How to Overcome Sins of the Heart

When you’re all by yourself, what do you think about?

I have a mind that wanders relentlessly. Staying focused on any one thing for any length of time can be a challenge.

What do I think about when I’m alone? Well, me, mostly. I am the most narcissistic person I know.

I find myself ruminating over the day’s events and conversations, re-playing and analyzing them, all the while looking at myself and what I said and did or didn’t say or do.

This tendency toward self-absorption can be a blessing or a curse.

Lately, I’ve become increasingly aware of my inclination to feel sorry for myself. Self-pity can be a subtle thing. I usually don’t even notice it until it’s too late. And that’s not good.

Because most importantly, I believe that self-pity is a sin. I am grieving the Holy Spirit and disappointing King Jesus.

I must find a way to overcome this sin. It is standing in the way of my sanctification. By the grace and power of God, I must destroy it, for Jesus said, “If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away” (Matthew 5:30).

How do I do that? By thinking about God.

The more I think about God, the less I think about myself. The antidote to self-pity, or any other sin of the mind/heart/soul, is to focus on God more and more.

This is where reading, studying, and meditating on Scripture can play such a crucial role in the life of a Christ-follower. Time in the Word is the best way I know to follow Paul’s advice to “Set your heart on things above . . . Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:1-2).

Plus, it’s the easiest way I know to stop the meanderings of my wandering mind.

What sin of the soul plagues you lately? Do you struggle with self-pity or lust or greed or discontentment or negativism or anxiety?

Whatever it is, the cure is as close to you as the Word of God. Fill your mind with great thoughts about God and you’re on your way to overcoming any internal iniquity.

Never forget that the Bible is, first and foremost, The Book about God. It’s all about Him. When reading any portion of Scripture, the best questions you can ask are, “What does this passage teach me about God?” And “In light of that, what is my response?”