Foolish heart, hear me calling
Stop before you start falling
Foolish heart, heed my warning
You’ve been wrong before
Don’t be wrong any more
–Steve Perry, Foolish Heart
Love songs aren’t always a good source of information for relationships. But I think Steve Perry was onto something with this one.
Like it or not, our emotions have tremendous power to influence our judgment. Our heart can make us believe things that simply aren’t true. Our hearts can make us say things like this:
“I know he’s not good for me, but I love him—I can’t let him go.”
“I know I have no future with her, but I just can’t stop these feelings.”
“I shouldn’t do this, but it feels so right.”
The Bible speaks of the foolish, sinful nature of our hearts. Consider these passages:
The heart is deceitful above all things
and beyond cure.
Who can understand it?
-Jeremiah 17:9
There is a way that seems right to a man,
but in the end it leads to death.
-Proverbs 14:12
You can’t always trust your heart—sometimes it is the last thing you should trust. I would encourage you to instead base your decisions on biblical wisdom.
He who trusts in himself is a fool,
but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe.
-Proverbs 28:26