Desiring a new heart for our foolish world!

Did you know that the human heart leans slightly (but not dramatically) to the left? This is because the left ventricle is larger and more muscular as it pumps blood around the body with its apex tilting leftwards – BUT in rare cases, like in a condition called dextrocardia – the heart can actually point to the right instead! This is interesting when we reflect upon the poetical nature of

Ecclesiastes 10.2:

“The heart of the wise inclines to the right but the heart of the fool to the left”.

Since the vast majority of us have left leaning hearts, perhaps this phrase suggests that we are all prone to a little natural foolishness! But of course in a world where we are daily confronted with a lot of very serious situations regarding matters of abortion and the ‘right to die’, we can’t afford to make foolish decisions but need to make wise ones. This is especially so when we are making choices on a grand scale that go beyond ourselves as individuals such as whether or not we should as a nation go to war or use military force. Inevitably these situations are deeply complex requiring considerable thought, for rash decisions made in haste or without thinking can have truly disastrous consequences. In this sense life is not a game!

In 1981, as a young person, I went to a Christian campaign that was held in The Royal Albert Hall entitled ‘New Heart for the Nation’. It was organised by the team behind Hildenborough Hall, a Christian Conference Centre based on the Otford Hills in Kent, led by Justin Rees and Max Sinclair. Their desire was that in a world of great stress and moral uncertainty which so often overlooked Christian values and dismissed them without thought, people might be encouraged to cultivate ‘new hearts’ (Ezekiel 36.26) as they reflected upon how far the nation had drifted in the light of God’s commandments - with the clear and positive challenge to follow Christ wholeheartedly. You won’t be surprised to hear that this had an incredibly profound and positive effect upon my entire life which not only made me a happier stronger Christian but ultimately encouraged me to become ordained, which has been a most rewarding path and a great blessing.

So whether physically your heart is inclined to the right or to the left, it is my hope that spiritually, in today’s uncertain world, many will be inclined to seek new, clean hearts capable of much love, goodness and wisdom.

With best wishes. Stephen Thorp

Psalm 51.10

‘Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.’

This article first appeared in the July edition of Parish Magazines associated with the Necton Benefice - Parish Link; Moonraker; The Pickenhams’

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