Living With an Authentic Heart Before God

One of the causes and symptoms of spiritually discouragement in our inner lives is when we start to withdraw and attempt to hide our hearts from God. After disobeying God in the Garden of Eden, the first thing Adam and Eve panically tried to do was hide from God.

Although God will never leaves us, we often leave God, especially when we become spiritually discouraged and feel unworthy. We begin to close our ears when God tries to speak with us. We start to harden our hearts and push God away when he tries to come close to us. We close off our hearts and attempt to cover our true selves from him.

Instead of being honest with God, we begin to wear a mask around. We become hypocrites and think we are fooling God and other people. We begin to think we can deceive God. This is self-deception because God knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows our innermost thoughts and struggles.

We can’t hide from God!

Draw Closer to God With an Authentic Heart

The biblical solution to overcoming spiritual discouragement and renewing spiritual strength in our inner lives requires us to reject all our personal hypocrisy and draw closer to God with humble, honest, and authentic hearts. A sincere heart is one that is open, truthful, genuine, and honest before God and other people, it is free from deceit, deception, hypocrisy, or falseness.

Five Biblical Truths

1 – We must become fully convinced that nothing in all of creation is hidden from the sight of God. God knows all things, even our deepest thoughts and struggles.

(Hebrew 4:13) Nothing in all of creation is hidden from the sight of God. Everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of God to whom we will all give an account for our lives.

2 – We must draw near to God without fear that he will reject us, because when we draw near to God, he draws near to us.

(James 4:8) Draw near to God and he will come near to you.

3 – When we draw near to God in humility, he lifts us up. There is no hole deep enough in our lives that God is not able to pull us out of. This is why we can live in hope without fear. All things are possible with God.

(James 4:10) Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

4 – Jesus calls us to draw near to him, so we can learn from him and experience true internal rest.

(Matthew 11:28-29) Jesus declared, “Come to me, all who are tired of carrying the heavy load of life, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke of teaching upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find peace (rest) for your souls.

5 – A sincere Christian life of faith is one of love that comes from an authentic heart and a good conscience.

(1 Timothy 1:5) For the goal of our teaching and ministry is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.

Insightful Quotes

What makes authentic disciples is not visions, ecstasies, biblical mastery of chapter and verse, or spectacular success in the ministry, but a capacity for faithfulness. Buffeted by the fickle winds of failure, battered by their own unruly emotions, and bruised by rejection and ridicule, authentic disciples may have stumbled and frequently fallen, endured lapses and relapses, gotten handcuffed to the fleshpots and wandered into a far county. Yet, they kept coming back to Jesus. — Brennan Manning

Accepting the reality of our sinfulness means accepting our authentic self. — Brennan Manning