Proverbs 3-5, 2 Corinthians 1 • Key Verses: Proverbs 4:23-27

The term “gated community” is used in real estate ads to describe a secure area, one that is guarded. A wall with a gate surrounds the property, and everyone who goes in and out is monitored. Often a guard stands at the gate.

Our lives should be like a gated community. In Proverbs 4 Solomon tells us to “guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (v. 23).

A guarded heart will show in many ways. It will show in what we say as we put away perversity and corrupt talk (v. 24). Our conversation and speech will be affected.

It will show in what we see (v. 25). Solomon says that we will look straight ahead, not distracted by things off to the side. Television, magazines and the Internet give us things to look at that are wrong, that pull us away from God. A gated life is careful to control the eye gate.

It also will show in how we walk (v. 26). In a guarded life we choose the right paths and do not swerve.

I often say that God did not give us His Word just to increase our knowledge but to affect the way that we live. These verses point us to the truth that our lives are to be directed by His Word. As we guard our hearts, we will live gated lives.

_Often we focus just on the outside, while God wants us to start on the inside. If right now you need to make changes in your heart, pray. Ask God to help you change and truly guard your heart._

Woodrow Kroll & Tony Beckett
www.backtothebible.in