“What Comes from the Heart”

 

“What Comes from the Heart”

Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time



Today’s Gospel (Mark 7:14-23) is uncomfortable.

Because Jesus does not point to what we eat, what we touch, or even what surrounds us. He points to something deeper:

“It is what comes out of a person that defiles.”

We live in a culture that always blames what is outside:
society, politics, education, the environment, family circumstances.
But Jesus looks us in the eye and says:
The problem does not begin outside. It begins in the heart.

From the heart come the words that wound.
From the heart come the decisions that break relationships.
From the heart come envy, pride, greed, resentment.

If we want a different world, we need different hearts.
And that does not happen automatically. It is cultivated. It is purified. It is formed.

Today I would like to propose five concrete exercises to help us govern what comes out of us.

 

1. Daily Examination of the Heart

Each night before going to sleep, ask yourself:

  • What came out of me today?
  • Which words built others up?
  • Which words tore someone down?

This is not about living in guilt, but about living in awareness.
Conversion begins when we stop justifying ourselves.

Five minutes each day can change the quality of our interior life.

 

2. The Holy Pause

When you are upset, do not respond immediately.
Breathe. Count to ten. Pray silently.

Many wounds are not born from an evil heart, but from impulsive reactions.

Learning to control the tongue is a concrete path to holiness.

 

 

 

3. Fasting from Negativity

Choose one day a week to refrain from criticizing, complaining, or speaking badly about anyone.

This exercise reveals how much disorder we carry within.
Silence purifies the soul.

 

4. Prayer for a Pure Heart

Each morning say:

“Lord, create in me a clean heart.”

We cannot change by ourselves.
Grace accomplishes what human effort alone cannot.

Ask for purity in your thoughts, sincerity in your intentions, and charity in your words.

 

5. Replace, Don’t Just Repress

It is not enough to suppress what is bad. We must transform it.

If you tend to criticize, choose to praise.
If you feel envy, choose to bless.
If you hold resentment, pray for that person.
If pride rises up, practice hidden acts of humility.

The heart is not cleansed simply by emptying it, but by filling it with God.

 

Brothers and sisters, the Gospel does not ask for religious appearances.
It asks for interior transformation.

A healthy heart produces healthy words.
And healthy words build families, communities, and a living Church.

Today let us ask the Lord not simply to behave better,
but to be transformed from within.

 

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