015 - The Heart

#015 – The Spiritual Heart comprises the mind, will, and emotions of a person. The Bible says we are to love God with our who heart – but how do we do that when we are facing a crisis? Listen in as Debora interviews Minister Sherreill Myers who went through a serious health crisis and learn how she completely trusted God as she had to battle with her own mind, will, and emotions.  

Stay tuned for our next episode where we will explore – My Hiding Place.

Transcript

Announcer

Welcome to transformed by the word, a podcast about discovering how to live your life with gratifying purpose. God created you for a reason and the Bible contains the keys to unlock your transformed life. Now, here's your host, Debora Barr

Debora 0:27  

Thanks for joining me for Episode 15 of transformed by the word. Today we are exploring the heart. 

When the Bible speaks of the heart, it isn't talking about that muscle in our chest that pumps blood. It is speaking of something much broader. In the Old Testament, in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter six, verse five, the scripture says, You shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 

And in the New Testament, Jesus said in Matthew 22, verse 37, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 

So what is the biblical heart? It is essentially our mind, will and emotions. And God wants us to keep our hearts pure. 

Proverbs 4:23 says that we must keep our heart with all diligence, for out of it spring, the issues of life. And God wants us to love him with everything we've got in the core of our very being. And that means to trust Him, to love him, no matter what comes in our lives. 

Today, I've invited a special guest to the show to continue our conversation. Her name is Minister Sherreill Meyers, and I've known Sherreill as a prayer partner, a ministry partner, and a friend for more than 10 years. She is a licensed minister at First Baptist Church of Glenarden and she serves as a facilitator in a teacher in a number of ministry roles, both inside and outside the church. Sherreill considers it an honor to proclaim God's word and is humbled by the manner in which God turns her mess into a message for His glory. Over overcoming cancer in 2004 in 2017, she understands that life is a gift. And that true validation only comes through a personal and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. 

Her testimony and spiritual insight into the importance of keeping our hearts pure before God will be a true blessing to you. 

Stay tuned, we will be back in just a moment.

Debora 3:55  

Sherreill, thank you so much for coming on the show today to share with my listening audience.

Sherreill 4:01  

You are so welcome is my pleasure to be with you on this day.

Debora 4:06  

Today we're focused on the spiritual heart, which is our mind will and emotions. And when I was thinking about this topic and preparing for it, the Lord reminded me of how you faced a very significant health challenge with such determination and how your life is a powerful testimony to the people who witnessed you going through this journey. Would you mind sharing with the listening audience what happened to you in 2017?

Sherreill 4:35  

Absolutely. And actually, my first diagnosed with breast cancer was in 2004. And so I was actually diagnosed for the second time, and it was actually December of 2016. As I was shopping for one of my girlfriend's mom and I was out looking for a dress For her, so they can, you know, use it for the burial of her mom. And so while I was doing that is when I got the call from my doctor confirming that I had breast breast cancer for the second time. 

In that moment, I was shocked. Not surprised, but a little shocked. And so in that moment, I just asked God, what do I do? Do I continue to shop? Or do I just go home and you know, do whatever it is I was going to do. And so my direction was to continue to shop. And that's what I did. 

So I started preparing myself for what I was about to go through. And I think the number one thing that really got me was, because when you hear that you have cancer, or some type of, you know, illness or whatever, within my case, it was breast cancer for the second time, it can really weigh heavy on your mind. 

And so I think one of the things that I did was, instead of allowing it to weigh heavy on my mind, I accepted the fact that I had breast cancer. And immediately I decided how I was going to go through this. And so I decided that I was going to trust God that my life was in his hands, it was going to be a long journey. And that's what I did. So I, the second thing I did was I prayed and asked God to put the people in my pathway that that could help me. Because I also take care of my sister, so who has a cognitive disability, so that was going to be more stress at it. And so I prayed and asked God to, to send me the people that could help me. And to guide me as I go through. As I went, I was going to go through this. And that's exactly what he did. I knew that it was going to be tough. And I realized that not to be spiritually, you know, spiritual, but I knew that this was a test that God was calling me to go through. So I knew I was it was gonna be tough. And it was one of the toughest seasons of my life that I've ever gone through. But it's all because of the grace of God that I am here. And I knew that I would come through and I knew that I would live to proclaim the works of the Lord. And I knew that my, my, my season was for a purpose, that God was going to use it for a purpose. And that's exactly what he has done in what he is doing.

