"Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts..."

Today's reflection reminds me of Matthew 15:16-20, "Then Jesus said to Peter, ‘Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.'"

I was speaking with a colleague who asked the question, "When we get angry, is it a reaction or is it a choice?" After some conversation, he expressed his opinion that "All feelings and emotions are a choice; we just choose certain emotions and feelings so often and so long that they become a habit." When he said this, I immediately thought of this passage from Matthew and this reflection from Holy Island. We form our habits to be angry, suspicious, bitter, malicious, manipulative, etc., and these habits infect our heart to the point that we need to beg God to "cleanse the thoughts of our hearts" so that we may have a fresh start, have a "holy do-over" on our spiritual journey with God.

We profess that Jesus provides us with the "holy do-over" and we understand that Lent provides us with yet another opportunity to unbind those things that keep us from drawing closer to God...like a heart full of thoughts centered on one's self instead of on God.