These statements might sound like they are out of a Disney princess song, but unfortunately people take them more seriously than that. These statements are often the advice that girls receive. I remember a conversation I had with an older woman, when I was in high school, we were talking about college. I was telling her that I wasn’t sure what to major in, or how to know what to do with my life and her advice was this– “You need to just listen to your heart.”

Really, that was the last thing I needed to do. I’m sad to think of how many girls heed that advice and fall into the emptiness of living for self. Though these statements sound heart warming and adventurous, it is critical that we understand what is wrong with this thinking. Even if we don’t think that we would heed silly quotes like this, we probably live them out much of the time. It is very easy to get caught up in living for self. Even when we think we aren’t getting to “follow our hearts”–because we have to go to work or school and do what our parents say–we still follow our hearts. It shows in our attitudes, thoughts, words, how we spend our time and money. We need to understand why following-my-heart is not a good thing.

Our Heart’s Problem.

Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?”

There are many ways that people describe the problem with our hearts–humanity, mistakes, messing up, “nobody’s perfect”–the word they are describing is “sin.” All people ever born in all of history(Jesus Christ is the only exception)are sinners (Romans 5:12). Every heart, from it’s beginning, is tainted with sin. Sin has consequences–death and separation from God (Romans 6:23). None of us are exempt from sin’s curse on humankind. How can we escape these consequences? How are we to be good young women, to do what is right and live lives that make a difference if our hearts that are sick with sin? Can we ever find happiness, joy, peace or purpose if we are sick deep inside in our hearts?

Some people think that its not good to talk about sin because if you talk about sin then people feel like they have to deal with theirs. But we need to. We need to consider our hearts and see that there is no good in them. When we see ourselves rightly, as sinners, we can see God more as He is. When we think, “I’m not so bad” we become ungrateful and believe we are entitled to what we want, as if God owes us something. But when we see that our hearts really are desperately wicked we see what unworthy wretches we are, we get a glimpse of how God is pure, good and holy.

God’s Perfect Answer.

In Ezekiel 36:26-27 God says “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.”

This verse might sound a little strange, like God is going to do surgery on us, but it is telling us something very exciting! God’s solution to our heart problem of sin is a new heart. When Jesus died on the cross, He cancelled the curse of sin for us. His death gives us life and when we respond in faith and repentance to His sacrifice, God gives us a new heart! In this descriptive language “heart of stone” represents our old stubborn nature that is focused on self. The new heart or “heart of flesh” represents the new creation that God works in us making us not only alive but soft and willing so that He can work change in us.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says,

“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
old things have passed away;
behold, all things have become new.”

This might all seem basic or too general–what everyone needs–but the truth of the matter is that most books for girls (and women) do not address the heart need as salvation. This is what a young girl needs, salvation. There are many young girls who try to be good and want to be happy and only see superficial change in their lives. We need to help them see that their greatest need is not self-esteem, confidence, friends or beauty. Their greatest need is a heart that is made new so God can transform them from who they used to be into a new creation!