Usually, you can tell a lot about a person if you ask about their hobbies. Just think about that for a second. What you do in your free time shines a light on who you are. Do you spend your extra time watching Netflix? Do you spend time being outside or staying active? What about spending time with friends?

On the surface, these things don’t seem to be very descriptive of a person's life. However, I would disagree. What we spend our free time doing mirrors what is going on in our hearts. The things that we find pleasure in are the things that we treasure and find important. Don’t believe me? Matthew 6:21 says, “Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” It’s easy to get off work after a long day and binge-watch the latest episode on Hulu. It’s easy to spend free time doing the things you like in the name of self-care. None of which are bad; however, if these things become the norm, where are you placing your treasure?

If you’re feeling exposed, don’t worry because you’re not alone. I’m constantly examining who I spend my time with, what I find important, and if the things I find important are the things that God sees as important too. Looking at your habits and practices, identifying the object of my heart shows the status of where I place my treasure.

However, identifying these objects of love can’t be done by self-discover alone. Looking within ourselves to answer the questions of our hearts can’t be done. Self-awareness isn’t the answer and can never expose the deep-rooted sin of your own heart.

The truth is, we are unable to diagnose, let alone fix, what is broken within us. And even when we try, we usually land on two ends of the spectrum. We either hyper-focus on changing the broken parts, and when we realize that we can’t, we beat ourselves down because we can’t measure ourselves. Or we fall on the other end; we see ourselves as righteous and pretty good. Whatever is broken in us that can’t be fixed isn’t as bad because of all the other really awesome things that we can do, putting ourselves on a pedestal and conducting our lives with an untouchable mentality.

The truth is, both extremes are wrong because they remove God as the main thing and place us as the main thing. The fact is that we are unable to do everything correctly, which is why Jesus came, and the only thing good in us is because of Christ in us. The only person that can fully and accurately search the depths of our souls is Jesus. But, for this to happen, we must submit to who God is and who we are in light of that. We must cry out as David did in Psalm 139:23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”

David knew himself; he was self-aware enough to know his sinful thoughts and deeds. But, even with his keen sense of self, he understood that more than he knew himself, God knew him more deeply. In this knowledge, David asked God to search him and reveal to him the broken parts, the ugly parts, the wickedness that was buried within the crevasses of his own heart. David knew that no matter how many counseling sessions he attended or enneagram books he read, the only one who knew him to the core was God, his Creator, and Sustainer. The only one who could reveal and restore his soul was God alone. The most deceitful thing is the heart of man. Only God can examine our hearts and minds fully (Jeremiah 9:7). David couldn’t trust his own thoughts, so he asked the Lord to search him, know him and test him. How crazy is that? The great king of Israel, the man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), had to cry out to God for his sin to be revealed.

Our thoughts matter and can lead to sin, something that David was very familiar with. Just as David did, we must ask God to search our hearts and reveal all the things that don’t bring Him glory. It is so easy not to take our thoughts captive or even to take our thoughts seriously. It is easy to pass off a thought, justify it, or ignore it. But we are called to take our thoughts captive, not to be controlled by them. Instead of letting our thoughts run wild and lead to sin, we combat our thoughts with truth. Philippians 4:8 gives us filters to run our thoughts, ideas, and emotions through. We are commanded to think about whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy. How often do our thoughts make it past the first filter? We underestimate the power that our thoughts have. David is saying, “God, my thoughts are sinful and deceitful, reveal to me the things that will destroy me.”

These thoughts are the things that shape our actions. The free time we have after work or the way we care for our next-door neighbor, all of those things flow out of the thoughts we take captive for the glory of God. If our thoughts are true and lovely, that is reflected in the way we love others around us. If we think about what is right and admirable, that is reflected in how we work diligently to the benefit of others. The things that are going in our hearts and minds are the things that flow out into the outworking of our lives. Where is your treasure being placed? Is the aim of your thoughts and actions to bring glory to yourself or to God?

We must look to David’s example and cry out to God to search us, know us and test us.

by Emily LaGrone