New Wine for a New Heart

 Gospel: Luke 5:33–39

Some people question why Jesus’ disciples don’t fast like others. Jesus responds with images of wedding feasts, new cloth, and new wine, teaching that His presence brings something new that can’t be confined to old ways.

We all know what it feels like to cling to what’s familiar. Habits and routines give us comfort, but sometimes they also keep us from growing. In today’s Gospel, Jesus uses simple, everyday images — patches on clothing, wine in wineskins — to remind us that His way doesn’t just “fit into” our old patterns. It asks for renewal, for space in our hearts to be stretched and reshaped.

It’s not easy to let go of the old. Change can feel uncomfortable, even risky. But just as new wine expands the wineskins, God’s Spirit expands us. Jesus isn’t asking us to abandon everything we know, but to be open to a life that looks different when His love fills us. The question is: am I willing to be stretched so that something new can grow in me?

Making room for the new wine today might mean making room for God to do something new — in prayer, in patience with someone, or in the courage to take a small step forward.

May this reflection encourage you to be open to something new, and may its light fill your heart as you go.