Stone Hearts

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This year, one of my goals was to really dive into the Word. I’ve loved reading the Old Testament, and I’m currently re-reading the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel was a prophet appointed to share the word of God to the Judeans during the Babylonian exile; while most of these prophecies heeded warnings of the trials to come, God would often share prophecies of hope:

“‘I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries among which you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.’ And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my ordinances. Then they will be my people, and I shall be their God” (Ezekiel 11:17, 19-20, NASB). 

Though Ezekiel was prophesying to the Judeans, I have often prayed this same prayer...

God, please remove this heart of stone, and give me a heart of flesh. 

I deeply struggle with a hardened heart. Because of my past, I learned long ago that walls were the best way to protect myself. And I won’t lie - for a while, it was a great coping mechanism. The more walls that I built, and the harder my heart grew, the more impossible it became for others to hurt me. These people may be able to break my body, I thought, but I will never again let them break my spirit. And so little by little, day by day, my heart continued to harden. 

Until all of a sudden, I was left with an impenetrable heart of stone. 

Here’s what I can tell you about this coping mechanism: it works great for a while, and it keeps out the hurt - but it makes it almost impossible to accept love. I viewed the world as a threat, and trusted no one but myself. I couldn’t let my heart get broken again. 

Soon, this coping mechanism started crumbling around me. The false sense of protection I’d sold myself faded away, and as the blinders came off, I began to pray my prayer: 

Lord, please take out this heart of stone, and give me a heart of flesh. 

Through this quarantine, so many of us have struggled with apathy and depression. When relational needs cannot be met, we begin resorting to unhealthy coping mechanisms. I wrote last week about strongholds, and a hardened heart is certainly one of mine. So every morning I take up the sword of the Spirit and shield of faith, and begin to break and smash these strongholds that have been formed against me. With these mighty weapons, designed to cast down imaginations and destroy every high thing that would try to exalt itself against the knowledge of God, I fight back (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). And for every moment that I fight back, another wall comes tumbling down. 

Do you struggle with a hardened heart? Try to pray with me, every morning, for God to let down those walls. You were designed for love and relationship - don’t let these strongholds get in the way of that design. 

“My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart” (Jeremiah 24:6-7, NIV). 


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