An Anglican Compendium of Thoughts and Prayers: From The Inside Out

I was reading through Deuteronomy last night and came across a curious metaphor: ‘Circumcise your hearts,’ it says. So what does this mean?

The rite of circumcision was instituted in Moses’ time, and it was the means by which male infants became members of God's people. This cutting away was an indelible sign that a man had accepted God's covenant and was a member of His people.

But this was an outward sign, and that wasn't enough. Look to the inside, said the Lord. Look to your heart, the core of your being. That's where the cutting away has to happen. Cut away whatever there is in you that could cut you off from God or His people. It's the ultimate form of open-heart surgery that God is asking of us.

So what is there in us that's cutting us off from God or the people He loves? What fears or habits, or ways of thinking and living may be stealing the real essence of life away from us and keeping us from the full, rich lives that He intends for us?

It’s always easier for us to look at others and judge, but it’s near impossible to stand naked before a mirror and look at ourselves. What others can see in us, we’re often the last to see.

If we trust in God’s love of us, we can look, we can see, and we can take that shrunken, misshapen part of our heart and give it to Him. And when it happens, you will feel the freshness and the renewed power within!

Give it up to God and don't take it back!

He IS our hope and strength.