Ok, I’ll make this short and sweet ’cause it ain’t pretty. {did I actually type the word ain’t?!}

This is what I texted back: I’ve got an ugly heart right now. Please pray.

Yep, it’s U.G.L.Y.

~pride

~jealousy

~anger

~did I mention pride?

I hate this about myself that this ugly heart condition bubbles up out of nowhere. But really…is it out of nowhere?

That is where I rely on Psalm 24 which says that those with a clean {not ugly} heart will stand in God’s holy presence. Those who do not succumb to ugly, false, sinful thoughts and actions will be blessed by God’s sweet mercy. Here is the cool part: those who seek His face will find Him; even if they seek Him while loaded down with the ugly junk.

I know that I know that I know that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. I also know that I know that I know that Jesus nailed my ugly stuff to the Cross when He died for me {and YOU!}.

But, what I have lately realized is that I must find constant focus on Christ every minute of every day in order to stave off this junk that festers in my heart.

This means that as I go about my day, I take a hard look at the condition of my heart and PROMPTLY confess the ugly. This also means that my thoughts, words and actions are filtered through a sift that reflects the truths of the Bible. Often times, the ugly comes from believing lies that I conjure up in my head–lies that I have no business believing as they are contrary to what I read in verses like Psalm 24.

So this is what I’m going to do with my ugly:

Find Focus on Him. Constantly check in with Jesus. The moment the ugly heart surfaces its well…ugliness, He will redirect my focus back to His beauty.

{NOTE: after I posted this, another opportunity came around for ugliness to bubble up. Another girlfriend gave me this verse. Whew! God knew what I needed to hear from His word!}

Isaiah 26:3 You keep in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you {FIND FOCUS!} because he trusts in you.