Hello, How do we keep our hearts in trial? How can we keep our hearts when everything seems to be going wrong all around us? I’d like us to go over the passage from our last e-mail together and go into a little more detail on this point, which I think is essential. I wrote to you: “Keep your heart: easy to say, isn’t it? I grant you: not easy! But that’s where great powers come into play. How do you do it? “Guard your heart more than anything else, for from it come the springs of life. Beware of speaking out of turn: reject perverse speech. Look well in front of you, and let your gaze be straight ahead. Observe well the path you are on, and take safe roads. Turn neither to the right nor to the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4.22-27.” Why and how do you guard your heart, you may ask? Why should I? Guard your heart more than anything else, for from it come the springs of life. “For where your heart is, there will your treasure be also” (Bible, Matthew 6.21). Our heart is precious; if we guard our heart, we ensure that we’re going in the right direction and in the right way. A heart polluted by evil desires, harmful circumstances or twisted words will lead us to self-destruction. A heart focused on the solution will lead us to the solution. How do you keep your heart focused on the solution? I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but criticism attracts critics just as encouragement attracts encouragers. One thing is certain: “what you say will come true”. Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and it’s important to start by mastering your language if you want to keep your heart. Yes, we talk too much! I’m not going to say it in a vulgar way, but you’ve understood; the first thing to do to keep your heart is to learn to keep quiet. Shut up, yes, but also surround yourself and avoid staying in an environment where you hear negative words, others that comfort you in this state and still others that encourage you to make bad decisions. Remember, bad company corrupts good morals. Look straight ahead: “I do one thing: forgetting what lies behind and straining toward what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal, to win the prize” (The Bible, Philippians 3.14). Looking back won’t change anything! Neither will looking at what’s around you and getting into comparisons, envy or lamentations about who’s got it tougher. The only direction you have to look at is the direction you’re going in! Setting the goal is the only way to reach it as quickly as possible. Have you ever tried walking blind or looking in a different direction?
At this moment, I’m thinking back to the number of times I’ve seen people, and it’s happened to me too, walking along talking to the person next to them and ending up straight on a post! Look ahead, focused on the goal, don’t look around you for solutions, look around you to be the solution! Look carefully at the path you’re on, and take safe roads: times of trial are times ripe for many things to come along to try and distract you from the goal. And why? To cause you to miss the target. To keep your heart and care moving forward serenely and healthily, focus on the opportunities you’re sure of and that fit into the vision you have. Don’t accept new things right away, but wait until the storm has passed before re-examining them. Your vision guarantees your life! “Do not stray to the right or to the left, turn your foot from evil”: stay focused on the good, do not turn away or stray from it. Bringing the solution around you, doing good around you will lead you to cultivate your heart. Don’t forget one thing: you’re alone in front of the mirror, and I invite you to make sure that your reflection never makes you want to throw up. The people around you today may end up being your neighbors tomorrow, your colleagues at work, etc., but they will never be responsible for what you do in response to their actions. They’re responsible for their actions, and you’re responsible for yours! A friend told me when I started my first job: no matter what people do, always make sure you walk out the door with your head held high! Keeping your heart is one of the most important things to focus on. It will help make you a steadfast hero. Being a steadfast person isn’t about staying strong all the time, it’s about knowing how to keep your heart at all times. While your intelligence quotient is important, your emotional quotient is even more so. It’s not a job, it’s a discipline and a way of life! In our next Newsletter, we’ll continue our series by looking at how to recognize and avoid emotional manipulation. To make sure you don’t miss out, be sure to sign up by clicking on “I subscribe” at the end of this article. You can also follow us and share this article on social networks: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and so enjoy our news.
See you soon,
You are wonderful!
Joachim Fontaine
Coach | Consultant | Formateur
