7 Questions About Your Heart That Can Change Your Life

What makes your heart beat faster and your palms grow sweaty?  Money, wealth, success, fame, sex, thrills, chills or automobiles? Let me ask the question a different way:  What are the objects, belongings,  possessions or activities that bring you the most pleasure?  Whatever these are, they are your “treasures”. If you want to know why these treasures reflect who you are and where you’re going with your life, read on, it’s important for you to know.

Your Heart = Your Treasures

St. Augustine summed it up perfectly when he referenced Matthew 6:21:

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“Where your pleasure is, there is your treasure; Where your treasure is, there is your heart.” – St. Augustine

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All those treasures you’re pursuing, they’re determined by your heart.

This means our heart tells us:

• What to pursue with our life.

• How to make decisions.

• How to spend our time.

• What to do and don’t do.  

Our life’s happiness is driven by the orientation of our heart!

Our Heart = Who We Are

So here’s the next key point:  If our heart determines what we do, our heart reveals everything about who we are.

Makes sense, right?  That’s why we’re all so protective of our heart.  That’s why we find it so difficult to share our heart, or to give it away.  We’re frightened to divulge those inner secrets that hide inside of us, because sometimes they’re not pretty.

Sharing your heart is opening the door to your soul.

[special]“The human heart has hidden treasures, in secret kept, in silence sealed; The thoughts, the hopes, the dreams, the pleasures, Whose charms were broken if revealed.”

– Charlotte Bronte [/special]

Take charge of your heart!

Stop now and take 10 minutes to look around your life.  Get a pen and something to write on and ask yourself these four questions.  Assign percentages where applicable.  Be honest.

1. On a day-to-day basis how do I spend my time?  
2. On what purchases or activities do I spend my hard earned dollars?
3. Where am I focusing my emotional and mental energy?
4. What do my friends and I consistently talk about?

Now spend 10 minutes of quiet time reflecting on your answers.  Does anything surprise you?  

Here’s what I did which was even more eye opening.

I shot my friends a short text asking if they’d help me out with some goal planning.  If they said yes (which they all did) I sent them another quick note with the following questions and asked if they could send back their response in two days.

1. Where do you see me spending my time?
2. What do you think is the most important thing to me?
3. What three words would you use to describe me?

I know this is hard and scary to do.  But we have an internal bias to believe what we want to believe, so seeking external input from people who know and care for us adds integrity to the process.

Make it easy on your friends.  Tell them to respond with no more than a sentence or two per answer.  Thank them in advance for their time and thoughts, and when they send their responses, thank them again for good measure (no matter what they say!).

Be Wise & Successful…

1. You need to change the focus of your heart if you’re discontent with the decisions you’re making and the way your life is heading.  Your heart reveals everything about who you are, and will direct everything you do.

2. Before you can change your heart, you need to know it first.  This requires some honest and challenging self-assessment.  If you want to have a successful life you need to occasionally review how you’re spending your time, your money, and your mental energy.  Look at the things you’re reading, focusing on, worrying about and talking about.  Use the two processes I describe above.

3. Conduct a periodic self assessment every six months.  Put it in your calendar.  Write down your responses, keep a journal, and note how you’re thinking about the world and how your heart is changing.  

4. Stay in-touch with your friends that shared their input.  Talk to your friends about any changes you’ve made in light of their input.  I bet they’ll notice the changes and they’ll affirm your new choices.

Remember, every journey starts with one step.  Every step takes you in a direction toward somewhere.  Make your life as successful as it can be by knowing your heart.