Matters of the Heart #7: Keeping an Open Heart and Building an Established Heart

Matters of the heart decide whether you see blessing or only weeds. In this seventh message of the series, the pastor teaches that strength is not found in the person who defends their heart, but in the one who keeps an open heart in the middle of opposition. Every relationship, job and season will wound you, he says, but God has already placed your life’s purposes deep in your heart, and an established heart draws them out. He builds the message on Proverbs 20:4–5, Jeremiah 17:5–8 and Psalm 112, and continues from Matters of the Heart #6 — Building Tender Hearts Toward God.

Below you will find the full video, a summary of the sermon, the Scripture behind each point (NKJV on Bible Gateway), a timestamped outline, and practical steps for this week.

Sermon at a Glance

This message was preached at NTC Ministries at the start of 2022 and posted on January 4, 2022. It runs about 53 minutes and includes communion. The pastor returns to the series after two weeks away and admits that teaching on the heart can feel like pouring salt in a wound. But it heals, he says, the way a dentist’s treatment hurts for a moment in order to end the toothache you have been living with.

His goal is to help the church grow bigger hearts toward God and people, because it is all about the heart. Growing in Christ, like learning the piano, takes practice.

Strength in an Open Heart: Time Wounds All Heels

“Strength isn’t revealed in a person who defends their hearts,” the pastor says, “but strength is revealed in the one that in the midst of opposition they can keep an open heart.” Such people are not easily offended. In ministry and in life, he says, you are going to be hurt, so an open heart matters.

He goes back to Eden. God brought all the animals to Adam to name, and it was the one Adam became most familiar with, the serpent, that bit him. That is why he calls Genesis 3:15 the first salvation scripture in the Bible: the serpent would bruise the heel of the woman’s Seed, but her Seed would crush his head.

So he turns a familiar saying around. People say time heals all wounds, but in his words, time actually wounds all heels. Whatever you become familiar with will eventually wound you. Get married and you will be wounded in that relationship. Have children and they will wound you, and children will be wounded by their parents. Start a new job and you will be excited for three or four months until something hurts.

He connects this to the warning that in the last days the love of many will grow cold (Matthew 24:12), which he applies to family relationships turning against each other. The answer is not to close up. Everything we go through, he says, is meant to cause us to hand our hearts back to the Lord, unlike Adam, who blamed “the woman You gave me.”

A New Heart: “Here’s My Heart, Lord”

Everyone is born with a heart of stone toward God, the pastor teaches, which is why we must be born again. When we are, God gives us a new heart and puts His Spirit within us (Ezekiel 36:26–27). That new heart is tender and malleable, clay in the Potter’s hands, but we have to keep giving it to Him through wounds, problems and even times of great joy.

Blessings can overwhelm a heart too. Of the ten lepers Jesus healed, only one came back to thank Him, and Jesus asked where the other nine were (Luke 17:12–19). The pastor observes that nine went and showed themselves to a person, and one went and showed himself to Jesus. They let their hearts be taken up with what God did rather than who He is.

So whether things are good or bad, the response is the same: “Here’s my heart.” When he sins, he says, it only proves how much he needs God, so he says, “God, forgive me, here I am again.” When things are going well, he says, “Lord, here am I again, thank You.” As we do that, our hearts are formed and fashioned, and the condition of the heart is what brings either blessing or cursing into a life.

He recalls an old song, “Take my heart, O Lord, take and seal it.” That is the prayer when you are going through something you do not understand and would rather have washed away: here is where I am, so here is my heart. Even tragedy is not God’s doing, he adds. It is the thief who comes to steal, kill and destroy, while Jesus came to give abundant life (John 10:10).

Matters of the Heart: Purposes Are Deep Waters

The pastor reads Proverbs 20:4–5 from the NIV: a sluggard does not plow in season, so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing. The next verse, he notes, stays on the same subject: the purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.

His point is that just as a lazy farmer who will not plow gets no harvest, a person who does not understand that life’s purposes are already in their own heart will never see them come out. If you understand it, you will let God deal with your heart so those purposes can surface. We are individuals, he says, and each of us produces our life from our heart.

God’s plan to bless has never changed. When He created Adam, He blessed him and gave him the works of His hands. Adam’s sin did not destroy that plan; it only altered the timing. After the flood, God blessed Noah and told him to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 9:1). The same blessing now comes through Jesus Christ. Sometimes we do not see it, but if the purpose is in there and we give God our hearts, it is going to come out.

That is why religion is deceptive, he warns. People can have a form of godliness while denying its power, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2 Timothy 3:5–7). Even the demons believe, and tremble (James 2:19). Believing there is a God does not cut it; you need an intimate relationship with Him. Sometimes, he says, the worst enemy we face is the one we see in the mirror each morning.

Knowledge alone does not change a life. Knowledge is the accumulation of facts; wisdom is the proper application of those facts, and true wisdom is found in Christ, who became for us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). So he has the church read Proverbs 4:23 aloud: “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.”

Water the Flowers, Not the Weeds

Someone with an established heart, the pastor says, stops blaming others even when, in the natural, it looks like somebody else’s fault. They say the purpose is still in there, and they will grow through it. “Some people gotta stop watering the weeds in their lives and you gotta start watering the flowers.” If you say you do not see any flowers, he adds, that is a heart problem.

He has the church read Jeremiah 17:5–8. Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord. He shall be like a shrub in the desert and shall not see when good comes. It is our own hearts, the pastor says, that keep us from seeing good. He advises turning off a constant diet of news that draws the heart into the cares of this world.

The contrast follows. Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord. He shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river; it will not fear when heat comes, its leaf will be green, and it will not be anxious in the year of drought nor cease from yielding fruit. By God we can run against a troop and leap over a wall (Psalm 18:29).

“A setback is just a setup,” the pastor says, for God to increase you, promote you and fulfill His purpose in your life, if you will say, “Here’s my heart, Lord.” Instead of giving his wife his frustration or bringing confusion to work, he gives God his heart, so home and work get a hundred percent of him.

He believes the church is growing stronger because it keeps coming and listening. He says he does not give a sermonette; he gives teaching that takes people from point A to point B, from faith to faith and strength to strength. That, he says, requires a stronger heart, established in God and His purpose.

The Established Heart: A Profile From Psalm 112

Some believers do not think they are worthy of God’s blessing, the pastor says, but there is no Scripture that disqualifies you. Your righteousness is from the Lord Jesus Christ as a gift. “Don’t stand in your way of a miracle.” Instead say, “I am who You say I am, I can have what You say I can have, and I can do what You say I can do.” The more you exercise faith in this, the more established your heart becomes.

He calls Psalm 112 a profile of a believer with an established heart, and the church reads it together. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord and delights greatly in His commandments. His descendants will be mighty, wealth and riches will be in his house, light arises in the darkness, and he will not be afraid of evil tidings, because his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. These, he says, are benefits in the land of the living, not only in heaven.

He sees two major keys in verse one: honoring the Lord in good times and bad, and delighting greatly in His Word. God has magnified His word above all His name (Psalm 138:2), and He is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19).

On wealth and riches, he answers the complaint that the church just wants your money. The kingdom works by giving, and it will be given to you (Luke 6:38). Ten dollars for shampoo buys shampoo, he says, but ten dollars given to God, He multiplies. The greedy are those who hold on to what they have; money is not corrupt, the person holding it may be. Righteousness enduring forever means his relationship with God is never strained, because it rests on a gift, not his performance. Though he sits in darkness, the Lord is a light to him (Micah 7:8).

Guiding his affairs with discretion, he explains, carries the idea of justice: doing business fairly, never out to scam anyone. When challenges come, a person with an established heart cannot be shaken, because God’s purposes are in his heart. Our weapons are not carnal but mighty through God for pulling down strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:4).

Strong Reflexes to Take Hold

Verses 6–8 say his heart is fixed and established; he will not be afraid until he sees his desire upon his enemies. The pastor says “fixed” means steadfast and confidently trusting, and “established” means confident and fearless. There is no fear in love; perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). No weapon formed against you shall prosper (Isaiah 54:17).

He pictures a child stuck on a second-floor balcony. The only way down is to jump into a parent’s arms. The child is terrified, but finally jumps, gets caught, and the next words are, “Let’s do it again!” Love drove out the fear. So when you face something unfamiliar, give God your heart and jump, even if you do it afraid.

The Hebrew behind “established,” he teaches, means strong reflexes to take hold of something, to lean upon, bear up, stand fast and sustain. A football player trains his reflexes to grab the runner; a basketball player learns to catch a pass instead of taking it in the face. The first few times hurt, but you get better. That is an established heart: when the devil tries to steal, you quickly take hold of God.

People with an established heart freely give to the poor, and their goodness continues forever. Every one of us has enemies, he says, and some are not people: negative thinking and contrary emotions fight God’s purpose too. He shares that patterns from his own upbringing took years to overcome. Each time, he said, “God forgive me, here’s my heart,” and asked his children and wife to forgive him. Today he rarely even thinks about it.

