***End of Year Thoughts and Wishes

        Today for this part of the world is the last day of 2020. I never thought I would live this long. The Lord has his reason for everything. Am I happy about that? Well, that's not really the important question. What's important is whether we are ready to meet the Lord. It we are not and he takes us sooner than expected, that could be tragic. But if we are always ready to meet him anytime he calls, this would be a constant joy for us. Like everyone else, I still have unfinished business to take care of. A project of mine is running into some problems now. My feeling is that if it doesn't get completed, that'd be fine too. Wouldn't you agree that the coolest attitude is to never lose your cool? God is truly cool, so be like him. Have a blessed 2021! My #1 recommended New York resolution for you is to abandon yourself totally in God ao that he may bless you to his heart's content.

**We All Go Through Christ

        In John 14:6, Jesus says to his disciples, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Some people misinterpret this and say that if you are not a Christian, you won't get into heaven. If non-Christians make it to heaven, it is still through the mercy of Christ with his full knowledge and approval. They will realize that when they get there. Of course, I am not saying that you don't need to become Christians. Christ being the true God, no matter what your belief, you come under his jurisdiction. We need to believe in Christ because he is the way and the truth and the life, and believing in him is the sure way of securing your salvation.

***Live Jesus

         To live Jesus is to live for Jesus alone and is the way to become free of the world and ourselves. We must let him be No. 1 in our lives, do all things in his name and for his glory, leave all our problems in his hands, suffer and rejoice along with him, and keep his word. Is this hard to achieve? Not at all if you let him do it for you!

**Perfect Obedience = Spiritual Success

        Apart from the Lord, we can do nothing, for he is the vine and we are the branches (John 15:5). Whatever we conquer spiritually, it's the Lord conquering it through us. Victory is assured when we let him lead and command us. Perfect obedience to the Lord is the key to spiritual success. 

**Know and Stay Away from Sin

           We sin because we get pleasure or satisfaction out of it. The trade-off is that we lose peace. Know that it is always sin that causes us to lose peace. Sinning unceasingly will make you loathe yourself and can end up destroying your soul. Experience the true joy of the Lord that uplifts the spirit and cleanses the soul and you'll never want to sin again. 

*We All Have a Soul

           To me, the fact that we can think and wonder about life after death is proof that we each do have a soul that lasts forever. All other animals would have no idea what life after death is all about. Then Jesus made it absolutely clear that there is heaven or hell for the departed to enter.

***Spiritual Warfare a Reality!

        Evil is real and has been with us since the beginning of mankind. Evil operates in darkness and we do not see it until we are directly affected. Jesus wants us to remain alert and vigilant so that we may not get snared by evil and lose our soul. Evil sneaks up on us when we slack off and don't fight. That's why it is so important that we surrender ourselves to Christ to let him make us strong and holy. If Trump hadn't come along this time, no one would have realized how extensively evil has infiltrated our governments, our courts, the big corporations, the main stream media, the entertainment industry, the academia, and more. It's hard to believe that we could become a Communist country should the evildoers get their way! This spiritual warfare will continue on until the Lord's Second Coming. Meanwhile we must defend the glory of God with all our heart, with all our strength, and with all our soul.

**God Calling Us*

        God is calling you when you first sense the emptiness and start questioning the meaning of life. He is calling you again when you realize that we are all sinners and need salvation. He calls you every time you feel that you need help. And if you find Christ to be the Savior, believe and follow him to the end, his last call to you will be "Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." (Matthew 25:34)

**To Remain True to God

         Today's first reading comes from 1 John 2. John wrote "Whoever says, 'I know Jesus,' but does not keep his commandments is a liar.... But whoever keeps his word, the love of God is truly perfected in him. This is the way we may know that we are in union with him...." So if we truly know Jesus, we would keep his commandments. If we don't obey him at all times, then we do not know him yet. Keep his word and we remain in union with him. 
        John further wrote "Whoever says he is in the light, yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness." In other words, if we don't love everyone yet, we are not completely in the light yet. Christians already know everything said here. They only need to execute them successfully, and this calls for full surrender to the Lord. 

*Darkness, Not Light, Blinds Us

        A couple posts back, I mentioned "darkness must have blinded you." Is that possible? We know that a bright light can temporarily blind you, but it's also true that light dispels darkness to make you see. In completeness darkness, you cannot not see anything, so you become like a blind person. Yes, darkness does blind one and light opens our eyes. It works spiritually too. Stay with God, the light, and you'll always see the truth.

**The LORD Our Defender

          Today's Psalm reading comes from Psalm 124. It is most fitting for our times. David writes, "Had not the LORD been with us—when men rose up against us, then would they have swallowed us alive, when their fury was inflamed against us. Then would the waters have overwhelmed us; the torrent would have swept over us, over us then would have swept the raging waters. Broken was the snare, and we were freed. Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth." Historically, the enemies of the Lord had risen up against his people so overwhelmingly that it seemed that only the Lord could defend them. And defend them he did. We need to remember that last verse of the psalm: Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth. Let's realize and believe that God will always have our back.

***In Darkness or in Light

          Today is Feast of the Holy Innocents. In reading 1 from 1 John 1, the Apostle tells us that God is light and we must walk in his light to let the Blood of Christ cleanse us from all sin, and that if we do not acknowledge our sins, we make the Lord a liar. This is so true. If we continue sinning, we could end up in darkness for all eternity. I shudder at such a thought. Realizing that we are sinners is the beginning of seeing the light. Once we repent of our sins and have Christ take hem all away, we are fully in the light. I am explaining this at the most elementary level. If you still don't get it, then darkness must have totally blinded you.  

***God Knows It All!

        I knew of one deceased person, a very kind lady who was nice to everyone. I couldn't imagine that she could or would harm anyone. She's not well educated nor well off and worked at a lowly job all her life away from her own family. And no one really told her about Christ. There must be many others like her who do not know the Lord, but work hard and live humbly, not complaining about anything. I am certain that the Lord will be merciful to them. The Beatitudes Jesus gave to his disciples in his Sermon on the Mount tells us that blessed are the poor in spirit, they who mourn, the meek, they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the clean of heart, and the peacemakers. It shows that no matter who and what you are, the Lord will always treat you fairly and justly. It's so good that we have a Lord and God who know it all and has the answer to everything we need to know. 

**Sure Path to Truth

        In John 14, Jesus said to his disciple at the Last Supper, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves." So if we know Jesus, we know the Father. In Christianity, God came to us. We don't need to look for him anymore; we only need to believe in him. This the Lord made me see clearly again today. This is the sure path to the truth. 

***Advice on Going to God

          In today's Gospel reading from Luke 2, Joseph and Mary took the child Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. A man named Simeon was righteous and devout. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: "Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory for your people Israel."
         Can we also say that we are ready to go to God in peace? We should know. We must be ready and eager anytime he calls us to go to him. Returning to God for us should be to spend eternity with our Father in heaven, experiencing the greatest joy possible! If you are still uncertain, hesitant, or even afraid, then you need to straighten out your relationship with the Lord before he calls you.

**Great Way to Become Holy

         Today we celebrate The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. In today's reading 1 from Colossians 3, Paul writes, "Whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." To consciously do everything in the name of Jesus until it becomes our second nature is a great way for us to become holy. 

*2020 Vatican Nativity Scene

         Personally, I think that this year's Nativity scene displayed at the Vatican is both ugly and bizarre. It does not draw me any closer to the birth of Christ. Archbishop Vigano even says that the display is from Lucifer. You can easily find the images of the display online and see what you think. Brian Holdsworth shares how he feels about this display.

**Call to Endure to the End!

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 10, Jesus spoke to his disciples of coming persecutions. He said, "You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved." This is what's virtually happening today when we see the globalists and the radicals of the deep state trying to wipe out all beliefs in God. And we also see many people under pressure ready to give in. As true followers of Christ, we must never ever give up, even if we must die. We must endure to the end, for the Lord awaits us. It is only his wish that we must follow and his glory that we must defend. With him, we'll invariably triumph in the end.

***Time to Abandon Ourselves

        Today is the feast of Saint Stephen, first martyr. He was stoned to death at the feet of Saul. As he was being stoned, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." We may not be stoned to death, but are being persecuted in other ways. Are we ready like Stephen to call out to the Lord to receive our spirit? With or without persecution, the time will come when we all shall have no choice but to let the Lord do whatever he wishes with us. The time to abandon ourselves to him is now!

