Today is the Feast of St. James, Apostle. In the Gospel reading from Matthew 20, Jesus said to his disciples, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave." The lesson learned here is that we must not look down on anyone, not even on the evildoers. We should serve everyone and leave all judgments to God.
Friday, July 25, 2025
***Falling in Love with Love***
In this world, we fall in love with many things: people who are attractive to us, things we enjoy doing or having, generally things that make us feel good. Then we encounter Christ and fall in love with the Lord because of his perfection and holiness. This is unlike any of the experiences we had that can actually enslave us; the new experience with Christ liberates us to the core! We have fallen in love with love as God is love!
Thursday, July 24, 2025
***Unbelievable Encounter***
Communion experience. I couldn't believe that I came into this world and found the One who could completely fulfill me! My existence is now complete. Praise God!
***The Best of All Things***
There are many, many nice enjoyable things in this life, but the best of all things is yet to come. It is being with Christ in heaven for all eternity!
**Taking God Seriously*
When we pray the Lord's prayer, we come to the part "thy will be done." It really means that we should do God's will ourselves first or we would be praying hypocrites.
**Most Beautiful Peace***
The peace of Christ is the unique profound peace that's beyond our understanding. It is to be preserved in the hearts, treasured and enjoyed, by those of us who experience it.
***Levels of Meditation**
At the lowest level, you focus upon how you can love God more. At the highest level, you forget about yourself and focus upon the greatness and the glory of God alone. Guess which level will bring about greater spiritual growth. Hint: Being selfless is always better than being self-centered.
*****Warning from the Lord*****
In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 13, Jesus says to his disciples, "To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away." It shows that we'll end up being either rich or poor, spiritually; being either saved or damned. Accept Christ now and you won't have to worry about that anymore!
**Super sharp Conscience*
A super sharp conscience is to be treasured and thankful to God for, as it makes you sharply aware of right from wrong. This guards you against committing any sin. The more you belong to Christ, the sharper you conscience becomes, and the happier you get.
***Right Way Seeking God***
The most effective way to know God or to surrender yourself to him is to go passive, offering zero resistance so that you are wide open to him. I heard once a hypnotist asking his subjects to relax like a sack of potatoes—that's a good metaphor! If you feel stressed about it, you are still fighting yourself.
***Only Way to Enter Heaven***
Entering heaven is not automatic; you have to work at it. The work involved may be hard or easy, depending upon how you go about it. The most assured way is to surrender yourself completely to Christ. Any deviation from this approach will be less assured or worse.
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
*****Obedience to God Sets Us Free*****
When we disobey God, we lose our peace and don't feel free. Once we start obeying the Lord, whatever we want to do is also his will. As a result, we can do whatever we want and still be at peace. We're now free!.
***Know Your God 2***
Revelation 3.20: Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, says the Lord, I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me. The Lord loves us always and wishes to enter us to be close to us, but we must allow him in first, for he is gentle. So, are you going to be nice or mean to him?
Tuesday, July 22, 2025
*****Being Touched by Christ*****
Today is the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene. All the readings at Mass touched both my heart and my soul. The entrance antiphon, John 20:17, reads: The Lord said to Mary Magdalene: Go to my brothers and tell them: I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. Wow, Jesus' Father is also our Father, and his God our God! By the way. his Mother is our Mother too! The first reading came from the Song of Songs 3. Part of verse 4 reads: I have found him whom my heart loves. This is exactly how I feel about Jesus. Now the Psalm 63 response: My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God. Again, it spoke to my heart. The Gospel reading from John 20 told the following. After seeing and talking to the Risen Lord at the empty tomb, Mary Magdalene was filled with joy and went to the disciples and announced to them, "I have seen the Lord." I have not seen him, but he has revealed himself to me to the point that seeing him is not going to change anything. Bless my Lord and praise be to him forever! Last, the Communion antiphon from 2 Corinthians 5: The love of Christ impels us, so that those who live may live no longer for themselves, but for him who died for them and was raised. How good it is to have the love of Christ impel us so that we may live for him! Not knowing his love, we essentially live for nothing.
***Following the Greatest Commandment*
Jesus affirmed that the first Commandment is our greatest commandment. It reads: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." So to love the Lord your God, start with giving your heart, your soul, and your mind all to him. And you're set free forever!
***On Borrowed Time!
The Lord already knows how much time each of us still has on earth. You could say that we are all living on borrowed time. This reality should awaken us to look far ahead and not just focus upon doing what we want to do. It's doing God's will that matters. In Matthew 16:25, Jesus said, "Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Amen.
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