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Friday, 1 August 2025

Where Does My Heart Find Rest?

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

03 August 2025

 
First Reading: Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 and 17
Second Reading: Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11
Gospel: Luke 12:13-21
 
Reflection By:
Bro. Carlo Alexis Malaluan
Diocese of Imus
 
You’ve probably heard the old tale of King Midas—the man who wished that everything he touched would turn to gold. At first, it seemed like a dream come true. His palace sparkled, his wealth grew, and his fame spread. But that golden touch soon turned into a curse. The food he tried to eat turned to metal. Even his beloved daughter, when she ran into his arms, became a lifeless statue of gold. In the end, what he thought was a blessing revealed the tragic emptiness of having everything… except what truly matters.

The Gospel this Sunday tells a story not far from Midas’—a man blessed with an abundant harvest, so much, that his barns couldn’t contain it all. Like Midas, he thought to himself, “Now I can rest. I’ve made it. Soul, eat, drink, be merry.” He believed he had finally arrived at peace, that his heart could finally settle down.

But God calls him fool. “This very night your life will be demanded of you. And the things you have prepared—whose will they be?”

It’s easy to say we are not materialistic. Easy to claim we are not enslaved by money or the things that glitter in this world. But if we take an honest look at our daily lives—our thoughts before going to sleep, our worries upon waking, our plans, our fears—don’t they often reveal where our hearts truly rest?

The problem of the rich man isn’t his success, his hard work, or his good harvest. His downfall is his misplaced security. He thought his soul could find rest in what he owned, rather than in the One who gave it all. And so his heart, like Midas’, was trapped—not in poverty, but in the illusion of wealth.

Today’s Gospel asks us a quiet but piercing question: Where does my heart find rest? What kind of treasure do I hold closest to my chest? Is it something that can be taken away in a moment, or is it something eternal?

Isn’t that the same subtle temptation we face today? We often equate the rest of the heart with what we can accumulate—money, achievements, possessions, even relationships that offer us comfort. But even when we have them all, we remain restless. There’s always the fear of losing them. Always the anxiety of what’s next.

The Gospel challenges us to ask: What kind of treasure does my heart truly value? For the heart, as St. Augustine once said, is restless until it rests in God. True wealth cannot be measured by quantity, but by depth—the depth of our relationship with God, the depth of our love, the depth of our giving and belonging.

When the heart finds rest in the treasure of God, it becomes at peace even in scarcity. When the heart rests in authentic love, it feels whole even amid imperfections. When the heart rests in God’s will, it finds a peace the world cannot buy. When our hearts rest in God, there is peace—even when we don’t have everything figured out. When our hearts rest in love, there is fullness—even when life is not perfect. And when our hearts rest in doing the will of the Father, there is joy—even in the midst of uncertainty.

So today, perhaps we’re being invited to look at our own “golden touches”—those things we think will bring us peace, control, or contentment. Are they really feeding the soul, or are they turning what’s most human in us into something hollow? Where does my heart truly find rest? In God, or in things that fade away?

And if we realize we've been learning on fragile foundations, we need not be afraid to return. God is always waiting. Because His heart is the true home of our own. Because His heart is where ours was meant to rest all along.

Prayer




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