Are you self-aware? Being self-aware means knowing what is going on inside you. What am I feeling? Why am I feeling this way? And how is that feeling affecting what I am about to say or do? Why does it matter?
Proverbs 4:23 states that you should “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life” (ESV). If you are going to keep or guard your heart, you need to pay attention to what’s in your heart. Of course, I’m not talking about that muscular organ that keeps the blood flowing through your body but the center of your inner thoughts, feelings, desires, and motives.
Well, how do I know what is going on in there? 2 Corinthians 13:5 tells us that we should “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? – unless indeed you fail to meet the test” (ESV). If we are to examine ourselves, we must have a standard. For the Christian, that standard is God’s Word.
God’s Word helps us see ourselves as we really are. The Psalmist took that examination a step further by asking God, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24, ESV). Let’s break that down.
“Know my heart!” – Answer the question “what am I feeling?” What emotion am I experiencing? That leads to the next part…
“Know my thoughts!” – What am I thinking because of that feeling? More importantly, what am I considering saying or doing?
“See if there be any grievous way in me” – This is where we examine those thoughts and intended actions. Do they agree with God’s will, or is my emotional response leading me in the wrong direction?
“Lead me in the way everlasting!” – This is the purpose of a Christian’s self-examination! We don’t examine ourselves merely to understand ourselves better. We want to recognize what needs to change and then follow God’s way. Ecclesiastes concludes, “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13, ESV).
Know what’s happening in your heart. Examine it by God’s Word. Then let God lead you in the right way.
