Matthew 5: 27-32

I once came across an article praising God and creation. It talked about the human body and how complicated it is – 12 organs, 5 of which are vital: brain, lungs, liver, kidney, and heart. Of the five, the heart is the most important. If the heart is not working anymore, then the body is already dead.

In talking about the heart, in our Spiritual life, it is the most important as well. In St. Matthew’s Gospel, the Lord says to watch our hearts because if there is anger, lust, resentment, or a lack of forgiveness, our lives are affected, our relationships are affected, and the people around us are affected.

In a life that is not perfect in which we carry so many things in our hearts, what then, do we do?

1. God gives us the grace to face all the challenges in life. Pope Francis once gave a homily telling us three things that can be done: pray, be patient and be hopeful.
   
2. Jesus tells us that forgiveness is essential. When we forgive, we are the very first beneficiary because many sicknesses come from negative emotions. Our disposition and emotions are affected because of a lack of forgiveness and Spiritually, it is so hard to be united with God if there is no forgiveness.
   
3. Removing sin in our lives. Just look at what sin does in our lives. At first, it looks good. How can something that looks good be bad? Then when we bite into it, it is one problem after the other.

Take care of our spiritual heart: prayers, Holy Communion, fasting, reading the scriptures, avoiding sin, helping people. It pays to have a healthy heart, physically and spiritually.