It is what’s inside You That Destroys You.

Homily for Wednesday 13^th February 2019

_“There is nothing outside a man which by going into him can defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile him.” *(Mark 7:15)*_ 

I was just relaxing in my room the other day and I mistakenly kicked my television’s remote controller. It went straight under the couch so I bent down to pick it up. I stretched as hard as I could to pick it but my hand could not get to it. So I lifted up the entire couch and lo and behold, guess what I found?

Honestly, if anyone told me I had such a huge amount of dirt and cobwebs in my room, I would not have believed. At least, I now know why I come down with cold when I lie on the floor. Is this what I have been breathing in and out all those nights when there is no electricity?

Dear friends, yesterday the Scribes and Pharisees accused Jesus and his disciples of eating with hands “defiled” all because they did not wash according to the tradition of the elders. Today, Jesus explains to them that there was no amount of food a person would eat that could defile him or her rather true defilement comes from within; from the inside of man; from the heart.

It is from the heart that all kinds of vices and sins are manufactured, nurtured and given life. Apart from unconscious actions (acts of man), such as sneezing or blinking, there is nothing we do without prior meditation in our hearts. This means, if we want to know where our troubles (defilements) come from, we need to turn our gaze inwards. We need to raise those couches in the inner room and take out the dust, the debris and the cobwebs.

What occupies your mind most of the time? What are your basic imaginations and daydreams? Your thoughts are powerful, they determine what becomes of your life says the book of Proverbs. “Keep your heart with all vigilance; for from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23). Where your thoughts are now, there you will be in five years from now. Where you are now, that is where your thoughts were five years ago.

If you want to cleanse your life from sin, begin by cleansing your heart. It is not every kind of thought that deserves space in our heart. We must select our thoughts as St. Paul writes to the Philippians: “Whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious if there is any excellence if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, cleanse me from inside out so that whatever comes out of me will be pleasing to you. Amen.

Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Wednesday of the 5^th Week in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: Genesis 2:4-9,15-17, Psalm 104, and Mark 7:14-23).