Heart Check

Two of my children are participating in the Heart and Stroke's Jump Rope for Heart campaign.  In addition to the thrill of missing school and seeing how long they can skip they are also quite motivated to win several "awesome" prizes (walkies talkies and a silver soccer ball no less!)

It has been really heart warming for me to see them practise their skipping as well as unabashedly solicit family members for monetary support.  When the campaign is over, I am confident that they will have achieved their goals.

Their enthusiastic attitude has inspired me to do a little heart check of my own.  Not the physical kind.  The emotional one.

As Proverbs 23:7 says "As a man thinks within himself, so he is."

Yikes.

What are my thoughts?  About myself?  About others?  About daily life?

In Philippians 4:8, Paul tells us to "Fix our thoughts on what is true and honourable and right, pure, lovely and admirable.  Think about things that are excellent and praiseworthy."

To help me do this, I came up with an acronym and I've stuck a heart to my cell phone so that I can remember to live each day with

Humility
Empathy
Altruism
Respect and
Tenderness towards others.

Help me Jesus be a breath of fresh air to those around me

and may my heart, thoughts and actions, always be pleasing and honouring to you.