In general, I tend to be a passionate and open person and I fully blame my Italian heritage for that. But when it comes to dating, I have seemed to wildly vacillate between wearing my heart on my sleeve and keeping it locked up like Fort Knox. I spent my early twenties letting my guard down way too soon and getting my heart pummeled and by my late twenties my heart was locked up so tight that I wouldn’t give any man the time of day. Now that I am in my thirties, I seem to have a more balanced approach but I recently realized that I still don’t have the whole guarding my heart thing down.

In Proverbs 4:23, we are admonished to “guard our hearts” and I’ve never been quite sure of how to do that, so I legit googled “how to guard your heart” and found this great article that you should definitely read in its entirety. In the article, Phillip Bethancourt refers us to the only other place in the Bible that mentions “guarding your heart”, Philippians 4:6-7. ”Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Bethancourt then goes on to explain that “Paul tells us that prayer is the pathway to guarding our hearts and minds with the peace of God…It begins with prayer to God and overflows into communication with the other person. In other words, the key to guarding your heart is to talk to God about the relationship before you talk to the other person about the relationship.”

So as usual, I am pointed back to seeking God first and my relationship with Him will inform all of my other relationships. The next time that I meet someone with major potential, I need to talk to God first and take His lead so that I don’t get carried away in the first place. If you are not so good at guarding your heart, reach out to God and ask Him to guide you.

Blessings,

Angela