Heart Under Control

About Bishop St. Theophane the Recluse

About "old" and "new" calendar

April 12 (25)

No Liturgy — no New Testament reading appointed

“Hear thou, my son. and be wise, and guide thine heart in the straight way" [Pr. 23:19]. Our heart is a source of a continuous flow of thoughts, sometimes benign, but more often evil. Never allow evil thoughts to guide you; but benign thoughts should not always be followed either: sometimes an apparently benign thought is unacceptable in given practical circumstances.

Therefore, we are advised to be attentive to ourselves, to watch carefully what is coming out of our hearts: reject everything evil out front, review everything which seems benign and follow it only if it is really good. But by far the best idea is to lock your heart, that is, to put it under full control of the mind. Let your mind will be in control of what is getting in and what is coming out of your heart, let it be one step ahead, as if determining any movement of the heart. But this is fully possible only if you “have the mind of Christ" [ICor. 2:16]. Thus, strive to unite your heart and your mind with Christ, and that will set you inside on the straight way.

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