A Rightly Ordered Heart: How We Flourish in Prayer
by Monica Pugh | July 28, 2026
On my desk in my office sits a small piece of art in clear sight. I first experienced this image in a chapel at the University of Mary. It is the only breathtaking image I have ever seen that makes me feel the depth of God’s love and mercy with every glance. It depicts Mary Magdelene in front of the tomb on her knees gazing up into the face of the risen Christ. He has her chin cupped gently in his hand as he gazes back.
The love of Christ and his mercy balanced by her humility can be felt by anyone pondering the image. It portrays the deep love given to us from God and what we give back when we simply show up and enter into prayer.
Prayer flourishes in a heart that is rightly ordered. But how do we rightly order our hearts? It begins in our homes, the domestic church.
Mary Magdalene was the first to announce Christ’s resurrection. In the domestic church, parents are the first to announce the gospel to their children. Mary Magdalene’s life was restored as she received grace and mercy. In our domestic church families, we offer graces and mercy to one another to restore relationships. Mary Magdalene knelt at the foot of the cross through Jesus’ suffering. In the domestic church, families bond together as they experience sufferings in life.
It is in the domestic church where our hearts learn to be rightly ordered through loving God, loving others, being open to forgiveness, learning to have interior freedom from sin, and surrendering to God’s will in prayer. Our domestic church is the first place where parents model God’s love, children learn how to rightly order their hearts by example, and as a family they all learn to pray.
At the point in Mary Magdalene’s life depicted in the art, her heart was rightly ordered. She encountered the healing mercy and forgiveness of Jesus, became a disciple of Christ, and witnessed his death from the foot of the cross. Her life was transformed through Christ and his love. Every day, parents have the opportunity to model this path as they cup their children’s chin gently with their hand, look into their eyes, and express their love. Jesus did not love Mary Magdalene because of her transformation but she was able to know his love because of her transformation and forgiveness through God’s mercy.
When a home is centered on Christ, everyone learns to seek a rightly ordered heart. With a rightly ordered heart, the desire for regular prayer becomes a sacred rhythm, and our lives, no matter the trials, sufferings, or mistakes, rests under God’s loving heartbeat.
St. Mary Magdalene’s feast day is July 22 every year. If you have not experienced God’s love through daily prayer, perhaps this beautiful saint who walked with Christ before and after his death and resurrection might be your example to start. Pray for her intercession to help you rightly order your heart and simply begin or begin again. May you feel God’s hand gently touching your chin expressing his love and simply gaze back in prayer.