Discernment: Every day we
are faced with discerning, “diagnosing, if you will,” the health of our hearts,
not our physical health but our spiritual health. In other words, is the Word of God, as it
comes to you through the Scriptures, through the events of your day, through
your relationships, falling on soil in
which it will bear good fruit, fruit that will last, or will the seed rotten,
return to the earth without yielding the fruit within it? If the soil of your heart is hardened by
anger and hatred, jealousy and envy, judgmentalism and pride, selfishness and
narcissism, by deceitfulness and meanness, then God’s word is choked off and
eaten by “birds of prey,” unable to take root.
On the other hand, if your heart is made fertile by your humility, your
honesty and openness, by your generosity
and love shown to the poor and needy
(especially within your family or, if a member of a religious community, the
members of your community); if your heart is porous and softened by “rain”
poured forth by daily prayer, reflection on the Scriptures, by taking time, in
solitude, to bask in God’s loving gaze, then the seed of God’s Word, in
whatever form it comes to you, will bear fruit that will last.
Can you discern the
condition of your heart?
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