***Beauty of God Everywhere

             I hope that you all had a great Christmas Day. Since my first son and his wife live next door to us and their daughter and son, our grandchildren, were also home from college, the six of us got together. Later my daughter-in-law's parents came and joined us. We all enjoyed a well-prepared home-cooked supper and had a good time together. This morning I took a brisk walk outside. The scenery looked extra beautiful when the sun came out right after an earlier rain. You see the fallen fall leaves stuck to the wet pavement and hear frogs croaking in the surrounding fields. I couldn't help thinking how immeasurably more beautiful our future environment God has prepared for us will be! As I like to photograph whatever beauty I can spot around me, I took these two shots with my phone recently. The first image I captured a week ago while walking outside after a rain. The white spot was bird poop and looked good next to the dead leaf. The second shot I captured yesterday when my daughter-in-law and our granddaughter came over to deliver something. I love the way the boots and shoes landed inside the entrance. It shows that you don't need to travel around the world to find beautiful images. And we don't need to go anywhere to experience the beauty of our God in our hearts and spirits either.

***Christmas Is the Day to Thank God

         Today is Christmas Day. Christians are joyful because they know that the Lord has saved them from eternal fire and is taking them to paradise to live with him forever! This morning as I was doing my daily walk and praying, I felt most grateful to the Lord. He has created me, given me life, enabled me to live on this earth, suppled me with what I need, and on top of all that, given me many things to enjoy. Moreover, he's ready to forgive all my sins against him so that I might have eternal life—this is truly a huge favor and blessing! The Lord has taken care of me completely, how can I possibly not be grateful to him? I want to praise and thank him forever. It's so good to have such  a loving Father!

*Joyful Mass But . . .

        I attended the Christmas Vigil Mass today at noon, the first of three Vigil Masses scheduled for today. It was a cool day, but the sun came out before noon. The Mass was held outside the church. We all sat with masks on in chairs spaced 6 feet apart from each other set on an asphalt road that ends at the rose garden. It was gratifying to actually receive the Holy Eucharist again, greatly strengthening my faith at this time. The prayers offered at Mass were very general as usual. At this urgent critical time when our nation can cease to remain a republic and our people lose religious freedom altogether, it was disconcerting not to hear any specific prayers said regarding such serious threats. It's been the timid noninvolvement of the Church all along that has gotten us into this sorry state of today. Sign of end times for sure.

**A "Dead" Generation

        We know that we'll inevitably die one day. So shall we inevitably appear before the Lord to be judged by him! Why do we still live as if we'll never die? How foolish can we be? If we receive a red flag wildfire threat warning from the National Weather Service, we mostly likely would get ready for evacuation right away. Now, for at least two thousand year, we've been warned about how sin can lead us into the fires of hell, yet we just shrug it off. How deaf or dead can we be? 

***Truth Is Supreme

        Today the Lord makes me see the importance of knowing the truth, which is the Lord himself. Only the truth can set us free. Once you know and possess the truth, you lose all you fears, for the Lord is with you and for you! The evildoers do not know him, so they always live in fear. When they fall, it'll be a free fall with no one able to stop it. For those who embrace the truth and yearn for heaven, God will gladly grant their wish. There is nothing greater or more precious than the truth!

***Only Two Paths for Us***

        We have just one Lord, the God of Christ, who is everlasting. We become either his friends or his foes. We get either exalted or humbled by him. After we die, we'll either inherit his kingdom or be cast into the nether world. Everything is clearly laid out before us. Fix your eternity now.

***Our Fundamental Joy

        This is a joy many of us set aside, ignore, or even jeer at, a joy so few ponder, appreciate, or treasure. I am talking about the joy of being saved. God has come to us, made it clear to us by his wonderful words and deeds, including his own sacrifice on the cross and Resurrection, that he wants to save us to enjoy eternal life in heaven, yet many of us have hearts so hardened that they tune out this best news of all. If we do not realize that we are sinners, then we lose all hope of being saved. On the other hand, those who know what salvation is all about are filled with heavenly joy; they can't believe that God loves them this much. It's a joy that will infiltrate their souls and spirits forever.       

**When Our Faith Is Challenged

        Our faith is being tested by God at all times. Times can be so dark that it seems that all we can do is to pray. This challenges us to the core to choose trusting in God all the way or not; it separates the ones with strong faith from those whose faith is weak. Know that God is not just our first or last resort, he is our only resor! Without him, we lose everything. Therefore, always trust in him all the way.

**Believing Without Seeing

        God can speak audibly or appear visually to us if he so chooses, so not hearing or seeing him does not mean at all that he is not with us. Attain union with the Lord through the Holy Eucharist and you'll know him personally without needing to hear or see him. Jesus said to Thomas in John 20:29, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." I choose to be blessed this way. If I ever wish to see the Lord now, it'll be only because I yearn for him.

**:How to Best Follow God

         Since we cannot see the future, we need to trust in God who knows everything and has a plan for each of us. With the Lord, one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day (2 Peter 3:8). God has his schedule. Sometimes he changes things depending upon how we respond and pray to him. The best and only thing we can do is to trust in him with no anxiety nor worry, knowing that he is in control and his timing will always be perfect for our greater good. What Jesus said in Matthew 6:34 should help: "Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil." One thing is clear: we must never lose hope in God.

**Most Rewarding Spiritual State

        When we pray to the Lord, we connect with him. And if we pray with all our heart and soul in earnest, that connection becomes most intimate and beautiful. It solidifies your union with him. Sharing everything with the Lord with absolutely no barrier between you and him as one is absolutely the most rewarding state you can be in. After surrendering yourself completely to him, you can finally exclaim "My Lord and my God!" as Thomas did after seeing the Risen Christ.

***God Always Wins

        If you do not yet fully believe in Christ, you are really playing a game with God. If you reject Christ outright, believing that you don't need him, you are playing a deadly game that could end up with you dead for all eternity. Those who believe in him only lukewarmly are also playing a risky game. It's a foregone conclusion that you cannot beat God in any game you play, for he created you and knows all that's in your heart. So wise up.

**God More than Uplifting

          There are many things you see, hear, or read about that uplift the soul. Examples are beautiful landscapes, great music, and inspiring stories of saints or other extraordinary human beings. But only Christ our Savior can save our soul.

**Faith over Understanding

        We never know what can happen tomorrow. Life can be full of unexpected twists and turns. Looking back on what we've gone through, we often see things clearly. What I have learned in following Christ is that I don't need to understand why certain things happen that seem to thwart my progress in certain endeavor. As I plow forward, I learn more and more about everything and finally the greater good emerges at the end as all problems are resolved. This is very satisfying and is often how the Lord puts us through. We only need to keep our faith, knowing that by following him faithfully, we'll ultimately arrive at heaven. 

***What Is Success?

         Do you feel that you are successful in life? What is success to you? Let me share with you what true success is. It has nothing to do with what people think of you or even what you think of yourself. It is not measured by any standard of the world. True success is measured by how you succeed in doing God's will. If you are totally obedient to the Lord and accomplish whatever he wishes you to do, then you are a resounding success in his eyes! So it all has to do with what God thinks of you. When you succeed this way, you are a fulfilled and happy person and are ready for heaven.   

**Glad Earthly Life Is Finite

        Today I feel good that I don't live forever in this world and that I shall die one day and return to God our loving Father. You have to be out of your mind to want to live in this sinful world forever. Happiness is not good enough if it's not forever; that's how the Lord has made us. I rejoice that I've found Christ to be the way, the truth, and the life. He is what I ever wanted and need. He fulfills me for all eternity! 

**To Make God Happy or Not*

        If we reject the God of Christ, he will reject us. If we believe in him with all our heart and with all our soul, we'll receive all the blessings he can give us. So God will take us as seriously as we take him. Rightly, we reap what we sow. It's in making God happy that we become joyful.

