Where is Your Heart--Part 2

Last week I wrote about the importance of our hearts and how this vital organ not only pumps our entire body full of life but it also holds the desires, feelings, and passion we have.  And because of this, what is in our hearts will often determine our success and happiness in life.  One of the greatest discoveries of life is that we can and do control what is in our heart.  So below are four easy things we can do to ensure our heart is in the right place and centered on the right things so that we can obtain the success and happiness in life we desire. 

#1—Reflect

Last week I gave a suggestion on how to ensure our hearts are in the right place and that is by simple, honest reflection.  I like to ask myself from time to time, “where is my heart”?  This question makes me pause and allows me to truly determine if my heart is in the right place or if it is off course.  Just admitting that I have a problem or that I am off course is really a good first step to making changes and filling my heart with the right desires.     

 

#2—Evaluate

Another good way to fill our hearts with the desires we want is by closely evaluating how we spend our time.   Many of us spend time in ways that make it difficult for us to have our hearts in the right place.  We essentially give our hearts away by participating in activities that fill our heart with things contrary to what we truly desire.  Whether it is the type of entertainment we choose, the people we decide to hang around, or the places we go, nearly all of us spend time doing things that have a negative impact on what is in our heart. Often we also tell ourselves that participating in these activities from time to time really doesn’t matter too much but we are all influenced by everything we do—so it does matter.  For this reason we must evaluate if what we are doing helps or hurts our hearts, if it contributes to what we want our hearts full of or not.  If we are serious about protecting our hearts, we must completely eliminate all of those activities that do not contribute to our success.    

#3—Help

Another way to help our hearts be in the right place at all times is by serving others.  When we can remove our own personal worries, fears, wants, and desires, by focusing on someone else’s needs, desires, and wants, our heart is strengthened.  I’m not sure why this is but I’ve found that it always works.  We live in a very self-centered, self-gratifying society that robs our hearts of this simple way to strength our heart.  By helping others we really begin to help ourselves because we fill our hearts with good, strong desires and passions.     

#4—Do

There are certain activities we know that strengthen our hearts and reinforce the desires we want to have in them.  Some examples may be spending time with our families, reading an uplifting book, participating in religious services, listening to good music, visiting a close friend, volunteering in our community, or maybe even more physically active undertakings such as hiking, running, or biking.  Whatever it might be we need to identify activities that place and build the desires we want in our heart and then do them as often as possible.  These activities may be different for each person and may change over time but knowing what activities help us to have our hearts in the right place and then doing them often will greatly help us. 

Our hearts are powerful organs that greatly determine our success and happiness in life.  If we can find ways to best fill them and control what is in them, we can then be much more successful and happier in life.  I know we all can make great strides in making sure our hearts are filled with the desires, feelings, and passions we most want.