And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. – Daniel 1:5,8 KJ

Warrior;

Are you like Daniel? Have you PURPOSED in your heart! The time is 605 B.C. Jerusalem is now under control of the Babylonian army. The King of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, gives instructions to bring the best and brightest young Jewish men to Babylon to be trained.  The best of the best would have the honor to be advisors in service to the king. Daniel, and the three Hebrew boys; Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were taken with many others, and deported to Babylon to train in the top school in Babylon. While in training they ate at the king’s table, and they had all the best that Babylon had to offer at their disposal. They were given food that the king himself ate. This food was sacrificed to Babylonian gods, which made it forbidden, by Jewish law. A choice had to be made, and so it says that Daniel purposed in his heart not to go against God’s word and defile himself with the king’s offerings. He took a stand.  He chose to FOLLOW GOD, and not the norms of society. What does it mean to ‘Purpose in one’s heart’. It is a heart that is dedicated to God, His word, and His way! Daniel, and the three Hebrew boys, refused to DEFILE themselves. The word defile means to make something or someone unclean, or impure. It can also mean to corrupt the purity, or perfection of something or someone; debased or to make something or someone filthy or dirty. If you polluted a river then you’d defile a river, like with sewage or something similar. What the Jewish world, religious people believed defiled someone and what Jesus believes defiles someone- are totally different.  

Leader, the prophet Isaiah told what God said; “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9) Hear the Word of the Lord; “It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.”- Matthew 15:11.  And again, He says it a little differently: But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.” (Matthew 15:18-20) Jesus tells us that it’s the thoughts, the intents of the heart- that defiles a person.  Jesus is telling us our actions come from OUR HEART!  When the Bible talks about the heart, it is not talking about the center of your circulatory system.  It is not talking about the organ in your body that pumps blood through your body. In the Bible, the HEART is our CENTRAL FOCUS. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told us the difference between earthly treasure and heavenly treasure.  “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19–21). Whatever we focus on dictates our actions. When we focus on earthly success and wealth, we will spend our time, our focus, our energies on earthly matters. When we focus on God’s priorities, our actions will reflect different priorities, which will produce different outcomes, and require a different focus. 

Conduit, Luke 6:45 in the Amplified Bible reminds us of the power of the heart; The [intrinsically] good man produces what is good and honorable and moral out of the good treasure [stored] in his heart; and the [intrinsically] evil man produces what is wicked and depraved out of the evil [in his heart]; for his mouth speaks from the overflow of his heart.” If we are going to FIGHT OUR GOOD FIGHT, then we must understand how we get things into our heart. There are 5 portals of entry into this thing we call experience.  It is the 5- senses; Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic, Olfactory and Gustatory.  We see, hear, feel, smell and taste things, and that is how every single memory is stored. What defiles us is what we WATCH, what we LISTEN to, where we HANG OUT, what WE DO, which ultimately are the things we think about, dream about, desire about, and fear about. In today’s world of evil seemingly in charge we must be BETTER STEWARDS of our experience.  It is written: “Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things [which are dishonorable—disobedient, sinful], he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified [set apart for a special purpose and], useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Run away from youthful lusts—pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those [believers] who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” (2 Timothy 2:21-22) So then, my dear ones, just as you have always obeyed [my instructions with enthusiasm], not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation [that is, cultivate it, bring it to full effect, actively pursue spiritual maturity] with awe-inspired fear and trembling [using serious caution and critical self-evaluation to avoid anything that might offend God or discredit the name of Christ]. For it is [not your strength, but it is] [a]God who is effectively at work in you, both to will and to work [that is, strengthening, energizing, and creating in you the longing and the ability to fulfill your purpose] for His good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12-13) The Time is NOW to PURPOSE in our HEART to make JESUS our FIRST LOVE! How do we do that?  John told us; For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. (1 John 5:3) And Jesus Himself told us; “If you love me, you will obey my commandments”.  Will you love Jesus, or defile your heart? Choices, choices….