Keep the Heart

Welcome to the four-part series: "For Real." These mini-episodes are in collaboration with Podbean, the podcast host for Keep the Heart. Podbean selected Keep the Heart as their Podcast of the Week for March 7-13, 2022! In exchange for a very nice shout out on their home page, Keep the Heart is running a promo at the end of each segment in this four-part bonus episode series. If you want a free 30-day trial of the paid version of Podbean, use our promo code: PODCAST21

Somewhere along the line in Christianity, we took a detour and started focusing on appearance over transformation. We were working hard on trying to get people to conform to a certain image, while just giving the Holy Spirit’s transforming power a nod. This resulted in a confused generation that took the pendulum and threw it as far in the opposite direction as possible. I wonder if God ever shakes His head while He’s watching us with all of our bright ideas?

Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for this very same behavior in Matthew 23:27 "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness."

The Pharisees had tattoos and didn’t even realize it! They had the image that people admired and even imitated, but inside, they were a mess. We’re all a mess on the inside unless we allow God to transform us. Tattoos can be visible or covered, but they’re still present. What can we do about our own tattoos? This bonus episode gives us three things to consider.

This is episode 1 of 4. Others coming in the next few weeks!

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BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter seven on Build Your Bible Habit. The overall theme of chapter seven is a hard warning against lust. It reminds me of the old saying, “When fleeing temptation, don’t leave a forwarding address.” This chapter is good and hard at the same time. 

Since listening to a chapter of Proverbs takes less than five minutes, you may want to replay these chapters. You’ll notice details that you may have missed the first time. The study of God’s Word is a continuous life improvement course. As it says in Proverbs 7:2: "Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye."

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Welcome to TEACHBACK TUESDAY! Conference season is in full swing, so we'll be providing episodes from the previous season sprinkled in between the new episodes. It is entirely possible that this Teachback Tuesday segment is even more relevant now than when it first aired. So many people have had enormous life changes, including the passing of loved ones.

There is a way to comfort those who are grieving, and then there are ways that really don't help at all. Listen to what Job said in Job 16:2 after his friends failed to comfort him with their armchair-analyst observations: "I have heard many such things: miserable comforters are ye all."

Job’s friends may have meant to be a blessing, but they ended up adding to his pain and won the prize for miserable comforters. How can we be comforters and not the miserable kind? A great place to begin is with the right perspective, and that is found in Phil. 2:4: "Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others."

We all take turns in the rotation of grieving. Sometimes we're in need of comfort, and then we're on the team of comforters. This episode provides a short list of ways that be a help rather than another source of discomfort.

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BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter six on Build Your Bible Habit. Chapter six has a beginning, middle, and an end. The beginning includes financial advice, the middle covers daily living, and then the end has warnings about the trap of adultery. This is a loaded chapter! You will find something that applies to everyone within these verses.

By now, you are one fifth of the way through the book of Proverbs. You are building your Bible habit! In the beginning, it tends to take more effort to develop this spiritual practice of daily Bible study, but over time it becomes woven into the fabric of your life. These audio Proverbs are helping thousands of listeners to develop the habit of getting into God's Word daily, and sometimes several times per day (on replay)!

God's Word illuminates our paths so that we have never have to walk in darkness. Proverbs 6:23 reminds us of this truth: "For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life…" God has given us the lamp, the light, and corrective instruction to help us learn how to handle the issues of life.

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When I’m 64—Growing Older in Our Culture

I grew up hearing the Beatles on the radio. One song that came out when I was about nine years old was called, “When I’m 64.” I didn’t care for the tune, and I only knew one line of the lyrics because I kept hearing it on the radio: “Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m 64?” The song didn't make sense to my young ears. "Why wouldn't someone feed him," I wondered, thinking he must have lived in a place where the food was scarce or something. To this day, I still over-analyze song lyrics. It's a quirk.

At the time of that song, 64 sounded like GRANDMA-OLD to me. Now that I’m 64, I think they could rewrite the song to “When I’m 94.” As the saying goes, an old person is someone who is at least 15 years older than you. Ha!

If you’re a young listener, don’t assume that this episode is not for you. You are in the process of becoming the person you will be in old age, so this is for you, too! Most people don’t want to even think about growing older, but it happens whether we’re thinking about it or not. Some live to be very old, while others have a shorter life span, but aging is a required part of long life. Let’s consider this topic of growing older with a goal of improving in this area.

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BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter five on Build Your Bible Habit. Chapter five begins with a reminder to pay close attention to the wisdom and understanding found in God's Word. The phrase, “bow thine ear” reminds us that if we’re not listening to God, we won’t hear Him. The entire book of Proverbs reads like a “how to live” instruction manual, specifically designed to help us to face the issues of life.

