Recipes for the Heart: May
I believe one of the biggest mistakes we can make when it comes to healing is thinking it’s only about changing our diet or routine. True healing goes deeper — it reaches into the heart and mind.
Our mindset plays a powerful role: in how we feel, how we approach challenges, and how we endure the hard days.
That’s why every month or so, I want to dedicate a post to reflection. I’ve decided to call this series, Recipes for the Heart. I believe it’s not only a chance to pause and refocus, but also an opportunity to bring God’s Word into your healing journey — to be nourished and restored by the Divine Physician Himself.
Every day, we are given a new opportunity — a chance to do something different, to be someone different.
It’s a moment to pause and ask:
Are my words and actions reflecting who I truly want to be?
Or am I simply reacting to what’s happening around me?
It’s easy to slip into old patterns without realizing it.
Sometimes we elevate ourselves and treat others poorly. Other times — and perhaps more often — we shrink ourselves, over-elevating others while neglecting our own needs.
Striking a balance between caring for others and caring for ourselves isn’t easy.
I know this struggle well.
My heart naturally leans toward service, but if I’m not careful, it can leave little left for myself.
Maybe you feel that way too — especially if you live with a food sensitivity.
It can be easy to feel ‘high-maintenance’ when cooking or asking for accommodations, even when those needs are simply part of taking care of your health.
But tending to yourself isn’t selfish.
It’s a form of stewardship.
You are worth the same kindness and care you so readily offer to others.
Love is to will the good of the other.
God, as a communion of three Persons, is love — the perfect model of mercy, grace, and self-giving.
In Lamentations 3:22–23, we are reminded:
‘The Lord’s acts of mercy are not exhausted,
his compassion is not spent;
They are renewed each morning.’
What a beautiful truth:
God’s mercy does not run out.
His compassion is not dependent on our successes or failures.
He continues to love us and show us mercy — not just once, but again and again, with every new morning.
God never turns away from us; it is only we who sometimes turn away from Him.
Yet whenever we turn back, He is already there — ready to lend us His strength, His grace, His compassion, and His patience.
Despite our fallen nature, our failures, and our sins, He desires to give us more than we deserve, more than we need. He offers to fill everyone abundantly with His grace and mercy. But it takes effort on our parts to- He doesn’t force us to receive these gifts. We have to willingly receive them.
And as He fills us, we are invited to share that same mercy with others — and just as importantly, with ourselves.
I pray these words have stirred something within you — a reminder that you are a beloved child of the King, worthy of the care and healing you seek.
As you reflect on the Living Word, may it speak tenderly to your heart and guide your steps with wisdom, peace, and love.
Reflection Prompts
In some quiet moments, if you feel led, these prompts are yours —to think through, journal with, or pray over.
May they call you deeper into God’s Word, and into the healing He longs to bring your heart.
Where am I longing for a fresh start, big or small?
How do I usually respond when I feel like I’ve “fallen short” — with criticism, or with compassion?
What would it look like to offer myself the same mercy God offers me?
How do I balance serving others and caring for myself?
Are there places where I need to give myself permission to rest, to nourish, to heal?
The Lord’s acts of mercy are not exhausted, his compassion is not spent; They are renewed each morning—great is your faithfulness!
-Lamentations 3:22–23 (NABRE)
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