Debora 7:50  

Wow, what an incredible battle on your mind, your will and your emotions, this diagnosis of cancer for the second time, you already knew what it was the treatment and all that was going to be like and you had done it before. But this had to grip you once again. How were you able to love God with your whole heart through this very intense second trial?

Sherreill 8:15  

Well, this second battle was more intense than the first battle. Because this second battle you know, what caused me to have to not only have another surgery, it would entail me going through chemo. So the struggle, I guess the part that weighed more on me than anything else, was the fact was I gonna lose my hair. I was cool with everything else. And so that was like my, my one thing that I constantly was just saying to the Lord, you know, I'm gonna go to go through this, I'm gonna do it with you with me, or whatever you do, please don't let me lose my hair. Hmm. So how I was able to just continue to love God through it was that I really came to grips to understand that that God's love for me was beyond the physical. It was beyond just my physical body. 

And so I i've battled my mind with that because you think about all of your, your physical appearance and what it's going to do what you're going to look like. And so I just, I knew that was my bargaining chip with God. I was like, he's not gonna let my hair fall out. So I'm good with that. So but but those two things, knowing that he loved me beyond my physical and I'm like, okay, because he got me going through this. This is one bargaining chip that he's gonna allow me to keep this my hair. Well, that didn't happen. Hair begin to fall out, I think after my second treatment. Then that's when my, my emotions broke at a different level, and a more in depth level, because I couldn't understand, you know, I didn't fight you on this, I just yielded to you taking me through this, and you still allowed my hair to fall out. 

And I remember one morning, as I was preparing myself, wash my face, brushing my teeth. And it was actually the morning that I discovered my hair was coming out is when I rubbed my hand through it. And I remember just looking in the mirror. And I'm just like, Oh my gosh, Lord, I can't believe you're allowing this. And I remember that I remember hearing, when I asked the question, why I remember hearing, how important is the why you still have to go through the process. And so the moment that I heard that, my trust just went deeper, said, No, I am going to live through this. And it was just a reconfirmation of God loves me beyond my physical appearance, I have to get beyond my physical appearance. And I have to know that my relationship with God is not built on my physical, but it really is built on the spiritual level, and my mind, my will, and my emotions, all of that was affected by what I was facing. 

But I made a decision that it would not be in control of, of who I am in Christ. And I can't I just clung to that, that I am. I am in Christ, even in the midst of this battle. Christ still is with me. And he's in this with me. And it was not easy. The mind is just it just goes and it goes, the emotions is goes and it goes. But I was I willed to trust God, I will to be determined, I will not to question God to the fact where our caused myself to lose focus. So that's how I continue to love him with my whole heart, in the midst of my trial to know that his love for me is beyond the physical is beyond this disease that's in my body. And either way, I knew I was a winner. But I knew that I was going to live as well. I just, I just knew it.

Debora 12:38  

So how did you see your life impacting others? I mean, you've got this intense relationship between you and God. But you were going through treatments you were going through seeing medical professionals and all these things. How did you notice that the way that you were walking this out impacted the people around you?

Sherreill 12:59  

In the beginning, I didn't. It wasn't until I met with one of my nurses asked me a question. And so I learned that she had had a double mastectomy. And so she in the midst of our conversation, she asked me, Why did I decide to have a double mastectomy, being that this was my second time. And I explained to her that one is just not something that I felt I was led to do to is not the medical advice that I was given. And three, I've just said to I just believe God that the treatment that I'm having in the surgery that I had, is best for me. And as I begin to share my testimony with her, I could see that she was regretting the decision of having a double based off of her grandmother and her mother, both going through breast cancer. And I could tell that she couldn't quite figure out where the faith that I was exercising was coming from. 

And so as I just shared with her, I can only tell and as I said, I can only tell you what God has done for me. I can only tell you how he's made the difference in my life. And because I'm going through breast cancer doesn't eliminate his love. It doesn't eliminate his existence. It doesn't eliminate him being the giver of my life. And even in the midst of where I am today. I claim to that because I know that my life is because of God. I know that I'm breathing. I know that I'm walking. I know that I'm alive because of God. I know that I'm sane and in my right brain My mind, because of God, I know that my emotions are not destroying me because of God. And I know that and I know it's because of my relationship with him is nothing is nothing greater than that I know that I did not die. And I'm not, I'm not living and dying. Because my emotions are so overwhelming killing me. I know, it's all because of God. I know because he breathed His life into my nostrils, and I became a living being, and I became a living being with purpose. And that is what I cling to even today. Even today, even just in my daily life, I realized and recognized that,

Debora 15:48  

wow, that's excellent. For our listeners, when sickness or the death of a loved one or some other, like tragic circumstance enters their life, what are some practical things that you can advise them to do to keep their mind their will and their emotions focused on God and not on fear?

