So many things in life seem to have the power to take our peace away. Money problems, relationship problems, personal weaknesses -- these are but a few of the many things that intrude on our fragile hearts.

When Jesus told us not to let our hearts be troubled, perhaps he was saying something about a constant anxiety that some people experience. There's a great difference between a constant state of anxiety and the occasional time when we feel anxious about something. The anxious person always seems to find something to be anxious about, whether that something is important or not. Pascal has said: "We are distressed by trifles because we are consoled by
trifles." If we place too much importance on what is not really important, we will never have a proper
balance in our hearts.

We build our trust in Jesus by constantly letting him into our hearts. It's here where prayer is so important. As we place ourselves more and more into the presence of the Risen Christ, we will find ourselves sharing his Sacred Heart. Many of you know that when you are really close to another person, you start to take on some of their way of thinking and feeling. If you spend years deeply sharing your life with another, you discover you have in some ways become like that other person.

As we come to Jesus more and more in prayer, we will find that in our daily lives, our thinking and
feeling will be deeply affected by that relationship. Our decisions will no longer be made just according to human standards, but will be more in keeping with the heart of Our Lord.
 

Peace, Fr. John