We know that you have Bible apps for this, but we’re adding these audio Proverbs chapters to the podcast library at Keep the Heart for those who want a familiar voice. Since it takes less than five minutes to listen to an audio Proverb, try replaying them a few times. The more you listen, the more God’s Word sinks into your soul.

Proverbs 5:21 is a great inspiration to live as if God can observe everything we do. It says this: "For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings."

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We are nearly ruined with our expectations for speed. If the computer won't load a screen in five seconds, it's so slow. If the gas pump doesn't shoot the fuel into our cars like liquid lightning, we wonder what's taking so long. If we're standing in line behind someone who is paying by cash, it seems like it's taking them forEVER to pull that old-school currency out of their wallet.

And so we carry the expectation for speed into our spiritual lives, imagining that if we've prayed, we should have our answer within the same day at best, the same week at worst. Prayer is not like same-day dry cleaning that goes in by 10am and out by 4pm. 

Prayer is a our communication with God. It is a combination of relationship-building, making our requests known to God, and then trusting His timing as we wait for the answers. Prayer is also specific, as we'll hear in this episode based on the passage of Luke chapter 18.  Great spiritual habits have great value, which is precisely why they are also harder to develop. 

If you've ever sat through a sermon about prayer, feeling guilty or wishing that you would pray more, this brief study will give you helpful ideas that are also sustainable. We're going through the powerful passage in Luke 18:1-8 together. At the end of it, you will want to pause and take some time to pray. 

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BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome to Proverbs chapter four on Build Your Bible Habit. We’re using the word “habit” by design, because we're talking about something that becomes your custom or part of your daily routine. Habits are built by repetition, so as you continue the habit of studying a daily Proverb, you’ll find that it becomes automatic. The Bible is habit-forming in a beautifully powerful way. Listen for God to speak to you from His Word, often touching areas where He is pruning and transforming us to be more like Him.

Your five-minute investment in Scripture will grow into so much more, and will bless you with the ability to make wiser decisions and fewer errors. So often, we make mistakes and messes in our lives because of a lack of Bible knowledge or failure to apply what we do know. God can change that by the power of His Word. Daily Bible study provides direction, protection, and a deeper relationship with God. As it says in Proverbs 4:7, "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding."

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Two Taylors on one podcast episode! Join us as my daughter-in-love, Jessica Taylor, co-hosts on the topic of "How Not to Become a Monster-in-Law." We'll cover four guidelines for getting along, providing practical ideas for your relationships, especially when you've married into a family. Even if you don't have in-laws (I prefer to call them "in-loves"), these suggestions will work in any relationship.

When we truly love and care for one another, we'll do our part to build healthy relationships with all family members, as often as possible. As the Bible says in Romans 12:18, "If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men." Sometimes people are hard to get to know, while others may come with baggage that we can't unpack for them. One thing we can do is this: we can love one another. 

Wait until you get to the part where Jessica-the-younger-Mrs. Taylor loses her train of thought. It's a funny blooper, so we left it in there...okay, well maybe it was Francie that left it in there, but Jessica will make you smile.

Whether you're a MIL, DIL, SIL, or just dealing with extended relationships of any kind, this episode will give you some ideas for getting along, remembering that our loved ones are in our lives as gifts from God. Please be sure to share this episode with family and friends!

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BONUS BIBLE SERIES: Welcome back to Build Your Bible Habit, an audio series in Proverbs. We know that many of you have Bible apps, but these audio Proverbs are recorded by a familiar voice! The main purpose of these recordings is to encourage the habit of getting into the Word daily. Proverbs 3 is a chapter that provides a roadmap for fruitful Christian living. We suggest following along in your Bible as you listen, but you could use these for taking a walk or during a commute, too.

The Proverb-a-Day system will help you build a daily Bible reading habit, and don't be surprised when it leads to deeper personal Bible study. After a while, one Proverb a day is not enough. You will find yourself craving more!

We'll continue uploading these Proverbs chapters to the Bonus episode library weekly until we've completed the entire book of Proverbs. Once we hit chapter 31, you can begin using these chapters in order by the date on the calendar (read Proverbs chapter one on the 1st of each month, chapter 2 on the 2nd and continue until chapter 31). What begins as an exercise will soon become a part of the fabric of your life. 

The struggle to be in the Word is real, and this is our small way of helping listeners to create a beneficial habit. Daily Bible reading richly blesses our lives. As it says in Proverbs 8:34, "Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors."

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Ponder the Path: A 31-Day Devotional

Calm in Christ: Inspiring Reasons for Daily Bible Study ebook

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