17TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME A
THE HEART’S DESIRE
MT 13: 44-52
MESSAGE
The readings today encourage us to think of our “heart’s desire.” King Solomon, a young ruler, set his sight on having an understanding heart which he humbly asked from God. The Lord thus gave him unsurpassable wisdom, never before seen among the rulers of Israel. In the Gospel, the Lord Jesus describes a man who rejoices at a treasure he found buried in a field, for which he invested everything he had to possess it. He also speaks of a businessman who sold everything to purchase the pearl of great price that he discovered.
What is your heart’s desire? Depending on our age and our personal or professional status, we mostly desire security, love and relationship, power, fame, or a fulfilling life. Meaning enters our existence when our heart pines for something; when we have a passion, a goal, or a mission. I remember a quote attributed to Fr. Pedro Arrupe, SJ: What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.
For Jesus, he longs only for one thing, the Kingdom of the Father. For this he lived. Because of this, he died. To spread it, he lives forever. It was his central message, his main project. It is his innermost desire to plant the Kingdom of God in every human heart.
As disciples of the Lord, it is legitimate to pursue our own big or small goals in life. We are allowed to dream and to pursue that dream. But the Lord Jesus is asking us to consider putting all our aspirations under the banner of the Father’s Kingdom so that the Father can guide us, help us, and accompany us in our daily struggle to attain and purify that desire.
REFLECT
What do you really want in life? When we pray we are invited to ask God for the grace to ask for something. Let us offer to the Lord the desire of our heart and have him bless it so that it will be transformed and aligned to his will. Then his Kingdom will truly come and dwell within us.
