Keeping the Heart

Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
PROVERBS 4:23

Likening the Christian’s heart to a musical instrument, John Flavel reminds us that it “will quickly fall out of tune if it is not well-kept.” So, like any good musician, we must continually tune out sinful notes and maintain the sweet sounds of communion with God. Keeping the Heart serves as an invaluable guide in this endeavor. With pastoral warmth and searching insight, Flavel not only explains why heart maintenance is important but also directs us through the specific seasons of life in which our hearts are most vulnerable to wander. Read this work carefully and prayerfully, and you will find your heart more tender toward God, humbler and sincerer before Him, and more deeply anchored in His truth.

Endorsements

“Pastoral wisdom and warmth flow down to us across the centuries in this wonderfully accessible version of John Flavel’s earnest volume on keeping the heart. Because spiritual health and happiness hinge on heart-holiness, the humble reader will only be helped by a careful and prayerful reading of this sweet little book.”
—Jeremy Walker, pastor of Maidenbower Baptist Church, Crawley, England

Contents

Preface

1. Introduction

What It Means to Keep the Heart

2. Its Necessity
3. Its Activity
4. Its Difficulty

Reasons for Keeping the Heart

5. The Honor of Our God
6. The Sincerity of Our Profession
7. The Beauty of Our Conduct
8. The Comfort of Our Soul
9. The Improvement of Our Grace
10. The Stability of Our Heart

Seasons for Keeping the Heart

11. In Prosperity
12. In Adversity
13. In Trouble
14. In Danger: Part 1
15. In Danger: Part 2
16. In Poverty
17. In Duty: Part 1
18. In Duty: Part 2
19. In Injury
20. In Provocation
21. In Temptation
22. In Darkness: Part 1
23. In Darkness: Part 2
24. In Persecution
25. In Sickness

Lessons for Keeping the Heart

26. A Word of Warning
27. A Word of Exhortation: Part 1
28. A Word of Exhortation: Part 2
29. A Word of Counsel
30. A Word of Comfort