An odd
question to start our reflection today:
Friends,
how is your heart?
And no, I
don’t mean your physical heart. As important as it is, I am more interested in
the heart of your soul. So, here it is again:
How is your
heart?
Is it
wearied and burdened with anxieties and troubles of life: trying to make the
demands of daily living, unsure if you’d be able to pay the bills this month,
doubtful if you’d be able to bring home some gifts for your children this
Christmas?
Is it
pained by broken relationships, betrayal, loneliness, depression, or by the
feeling of unloved, unwanted?
Is it
tainted by sins, addictions, and bad habits?
Friends,
how is your heart today?
The reason
I am asking you, and, in a sense, asking myself these questions also, is
because I am convinced that the heart of your soul is the focus of attention in
the Gospel’s reading on this 2nd Sunday of Advent.
A voice crying out in the desert: “Prepare
the way of the Lord.”
In this
Season of anticipation, we await the celebration of the birth of the Lord.
However, the Church asks us to look beyond that. As we celebrate his first
coming in Bethlehem, we await his glorious return. Will he find your heart well
and ready to welcome him?
Friends,
how is your heart today?
If your
answer is “not well,” then allow me to suggest one simple way to make it better:
Letting it go and turning it over.
A story was told about St. Jerome praying by
the manger scene on Christmas Eve. Suddenly, Christ appeared in the form of an
infant. Jerome was moved to tears as he beheld the beauty and innocence of the
infant Jesus. The infant Christ turned and asked the saint,
“Jerome, what have you to offer me
as gifts?”
“Lord,” the saint answered, “I offer
you all the good works that I have been able to do.”
“What else?” Christ asked.
“I offer you all praises and honor
from the depth of my heart.”
“What else?”
“Lord, I don’t have anything else to
offer.”
“What about your sins? You offered
me all these beautiful things. But, I also want your sins. I want them so that
I can forgive them.”
A simple
story with a profound message.
Often, we want to bring to the Lord
the better self of who we are. We want to offer him a heart whole and holy.
But, what we failed to realize is that what he desires above all else is a
heart that is wounded that he may heal it, a heart that is pained that he may
console it, a heart that is burdened that he may uplift it, a heart that is
wearied that he may refresh it, a heart that is sinful that he may forgive it,
a heart that feels unloved that he may love it.
Whatever
condition you and I find our heart in today, let it go and turn it over to the
Lord who so desire to love it. What better way to prepare ourselves than to
allow God himself to make our hearts new?
This Season
of Advent is one of hope - A hope that
In the
midst of anxieties and worry, we will find serenity.
In the
midst of sorrows, we will encounter joy.
In the
midst of pains, there will be consolation.
In the
midst of separations, there will be reconciliation.
In the
midst of sins, there will be forgiveness.
This hope,
friends, is found in the person of the Lord Jesus who loves us so much.
Allow him
to have your heart. In turn, he will make it the most fitting place for his
dwelling.
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