3RD WEEK OF LENT

Harden not your hearts.

“Is my heart hard or soft?” That can be a difficult question to answer, mainly because it seems so black-and-white. We can wonder if we’ve become like the Israelites in the first reading: a “nation that does not listen to the voice of the Lord” (Jeremiah 7:28). Either we are open to the Lord or closed to him; there is no room for anything in between. In the end, we may just throw up our hands and say, “I don’t know!”

Today’s psalmist offers us a different strategy: soften your heart! No matter where we are in our journey with the Lord, we could all be more open, pliable, and yielding to him and to each other.

So how do we soften our hearts? The psalmist’s answer is both simple and powerful: by worshipping the Lord.

Sing joyfully to the Lord (Psalm 95:1). There is something about lifting our voices to God in “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” that opens our hearts to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19). So cry out to the Lord and “acclaim” him (Psalm 95:1).

Come into his presence with thanksgiving (Psalm 95:2). Just as singing helps us lift our hearts to the Lord, giving him thanks helps us recall all he has done for us. The food we eat, the clothes we wear, our loved ones who have been entrusted to us, even the air that we breathe—these are all gifts from a loving God. The more we recall this truth, the more inclined we will be to honor the Lord, to turn to him for help, and to obey his commands.

Bow down in worship (Psalm 95:6). If Pope Francis were to walk into your home right now, you’d probably stand up, right? Without even thinking about it, you would take a position of respect before him. We can do something similar by kneeling before the Lord as we pray. As we use our bodies to worship the Lord, we’ll find our hearts following suit.

So choose a hymn or song of worship today and sing it out. As you do, kneel down or lift your hands or even dance! Recall all that God has done for you, and thank him. As you open your heart to the Lord in worship, he will make your heart of stone into a heart of flesh.

“Lord, I worship you! Keep my heart soft so that I can hear you today.”

Jeremiah 7:23-28
Luke 11:14-23
Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9