Memorial of Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr

When the priests left the holy place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD so that the priests could no longer minister because of the cloud, since the LORD's glory had filled the temple of the LORD. Then Solomon said, "The LORD intends to dwell in the dark cloud; I have truly built you a princely house, a dwelling where you may abide forever."

Just as Solomon built a holy place for the Lord to dwell, so are we all called to create a sacred space in our hearts. We need to build our lives around our God so He can dwell within our thoughts, words, and works. We need to consecrate our lives to Him through daily sacrifices, mortifications, and offerings of good works. By doing so, we make room in our lives for God and become princely houses for our Lord. It isn’t always easy to open our hearts to God and clean out all those sins and imperfections that clutter up our inmost thoughts. However, if we want God to abide with us forever, then we must cleanse ourselves and do everything in our power to prepare a place for God to live within us.

What are we doing to prepare our hearts to be a resting place for God? How can we make our hearts into thrones for our Lord? What sacrifices, good works, and penances do we need to make in order to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord, especially in the sacrament of the Eucharist?

O Lord, help us to build hearts where you may abide forever.

Amen.