Psalm 51:10: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a right and steadfast spirit within me” (AMP)

So let’s take a look at motives as we continue on our journey about the heart.  This prayer of forgiveness was written by King David.   David was what we may say, “A man after God’s own heart.”  He was chosen and set apart (at a very young age) to do awesome things for God.  By no means was he perfect, as he was just like us!  He loved God with all of his heart, and wanted to do nothing but His will.  However, David was tempted, got involved with his soldier’s wife, and she became pregnant.  Unfortunately, to solve the problem, he ordered the soldier to the front line so that he would die immediately.  You can read more of that part of the story here.  David’s motives were exposed through his actions.  His wrongful actions had separated him from God.  So what did David do?  He repented and asked God to cleanse his heart!  You can read the entire prayer here.

Proverbs 21:2: “Every man’s way is right in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs and examines the hearts [of people and their motives]”

Hmmm what are motives?   According to Merriam-Webster, it is “something (such as a need or desire) that causes a person to act.”  What we can also learn from David’s experience, is that God is very concerned with the motives of the heart, and He even calls the heart deceitful, which was mentioned in the previous post.   Here are some scriptures to support:

Jeremiah 17:9: “The heart is deceitful above all things And it is extremely sick; Who can understand it fully and know its secret motives?”

Proverbs 16:2: “All the ways of a man are clean and innocent in his own eyes [and he may see nothing wrong with his actions], But the Lord weighs and examines the motives and intents [of the heart and knows the truth]”

I Corinthians 2:11: “For what person knows the thoughts and motives of a man except the man’s spirit within him?  So also no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God”

I remember a while back when God began challenging me on my motives for doing things.  It became a consistent check where an idea would come to my mind, and before I would pursue the idea, I would sense His convictions: What’s your motive for doing this?  Are you doing this for yourself or to help benefit others?  Are you doing this so you can look good?  It was tough!  Although I didn’t have to stop and reflect to examine my heart.  I could have just ignored what was happening,  but I made the choice to listen.  I knew God wanted to change me in this area, and I wanted to be changed.

You might be thinking, What’s wrong with that?  What’s wrong with doing things for yourself? I am not talking about spending the day with your buddies and/or girlfriends, going shopping, or doing something nice for yourself.  This is about being boastful, lifting yourself up, making everything about you, and/or purposely doing something to hurt and/or inconveniencing other people in order to benefit yourself.  The bible says:

Philippians 2:3: “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit [through factional motives, or strife], but with [an attitude of] humility [being neither arrogant nor self-righteous], regard others as more important than yourselves”

So I ask you this, what do the motives of your heart look like?   Are you doing things with a pure heart or is there an ulterior motive? Are you acting a certain way for attention?   Allow Him to search and change the motives of your heart, and watch as you change from the inside to the outside!  For more readings on the heart, I encourage you to read this article!

Stay encouraged and keep moving by faith!

Kia D. London