It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person,
but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.
~ Matthew 15:11
The public face of religion flows out of what’s inside us.
Most of us know people who reject Christianity because of hypocrites and churches that dishonor God through their actions. But you’re only as good as your last time alone with God. We’re only as strong as our inner life.
This holy week, as we lead toward Good Friday and Easter, retreat into the presence of God for some time alone, some reflection, some cultivation by the Spirit to plow up the hard soil of your heart.
Light a candle, literally, if it helps. Keep a journal. Take as little as ten minutes a day, and read a passage per day, through the accounts of the passion of Christ in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. And leave room for the resurrection.
We’re part of a whole, we Christians. We need each other. But we’re only as good as our solitude.