Sherreill 16:08  

Well, the mind, which is where every thought begins, is the battleground is the battleground. In this, whether we are Christian on or not, it is where the battle begins with all of us. And if we even look at scripture, and look in Genesis chapter three, I believe, when it talks about how the serpent came to Eve, he played on her mind. So for me, I decided not to let my mind be a puppet for the enemy. Oh, I, I accepted the fact that my thoughts and my emotions, and I will to trust God, that even though I am I am battling breast cancer is not going to control me. So in my mind, I decided I'm gonna go through this, and I'm gonna have my weak moments, I'm gonna have my moments of struggle. 

Like I knew some days, I just just felt like, I was just running on empty, like, I didn't know what to do. But what I did do is I decided that it was okay to be to have weak moments, it was okay to feel frustrated, it was okay to even just struggle with my own emotions, at times. But what I did decide it was never okay for it to be in control of me, when I decided it was not gonna control me. That's when I was, I was, I think, at my strongest when I decided to do that. 

Because I think sometimes, as Christians, we think because we accept Christ, that it entitles us not to go through hardships. And that's not true. hardships are part of our journey. Whether it's sickness, whether it's facing death, whatever it may be. It's all a part of life. And I think we have to come to the realization that God is God. And he continues to be God, whether you accept Him as Savior or not, or whether you do accept Him as Savior or not. And whether you face the sickness, whether you save the unsaved, God is still God, and He is still the source, which we must all run to, to have stable illness of mine, to have the motions and go through the motions, and know that having breakdowns and feeling emotion, they don't weaken God. They just give us an opportunity to see God to do amazing things in our lives to because the day that I rang the bell after my last chemo treatment, I'm like, Oh, this is nothing but another aha moment for God. Because not only did my doctors watch me come through, the nurses watch me come through. They watched me in a weak moment. And they watched me and strong moments, people that came to assist me, they didn't just see me in my strong moments. They saw me in my strong and weak moments. And so it was up to them to this side. 

Is God real? Or is God not real? But I pray that my life example of living through my testimony says that God is real. And that even though we go through hardships and sicknesses, it doesn't eliminate God. He still is the Almighty, all powerful, all knowing, all wise. All sovereign all resource, all submission God that he is. So the practical thing that we can really cling to, is you have to determine what you believe about God. And it may sound spiritual, it may sound over that that's just a generic answer. But it's the reality of where we are. We have to decide what you believe about God, my mom passed in 2013. We had had a conversation previous when we were doing her will, that she wanted me to do her eulogy.

Sherreill 20:39  

I only give God honor and glory for that. Because in that moment, I know it was only God, who empowered me to be able to stand over her casket and preach her eulogy. And the topic that I talked about was, is this your reality? And so my reality was not her laying there forever. My reality is one day, we will be united, serving the Lord together, as but so we have to decide, what do you believe about God? Do you really know who God is? So those are practical things. And I think the most practical thing you can do is just go through the process. But determine how you're going to go through it. I don't know if that's helpful. But that's what I did.

Debora 21:32  

Yeah, that's excellent. You had to choose how you were going to go through this. 

Sherreill 21:39  

Absolutely. 

Was it easy? Absolutely not? Did I struggle? Absolutely. But I refused. To not to fight. I fought for my life, I fought for my sanity, I fought for a balance in my emotions. Because I was the only one who could dress myself for the battle. I was the only one who could do it. I know I had people praying for me. I know I had people interceding for me. And I believe that, that that is what happened for me. But I heard someone say, I believe a few months ago, you have to get up, and you have to get dressed for the battle. 

Just as we get up and get dressed for work, nobody can go to work for me. So nobody can fight this battle for me, except for me. And so that's a practical thing. How will you fight determines on where you are in Christ. And what you believe. Again What do you believe about God? What do you believe about Jesus? What do you believe about the power of the Holy Spirit working within you? What do you believe? And not only do you believe it? What are you exercising? Are you exercising a level of faith in God? Besides, he's the creator of the universe. Are you exercising some level of faith about Jesus beyond just being the reason for the season? Is he your Redeemer? Is he is he the reason why you can call God your father, and you can say, Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be your name? Is he the reason why you can say that? Do you know that the Holy Spirit is the sealer of us until that day that we need Jesus because it is a day that we are all going to meet Christ. And we're going to witness whether or not he is the king of kings. And I'd rather take a chance on it now, the waiting to be later.

