Restoring Your Spiritual Hard Drive- Your Heart
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A few months ago, my laptop began to run slow. I figured one of two things had occurred, I downloaded a large app that slowed down my hard drive, or it was infected with a virus. I had a lot of writing to do, so as you can imagine, I was frustrated. I logged off and on my laptop several times for about an hour, hoping the speed would increase. But to no avail, it didn’t and seem to be going even slower. I soon discovered my laptop had a virus. And as much as I did not want to go through the process of restoring my laptop to its original setting established by the manufacturer, I surrendered and began the tedious restoration process.
As I went through each step of restoring my computer, the Holy Spirit began to reveal to me the similarities of our heart and the computer hard drive. Let me explain. The hard drive is a crucial component of the computer; it is considered the heart of the computer. It is where all of our digital content is stored, and without it, we would not be able to save a file. In addition, we cannot even start our computer without the hard drive. If we expose the hard drive to malicious unauthorized apps and downloads, it can hinder our ability to use it, and we will not be effective in getting things done.
Our heart is similar to a computer hard drive; it stores the spiritual contents of our mind, will, and emotions. It is the place of our life and strength. When we knowingly expose our hearts to lies, sin, and things that are not beneficial to our walk with God, it affects how we respond to Him and the leading of the Holy Spirit. We are hindered and become ineffective, so much so that we cannot produce things God has called us to bring forth.
As I walked through each step of the restoration process on my laptop, I thought, “Cynthia, how did you expose your computer to this virus?” A few days before I noticed the virus, I recalled downloading an app that transferred music to videos. My computer warned me that it was not a Microsoft App and could damage my computer, but I ignored the warning and continued downloading. I knowingly downloaded something that was not good for my laptop, and it hindered me from doing what God called me to do, which is write words of encouragement to share with others.
What have you knowingly downloaded and accepted in your heart that is not of God and has slowed down your spiritual pace, preventing you from being effective in your calling? How can we avoid accepting sinful malicious vain ideas and sin from being downloaded in our hearts?
In this month’s S.E.W. blog, I want to share three spiritual keys I learned from my natural experience of downloading a virus onto my laptop.
1. Don’t ignore God’s Warning! My computer warned me that I was getting ready to download something that could potentially harm it, but I did not heed the warning. I took the risk, clicked, and moved on. I could have lost all of the poems and words of encouragement I had written, which would have been a significant loss for me and those God called me to encourage. Before you download things in your heart, consider where it’s coming from, where it will lead you, and how it will impact your life and the lives of others. If what you are downloading will compromise your calling and relationship with God, then don’t proceed. Don’t risk compromising what God has already downloaded in you by allowing unauthorized sinful downloads to have access to your heart. God is protecting us with His warnings, so don’t ignore them. He wants to lead you to life and not death!
2. Don’t ignore the Spiritual Promptings! Even after I downloaded the app, I got several messages asking me if it was okay for the app to access my computer. I wanted this app to download the music to my S.E.W. videos, so I went through each step to have it downloaded. My laptop made sure I gave this app permission to access my computer by all of the promptings. God does the same thing when we get ready to download sinful things into our hearts. God will prompt us with a feeling or a knowing we can’t move past. He wants us to stop and walk away from the sin or negative thing we are getting ready to agree with. In other words, He is giving us a way out.
1 Corinthian 10:13 says, no temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. (NKJV) God loves us so much that He gives us every opportunity to deny sin and negativity from being downloaded in our hearts. The spiritual prompting is offering you the chance to walk away, so do it. God’s downloads will increase your heart capacity to receive all He has for you; sinful downloads will decrease your heart capacity to receive from God. So, say yes to the spiritual promptings and forgo what you may think you need at the moment. God has something bigger and better for you.
3. Allow Him to Restore You! Now, if you did not adhere to the warning, rejected the prompting, and went full speed ahead with sinful and negative downloads, don’t fret- God can restore you. Deuteronomy 30:3 says, God, your God, will restore everything you lost; he’ll have compassion on you; he’ll come back and pick up the pieces from all the places where you were scattered. (MSG). I was upset when I had to restore my computer to its original setting. Still, I am so thankful the manufacturer thought of people like me who would ignore the warning and bypass the prompting. They provided me with a way to restore my laptop. God is the ultimate Restorer. Through His Son, Jesus Christ, He has given us the benefit of being restored to His original purpose for our life. You may have downloaded sin in your heart, but all you have to do is ask Jesus to restore your life to what He desires it to be. He will forgive you and restore you. Just like I had to follow the steps of restoring my laptop, God will show you the steps to restoring your life. I encourage you to be committed to the restoration steps He lays out for you. Jesus wants to restore you so you can display His works to the world.
Today is your day of Restoration! Don’t waste time; let God Restore Your Spiritual Hard Drive- Your Heart back to Him!