When it's a good idea NOT to listen to your heart.

I sit today pouring over words, a third cup of tea my companion. So many words bounce around inside of me. 

 I confess that a grey fog has visited my heart today, a haze of unwelcome thoughts invade. Why do they shout so loud? Inadequacy. Fear. Self-consciousness. I am uncertain as to the origin of this grey fog but I do know that it is unsettling. And I would like it to leave. 

 My friends, on days like today it is easy for the grey fog to do the speaking, to define who I am. I have heard it advised to "listen to your heart". What if my heart is shouting what is not true? Days like today remind me that sometimes it's a good idea NOT to listen to my heart. Instead, I lean in closely to the One who designed me. I look to Him to define the messy parts that need re-ordering. I look to Him to anchor my soul as it rides the waves of the tumultuous sea of feelings.

I choose truth as my guide, shown to me in the ancient written Words of Scripture, the kind words of a close friend, and recalling ways that my Counselor has sustained me in the past. And soon the loudest voice is truth. I prefer its calming melodies to the offbeat rhythms of my heart any day.