Victory in Your Heart

Scriptures: Acts 13:22, Proverbs 4:23, 1 Samuel 24:6

Victory In Your Heart – Be Like David 

“And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’” 

– Acts 13:22 NKJV emphasis added 

One of our goals in life should be to have a heart like God’s. When we have this, we will 

• See life the way God sees it 
• Respond to problems in a healthy manner 
• Love people the way God does (or at least try to) 

As a result, our lives will be better. However, to develop our hearts to be like God’s, we must guard what we allow in our hearts. 

“Guard your heart more than anything else, because the source of your life flows from it.” 

– Proverbs 4:23 GW 

Through the second half of the book of 1 Samuel, we see that a king named Saul is trying to kill David. Saul sent thousands of people after David and his men, with instructions to kill them all. 

In the middle of this season of David’s life, an opportunity arose for David to take things into his own hands and kill Saul. Even the men that were with David said that it was a sign from the Lord to deliver himself. 

Think about it. King Saul is trying to KILL David! Many of us today would have taken this opportunity to defend ourselves, and in the eyes of man, justifiably so. However, David saw a man anointed by God more than a man that was trying to kill him. This doesn’t happen without guarding your heart. 

Imagine what the men were saying to David … 

• “He is trying to kill you, why wouldn’t you defend yourself?” 
• “Remember the Lord said He would deliver our enemies into our hands?” 
• “Clearly, this must be the next step for you to become king!” 

But look at how David responded… 

“And he said to his men, ‘The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord.’” 

– 1 Samuel 24:6 NKJV 

David didn’t act on those thoughts. He guarded his heart against them. David still respected Saul as king despite the fact that Saul made David’s life harder than it should have been. 

We need to be like David. We need to guard our hearts. This is one step towards having a heart that is after God’s heart, just like David had. Maybe we don’t have someone that is sending thousands of people to kill us, but there are people that are trying to hurt us in different ways. 

Let’s guard our hearts and respond with the love of God. Pray for people who seek to hurt us, bless them, and let’s not take matters into our own hands. Let’s allow God to be the One to raise us to the places that He has for us. Let’s not do it ourselves. 

Confession Today

“God chose David because he had a heart after God’s heart. I will develop my heart to do the same. I will guard my heart above anything else because life flows out of my heart. No matter what anyone else may do to me, I will not allow other people’s opinions to get in my heart. I will protect it so that I can accomplish the will of God for my life.”

Scriptures: 1 Samuel 18:8-9, 1 Corinthians 10:13

Victory In Your Heart – Do NOT Be Like Saul 

“This made Saul very angry. ‘What’s this?’ he said. ‘They credit David with ten thousands and me with only thousands. Next they’ll be making him their king!’ So from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.” 

– 1 Samuel 18:8-9 NLT emphasis added 

If we are honest with ourselves, from time to time the temptation pops up to be jealous of other people. What we must remember is that there is no power in the temptation; the power is in our response to the temptation. Our response is a decision that makes all the difference. 

David chose to honor God when he was tempted and encouraged to kill Saul, but Saul chose to be jealous. When Saul decided to “keep a jealous eye on David” he also decided to allow the temptation of jealousy into his heart. 

“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” 

– 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT emphasis added 

This verse has been misquoted more times than I care to say. God does NOT tempt us. Temptations come from our flesh and the enemy. God does protect us from some temptations, but others He wants us to handle through the power of the Holy Ghost and His grace. 

When we are tempted, we know that we can overcome it. We will have a way out. We don’t have to give in to the temptation just because we are tempted. 

Having victory in our hearts begins with not allowing the temptations to linger. Saul could have stepped back and been thankful for what David did. He could have asked Samuel for wisdom. He could have asked God for help, but Saul CHOSE to be jealous. 

Whatever we let hang around our minds will eventually make its way into our hearts. 

Confession Today

“I choose to have victory in my heart today. When I am tempted with jealousy, I will deal with it as soon as I can. For every temptation I face, God has provided a way out. I will pray and ask God for wisdom. I will ask for help from the mentors in my life. I will do whatever I need to do to guard my heart!”

Scriptures: Acts 13:22, 2 Chronicles 16:9

Victory In Your Heart — Who Is God looking for? 

“And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’” 

Acts 13:22 NKJV emphasis added 

God is looking for people on this earth that have His heart and will do His will. If God is looking, it implies that there is not a large supply. Most people will not do what it takes to be a person after God’s heart, and most people will not do what it takes to do God’s will for their life. 

Let’s not be most people! Let’s be who God is looking for: a person after God’s own heart, and someone that will do God’s will. His will is the best path for our lives. It is better than any plan that we can come up with on our own. 

“The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” 

– 2 Chronicles 16:9 NLT emphasis added 

Strength When You Commit 

God is looking for people that are committed to Him. These are not your ordinary people walking down the street. These are people that want to grow in every area of life. They want to grow in their love walk with people, their relationships with God and others, and they are willing to be uncomfortable when necessary to accomplish this goal. 

