As time goes by, our hearts grow a little bit more every day.

There are new places to be explored, there are new people to meet, there are new things to be discovered. Life is more than just a bucket list of achievements. It is never stuck on repeat, it is never the same from one day to the next, there is always something fresh to be discovered. All we need to do is to keep our hearts open. If they close themselves up to new experiences then the old patterns of thought and feeling will return. We will find it difficult to reconcile reality as it used to be with how it is now. There will be confusion and maybe even pain.

If we open our hearts to new experiences then they will grow a little bit more every day. We will feel things we have never felt before. We will catch a glimpse of new horizons. We will sense new depths in ourselves. No two moments will ever be the same. The human heart is like a container waiting to be filled with good things. It takes time for them to reach its driest corners. Once it is filled to overflowing, love pours out into the lives of those nearby. All we need to do is to keep our hearts open.

In last Sunday’s Gospel, Luke tells us that the crowds of people who came to see John were filled with expectation. They were questioning in their hearts whether John was the one for whom they were waiting. Even though he is not that one, their hearts are open to receive the Messiah. We see that John does not draw attention to himself. He could so easily have been the one who was at the centre of attention. His heart was big enough not only to receive the Messiah, but to seek other's affection for him. There have not been very many people with a heart like that.

Are our own hearts ready to receive the Messiah? His heart is big enough to love the whole of humanity. As our hearts grow they become more and more like his every day.

Reflection by Fr Philip Harrison SJ

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