7 Resolutions for Lifeনমুনা

RESOLUTION # 3: A guarded heart

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” (Proverbs 4:23)

Some time ago, I read the reflection of a young woman who said she was discouraged from seeing photos of happy couples on the internet. According to her, nobody could be happy like that all the time. When I read her argument, an alert sounded in my mind—something like, “Hey! There is something wrong with this way of thinking,” but I didn't immediately identify what it was. After a few days: "Yes! This is what is wrong."

Social media is far from being a faithful reflection of our identities. It's just a hint of what really happens in our lives. The wonderful bodies don't count the aesthetic procedures by which they were sculpted, the hours in the gym, the regimented eating, the photoshop touches, and much more. Beautiful couples do not count the conflicts, struggles, and resolutions. A beautiful home does not count hard work. Educated children do not count their parents' tears before God for wisdom, patience, and creativity to fulfill their duties.

So, what is wrong with the way of thinking of the young woman I mentioned at the beginning, who accuses "happy" social media posts as liars? It is not fair to accuse the person who puts the good things in his life as false. Wrong is the one who hopes to find a realistic pattern in life on the medias. And how does this relate to Proverbs' warning about guarding the heart?

According to the Word of God, the heart is the control center of the human being, where his thoughts, intentions, beliefs, desires, and emotions reside. Because of sin, the "control devices" were corrupted, and started to produce "misleading" information and reports. Because of it, our thoughts, desires, and feelings always tip the wrong way. To correct these mistakes, Proverbs 4.23 brings the imperative “guard your heart.”

To guard the heart is to have Christ dwelling in you (see Ephesians 3.16-17) When we dwell in Christ, we have God's perspective on who we truly are and how the world really works. In Christ we have clarity about what He expects from us in any situation (duty) and His promises (privileges). Thus we learn to think like Him and then live like Him in all spheres, including social media.

So guard your heart from the illusions that the virtual universe is trying to build, and sheltering your heart in Christ. Consider some benefits of this: you will be less judgmental of those behind other screens; it will reduce the comparison with the "cut-outs" of several imperfect lives like yours; you can get rid of envy; it will stop accusing the posts of apparently perfect people as immature; it will eliminate discouragement and dissatisfaction. In short, "guarding your heart" in Christ will make you mature enough to circulate on social media without being a slave to the image—yours and others.

If it is your desire to free yourself from the "deception of the filters," ask the Lord, and fight with His forces to have maturity in the use of social media. Otherwise, the virtual universe will only bring a burden to your life.

Prayer: "Dear God, today I want to ask you for help to guard my heart from deception. Help me to reach maturity to deal with the virtual world. In Jesus’ name, Amen."