***God as Our Friend

        Another new day: another day for us to praise God.  Today the Lord made me see the difference between him a good human friend. If I have the best human friend in the world, he'll probably help me as much as he can. But if I ask for his help time and again, eventually he would want me to stop bothering him. Now, take our God, if we truly need his help, he will never reject us. In fact, it pleases him immensely to know that we trust in him as our Father. So even if we ask for his help unceasingly, he won't mind at all, for his love for us is great.

**To Be Free of Material Possessions

        Most of us in this country accumulate a lot of material things over our lifetime. I remember one family who belonged to my church two years ago. The couple had accumulated 300 boxes, some of which quite sizable, of Christmas decorations. Every year they started decorating their house about a month ahead of Christmas, and of course had to take down and pack away everything later in the new year. Looking at my own possessions, because my hobbies had been music and photography, I still have many CDs, LPs, music scores and books, a piano, photographic prints, matting and framing materials, a mat cutter, etc. I know that when I leave this world, it's be saying goodbye to them forever. This makes me see that we should start detaching ourselves from all our material possessions as we age. The only way to succeed here is to attach ourselves to the Lord God alone. Again, surrendering to him is the key, not trying to fight yourself and struggle on your own. Once more, it comes down to whether we let God truly be our Lord or not—something we must face.

***Call to Be Courageous

         Today's message from Fr. Mark Goring comes at the perfect time. Christians need to hear it and make a choice.          

***Keep Up Your Faith

          The world has got so evil and corrupt that they are crucifying our Lord again. After the first Crucifixion before his Resurrection, the disciples became so demoralized and didn't know what to do. But Resurrection changed all that. Now we should always be full of hope, knowing that the Lord is alive and with us. Therefore, continue praying and never give up. To lose hope is to fall into the Devil's trap. Our final victory is assured. Nothing is impossible for God if we have faith. Rejoice in the Lord always.

**Before We Depart

        As we get older, we start getting ready for meeting God. One of the things we sometimes forget is straightening out our relationships with all others on earth before we depart. If you haven't made peace with your fellow humans yet, how can you possibly expect that you'll get along with God?   

***God Most Beautiful

        It's only 11 days to Christmas and Christians are exchanging glad tidings with each other. I just received an email about a YouTube video on Christmas music. The singing was wonderful, but I couldn't help thinking that no matter how beautiful what we have created to glorify God might be, it still falls far short of the true beauty of the Lord himself, for we are finite and our capabilities are limited. To appreciate and enjoy the full beauty of the Lord, get to know him thoroughly first. Once you attain union with him, all other beauties fade away.

***Daring Prayer***

        Today's Gospel acclamation from Isaiah 61: The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me.... We say a lot of prayers, so why not also ask the Lord specifically to anoint you with the Holy Spirit? Again, I am no theologian, but my actual experience had been that great things happen to you when you desire anointing by the Spirit. This is what the Lord wants you to have, so it's yours for the asking! I can tell you that your spiritual life will then progress by leaps and bounds! It all comes down to when you let God do the work, he just does it for you, making your spiritual life most exciting.

**Our Journey of Faith

            From reading 2 from 1 Thessalonians 5, we have Paul writing "Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thinks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Test everything; retain what is good. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will also accomplish it." We see that our journey must be one of faith. The Lord is not going to tell us specifically what's going to happen and what every little thing we need to do next. We must believe in him always and plunge ahead following his will as best we can, knowing that we will arrive at where he wants us to go. It is by faith that we live, being hopeful always and never becoming disheartened.

***Why We Need Christ!

        Going through hell on earth is infinitely better than experiencing true hell after death. You may live a most miserable life, but if you are with Christ, your suffering will end when you leave this world. On the other hand, if you are not with him and end up in hell, your suffering never ends—this is why hell after death is so horrible. This is why accepting and obeying Christ is so necessary before you die. Romans 6.23: The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Christ is our answer.

***Our Best News

        To be a saint, you need to abandon yourself completely to God. To be saved, you only need to believe in Christ and repent of your sins, something everyone can do. This is the best news of all. But if you go for Christ, why not go all the way and your life will be so much more rewarding now and also later?

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Unborn

         Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. If you are not familiar with the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe, look it up and you'll find it amazing and beautiful. The miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was found imprinted on the cloak of Juan Diego of Mexico to whom Mary appeared in 1531. In Revelation 11, the Apostle John saw the following in his vision: "A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth." In the Our Lady of Guadalupe image, we see her clothed with the sun and with the moon under her feet. And the black ribbon around her waist shows that she is expecting a child. 
         In the Gospel reading from Luke 1, Mary visited her relative Elizabeth who's pregnant with John the Baptist. When Elizabeth heard Mary' greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does his happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." It is important to learn that the unborn infant can also experience joy, and therefore, sorrow and pain too. It is absolutely sacrilegious for pro-abortionists to think that the infant unborn is a merely a blob in the mother's womb with no life at all.

***Our Journey*

        When you are one with the Lord, you experience his agony along with him, and that places a heavy burden on your heart. Yet knowing that he is with you, you never lose hope. Suffering is always a part of following the Lord who also gives you unspeakable joy. As Ascension followed the Lord's Passion, we will also see his glory after our agony expires. Our world has gotten so godless that I believe that the illumination of conscience, our mini-judgment, as prophesied could happen anytime now. Pray for the mercy of God on all unceasingly. Remember that we are only passing through this world and our permanent home is to be with our Father in heaven. 

**The Just and the Wicked

         From today's reading from Psalm 1, we learn that the wicked are chaff which the wind drives away; for the LORD watches over the way of the just, but the way of the wicked vanishes. We know that the wicked won't be able to stand the Lord, while the just are blessed by him always. God is in full control of everything, but we who are finite easily forget this and start to worry when times get tough. Christians who know that they are returning to their Father in heaven live in freedom and with great joy. Similarly, those who know that God is in full charge pray hard, but do not worry, in troubled times. Final victory belongs to the just and faithful, not to the wicked whose way will vanish altogether.

Sign of End Times

        The total lack of repentance. We see evildoers continuing to lie and deceive unabatedly even after truth has exposed their frauds, scandals and other misdeeds.         

*Maximizing Your Happiness

          If you appreciate that God loves you so much that he even died for you on the cross so that you might have eternal life, you would appreciate that he has created you and be happy with yourself. So if you are not happy with yourself, you do not know God yet. To become happiest, seek to attain union with him through the Holy Eucharist.

**Requisite to Entering Kingdom of Heaven

         In Matthew 7:21, Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father in heaven." Does this mean that a basically good person may not make it to the kingdom of heaven? I see at least two instances in which this can happen. (1) You don't obey God in all things. For example, you find it difficult to forgive someone. Whereas you should go to God to seek help, you decide that you are just not going to forgive that person. This is deliberately going against the Lord. (2) You believe that you are a good enough person and that it's OK to commit some small sins now and then. This lack of humility can also keep you out of the kingdom of heaven. The bottom line, we need to do the will of our Father in heaven as best we can.

***Distinctive Union Benefits***

     Since this blog is all about attaining union with God through the Holy Eucharist which the Lord ardently desires, I'd like to pause and again list the three distinctive benefits you receive in the state of union.

1. God becomes more real than someone you see, hear, and touch.
2. God takes away your tendency to sin.
3. Your fear of death vanishes.

     There are many other more general graces which I won't get into here. 

***Evildoers Are Biggest Losers

         In Mark 8:36, Jesus asked, "What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?" This is the question all evildoers need to hear. First of all, evildoers are pretty obvious to all. Even if they are not at first, they get exposed eventually. Of course, they can never hide from the Lord. Secondly, they may enjoy doing their deeds for their own gain, but they cannot possibly have inner peace. Thirdly, being evil puts them on the path to hell. You can't help feeling sorry for them for not knowing that the Lord God loves them and they only need to repent their sins to get on the path to heaven! An unawakened evildoer has to be the biggest loser. 

**Christ, the One We Need*

       Without or with not much of Christ in your life, you try to find happiness on your own. Since we live in an imperfect, sinful world, you encounter obstacles, setbacks, and even make enemies along the way. Then the sorry experiences and hurts you feel start to affect you mentally, making you hate the world and even yourself; you feel like giving up altogether. All I want to say is that you will not find happiness on your own. Then you let Christ into you life and everything changes. Living becomes meaningful. You are now free from the world, as serving him gives you so much joy and satisfaction. Yes, you know exactly where you are going and look forward to that day. The Lord guides you through every moment of your life. And there is much more. The God of Christ is exactly what we sinners need.

