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WINNING WITH THE WORD “Winning with the Word” is a weekly blog that will help you to be a winner in life by applying God’s principles for living the abundant life as found in the Bible, God’s manual for life. AN INVITATION TO YOU: To subscribe to this blog, click here.  To subscribe to this podcast, click here. If this blog and podcast have blessed you, please encourage your family and friends to subscribe as well. Thank you! Be sure to check out our Featured Book of the Week at the end of this post. ______________________________________ Do you prefer listening instead of reading? Then click below to listen to today's blog post on podcast. https://media.blubrry.com/winning_with_the_word/content.blubrry.com/winning_with_the_word/WWW_03_15_21_What_s_the_Condition_of_Your_Heart_.mp3 ______________________________________ Hello and Happy Day! This is Dr. MaryAnn Diorio, novelist and life coach, welcoming you to another episode of Winning with the Word. Today is March 15, 2021, and this is Episode #6 of Series 2021. This episode is titled "What's the Condition of Your Heart?" _______________________________ Did you know that the condition of your heart determines the course of your life? I'm not talking about your physical heart. I'm talking about that intangible part of you that includes your mind, your will, your emotions, and your conscience. The Bible says this about the heart: "Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life."  Now that's a pretty heavy statement, don't you think? So heavy, in fact, that we would be foolish to ignore it. Yet, many people do ignore it, and they ignore it to their own peril.  What is meant by guarding your heart? To guard means to protect from harm. The Bible commands us to protect our hearts more than we protect anything else? Why? Because our heart is more precious than anything else. Our heart determines where we end up at the end of our life. So, how can we determine the condition of our heart? A good way is to consider the different types of heart conditions the Bible talks about and then evaluate your own heart by these conditions. The Bible describes six heart conditions. Let's take a look at each one. 1. The Double Heart. The Double Heart is also referred to as the Deceitful Heart. I call it the Forked Heart, as in forked tongue. Scripture alludes to the double heart in Psalm 12: 2 NKJV: "They speak idly everyone with his neighbor: With flattering lips and a double heart they speak." The double heart is a two-faced heart. It speaks out of both sides of its mouth. It says one thing and means another. It is double-minded. In James 1: 8, we read that "a double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways." So, a double heart is an unstable heart. What happens to things when they are unstable? They fall. 2. The Hard Heart. In Proverbs 28: 14, we read this warning: "Blessed is the one who fears the LORD always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity." What is a hardened heart? A hardened heart is a heart that has lost its sensitivity to the things of God. In the Gospel of Mark, chapter 8, verses 16-21, Jesus reveals that a hard heart has lost its ability to see, understand, and hear God. It is a heart that has also lost its ability to remember. Let's enter this passage in Mark chapter 8, verses 16 through 21. The disciples are out on the lake in a boat, and they realize they have forgotten to bring bread to eat. So, they're discussing what to do. Let's listen in on what Jesus says: "Aware of their conversation, Jesus asked them, 'Why are you debating about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Do you have such hard hearts? Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of broken pieces did you collect?” “Twelve,” they answered.