What’s In The Heart?

I have shared with many of you the news of the passing away of a dear friend, Lena; a disabled young woman who, in spite of her limitations, was a giant in sharing the love of God with everyone she would meet. In response to that, another friend here in the UK, named Tamsin, wrote something to me that touched me deeply. I share it with you now. She wrote: “The story of Lena makes me very aware of how Jesus’ message in Matthew 18:4-5, and again in Matthew 25:40, turns the world’s values upside down. When we look to invest in people we often seek out the gifted, the talented, the powerful in the world’s eyes. But God sees the heart, and he invests in folk with the right heart attitude, whether gifted in the world’s eyes or not.”

Lena is one of those whom God looked into her heart and saw it pleasing and pure before Him; therefore, He chose to use her in a great and mighty way. This caused me to reflect upon someone else whom God has used in a tremendous way to touch my life. Her name is Amanda. She has Down Syndrome. A few years ago we were in the car (she has issues with my driving, claiming I’m too slow and don’t follow directions well – but that’s another story) when she said to me, “There’s no Down Syndrome in Heaven.” I glanced at her, this mighty young woman of God, whose faith in Him is unquestioning. God used her to literally save my life, but that’s another story, too. I thank God for sending giants of faith, like Lena and Amanda, to build up and challenge my own depth of trust in His ways. As Tamsin said, they may not be seen as “powerful in the world’s eyes, but God sees the heart.” A person may appear weak on the outside, but depending on the heart, they may be a giant in the Kingdom of God.

May we all develop Jesus Eyes, looking beyond any imperfection that we all have, and focus instead on — what’s in the heart?