***The Brown Scapular

        On this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, I'd like to bring up wearing the Brown Scapular. I wear both the Brown Scapular and the Miraculous Medal and can testify to the abundant blessings I have received from the Lord. Mary promises that whoever dies wearing the Brown Scapular shall not suffer eternal fire. I am posting two videos about it below. Fr. Goring's came out two years ago and Jerome Chong's, recently. The two presentations complement each other. To learn all about the Brown Scapular and what you need to do before wearing it, visit the Sisters of Carmel.

***Perfect Model Response

        Today December 8th is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Gospel reading from Luke 1 tells the announcement of the birth of Jesus. The angel Gabriel came to Mary and informed her that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and she would conceive in her womb and bear a son to be named Jesus and called the Son of God. He would be great and the Lord God would give him the throne of David his father, and he would rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there would be no end. Mary's response before the angel departed was "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." This is the perfect response for us to emulate whenever we hear the Lord asking or feel the Holy Spirit prompting us to do something.

**Praying the Holy Name of Jesus

        Since my house is set quite a way back from the nearest public road, I try to exercise by walking from my house to that road and back, weather permitting. It takes about 20 minutes to complete three round trips, just enough time to pray five decades of the Rosary. But I find it hard to concentrate on praying that, as I am moving all the time, sometimes going uphill and sometimes, downhill. So I switched to mainly calling on the Holy Name of Jesus. Since I only need to focus upon the name "Jesus," distractions are no longer invasive. And I sincerely believe that when I pray thus fervently, the Lord already knows everything that's in my heart without my having to tell it all to him. A simple prayer is also worth a thousand words or more.

*Intimate Fellowship with the Lord

        When I go to bed to sleep every night, I feel like I am going home to the Lord. That's because when I lie in bed, all relaxed in darkness with no distractions, I feel most close to him. I could bare all of myself, letting him see everything that's in my heart. It's enjoying a most intimate union with my Lord and my God before I fall asleep. Psalm  23:4 appropriately comes to my mind: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me.

**Faith and Forgiveness

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 5, some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed; they were trying to bring him in and set him before Jesus. But not finding a way to do it because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles in the middle in front of Jesus. They must have made quite an impressive entrance. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, "As for you, your sins are forgiven." It seems that how ready the Lord is to forgive you depends upon how much you believe in him. Here, the paralytic believed in him so much that he didn't even have to confess all his sins first. It was an eager childlike belief that the Lord valued. At the opposite end, we can have people with such weak faith that even after they confess all their sins, they may not be completely forgiven. 

**Knowing We Are Sinners

        If we are holy and blameless, there would be no need for Jesus to come to save us. The fact that we can feel so grateful that he had come so that we might have eternal life and be moved to the point of even willing to die for him is proof that we basically know we are sinners and need salvation.

***Christ Is All to Us***

         John 1.3 speaks of Christ: All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. Wow! And in John 14.6, Jesus said to Thomas, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Another wow! In reciting the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, we say, "Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your Dearly Beloved Son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world." It is through Christ that we get to atone for our sins and through his suffering that we dare to ask for mercy. St. Gertrude was told by Our Lord to pray to the eternal Father by offering him the most precious blood of His Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world for all the souls, living and deceased. Again, it is through the death of Christ that we are saved. And Christ knows everything about each of us, our heart and our soul. In the end, we'll have to answer to him about everything we've ever done, for he is our final judge.

**Letting God Shape you

         When you are attentive to what the Lord wants you to do and you obey, he is also shaping you. I was not aware of this at first when I received messages from him to post; I thought that they were for my readers. Then I realized that he was teaching me too, in fact, teaching me first. In other words, I wasn't just to relay what he'd said; he wanted me to learn the lesson from him first. So it is good to know that every time the Holy Spirit prompts you to do something, the Lord wants you to receive the same benefit. Obeying him is the best way to grow spiritually.

***Living the Simple Christian Life

          In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 9 & 10, Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. Then he sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus, "Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, make the proclamation: 'The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give." I like that last statement I underlined. We simply depend upon the Lord and serve him—that's it. This is how we should live the Christian life. It's not complicated at all.

**Waiting for the Lord

         Today's response to Psalm 147 came from Isaiah 30: Blessed are all who wait for the Lord. There is no doubt that Christ will come again as he had promised. The goal of life for all should be to prepare ourselves for that day as we wait. We Christians look forward to the Second Coming, as final justice will be served to all on that day. 

*God Our Amazing Creator

        I am amazed by the various forms of life God has created. Look at a plant, for example. It doesn't have a brain nor a heart, yet it grows and can flower or bear fruit. It may be deciduous or evergreen. Most likely, it has no feelings, yet instinctively in many cases, it consume bugs. For a vine, it also knows how to climb high. And I see ourselves made in the image of God. We instinctively understand good and evil and sense that we will one day return to our creator. And we do not find rest until we come to know him. Among all the animals, we know that we are his highest creations. 

**Imperfect Faith

      In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 9, Jesus healed two blind men. They cried out to Jesus to have pity on them. Jesus asked them, "Do you believe that I can do this?" They said to him, "Yes, Lord." Then he touched their eyes and said, "Let it be done for you according to your faith." And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, "See that no one knows about this." But they went out and spread word of him through all that land. 
       Here we see that the two men had faith in Jesus and the Lord listened to them, but they did not listen to him. Faith is necessary, but obedience is important. Without perfect obedience, faith is made imperfect.

*Key to Entering Heaven

        Today is the memorial of St. Francis Xavier. The Gospel reading came from Matthew 7, in which Jesus said to his disciples, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Everyone who listens to theses words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock." The bottom line: action counts, not necessarily words; and obedience to the Father is the key to entering heaven.

***What You Must Not Delay

         Isaiah 55:6 is today's Gospel acclamation: Seek the Lord while he may be found; call him while he is near. Even if we live to 100, the time we have to find Christ is limited. When we leave his world, our opportunity of finding him is gone forever. Do not delay seeking and calling the Lord, for you do not know how long you will live in this world!

***Challenge for the Christian

        We want to live inside of Christ, not outside of him. This is our challenge and goal. Either he is truly our Lord or he is not. To succeed here, you only need to abandon yourself to God. But this is the stumbling block for many, for great humility is required. The good news is that if you can do it, you'll experience total freedom and joy on the other side and never want to go back to where you were before. 

*Survival Rules

           Essential survival rules for the Christian in these troubled times. (1) Shut out all fake news. Stop listening to lies. (2) Do not look back on you past, especially if it's not a happy one. Let the past go forever! (3) Focus upon Christ only. Place all your hope in him alone. Truly let him be your Lord! In fact, if you follow rule 3 to the letter, you won't need any other rules.

*The Truth not Realized by All

        Today's Gospel acclamation: Behold, the Lord comes to save his people; blessed are those prepared to meet him. Those who prepare themselves to meet him are the ones who realize the truth that we are all  sinners and need salvation. Those who do not prepare themselves are the ones who do not realize this truth and are to be pitied. They are the evildoers and those who are simply asleep spiritually, for Satan has pulled the wool over their eyes.

*****Miraculous Transformation of Oneself*

          Let Jesus, ask him to, look at you; and you won't be the same person again! 

****Connect with God at Deepest Level

        Jesus commands us to love the Lord, our God, with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind. Of the three, heart, soul, and mind, the soul resides the deepest within us and is the closest to God. Therefore, when we call on the Lord, pray to him, or just converse with him, we must let everything come from our very soul! That is, we always connect with the Lord at the deepest level! And your spiritual life will be astoundingly rewarding!

**Working Hard as We Age

        Many people enjoy working hard, often on some favorite project, as they age. This is admirable and so much better than remaining idle most of the time. My only concern is that if all your work is self-centered, you may lose the time you need to secure the salvation of your soul. When we realize that our time on earth is limited, it's time to work more for the Lord and less for ourselves. As we get closer to meeting the Lord, we need to improve our relationship with him as much as possible. The wise would start to seek union with the Lord from the very outset.

****Good Enough to Believe in Jesus

        In John 20, after Thomas saw the resurrected Jesus and believed, Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." For us, we can say that we are blessed who have not seen nor heard him and have believed. All that matters is that he sees and hears us!

***My Greatest Blessing

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 10, Jesus said, "All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him." God has given me so many blessings in this life: loved ones, caring friends, all kinds of good things that fulfill my needs, etc. But the greatest blessing of all is that Christ has revealed himself and then the Father and later the Holy Spirit to me so that I now know all of God most intimately. 

*****Secret to Peace*****

         If we will all submit ourselves to the God of Christ, our loving Father and our creator, Satan will fall and have no power over us whatsoever and there will be complete peace in this world. I am telling you the absolute truth here. Follow Christ alone and we save ourselves and the whole world. (If you have not paid much attention to Christ yet, you owe it to yourself before you die to look into how he can give you inner peace as well as eternal life.)

**Jesus Is Lord

        Today is the feast of St. Andrew, Apostle. In today's Reading 1 from Romans 10, Pauls starts out with "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." We must never hesitate to proclaim that Jesus is Lord and should proclaim it as much as possible. A Christian who does not confess that Jesus is Lord for whatever reason only shows that Jesus is not his or her Lord yet. Even if you can say it, you must live to prove that you mean it. Otherwise, you are still not genuinely a Christian. To acknowledge that Jesus is Lord is acknowledge that is foremost in your life.

***Begin Anew with Christ

          I have moved into my house for about 15 years or so and notice that some of fixtures and things have begun to show their age. I recall the various subcontractors I had to deal with, some were excellent and some not so good. The bad ones left me with bad memories. I know we all have had unpleasant experiences with others that can haunt us. Then I see Christ and know that he can and will liberate me from everything negative. The Lord is like a filter. When we go through him, all that is unclean, disordered, destructive, or distracting will be filtered out. He is our end and in him nothing that hurts, haunts, or enslaves us can possibly exist; we become liberated, new creatures in him! So let nothing disturb you now, but let Christ alone fill you with his peace. 

***My Greatest Blessing

        It's having Christ who is most loving, most merciful, most understanding, most beautiful, most holy and perfect as my Lord! There is not another being who can possibly satisfy and fulfill me as Christ does!        

***Amazing Graces

        Do you realize that we can connect with the Lord God our creator and savior instantly and at any time? What a wonderful grace! And that we can also repent minor sins directly to the Lord and more serious sins through the sacrament of reconciliation, and be forgiven and become all clean again? Another amazing grace! Thank you, thank you, and thank you, Father. 

****Highest Exaltation

         In Matthew 23, Jesus said, "Whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Here's the proof. When you humble yourself before the Lord, realizing that you are nothing and you need him, you open yourself up and the Lord enters you fully to dwell in you—you and the Lord are now one. This has to be highest exaltation you can possibly get from the Lord in this life. Rejoice, rejoice, and rejoice!

***Jesus' Second Coming

         In today's Gospel reading from Mark 13, Jesus told his disciples to be watchful and to be alert, for they did not know the time the Lord would come again. Jesus made it clear that he will come again, and this time to judge us. How do I know? Well, if there won't be any judgement, then we really don't need to be watchful at all. For those who have always been faithful to the Lord or are already in union with him, they are ready for anything. So this is really a warning to those who are not yet ready. Since those who do not believe that the Lord had come the first time will have no reason to believe that he will come a second time, there is no point in letting them know when the Lord will come again. Besides, keeping the time and day unknown will help separating the true believers from the true unbelievers.

**Our Goal in Life

        In today's second reading from 1 Corinthians 1, Paul wrote, "God our Father will keep you firm to the end, irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ." I see that our whole goal should be to become irreproachable on the day we face Christ. The way to achieve that goal is to become irreproachable now before that  day arrives unless you have the magic of becoming holy instantly. 

**Letting God Make You Beautiful

        Today is the first Sunday of Advent. Reading 1 comes from Isaiah 63 and 64. The last verse reads, "Yet, O LORD, you are our father; we are the clay and you the potter: we are all the work of your hands." The image that we are the clay and the Father is the potter is a beautiful one. To acknowledge this is willing to let the the Lord mold and shape you to his heart's content so that you become most beautiful for him to behold. 

**Getting into Heaven Is Easy

        On our own, we can never be good enough to get into heaven. But if we let God help us, the problem is no more. As Jesus said to his disciples in Matthew 19:26, "For human beings this is impossible, but for God all things are possible." Besides, the Lord wishes and desires that we all get into heaven.

***Sober Warning and Advice

          This is today's Gospel reading, Luke 21:34-36. 

        Jesus said to his disciples: "Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man."

        We may not carouse or even be drunk, but may very well be anxious about something. Since the day of the Lord's coming will catch us by surprise, to be vigilant at all times is truly the appropriate advice. It would indeed be horrible to have the Lord catch you in the midst of spreading fake news, cussing at someone, committing an impure act, or doing ballot stuffing. I personally see attaining and  remaining in union with the Lord as our best preparation, as you'll already have the Lord dwelling in you.

***God Is Our Life

         In yesterday's 1st reading from Revelation 20, the book of life was mentioned. In today's 1st reading from Revelation 22, an angel showed John the river of life-giving water, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. On either side of the river grew the tree of life. In John 11:25, Jesus Said, "I am the resurrection and the life." In John 14:6, "I am the way and the truth and the life." So simply, God who is the source of all life is life. For us, to know the Lord is to have life eternal. It was also revealed to John that the Lord is coming soon for all his servants and that night will be no more, nor will they need light from lamp or sun, for the Lord God shall give them light. Surely it is this light that will sustains our life for all eternity.

***Knowing Enough to Be Saved

        The Gospel reading at Mass continues with readings from Revelation. Many people have tried to interpret the book Revelation and arrived at different conclusions. I am content to learn just what's clear and leave the many mysteries alone. From today's reading from Revelation 4, I learn that anyone whose name is not written in the book of life will be thrown into the pool of fire, the second death. Of course, i do not know when this will happen or exactly what the second death is all about, but I do know that I need to make sure that my name is written in the book of life. Again, I don't need to know exactly what the book of life is, but I know without a doubt that I only need to be in Christ to have my name written in it. This is good enough for me.

**Praying Without Doubt

        You have two choices after you ask for some favor from the Lord. (1) You feel unsettled, always wondering if he is going to grant you what you've asked for or not. (2) You know that the Lord has heard you and will answer your prayer, not wondering about how he's going to do it. I think the second option is much better, for it shows that you have faith and you leave the door open for God to surprise you.

****Are You Honest with God?

        We must be completely honest with God, sharing everything and hiding nothing. This is absolutely important if you truly want to know the Lord and be in total harmony with him. This is also the key to experiencing freedom in the Lord. "Honesty is the best policy" works with God too.

**Not Shocked by Evildoers

         They lie to the American people daily and now try to steal a national election by fraud. What can you expect from anyone who has no qualms whatsoever about killing the unborn? When you rebel against the Lord, you instantly become the greatest loser in the world. Even if you gain the whole world, you still end up losing your own soul. May God have mercy on them.

***Feel It for Jesus!

        To be one with the Lord, we must feel what he feels. If he suffers, let's suffer along with him. If he is joyful, let's be joyful too. To be united with our Savior is to have life eternal, and is our greatest joy!  

*****Warning of Second Coming

         In today's Gospel reading from Luke 21, Jesus spoke about his Second Coming to his disciples. That's right, he was still living among them. He told his disciples, "When these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand." We must be prepared and look forward to this day of our redemption. If we don't, what could happen to us would be unthinkable. 

***Christ Is Joy!***

        Today is Thanksgiving Day in USA. I thank the Lord for all he has done for us. I especially thank him for having turned everything into joy for those who follow him. The Lord has given me freedom, peace, and joy, more or less in that order; yet joy comes to my mind first whenever I think of him. It must be because freedom and peace are experienced quietly and joy can be truly overwhelming. Anyhow, the Lord is the source of our joy. The Resurrection, Ascension, and the Descent of the Holy Spirit fill us with joy. Heaven is all joy. Follow Christ and you'll have joy forever!

**Complaining Is Not Christlike

         Even though it's not Friday yet, I prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary for a special intention. I realized that the Lord suffered so much and died on the cross for us willingly and that we who trust in him really should not complain about anything in life anymore! The Lord does not wish us to ever worry or be anxious about anything. Complaining only reveals our self-pity and lack of trust in God.  

***Completing Our Relationship with God

        This morning I had a dream and woke up around 4:20 a.m. It was an unusual dream that's not easy to describe and would be incomprehensible to all, yet the personal message to me was clear. So I'll just tell you what I learned. When we normally want to establish a relationship with someone, we would get to know that person first. And if the person is worth knowing and meets our approval, then we try to befriend the subject, and so forth. What the Lord showed me is that he loves us, wants to save us, and even be one with us, and that he has already prepared this most intimate relationship for us to enter into. The invitation is out. We only need to accept it and we'll have the most treasurable relationship we'll ever need. 

***Our Role in God's Plan

        You see, God has his perfect plan for the whole world and all of us. He knows exactly what he is doing. We only need to get to know him so that we may know his will and follow it. Nothing more is necessary. Doubting, worrying, predicting what might happen . . . are all out of place. Just trust and obey him and things will work out the best. I think you will agree with me if you apply common sense and think logically.

**Opportunity in Evil Times

        As our nation and the whole world seem to be undergoing vicious demonic attacks, those who are with Christ do experience a heavy burden on their hearts. But let us see that this is also a wonderful time for us to abandon ourselves completely in the Lord. You've probably heard the saying "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." For us, it would be "The more Evil arises, the stronger we become in God." Our ultimate victory is, of course, assured.

**True Blessing of Living*

        Most people wish that they will have a long life because they see it as a blessing from God. Maybe or maybe not. Let me give you the truth. How long you live on earth does not really matter. What matters is how much you enjoy God while you are living.

**God's Most Generous Offer

         Today's Gospel acclamation, Revelation 2.10: Remain faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. A lifetime, no matter how long, is nothing when compared to eternity. This promise is so fantastically generous that we cannot possibly ignore? God always wants us to have the very best for all eternity! 

**Enemy of the People*

        Today's fake mainstream news media are indeed the enemy of the people. They lie, fabricate stories, and are completely biased, attempting to brainwash us into believing that the lies are truths and the truths, lies. This is what the Communists do. Right now, under all videos on YouTube that talk about the Presidential election, Google placed this note: The AP has called the Presidential race for Joe Biden. How dumb can they be? Obviously, Google's trying to swing an election. Secondly, they think we are so ignorant that we don't even know that election is determined by the court under law and not by the news media. These losers are so pathetic that they may fool some people, but they make themselves look even worse in the eyes of many more others. If you are fake and deceptive, God will expose you in the end. Ignore these media now is the best way to deal with them. For if we can ignore the Devil totally, he won't be able to do any harm to us. 

***God Fundamentally Changing Us

        I recall my younger days before I knew Christ. I was not a happy person, for I did not know exactly what I should do, felt inadequate in many ways, desired to become somebody, and finally, questioned the meaning of life. I would say that like many others around my age, I did not know who I was yet and was still searching for an answer. Christ changed all that. Let's say that he completely reset me. He removed all my confusion, self-pity, hangups, feeling of hopelessness, sinful desires, and all other mental disorders. To me, this proves that he is indeed my creator, my God, and that only he can fundamentally change us. Try to change yourself in any way without the Lord is doomed to failure. If Christ can get us into heaven, surely he can make us anew!

**Praying with Faith

           One can go to God to ask for something that's good, but at the same time wonder if he'll ever grant him the favor. Then another one can go to him, focusing totally upon him and never wondering for a moment about what might happen. Which of the two do you think the Lord would rather deal with? To the first person, the Lord would probably say, "O you of little faith," while the second person fulfills what the Lord said in Mark 11.24: "I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours."

**Looking Beyond This Life*

          We must realize that we must not be of the world and that our home should be in heaven. We live to 70, 80, or even 90, then what? It is the fool who does not think beyond this life, this world. The wise see the complete picture as God sees it and act accordingly. Pity the evildoers who are not aware of the existence of a just God. Christians who know the Lord are liberated free from this life and this world. Focusing upon yourself alone will surely lead one to self-annihilation. 

***Becoming Most Talented to God

        There are many talented people around. Some of them are so amazing that they have become famous and rich and earned great admiration from many of us not so talented. The Lord first made me see that any talent we're given should be properly used to glorify him and not ourselves, and that we can all acquire a talent that would be most pleasing and even admirable to him, which is the talent of keeping our hearts clean! To acquire this talent, we only need to repent our sins and ask the Lord to make us clean. This is just the start, for you can acquire even more talents to become holy and blameless before him! Nothing is impossible for God and we can surely tap his power to become the most talented person to him.  

***Our Final Judgment***

        Today is the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 25 on the the judgment of the nations by the Son of Man, Jesus will come to separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on this right and the goats on his left. The king will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Then he will say to those on his left, "Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." Interestingly, the Lord gives the good news to the righteous first. The Second Coming is as certain as his first coming into the world 2,000 years ago, and I look forward to the return of our Lord.

**We Are Wonderfully Made

         Psalm 139.14: I praise you, Lord, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are your works! This morning I realized this when I realized that I could see, hear, feel, eat and survive, come up with abstract ideas, and on top of it all, know God! Many people believe that humans did evolve from apes. There may be evidence of physical evolution in animal species, but the capability of conceiving the existence of God is not something that can possibly evolve from any animal such as the ape. Anyway, know that you are wonderfully made by God and you'll be happy with both yourself and God.  

***Christ's Wonderful Blessing!

        Each one of us is aware of our own existence. I know I am I, and you know you are you. When we attain union with Christ, his existence becomes even more certain than our own! We come to know him even more than ourselves! This is truly amazing, because we do not physically see or hear him, yet our heart tells us so. It is all the Lord's doing, a most wonderful blessing to us.

***Union with God Depicted***

           When you and God are in each other, you and God are in union. But the Lord is infinite and we are like a little drop in the ocean, so how can he possibly enter and dwell in us? Perhaps we can picture that the Lord fills the entire space and we merely blend in perfectly. To achieve that is quite simple. If you can be completely open to the Lord so that there is absolutely no barrier between you and him so that he may enter you freely as he wills, then you are in union with him! You now experience total freedom in God!   

***Christ Our Only Truth

        I see so clearly that Christ is the truth. I do not consider Christianity to be a religion, for it is the absolute truth. If you want to consider it to be a religion so you can compare it with all other religions in the world, then let me point out what distinguishes Christianity from the rest. (1) The Christian belief is founded upon God's unconditional, pure love for us. (2) The God of Christ is all powerful, but also meek and humble so that we can even attain union with him. (3) The message of salvation is made crystal clear to us. (4) God never lord it over us as we have the free will to accept or reject him, making faith meaningful. These features stand out as no other religion can come close. Without the God of Christ, life becomes pointless.

**Keeping the Faith

        If you believe that the Lord God knows everything about you and you do believe in him, then you should aim to live up to this belief. You would do everything for the sake of glorifying him. When you pray, you would do your utmost to mean what you say from the heart, for he knows how sincere or serious you are. This is having faith. Your eternal life depends upon how you think, speak, and act. Now, this becomes easy once you attain union with God. But our union with the Lord can never be perfect on earth as we remain sinners. Again, our intention becomes our grace.

***Our Only True God

           Without the true God, we would all be doomed. The God of Christ is the only true God. The world is still in chaos because not the people have accepted him yet. But to those who have, you can be sure that all their sorrow will soon turn into joy forever.

*Getting Hell Right

        Some things we must get right in this life, for if we get them wrong, we won't be able to correct ourselves anymore. Hell is one of those things. If for whatever reason you end up in hell after you die, you just can't change that anymore. So don't ever say "The hell with hell!" It matters as much to you as God. Get to know and love the God of Christ and you won't have anything to worry about, for you will be with him forever!

**No Time to Waste

        In Matthew 7:7 (or Luke 11:9), Jesus said to his disciples, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." May I suggest that we speed things up by going straight to the Lord, open ourselves up wide, and let him see everything we desire in our hearts. He is most ready to help, so let's not waste any time. Learn to rely upon him every moment of our brief life on earth.

***God's Pure Love*

         Our love for others is never that pure. We love for selfish reasons. For example, a man loves a girl partially, if not wholly, because she is attractive to him. If she is not, he'll probably not even look at her, let alone love her. Again, if we like someone as a friend, it's because he or she is fun to be with or can benefit us in some way. Otherwise, we most likely would not bother to know that person. I do admit there are times we feel called to help someone we don't even know in need, but to help someone who is our enemy, that is an entirely different matter. Now, God loves all of us, even if we rebel against him. That love is absolutely unconditional and pure. Only by accepting his love for us ourselves can we possibly love others with a pure love also.

***So Close or So Far Apart, a Choice***

         You can have two people who believe in and love the Lord Jesus and become one in him. All it take is for one of the two to turn away from the Lord and now they can't be further apart. We can let God unite us or set us apart. The choice is so hard for some, yet so easy for others. And that's the way it is.

*An Instructive Dream

        I had this dream early in the morning today. I was in an environment filled with all kinds of noises, including humans chatting incessantly. Then all of a sudden, a loud pure tone came through and stopped everything, and there was peace and quiet. To me, the cacophony of noises symbolizes all the outright lies, biased views, and fake news that are being spewed out by so many godless politicians, entertainers, and mainstream news media nonstop. The pure tone symbolizes the voice of the Lord. And if we choose to hear him alone, we can shut out all the other crap.  

**War or Peace

         If we all obey the God of Christ worldwide, we'll have instant peace, for his second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. If we all rebel against the God of Christ, we'll be embroiled in a fierce spiritual war till the day we die or his Second Coming, whichever comes first. These are statements of truth Christ has already made amply clear.

*Identifying Evildoers

         The Evil One cannot stand the Lord and his people. He attacks them out of sheer hatred. You cannot reason with him, for he does not listen to you. Well, today's many evildoers behave just like that. You can only pity and pray for them.

*****How We Came to Be

         I read today's first reading from Revelation 4 and learned that we came to be and were created because of God's will. This is something we should think about and cherish. We are not some casual, random creatures; we are truly special because God willed us into being! We bear a most special relationship to him. He knows us and we should get to know him intimately too! We already know through Christ that he loves us to death. To reject him is to reject our own existence!

*****Our Tender Lord

          In today's reading from Revelation 3, we also hear our humble Lord speaking most tenderly from his heart: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. It anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me." If you hear him and still don't let him in, you don't have a heart.

**Expecting the Unexpected

        In today's first reading from Revelation 3, the Lord said: "If you are not watchful, I will come like a thief, and you will never know at what hour I will come upon you." If you don't pay any attention to his warning, you are playing a dangerous game with the Lord. He can come when you least expect him and catch you totally unprepared and cast you into darkness. But those whose name is already in the book of life will eagerly await the Lord's coming at any moment, for their joy will be complete.

***What We Want God to Do for Us

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 18, a blind beggar, realizing that Jesus was passing by, kept calling out, "Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!" Jesus stopped and ordered that he be brought to him; and when he came  near, Jesus asked him, "what do you want me to do for you?" He replied,"Lord, please let me see." Jesus told him, "Have sight; your faith has saved you." He immediately received his sight. We can also shout to Jesus, "Son of God, have pity on me!" We may not have a physical impairment, but we can certainly tell him what we want him to do for us. Personally, I would replied to the Lord thus, "Lord, please answer all my prayers." I believe that he will do just that.

***Going Separate Ways*

         Inspired by today's reading from Psalm 1, the just the Lord will watch over and they will prosper, but the wicked the Lord will dismiss and they will vanish. (Luke 13.27: "I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers!")

***Our Wonderful Gift from God!

          From today's first reading from Revelation 2, I learned these two things. First, no matter what we endure and suffer, we must never grow weary. Following the Lord is always exciting. Knowing that victory is assured in the end for each of us who follow him, how can we possibly grow weary?
         The next thing I learned was that repentance is a beautiful thing; it brings up back to God. It wipes us clean and we get to start anew. This is absolutely a most wonderful gift by which we can get back to God's grace instantly at any time, for he is always ready to forgive us when we repent. There is nothing on earth better than this precious gift! How can we possibly consider God, the God of Christ, to not be easily accessible?

*Mass Experience in Troubled Times

        I attended Sunday Mass at 5 p.m. yesterday because when I contacted my church early Saturday, Saturday Vigil Mass and the two Sunday morning Masses were already filled, as attendance at each Mass is now limited to just 100 people. Everyone sat with a mask on, sitting at least 6 feet apart, with kneelers all up and taped in place. Not many parishioners talked to each other after Mass. It's all very surreal. But I stilled received my Lord. He is my greatest and only consolation amidst the turmoil in these evil days. I petitioned the Lord to protect his people and crush all evil. Since he is merciful, he shall wipe out evil and save as many souls as possible.

**Saying "I Trust in God" Not Enough

           In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 25, Jesus told the parable of the talents. We can learn from this parable that we must remain faithful in all small matters and be fruitful. That is, we must not miss every chance that comes our way to spread the gospel of Christ. We cannot be like the servant who received the one talent and buried it in the ground, instead of using it to make a profit. It's not good enough to say "I trust in the Lord" and not diligently work to be fruitful. 

***Start Enjoying Freedom Now

        We must be fully aware that we may leave this world at any time. I am not being pessimistic, I am being realistic! This should teach us not to get ourselves tied down by the things of the world. Start enjoying freedom from the world now and you'll likely enjoy freedom for all eternity. If you do not free yourself from the world, you'll likely never have freedom.

*****To Be Receptive to God

         I woke up before 5 a.m. this morning and it's still pitch dark outside. I felt I was in the most comfortable sleeping position with my arms and head and every other part of my body in the right spot, totally relaxed. Then I thought that this is the way we should feel before the Lord so that we may be completely receptive to him. There should not be any barriers between us and God. We remain wide open and he is totally free to enter to dwell in us. This is the ideal state of our soul, to be in union with the Holy God, our Lord, our Father, our Brother, our Friend, and our Most Beloved.

**Praying for Justice

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 18, the Lord told the parable of the persistent widow. In it a dishonest judge finally gave in to a widow who kept bothering him to render a just decision for her against her adversary. Jesus then said, "Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily." This is exactly what we need to hear and believe in when our nation is on the verge having a presidential election being stolen by an evil party. I would like to invite you to join me in urgent prayer that all that's in darkness will be exposed and that truth and justice will prevail.  

***Our Most Humble Lord***

        As God, the Lord is more humble than all of us! This should put us to shame and at the same time inspire us to become humble like him. (1) He is God, yet he did not mind becoming human like one of us. (2) As our maker, he did not mind being born through one of his creatures, our Holy Mother. (3) He who is without sin wanted to be baptized by John the Baptist like all the others sinners. (4) As our Lord, he came to serve all of us, even washing our feet. (5) He came to die for us so that we might live—this is almost astounding beyond belief! HOW CAN WE POSSIBLY NOT LOVE OUR MOST HUMBLE GOD???

*Ultimate Humility and Exaltation

         Jesus said, "Whoever humbles himself will be exalted." To surrender ourselves completely to God has to be exhibiting our ultimate humility, and the Lord will exalt us ultimately to residing with him in heaven forever.

**Demonic Evidence

        Jesus said in Matthew 5.37: "Let your 'Yes' mean 'Yes,' and your 'No' mean 'No." Anything more is from the evil one." This came to me early this morning. I see that our mainstream news media and crooked politicians have been doing exactly the opposite. They are now demonic. The devil is the father of lies, as the Apostle John had said. Then I saw Fr. Mark Goring's new video whose message resonates with my thoughts. 

***Prayer Focus

         As I was praying, the Lord showed me that we must focus upon him and our prayer alone and nothing else. This is in accordance with what Jesus said to his disciples in Mark 11.24: "I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receiver it and it shall be yours." It's so easy to doubt whether you'll receive what you ask for when praying. This doesn't help a thing and only shows your lack of faith. We must not worry in all circumstances. I know this is easily said than done, but it's the truth.

****Unforgettable Scenes***

        Luke 17:26-37, today's Gospel reading for Mass describes some of the most poignant scenes for me. Jesus told about his coming in the future to his disciples. It will be as unexpected as it was in the days of Noah or Lot. People will be eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, buying, selling, planting, building, and the Son of Man is suddenly here as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other. Then someone who is on the housetop and whose belongings are in the house must not go down to get them, and likewise one in the field must not return to what was left behind. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it. There will be two people in one bed; oner will be taken, the other left. And there will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken, the other left. 
         This could happen at any time now. We must be ready ourselves and labor to bring as many others to Christ as possible. 

***Most Anticipated Moment*

          The moment I most anticipate is not the moment I go to my Lord, but the moment he comes to us again at the Second Coming. When I go to the Lord, that's just one single moment for me personally, but when the Lord comes again, that's the huge moment for all of us to be set straight once and for all. Let us realize that we can turn to the Lord to be saved at any time now. Time marches on and if you do not act, you'll miss your chance of redemption forever! Get ready for the Second Coming and you'll be ready to meet the Lord personally too.

**Our Mission in Life

         Knowing what your specific mission is in life is a great consolation. You know exactly what you are supposed to do for the Lord, not a moment of your time is wasted on earth. It's a beautiful feeling of satisfaction. If you are not quite sure what your mission is yet, just pray humbly to the Lord about it. I definitely recommend seeking to attain union with God first, through the Holy Eucharist if you are a Catholic. It may take some time for it to become crystal clear to you. But when he reveals it to you, your life is filled with purpose.

***Bad Examples of Church Leaders***

        Repentance is what Jesus and the Church preach. It is the hallmark of being a bona fide Christian. If you don't repent of you sins, you won't get into heaven. This we all know. The laity is supposed to repent regularly, yet those leaders of our Church who are known to have been involved in scandals, corruption, and deception have never even admitted that they were at fault; they continue to play the blame game. When you care about looking good before people, but not before God, that's pretty sad. Just remember how displeased Jesus was with the Pharisees and the scribes of his time. 

**Praying That'll Get You into Heaven

         In Matthew 7:21, Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven." This I know for certain: if you call on the name of the Lord with great reverence and love from your heart, you will enter the kingdom of heaven. I prayed this morning by just saying the most holy name Jesus from my very heart repeatedly, taking my time worshipping and loving him, and I experienced fantastic communion with him.

**God is Fair and Just*

        We all live different lives. Some grow rich; some remain poor. Some live a long life; some die young. Some have good health; some suffer from physical ailments. Some get to live an easy life; some have to struggle hard to make a living. I can go on ad infinitum. But to understand, you need to have the overall picture, including where each person ends up after death. And only God knows all that. If you knew too, you'd see that God treats everyone fairly with perfect justice. 

***The Battle We Fight

         I prayed the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary, while adoring the Lord at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Doral, FL, on livestream. The Lord made me see that with both him and Satan fighting for our souls, we are basically fighting ourselves, as we must choose sides. If we all choose to follow God, Satan will instantly be defeated. The fact that the battle lingers on shows that we have not or not all of us have entirely gone over to God's side yet. Yes, the Lord wants to answer our prayers, but we are still in his way. 

**Making the Family Stronger

        It is tragic that there are so many dysfunctional families around. The ideal family would be one that centers on the Lord God. Absent that, most good families live relatively peacefully together. The members see, talk to, and help each other, with each still living a somewhat private life. What's missing is the true sharing of their inner selves with each other. If they would get to know each other deeper, the bond will surely grow stronger. (By the way, this is also how its works between God and us.)

**Our Ultimate Wish*

          We all wish for things in this life. If there is only one wish you can make concerning yourself, what would that be? Here's what I think is the best proper wish: that we attain perfect union with God because that's what he wishes for us the most. Again, "Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."  (Matthew 5:48)

***Unique Joy of Knowing Christ!

        The joy of knowing Christ is unique because it makes us selfless. Knowing the Lord makes you so happy that you'd want everyone to know him to have this joy. The is nothing like it in the world. In wanting to spread this joy, you don't even mind losing your own life. This is the transforming power of God's great love. May we all experience it! Praise be to the Lord.

***The Decline of Conscience

        What has happened to the examination of conscience we are supposed to perform at the end of each day? I haven't heard that being talked about in decades. Like many good old virtues, it has gone out of fashion. The explains why the sacrament of reconciliation is no longer taken seriously. We are free to live the way we want. The Church is more concerned about climate change and dialoguing with everyone than saving souls and fighting evil. Whereas the Church should influence the world, it's more the other way around now. 

**Practicing the Endearing Prayer

         I have somewhat revised "Most Endearing Prayer" I posted yesterday, so you may want to check it out. I am practicing this prayer now and wish to tell you how satisfying and rewarding it is. I do not say "Jesus" aloud. As I say the name mentally or quietly, I present to the Lord my wishes and desires without words. So I quickly go through all my petitions, while calling on the holy name of my Lord draws me close to him more than ever!

**It Matters to Know!

        Just watched Fr. Mark Goring's new video this morning and feel that it needs to be seen by all. 

***A Principle, a Law, a Given

           If you have the God of Christ on your side, you always win in the end. Depending upon the battle you are fighting, you may win tomorrow, next month, ten years from now, or most certainly, after you die.

****Division to This Day***

           Jesus knew that his coming to us would cause division (Luke 12:51). Two thousand years later, the division is worse than ever. The Church now is even deeply divided within. This all proves that the spiritual warfare between God and Evil is real, that heaven and hell exist, and that there will be the Second Coming of the Lord and final judgment of all of us. No question about it.                              

*****The Light of Christ!

        The image I received from the Lord today. Christ is the only shining light in our universe or outside our universe. Without him, there'll be complete darkness.

Alternative News Sources

         In these days when almost all major news media and and the big tech giants suppress and censor conservatives, newsmax.com, oann.com, and breitbart.com are some of the news sources from which you can get true stories, and the list is growing.

***Most Endearing Prayer***

           Romans 10.13: Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. We can call on the Lord simply by repeating the most holy name "Jesus." This we can do continuously right after we get up in the morning, anytime during the day, and as we go to sleep at night. Each time we address the Lord from our very heart, he already knows our intention(s). This is a simple one-word prayer that truly endears us to the Lord.

***Totally Ashamed of Our Bishops!

        Biden may not even be our president yet. The U.S. Bishops have already joined the fake media in supporting this notorious fake Catholic. This surely made me squirm. Listen to Archbishop's Vigano's letter slamming them.

*Temple of God Indestructible

        Today's Gospel reading came from John 2. Jesus cleansed the temple by driving out all those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers out of the temple area. The Jews asked him what sign he could show for doing this. Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." He was speaking about the temple of his Body, for he did rise from the dead on the third day later. The Lord is not only the temple of God, he is God. When we also become the temple of God, we can be sure he will also raise us up too. 

**We're the Temple of God!

        In today's second reading from 1 Corinthians 3, Paul wrote, "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God, which you are, is holy." It is good to know this truth when we are now surrounded by evil forces intent on destroying us! 

**Our Life Journey in a Nutshell

         The Lord created each of us in his image. We all came from him and we shall return to him. And we will be judged according to how well we have followed his will. 

***Time to Listen to God Only

        Today, with almost all the mainstream media spewing fake news, all the more we need to tune into God interiorly alone and shut out all external evil noises that are pure garbage.   

***The Sacrament of Confession

        One sign that tells how conscientious Catholics are is how often they go to confession. In generaI, I do not see the majority of catholics taking this sacrament seriously enough. Keeping the soul clean and pure is important—that is why the Son of God came to us to die for us in the first place. It is God's primary intent to save all of us for all eternity, so we must also do our best to save as many souls as possible, including our own, of course. I think Catholics shy away from confession for these reasons: (1) They do not realize how important this sacrament is to the soul. (2) Their conscience is dull to the point that they don't feel that that are really that sinful. (3) They know if they go to confession, they'll find it very difficult to honestly repent some of their sins, so they just stay away. This is serious. (4) They cannot change their sinful ways and wish to remain so. This is very serious. Being human, we are weak without God. If I sin in a certain way and find it impossible to change on my own, and say to God "Sorry, I just can't change," this would be a serious sin in itself. The correct approach is to admit my weakness and say to God "I cannot change on my own, but I must listen to you, so help me." This is the key to being saved! Without the humility to submit yourself to God, you won't be able to enter the kingdom of heaven.