Hardening

So as the Holy Spirit says: “ Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion,

during the time of testing in the desert. See to it, brethren, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart

that turns away from the living God.

Heb 3:7,8,12

These words of antiquity ring with an eternal urgency.  The question is: How?

The hardening, the calcification, of our hearts often occurs gradually and almost imperceptibly.  While it may be possible to look at events or decisions that caused our hearts to grow cold, it far more often happens as a series of subtle  choices. But the net result is the same.

What are some warning signs?

Cynicism.   Do you find yourself cynical and jaded? Cynicism, in many ways is a defense mechanism. It involves a level of detachment or disengagement, along with a certain sense of superiority. Regardless, it is invariably a symptom of the hardening of our heart. 

Busyness. Are you too busy to stop and listen? Are you too busy to make time for Him? Many of us are. Our timetables reflect that He is not a priority.  We are aware that He exists and that He is involved in our lives, but we won’t make the time to make a conscious relational connection with Him as a part of our lifestyle.

Obsessions.  We are not only surrounded by idols, but our hearts are idol making factories. We are easily consumed by pursuits or passions that block Him out of our lives and dull our sense of hearing.

Disobedience.  We do that which we know we ought not to do. In response, our consciences are dulled or muffled. We care less and less about what it is that He wants from us. And we are sophisticated in how we rationalize it.

Unbelief.  This is not to be confused with doubt. We are talking about the kind of unbelief that causes us to turn away from the living God. While confronting doubt is part of the battle of the Christian life, unbelief fuels ( and is fueled by ) disobedience and undercuts our relationship with Him. 

There are those for whom this actually matters. They know that they are distant from Him, growing cold in their relationship and caring less and less about what He might be saying to them in the present. It concerns them. Their conscience still functions and they are aware that they are missing what they once knew and enjoyed.

There are others, quite frankly, who care less and less. However it presents itself, the root is the same. And the warning is clear. And the Holy Spirit still speaks.

What to do?  Repentance begins with awareness and acknowledgement. And at a primary level, it involves apologizing to Him and asking Him for His Spirit to soften our hearts and to bring about the change we need to be open and receptive to Him again.  Only He can soften a hardened heart, and in His sovereign design He chooses to do it in conjunction with us. The above verse indicates that we have something to do with it. We have something to do with the hardening of our hearts and we have something to do with how He softens them.  And finally, it means making choices to work with Him in confronting ourselves in the ways we isolate ourselves from His Spirit and allow our hearts to become hardened. 

For those with ears to hear…