***We Get the Leaders We Deserve***

        Watch this excellent talk by Fr. Chris Alar. May God bless him.

**Our Eternal Hope**

        Following the crucifixion of Jesus, his followers were lost and scattered. The Resurrection changed everything, and the Church was born. We must remember that no matter how dark the times may be, the Risen Lord remains our eternal hope.

***The Key to Total Freedom***

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus addressed the crowds, "If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. (...) In the same way, everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple." All of a sudden, I see that this is the key to total freedom! 

**The Best a Christian Can Do**

         For himself, pray that he will be as holy as possible. For others, pray that they will be as holy as possible.

**Living as a Serious Christian**

        I would like to share today's entire First Reading, Philippians 2:12-18, with you: "My beloved, obedient as you have always been, not only when I am present but all the more now when I am absent, work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For God is the one who, for his good purpose, works in you both to desire and to work. Do everything without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine like lights in the world, as you hold on to the word of life, so that my boast for the day of Christ may be that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. But, even if I am poured out as a libation upon the sacrificial service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with all of you. In the same way you also should rejoice and share your joy with me." Paul really felt a sense of duty in following Christ. We now live in a generation as crooked and perverse as the one in his time, if not more so. Shouldn't we follow the Lord as seriously as Paul did? A Christian must be willing to accept suffering and persecution, but still rejoice and share his joy with others along the way.

***Secret to Eternal Life***

        Love Jesus.

***The Coming Awakening**

        I do believe that we are in the end times. We are supposed to love God with all our soul, with all our heart, and with all our mind, yet we rarely pay him much attention. Most people live for themselves, and as a result, the world is becoming increasingly godless. I believe that eventually, the Lord will have to step in to awaken us all. I am no prophet, but I sense that it could happen unexpectedly within the coming decade or so. Being prepared is always the best policy.

***Detrimental Excuses**

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus tells the Parable of the Great Feast. A man hosts a large dinner and sends his servant to tell the invited guests, "Come, everything is now ready." However, they all begin to make excuses—one has bought a field, another five yoke of oxen, and a third has just been married. Because of these refusals, the host declares that none of the original invitees will taste the meal, serving as a warning that those who reject God's invitation today will miss the heavenly banquet. 

**God Tests the Just**

        Today is All Souls' Day, commemorating all the faithful departed. The First Reading comes from Wisdom 3. Let us quote the first five verses: "The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace. For if before men, indeed, they be punished, yet is their hope full of immortality; chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed, because God tried them and found them worthy of himself." The second clause of the last long compound sentence quoted tells me that God tests the souls of the just. We should see everything that happens to us in life as a test. If we persist in doing well, the Lord will bless  us, grant us peace, and make us immortal! 

***Divine Insights***

        I have received two insights from the Lord today: (1) Since God is love, loving others with his love enables me to always see the truth. (2) With strong faith in mighty God, I can overcome any obstacle on my path to him.

*****A Tragic Oversight****

        It is sad that many people in the world do not realize that they are in a far worse spiritual state than they think. Even worse, some are completely unaware that their spiritual well-being even matters. Christ came to us and revealed the good news of salvation to the world over two thousand years ago. Today, however, unbelievers and even believers with weak faith hardly pay him any attention. When this life ends, they will be in for the biggest shock of their existence. This situation is not just sad—it is tragic beyond measure!

***Christ Is Life!***

        Today, when I first thought of Jesus, the word "life" popped into my mind. Indeed, without him, there would be no form of life whatsoever. And life extends beyond our present life into eternal life, which only the Lord can grant. Christ is as essential to us as our own lives.

**An Overwhelming Experience**

        Communion experience. The Lord came to me, filling me to the brim.

**Blueprint for Being Blessed

        From today's Gospel reading from Matthew 5, we heard the Sermon on the Mount, which consists of the Beatitudes. Jesus tells his disciples that blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the clean of heart, the peacemakers, and those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. He concludes by saying, "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven." Ultimately, if we follow Christ and accept whatever he sends our way, we will be truly blessed.

***We Shall Be Like God!***

        Today is the Solemnity of All Saints. In the Second Reading from 1 John 3, the author writes: "Beloved, we are God's children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." The statement "We shall be like God" makes perfect sense to me. First, God created us in his own image. Furthermore, when we finally see him, we will be sinless just as he is.

**Source of Inner Peace**

        A true Christian always experiences peace deep in his heart, because he already knows the outcome of the spiritual battle between God and evil, and where he'll be going after this life.

***Be Christ-Centered Always***

        I see people trying to know and love Jesus more. They focus on how they can achieve that. The intention is good, but the approach is still self-centered and won't be effective. A Christian should do everything centered on Christ, as he is the source of power and grace. If you want to know the Lord, go straight to him. After all, he is the one who can show you the way to accomplish anything. Center on him, and you'll make giant strides spiritually. By the way, every time you receive the Holy Eucharist, abandon yourself completely to the Lord to attain union with him. Then, all your spiritual problems will be taken care of.

*****Ultimate Proof We Need Salvation*****

        When we look at how Christ came to us and was crucified on the cross in our place so that we might be saved from sin and inherit eternal life, we are overwhelmed by God's immense love for us and happily submit ourselves to him—this proves that we are indeed sinners and need salvation! Otherwise, we would not have been affected by what Christ underwent at all.