Hebrew לֵב leb = heart

Psalm 139 (NIV)

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 You have searched me, Lord,

    and you know me.

2 You know when I sit and when I rise;

    you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down;

    you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue

    you, Lord, know it completely.

Do you want alignment in more than just your car tires?

So the series so far has been informational and has required us to do a bit of soul-searching as they like to call it. We learned in message one that our “leb” or “heart” is the center of who we are, and after message two, we were supposed to identify some core values that we hold—core values that shape how we both perceive and interact with the people and situations around us.

So what about all that? Did you do the hard work? Did you challenge yourself to dig deeply into what you hold up to peer through at the world?

Now, what do you do with this information other than know it and grapple with it? I hope that you seek to align your core values with your actions and words. Seek because it matters to you and to others, deeply matters.

To live an aligned life, you and I have to rid ourselves of any values that put us at odds with God’s will, and we have to work to stop any actions or conversations that live out those values in any way that is counter to a walk with Jesus.

Aligning our values with how we live and with GOD is how we achieve true abundance and joy.

I’ve read several articles that talk about the consequences of living against our core values, but I’m not sure we really do that. I think, instead, that we value things that we just have not admitted or unearthed. These are less than admirable, so we don’t talk about them or even think about them. They make it seem like we are living against our core values, if, that is, our core values are good, worthy, appropriate.

Here’s a short story from one article as an example:

The therapist writing the article said, For “one woman I know—a kind, smart, caring person—the rift between her values and her actions became apparent when she started leaving her boyfriend at home so she could gain attention and physical satisfaction from other men. It was clear from the outside that these actions went against her values. So even though her actions made her feel good in the moment, each night she would go home feeling terrible.”

My question is, “Was this woman out of alignment with her core values or did she value attention and affection as much as kindness and loyalty? I’d say she wasn’t out of alignment as much as ignorant of core values that were not so pretty to share. She felt terrible, yes, not because her values were out of alignment but because her values were not of Christ.

We have to be careful to not fool ourselves. The world holds all kinds of things as valuable that just will not satisfy. They leave us needing and wanting more of what we shouldn’t and what won’t make us content.

In order to align, we must know what values God wants us to have, and we must focus on living a life rich in those values. When we find ourselves valuing what this world says is valuable, we need to acknowledge and acclaim what we want instead through Christ. We have a father who is ready and willing to help. I want you and I to be able to say, like David did, “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely” (Psalm 139:1-4 NIV).

Alignment is our way of walking with Christ and gaining an abundant and joyful existence here. When we hold values that are of God, we can live a life that has focus and purpose. We can know what to do and how to do it.

Let’s seek alignment, friend. I can’t tell you what values you need to get rid of to feel truly aligned in your life, but I can tell you that the outcome is worth the hard work.

Wrapping it up next week as we close out our series on what’s at the heart of us. Thanks for being around.

In Christ,
Connie
#theimpactdirective
#impactforthekingdom

Quote from: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/click-here-happiness/201807/39-core-values-and-how-live-them

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