Inside Out: A 40 Day Journey to Transforming Your HeartSample

Repentant Heart

We have been deeply evaluating our hearts for five weeks. If you have come this far and taken steps to allow God to do surgery on your heart, then you are already a different person. You have been intentionally rebuilding, restoring, and renewing your heart.  Isaiah 61:4 says, "They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations." Your heart is being rebuilt on the foundation of God's Word. Your heart is being restored to its proper function and health. Your heart is being renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit, convicting you, sanctifying you, and giving you the ability to think and do what is right. 

But what happens when this devotional is finished, and we move on to some other focus? What should we do when our hearts deceive us again, and Christ is no longer our first devotion? Revelation 2:4-5 says, "But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent." We are called to repent. 

The Holy Spirit will pursue us, convict us, and plead for us to repent and return to the Lord. Joel 2:12-13 says, "'Yet even now,' declares the Lord, 'return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.' Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster." Repentance is more than admitting we did something wrong. It's being grieved that we fell back into sin. When the Israelites sinned, they would cut up their clothes (rend means to tear) to show God how sorry they were for their actions. This passage is saying that our hearts should be all torn up inside due to our sin. 

What's so beautiful is God wants us to return to Him because He is gracious and merciful, abounding in love for us, no matter how far we've fallen away. Romans 2:4 says, "Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?" Knowing that God has open arms of forgiveness should cause us to run to Him with rendered, repentant hearts. Repentance doesn't just make us positionally right with God again. It leads us back into His presence where we can again have Him as our first love and focus in our lives. Acts 3:19-20 says, "Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus." We are refreshed in His presence, knowing that our hearts are right with Him again. Then, we can move forward in further transformation from the inside out. 

Take a Moment:

• What has repentance looked like for you in the past? 

• How might you want to engage in repentance differently moving forward? 

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You that the Holy Spirit will convict me when my heart leads me astray. Thank You that Your love and mercy openly waits for me to come to You with a rendered, repentant heart when I have wandered. May I be quick to repent and turn from my sin so that I can be refreshed in Your presence. Thank You that You rebuild, restore, and renew the places in my heart that continually need to be transformed. Amen.