The first sip told me something was wrong.

I had poured a glass of ice-cold water from a filtered pitcher, raised it confidently, and immediately regretted it. My taste buds objected. I rinsed the cup and tried again. Same taste. I switched cups. Still there. After a third attempt, the truth became unavoidable.

The problem was not the cup.
It was not even the water itself.
It was the source.

The house was on a well with high sulfur content. The water was still water. H₂O. Clean by definition. But something had mixed into it. Even filtered, the water carried a faint boiled-egg reminder of what the well was contributing.

Water is the supply we draw from.
The well is the source it comes from.

When the source is contaminated, the supply carries the taste. When the well is compromised, the water becomes bitter. Life does not turn sour because the cup is flawed, or because water itself is bad, but because the source has been altered. Every cup simply tells the truth about the well.

That moment illustrates a biblical truth we often overlook.
“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

When Scripture speaks of the “issues of life,” it is not referring to problems or crises. It means outgoings. Exits. Streams. What consistently flows out of a person over time. Words spoken. Decisions made. Loves revealed. Paths taken. Life does not merely happen to us. It flows from us.

We often respond to life the way I responded to that water. When something tastes off, we clean the cup. We manage behavior. We try to correct reactions. Scripture presses us deeper. If the stream is bitter, the wise place to look is not the cup. It is the well.

There are four primary fountainheads for the issues of life: emotion, passion, affection, and conviction. None of them are flaws in the human design. They are God-given and meant to carry life. But when the heart is left unguarded, contaminants settle in. The streams still flow, yet they carry something foreign, and what should refresh begins to leave an aftertaste.

Emotion is the heart’s answer to the moment.
Emotion rises quickly and speaks loudly. Joy, fear, anger, relief. Emotion itself is not the enemy. But when fear or bitterness mixes in, it begins to rule rather than report. Scripture cautions us against trusting feelings as final authority. “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool” (Proverbs 28:26). God invites us to examine emotion, not obey it blindly. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?… hope thou in God” (Psalm 42:11).

Passion is the heart’s aspiration over time.
Passion does not shout. It accumulates. It shows up in what we keep reaching for and what we believe will finally satisfy. Passion itself is not wrong. But when pride or envy seeps in, it quietly bends a life off course. Scripture offers a sober warning. “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12). God does not extinguish desire. He redirects it. “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart” (Psalm 37:4).

Affection is the heart’s attachment to what it loves.
Affection reveals itself in loyalty. In what we defend. In what we excuse. Love is not the problem. God commands it. But when lesser things become ultimate things, affection entangles the soul. Scripture speaks plainly. “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world” (1 John 2:15). God calls us to ordered love, love that lifts rather than traps. “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:2).

Conviction is the heart’s anchor to what it trusts.
Conviction steadies the soul when emotions fluctuate and passions cool. Conviction itself is a gift. But when compromise mixes in, the anchor lifts quietly. Drift feels reasonable. Scripture names it clearly. “Tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14). God’s counsel is firm and kind. What the heart trusts must not be temporary. “Buy the truth, and sell it not” (Proverbs 23:23).

Emotion, passion, affection, and conviction are not the problem. They are the streams. When they taste bitter, they are telling the truth about what has entered the well. Proverbs does not tell us to deny the streams. It tells us to guard the source.

Wells require attention. They are hidden. They demand care before the taste reaches the tongue. But the visible life always depends on the hidden one.

Tend the well long before you taste the water.

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