. Apply them to your life, and you'll learn how to live a genuine "best life."

Remember to visit the shop at Keep the Heart for helpful books, Bible studies, and more! Links below.

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

NEW! Encouragement for Young Women: A 30-Day Devotional for Teens by Charity Berkey & Team

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Have you ever had negative thoughts replaying in your mind, and you felt powerless to stop them? This merry-go-round that you never asked to get on is taking you in circles inside your head. And what’s worse about it, is these thoughts are indicators of the condition of our hearts. Why is that? Because thoughts come from the heart.

This episode title, “Managing Our Thoughts” is carefully worded. Notice that I didn’t say “Controlling Our Thoughts,” because clearly, we are not in control. If we were, we’d all be enjoying so much peace and abundant quiet, because thoughts are noisy! We can’t control our thoughts, but God can teach us how to manage them, and as we continue to yield this area to God, He can even teach us to discipline our thinking so that we become masterful at managing our thoughts.

The Bible has a lot to say about our thoughts, and it helps us if we know these truths. Let’s consider three ways that God’s Word gives us for managing our thoughts.

Be sure to visit the Shop at Keep the Heart for helpful devotional books, Bible studies and more! Links below.

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

NEW! Encouragement for Young Women: A 30-Day Devotional for Teens by Charity Berkey & Team

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Welcome back to Build Your Bible Habit, a series designed to help you develop a habit of daily Bible reading. Proverbs 31 is where we read about the "Proverbs 31 woman," also known as the "virtuous woman," but this chapter has wisdom for men and women. 

Here's a verse that is good for all of us:

"She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness." (Proverbs 31:26)

Words spoken in "the law of kindness" are easier to receive than words spoken in harshness. There are many opportunities to say the wrong thing, but if we'll open our mouths with wisdom, we'll avoid the messy cleanup that comes with ill-spoken words.

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

NEW! Encouragement for Young Women: A 30-Day Devotional for Teens by Charity Berkey & Team

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Disagreements with people are nothing new, but we are seeing an increase in the contentious nature of the disagreements. This is mainly because our culture is promoting a mentality that you must agree with only one line of thinking or you are automatically wrong and therefore intolerant. That’s a two-way street.

Expecting people to agree with us 100% of the time is unrealistic. How did we get here? The answer is as old as the Old Testament. Listen to this verse from Judges 21:25: "In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes."

This verse is our clue. We are facing a reenactment of Judges 21:25. This results in people making up things and then insisting that their way is right. 

How can we disagree without the mudslinging and labeling? Let’s consider three suggestions for walking in wisdom when handling disagreements.

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

NEW! Encouragement for Young Women: A 30-Day Devotional for Teens by Charity Berkey & Team

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Welcome back to Proverbs Chapter 15 on Build Your Bible Habit.

This chapter, like the rest of Proverbs, is filled with relationship verses. When we apply the verses to our daily interactions, we have better outcomes, but when we disregard the Word, we have more messes.

Here's an example from Proverbs 15:1:

"A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger."

Application: We can tell when a conversation is becoming tense, so instead of increasing our volume or using a harsher tone to make our point, we turn down the volume and reduce the heat. Anyone can argue, but it takes godly character to master the art of the "soft answer."

Even the practical takes practice.

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Welcome to Replay Friday, where we play the most popular episodes from previous seasons. This week's episode, “Four Ways to Stop Double Mindedness” was in demand back in season 3. No surprise, because this is a common problem, especially when we're faced with tough decisions. 

Double mindedness overcomplicates our lives, making us unstable. This episode shares ways that we can avoid this unhelpful habit. 

"A double minded man is unstable in all his ways." (James 1:8)

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

NEW! Far Above Rubies: A 31-Day Devotional by Melissa Hedrick

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Welcome back to Build Your Bible Habit, where you can listen to a daily chapter from the book of Proverbs. The second chapter of Proverbs reads like a "listen up" list of life instructions, written to help us to walk wisely even in unexpected situations.

It takes less than five minutes to listen to or read a chapter of Proverbs, but this habit provides a lifetime supply of wisdom. Wise people make better decisions. 

"For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding." (Proverbs 2:6)

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

We tend to think of losing as an automatically negative event, but in her new devotional, "What Do I Have to Lose," Janice Wolfe demonstrates how Christ reframes losing into the miraculous discovery of an abundant life in Him. Losing is culturally scorned, but it is biblically desirable. 

To find our lives, we must first lose them in Christ. This is a painful yet strength-building journey designed by God, but not actively pursued by many. Let’s face it: by nature, we like life to be predictable, comfortable, and enjoyable. How could losing have anything to do with our life goals?

In God’s plan, losing our lives and setting aside our personal agendas allows us to experience the abundant life in Christ.

Janice Wolfe is an author, conference speaker, and radio host of the popular women's program, eleven2one on Faith Music Radio. After hearing this interview with Janice, be sure to click the link below to get a copy of her book in the shop at Keep the Heart.

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook

Welcome to Proverbs chapter 19 on Build Your Bible Habit. The theme of upright living is woven throughout this chapter, giving us principles to put into practice right away. If you haven’t started doing so, I suggest that you pray before listening to these Proverbs. Ask the Lord to show you what to work on from the chapter, and then watch for pop quizzes throughout your day. Remember, sometimes people are the "tests" in life.

You will find yourself applying the Bible more to your everyday living as you continue to build your Bible habit. Verses will pop up on the screen of your mind, prompting you to pause and edit yourself, putting you in a position to have better outcomes in your relationships.

Proverbs 19:11 is a perfect example of this, as it reminds us of this key relationship principle: "The discretion of a man deferreth his anger; and it is his glory to pass over a transgression." The next time someone does or says something that provokes you and you’re tempted to have a short fuse, pause and P.O.A.T.: Pass over a transgression. We love it when people do that for us.

Apply: Living What We Learn by Francie Taylor

NEW! What Do I Have to Lose: Losing My Way and Finding God's by Janice Wolfe

Sister Friends by Francie Taylor--Same book NEW LOOK

Minerals for the Mind: A Study of Romans 12 by Kathy Ashley

The Mirror of God's Word: A Biblical View of Physical Beauty by Robin Parton

Fret Not: Peace of Mind in Perilous Times by Tim Zacharias

Follow Keep the Heart on Instagram

Like Keep the Heart on Facebook