What Are You Thinking?

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus asks the Pharisees, “What are you thinking in your hearts?” [Luke 5: 22] Although he asked, Jesus already knew their thoughts just as our Lord knows ours. That alone should be incentive enough to keep our hearts and minds clean, right?

Lord knows discipline is not one of my strengths. Even in Church, my mind wanders during Mass. At times, I fidget as I try to ward off boredom and the temptation to head to the nearest exit during the final blessing. While wandering thoughts, daydreams, and other distractions may seem harmless, they do not keep us safe from sin.

So what am I thinking? Without Heaven’s protection and perfection, we are vulnerable to thoughts, words, and actions that can corrupt us. But do we truly accept and make good use of the gifts and fruits our Lord provides by way of the Holy Spirit?

“The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord.” [CCC 1831] The fruits of the Spirit are “charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity.” [CCC 1832] I confess, at times these gifts collect dust in the busyness of my life and I don’t consume or share the fruits as often as I should.  

Protection and Perfection

Why I don’t wholeheartedly accept and use what our Lord lovingly provides baffles me. Why remain vulnerable to what corrupts when protection and perfection are within reach? However, even with my shortcomings, I am comforted in knowing that God never leaves us to face our struggles and quandaries alone.

Consider this: When we recite the Confiteor during the Penitential Act at Mass, we confess our sins first in our thoughts, then in our words, then in what we have done and failed to do. As we make our confession to God, we ask Mary the ever-Virgin, plus all the angels and saints, and our brothers and sisters, to pray for us. What a blessing!

Mary, Mother of our Savior, intercedes and guides us with support from all who pray for our sake. In Mary—all human and all pure—we see total protection and perfection. “In a wholly singular way [Mary] cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope, and burning charity in the Savior’s work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason, she is mother to us in the order of grace.” [CCC 968]  

Heart and Mind

Filled with grace, Mary was never occupied with corruptive thoughts, words, or deeds. In Mary, we see what life can be like. We see freedom from sin! Like Mary, we can have strength of heart and mind to adhere to God’s will, participate in Jesus’ redemptive, and follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Through our Blessed Mother, we are given grace to draw close to Jesus Christ to receive God’s loving mercy. As long as we cooperate with an open heart and mind, the gifts and fruits provided by the Lord’s Spirit will protect us from sin and perfect us as children of God. May each of us make greater use of these gifts and fruits during the remaining days of Advent and beyond. And may “the peace of God that surpasses all understanding” guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. [Philippians 4: 7] Amen.