Commitment may include a season of discomfort, but the outcome is worth it. 

Many people are afraid to commit to God’s way of doing things because they don’t think they can do it. I was one of those people. I am doing things today that years ago I thought were impossible. However, when we trust God enough to step out despite what we believe about ourselves, He will strengthen us! 

Make the decision today to commit to His will. You can do it, and it’s the best way for your life. 

Confession Today

“I am the person that God is looking for. My heart is like David, and I commit to doing God’s will. There will be times when I will be uncomfortable, but the outcome is worth it. When I step out, God will strengthen me. I can do ALL that He has called me to do.”

Scriptures: Proverbs 4:23, Revelation 3:20

Victory In Your Heart – Do NOT Build Walls 

“Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it are the sources of life.” 

– Proverbs 4:23 NET 

We can learn what someone is saying by what is said AND what is NOT being said. Notice that this verse is saying to “guard” your heart, not to build walls around your heart. Guarding our hearts means examining everything that comes and allowing the good in. Putting walls up stops EVERYTHING from coming, including the things that our hearts need. 

Have you ever met someone who has walls around their heart? Have you ever been the person with walls around their heart? I can answer YES to both questions. I can say from experience that it is not a good place to be. When walls are present around someone’s heart, fear is behind that wall. 

Fear Keeps Us Trapped 

Fear and walls work together. Walls are meant to keep EVERYTHING on two different sides. Whatever is in when the wall is built will be trapped inside until the wall is broken down. Also, whatever is outside the wall when the wall is built, will be stuck outside unless the wall is broken down. 

Trapped in the Heart 

We all have experienced pain in the past. I can say “ALL” because this world is filled with imperfect people, and we hurt each other from time to time. If we are holding on to pain, bitterness, and resentment, we must let it go. If we build a wall, the pain, bitterness, and resentment will never leave. 

Stuck Outside the Heart 

God has joy, peace, and healing for us. He has happily provided it through His Son Jesus, and He wants us to have it. However, when walls are present, they will stay stuck outside our hearts. It is not that it is not available; walls prevent it from coming in. One thing God won’t do is force Himself on anyone. 

Get in the Word 

“Behold, I’m standing at the door, knocking. If your heart is open to hear my voice and you open the door within, I will come into you and feast with you, and you will feast with me.” 

– Revelation 3:20 TPT 

It is time to start knocking down the walls around your heart. Get in the Word to see what He has to say about what you are holding on to. You may also have to talk to your pastor, friends, or even a professional Christian counselor. Do whatever you must do to let Him in. 

You can have victory in your heart. 

Confession Today

“I will not continue to build walls around my heart. Today I will get in the Word to see what God says about the pain I feel. I will allow His life to enter my heart.”

Scriptures: Matthew 5:43-44, Galatians 5:6, Hebrews 11:6

Victory In Your Heart – Loving Our Enemy 

“Your ancestors have also been taught ‘Love your neighbors and hate the one who hates you.’ However, I say to you, love your enemy, bless the one who curses you, do something wonderful for the one who hates you, and respond to the very ones who persecute you by praying for them.” 

– Matthew 5:43-44 TPT 

Over the last few days, we looked at the life of David. Even though Saul was trying to kill him, David still loved Saul. It’s crazy to think about, but he did. How could he? David guarded his heart. Because he did, that allowed God’s love and faith to dictate his actions. 

Have you ever met someone that doesn’t like you? I have. It is not great. Depending on who they are, it can be pretty bad. But our faith is made for this. Jesus will not tell us to do something that is impossible, but He will always tell us to do something that requires faith. 

“If you are a follower of Christ Jesus, it makes no difference whether you are circumcised or not. All that matters is your faith that makes you love others.” 

– Galatians 5:6 CEV 

Our faith in God is essential. “Anyone who wants to please God should remember Hebrews 11:6. In it, the author reminds us that it is our faith that pleases God, and nothing else. 

People are what matters most to God. He gave His Son up for us. He gave the best He had just for you and me. So, when we put pleasing God with faith and His love for people together, we get this verse in Galatians 5:6: “All that matters is your faith that makes you love others.” 

Is our faith helping us love others, or are we only using it in times of crisis for when we need God to work a miracle? There is nothing wrong with believing God to meet our needs, but there is another level of faith that God wants us to LIVE in: faith that makes us love OTHERS. 

We shouldn’t use our faith only to believe God for things; we should use it to love people. Not everyone will be loveable in the natural, but we can use our faith to love them anyway. The faith that we use to provide for our needs is the same faith that we have to love others! 

God showed us His love through Jesus, and we can show His love to others through our actions! 

Confession Today

“God has given me the faith I need to love others. Even when people talk badly about me, I can love them. My faith is not just to believe God to meet my needs, but I have it to love other people. I will practice God’s love with every person that I encounter. God has shown me His love, and I can show His love to others.”