Paul is his example of an established heart and an open heart under pressure. Beaten, stoned, shipwrecked and in perils of every kind (2 Corinthians 11:25–26), he said none of these things move me, so that I may finish my race with joy (Acts 20:24). In all these things we are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37), and God always leads us in triumph in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14).

Living It Out: Establishing Your Heart This Week

Before communion, the pastor asks the church to bring both the difficult things and the good things God has done, and to pray, “Here’s my heart, Lord, take and seal it.” Jesus taught us to pray for His kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as in heaven (Matthew 6:9–10), and the pastor believes this world can become more and more like heaven for believers. He urges anyone stalled on a decision to choose life (Deuteronomy 30:19) and go for it with confidence in the Lord.

• Keep your heart open when you are hurt. Expect familiar people to wound you, and hand your heart back to God instead of closing it.
• Say “here’s my heart” in good times too. Like the one leper who returned, bring thanks to Jesus, not only to people.
• Water the flowers. Name a few good things God has done this month, and turn down the voices that only show you weeds.
• Delight in the Word. Psalm 112’s two keys are honoring the Lord and delighting greatly in what He has said.
• Jump, even afraid. Make the decision you have been dragging your feet on, trusting the Father to catch you.
• Train your reflexes. When fear or negative thinking comes, take hold of God’s promise quickly, like a player grabbing a pass.

Timestamped Outline

• 0:00 Back to matters of the heart: the dentist and the toothache
• 1:55 Strength is an open heart in opposition
• 3:01 Genesis 3:15 and “time wounds all heels”
• 5:11 A new, tender heart
• 6:11 The ten lepers
• 7:13 Proverbs 20: the sluggard who does not plow
• 8:18 Purposes are deep waters
• 10:33 God’s blessing to Adam and Noah
• 11:38 Religion, knowledge and relationship
• 13:57 Wisdom in Christ; keep your heart
• 15:17 Water the flowers; Jeremiah 17:5–6
• 16:30 The tree by the waters: Jeremiah 17:7–8
• 17:31 A setback is a setup
• 19:41 Do not stand in the way of your miracle
• 20:48 Psalm 112: the established heart
• 23:01 Two keys: honor the Lord and delight in His Word
• 25:21 Wealth, giving and greed
• 29:58 His heart is fixed: no fear in love
• 32:06 The child who jumps; strong reflexes
• 35:31 Inner enemies defeated
• 37:54 Paul: none of these things move me
• 40:07 Communion: “here’s my heart, Lord”
• 46:38 Confidence for 2022 and choosing life
• 50:18 A marriage restored; the blessing

Matters of the Heart Series

This message is part of a teaching series at NTC Ministries. Start from the beginning or continue where this one leaves off:

• First message: Matters of the Heart #1: Guarding the Spiritual Heart and the Principle of the Seed
• Previous: Matters of the Heart #6 — Building Tender Hearts Toward God
• You are here: Matters of the Heart #7: Keeping an Open Heart and Building an Established Heart
• Next: Matters of the Heart #8: The Gift of a Humble Heart

Frequently Asked Questions

What does “time wounds all heels” mean?

It is the pastor’s twist on the saying that time heals all wounds. He ties it to Genesis 3:15, where the serpent bruises the heel. His point is that anything you become familiar with, whether a spouse, children, friends or a job, will eventually hurt you. That is not a reason to close up; it is the moment to keep an open heart and hand it back to God.

Is it wrong to want God to bless me with wealth?

The pastor reads Psalm 112:3, “wealth and riches will be in his house,” as a real benefit of an established heart. He says money itself is not corrupt; the person holding it may be. The greedy, in his view, are those who hold tightly to what they have, while a person who keeps giving God their heart is willing to give and distribute to others.

What if I am afraid of making the wrong decision?

Near the end, the pastor says some people have been dragging their feet on decisions. Being so afraid of a mistake that you decide nothing, he says, is itself a decision to fail. He shares that he has made choices that looked foolish in the natural, yet because he trusted the Lord, God turned them around and blessed his family either way.

Scripture References

All passages open in the New King James Version on Bible Gateway:

• Psalm 112:1–9 — the profile of an established heart
• Jeremiah 17:5–8 — the shrub in the desert and the tree by the waters
• Proverbs 20:4–5 — purposes are deep waters
• Proverbs 4:23 — keep your heart with all diligence
• Genesis 3:15 — the bruised heel and the crushed head
• Ezekiel 36:26–27 — a new heart and a new spirit
• Luke 17:12–19 — the one leper who returned
• 1 John 4:18 — perfect love casts out fear
• Acts 20:24 — none of these things move me

How this summary was made: written with AI assistance from the sermon’s own transcript and checked against the Scriptures listed above.

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