Most of what we notice about our lives is what’s visible. The behaviors people see. The choices that show up on the surface. The part of the iceberg above the water.
But Scripture tells us that God is paying attention to what’s underneath.
“People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7 NLT).
An iceberg doesn’t sink ships because of what you can see. It’s what’s hidden below the surface that does the damage. In the same way, the most dangerous issues in a man’s life are rarely obvious at first. They live deeper, shaping decisions quietly and over time.
You can be doing the right things on the surface and still be drifting in the wrong direction underneath. You can obey outwardly while protecting something God is trying to expose. You can look faithful and still be divided inside.
Most of the time, the problem isn’t discipline. It’s a divided heart.
Jesus talks about this in a way that’s uncomfortable but clear. What comes out of your life isn’t random. It comes from somewhere deeper.
“The words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. For from the heart come evil thoughts…” (Matthew 15:18–19 NLT).
Sin rarely announces itself loudly. More often, it reshapes good desires just enough to turn them inward. Approval replaces love. Control replaces trust. Comfort replaces obedience.
James says temptation doesn’t usually begin with the devil. It begins inside us. “Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away” (James 1:14 NLT).
That’s why behavior alone never fixes what’s broken. You can manage actions and still worship the wrong thing. You can clean up the outside and leave the heart untouched.
The gospel doesn’t begin by demanding better motives. It begins by declaring acceptance. “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1 NLT).
You’re not obeying to earn love. You’re learning to obey because you are already loved. That shift changes everything.
When you belong to Christ, your identity changes. You stop performing for approval and start responding from a place of belonging. “Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT).
And God doesn’t leave you alone to fix your motives through willpower. The Spirit works deeper than effort. He reshapes desire itself. “God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:13 NLT).
One day, everything will be brought into the light. Not just what you did, but why you did it. “There is nothing hidden that will not be exposed” (Luke 8:17 NLT).
That isn’t meant to scare you. It’s meant to free you.
God isn’t asking for perfect motives right now. He’s asking for honest ones. Motives brought into the light instead of defended.
Pay attention to what’s beneath the surface because that’s what’s shaping you. Because whatever is forming your motives below the waterline is quietly steering your life.
And the deepest work God does in a man is not just changing what he does, but transforming what he loves.
Conquer what’s killing you.
Rise to what matters.