Debora 23:41  

Absolutely. Absolutely. Thank you so much for joining me on the show today to share this absolutely powerful message about the spiritual heart and about your own experiences with God through a very difficult season of your life. 

Would you close out our time today, by praying for our listening audience, someone out there may be struggling with a diagnosis that they just received, or the sickness or death of a loved one, or any kind of tragedy that comes in their life, and they don't know how to keep their mind their will and their emotion stayed on God.

Sherreill 24:22  

Sure. So I will, I will say this as we pray. You have to choose to be in control of your emotions. And if you can't do that on your own, you have to surround yourself with people who can help you build yourself up. And sometimes that takes professional help. So we have to be able to as I refer to go sit on someone's couch, if that's what you need. 

Father, we thank you for our time today and I thank you God that my life has endured a season of testing that someone may be able to glean from my experience and come to know you, God for the first time or on a on a deeper level, or come to know you by accepting Jesus as, as their Redeemer, and allow him to be Lord have over their lives. And so I know that you always watching, I know that your ears are always listening to the cry of your people, because we all created in your image, whether we have accepted you or not, but is something special about our voice, in your hearing, when you know that your son has been accepted as Lord and Savior, and your spirit is empowered and living within us, empowering us to be able to live this life. And so I pray for that mother, that Father, that daughter, that Son, Lord, or just even nephews, or whoever, or nieces, God who are facing such heart and, and heart wrenching difficulties in their lives, I pray that you send someone among them, to share your love, to experience your love to see your love, to be able to, to know that you love them beyond the physical appearance that you love them beyond this physical world, beyond this physical body, that there's a soul and all of us, that longs for you because we were created in your image, there was a unity that you created, that man can never be able to explain in the natural and this natural life that we're living in. But one day God we will be reunited with you in the way that you intended. And so as we have a hope, and a trust in your ability to keep us as we live these lives, we thank you for that, Lord, we bless you for that. And we cling to the fact that you are the God who was who is and who has to come and that you have a plan. For every listener today. You have a purpose for every listener today. And we can only know that plan in that purpose when we come to know Jesus as our Lord and Savior. In Jesus mighty name we pray and give you think, amen. 

Debora 

Amen. 

Don't go away. We'll be right back after this short break.

Debora 28:11  

We just heard from Minister Sherreill Myers about the spiritual heart, which is our mind, will and emotions. And she shared with us a very difficult season that she experienced in her life, and how she was able to walk through that difficulty with her mind will and emotions stayed on God. 

If you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you will not be able to face the troubles of life with the peace and the assurance that she shared with us today. If you never surrendered your life to Jesus, you can do that today. It is by faith that we believe that Jesus died on the cross to take away our sins. And if you are ready to place your trust in the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and receive the forgiveness of your sins. You can pray this prayer with me. 

God, I confess that I'm a sinner, and I need Jesus in my life. I repent of my sins and I turn my life around to you. I believe that Jesus died on the cross for my sins. He was buried and rose from the dead. And I accept this by faith and invite Jesus to be Lord of my life, to reign and rule in my heart every day. Thank you God, for forgiving me and for saving me. Amen. 

Perhaps you once walked with the Lord, You accepted Him as your Lord and Savior years ago, but you've strayed away from him and you don't have That assurance you can get your life right with God today. Just simply ask Him to forgive you for your sins and make a commitment for him to be Lord of your life. 

Once again. If you just accepted Jesus, or you just re committed your life to him, I would love to hear from you. Please visit my website at TBTWpodcast.com and let me know about your decision for Christ. That way I can share next steps with you, to help you and encourage you and support you in your faith. 

My prayer for you today is that you would trust in the Lord with all of your heart and allow him to be the Lord of your life, in good times, and in bad on the mountaintop and in the valley, that you would keep your heart in purity and that you would love him with your whole heart, mind, soul, spirit and strength and develop a deeper intimacy with him. It's in Jesus name that I pray. Amen. 

Stay tuned for our next episode of transformed by the word where we will discuss my hiding place.

Announcer 31:33  

Thank you for listening to transformed by the word with your host Debora Barr, be sure to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes or Google Play and connect with us at TBTWPodcast.com. Until next time, be blessed.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai