Chapter 1

What Are We Becoming?

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Proverbs 4:23 (KJV)

We are all becoming something. We are shaped not only in prayer and Bible reading, but by what we repeatedly think about, give attention to, practice, excuse, pursue, fear, and return to. Eventually what is happening inside begins showing up in the way we live. Becoming begins with the heart.

What Do We Really Value?

Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:21 (KJV). Approval, success, relationships, comfort, security, money, appearance, being needed, being right, being understood, and even good things can occupy places they were never meant to hold. There is a difference between what I say matters, what gets my attention, what receives my sacrifice, and what actually governs my choices. If someone could see my calendar, spending, thought life, sacrifices, and reactions without hearing what I say I value, what would they conclude matters most to me? This is not condemnation. It is honest examination.

What We Feed Grows

Philippians 4:8 (KJV) directs our attention toward what is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report. This is not merely positive thinking. Repetition forms us. What we repeatedly hear can sound true, what we repeatedly watch can look normal, and what we repeatedly practice can become automatic.

The Heart Will Eventually Show

Pressure reveals what ordinary circumstances can hide. We may not realize how much we need approval until someone disapproves, or how much control matters until we cannot control an outcome. What comes out can become information: Lord, what is this showing me?

Look at the Fruit

Jesus said, “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” Matthew 7:20 (KJV). Ask what is increasingly growing: truthfulness, patience, peace, discernment, repentance, boundaries without cruelty, trust without control. Fruit takes time. Roots first, then something becomes visible.

What Are You Becoming?

David prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart...” Psalm 139:23–24 (KJV). Becoming begins with being willing to ask, Lord, what is shaping my heart? And then being willing to listen.