August 20 | Luke 6:43-45

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DAILY READING

Luke 6:43-45

Heart...a Mouthful of Love

By Judy Webb

“For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (Luke 6:45b NIV)

“What you say flows from what is in your heart.” (NLT)

“For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (ESV)

There was a popular song out in 1955 called, You’ve Gotta have heart. (All you really need is heart) To date myself even more, this recording was sung by the McGuire sisters. I know, most of you are scratching your heads, “who?”  That isn’t the point here, it's just what I thought of when reading these three different versions of the same verse.

It is true that heart is what we all need, pure and honest heartfelt love. We’ve found ourselves in situations that are difficult to respond to. We want to encourage friends and family after that diagnosis, or we want to reach out in comfort when everything goes wrong. Just knowing when to speak and when to merely touch a shoulder takes a pure and wise heart. “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (Luke 6:45b NIV)

There are times when it is difficult to put into words what you want to say. Times of grief or moments of unspeakable sadness can make us tongue tied. Words fail but when we are feeling some of the pain, we might be able to verbalize what is in our hearts. Our sorrow over the situation could provide the right words to say when they come from the heart, the overflow of our own love. “What you say flows from what is in your heart.” (NLT)

Luke 6:43-45 is couched between two other important lessons. First, get rid of the log in your own eye, speaking of not being so judgmental recognizing we are all guilty of sinfulness (vv.41-42) and on the other side is a word about building a solid foundation on which to stand (v.48). Being focused on God’s word and studying what this truth means to us and then embracing the word reveals God’s heart in each of us. This firm foundation we need is Jesus. If Jesus has touched us it will show in our lives. “For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (ESV)

PRAYER

Dear Lord,

We need to learn how a heart full of love will change everything. Love will mend lives and families, if only. Teach us how to overcome the 'if only' and truly embrace an open heart. Show us how to change our hearts, how to open our hearts, and how to share our hearts. Amen.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

JUDY WEBB

I have been a member of UALC for 26 years and have been writing devotions for this site for almost 20 of them. Writing is my passion. As retired staff I still love everything about UALC and its members including my small group.