Josh McDowell's Youth DevotionsSample

HEART PROBLEMS. Tin Man hadn't seen Dorothy, Toto, the Cowardly Lion, and the Scarecrow for years. He didn't know what had happened to them. But he knew what had happened to himself. He'd gotten a heart when he and the others had journeyed to the mystical land of Oz. But now he was pretty upset. His heart wasn't working right. "There's something wrong with it," he told his tin doctor as he lay on a tin table in the doctor's tin office. "It doesn't work right. It doesn't do right things." Tin Man threw up his hands. His shoulders and elbows creaked like a rusty gate. "Sometimes I'll be talking to my friends, and-" he snapped his tin fingers-"just like that, a bad word will come out. Other times, I'll be watching a TV show, and somebody will say something naughty, and I'll laugh!" He looked around, as if he were afraid someone might be listening. "And sometimes," he whispered, "I've done even worse." "I see," said the doctor. "You're right. It is a heart problem. But I can't help you." "You can't?" Tin Man wailed. Tin Doctor shook his head. "You see, your heart problem can't be fixed. The only solution is to replace it." Tin Man swallowed loudly. "Replace it?" The doctor nodded. "You need a new heart. A pure heart. And I'm afraid that's available from only one place." Tin Doctor was right. The only solution to a problem like Tin Man's is a totally new heart, a pure heart. Trying to fix or reform the old heart won't help. It requires a transplant, a surgery only God can perform. King David had a similar problem. His heart was messing up, big time! So he fell on his knees and prayed for a transplant. He confessed his terrible sins to God. He admitted that they were wrong. He admitted that he was a sinner and needed God. He asked God for forgiveness. Then he said, "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me" (Psalm 51:10, NIV). Maybe you feel like the fictional Tin Man, or the real-life David. Maybe your heart isn't working right. You can get rid of an impure heart the same way David did: You can confess your sins and admit that you did wrong. You can admit that you need God and ask him for forgiveness. You can tell God you're willing to give up your own will and surrender to his. If you do that and continue trusting him every day to keep your heart pure, God will take care of your heart problem-in a heartbeat! REFLECT: Have you prayed to receive a "heart transplant" from God? If not, why not? If so, do you believe God has forgiven you and given you a pure heart? If so, how can you stay pure? PRAY: "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me."