Guard Your Heart

"It came about when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was annoyed to death. So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, 'A razor has never come on my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man.' When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, 'Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart.' Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands. She made him sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his hair. Then she began to afflict him, and his strength left him. She said, 'The Philistines are upon you, Samson!' And he awoke from his sleep and said, 'I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.' But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. Then the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze chains, and he was a grinder in the prison." -Judges 16.16-21

Samson fell for Delilah, and made a mistake many men make. The secret to Samson's strength is known only to himself and his parents. The Philistines have been after him for years, but each time they have come close they are defeated because of his strength. But now that he has fallen for Delilah they try again, offering her thousands of pieces of silver if she can learn the secret of his strength.

Three times he lies to her, but then she begins to ask him daily, and the text says his soul was annoyed to death. Finally, he gives in. He is worn out of resisting and he tells her everything. She takes the information and uses it to destroy him. Samson failed to guard his heart, and poured it all out to a woman who betrayed him.

There is so much that can be said here, but the most crucial thing is that we need to guard our hearts. I am not a very open person. I have had some past experiences where I've opened up and shared with people only to be let down (betrayed seems like a very strong word, but at times it would be very accurate) and those experiences have led me to be the way I am. I don't let many people get close to me, and even when I do it takes a long time, and even then I'm still guarded.

This is something I am working on, vulnerability is important, essential even, but like everything, it has its context. Being pestered constantly is no reason to spill your deepest fears or secrets. Delilah was not someone Samson should have trusted his heart to. She took it and sold it to the highest bidder. His eyes were gouged out and he was chained to grindstone in a prison, becoming an object of ridicule.

Men, you must guard your hearts. That is where your strength lies, and if you carelessly give it away, it will bring about your undoing. There are people your heart is safe with. There are people that you can be completely open and honest with. There are people that you can enjoy deep intimacy with. But these will be people who have gained your trust and earned that closeness with you, not annoyed it out of you.

Let us be men who guard our hearts, but may we never be men who are so guarded that we never let anyone get close to us. Let us learn to be vulnerable with the right people.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor