*To See God Doing Mighty Deeds

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 13, Jesus did not work many mighty deeds in his native place because of the lack of faith of the local people. That's why nonbelievers do not see wonders of God, while those who believe see God working mightily in their lives and elsewhere and continue to grow in faith. You either get it all or get nothing. It seems unfair, but it is totally expected. Faith opens the door to God's wonderland.

***Living the Ultimate Christian Life***

        When you let God do everything for you, everything becomes easy for you to accomplish. This is the result of abandoning yourself to God, the secret of living the ultimate Christian life. Nothing can be stronger than you and God being united as one! For he is now free to back you in all things. You have conquered enemy No. 1, yourself, and become God's friend. Whatever you want to do is what he wants to do. Who can possibly stop you now? Without the Lord, you simply fight yourself to the day you die. 

**Greatest Short Prayer

        When the Risen Lord first appeared to the disciples, Thomas was not there. When they told him that they had seen the Lord, Thomas said, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand unto his side, I will not believe." Then a week later Jesus came again and Thomas was there. He said to him, "Put you finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!" To me this is the greatest short prayer of all. Thomas finally realized the truth. To say these words to Jesus from the heart is to surrender yourself to him completely. Calling Jesus Lord is not to be done lightly. 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." God is the only Lord we should have. Calling him Lord but not doing his will is being a hypocrite. 

**Another Urgent Message

        Signs are plenty. The problem is our hardened hearts.

 

***Plead to Treasure Eternity***

        God has always existed. For him there is no beginning nor end. That is, God is eternal. After we are created, we become eternal too, for our soul lives on forever. We must now take eternity seriously, for it can give us the greatest joy or the greatest sorrow. Personally, I am most grateful and rejoice that I can get to live with God the Father in heaven for all eternity. Considering that I am sinner, this is incredible! But I pity greatly those who do not take their eternal existence seriously and might end up one day wishing that they were never born. So I plead urgently with everyone to take advantage of this once-in-an-eternity opportunity God has offered us through the shedding of his own blood to become happy forever!

**Faith and Hope We Need Now

        In today's Gospel reading from John 11, Jesus went to see Martha and Mary whose brother Lazarus had already died. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother wold not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you." Of course, the Lord did go ahead and raise Lazarus from the dead. This is the kind of faith we need to have: even now we know that whatever we ask of God, God will give us. Believe and hope in God always and he will get us through anything.

***Urgent, Urgent Reminder

        John 8.12, today's alleluia verse: I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life. What do you see life as?  Do you just think that you were just born into this world to just try to stay alive for the short period of time you have on earth? Well, you are not really living until you see that you are a sinner who needs salvation, that both God and evil are real, fighting for your soul, and that you are being tested to see if you are good enough to enter heaven. At this critical time, it's more urgent than ever that we realize this reality, for our soul is at risk! As Jesus is the light of the world, only he can light you way to the whole truth. Ignore or reject him and you remain in darkness.   

***Saving Ourselves Now Up to Us

        We have turned our back on God. It's happening within the Church and outside the Church in this country, and worldwide. It is sad that many are not even aware that they are now serving Satan. We are going though possibly the darkest period of human history. Hear Fr. Goring's urgent message to all.

*Feeling Happy Not Good Enough*

        We feel happy about many things. Old people feel happy that they are still alive. Then we have evildoers happy that they have succeeded in destroying other people' lives. At any rate, if you do not know Christ and feel happy about a lot of things, you can still lose your soul. But if you truly feel happy (joyful) that you know Christ, then you can be sure that you are not in any danger zone. 

*To See Death Properly

        Sometimes when the Lord chastises his people, the good and the bad both perish. We humans see someone very old dying peacefully as being fortunate and feel sorry for anyone young dying unexpectedly or tragically. But God sees things his way. When and how we die does not matter. It's where we go after death that matters. We are always shortsighted and show our own wishes.

**Suffering Is Necessary

        Suffering is unavoidable and necessary for sinners to enter heaven. If you suffer for the sake of the Lord, that is, you offer up your sufferings to him, you become stronger each time. So suffering is a blessing. As the sun comes out after the rain stops, making everything look even more beautiful, God comes to you after your suffering is over, making your life sweeter than ever. In John 16.16, Jesus said to this disciples, "A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me." For us, it'll be "for a little while, we'll be suffering, and a little while later, we'll be in paradise forever."

**Unlimited Growth for Us

        As we age, our physical condition deteriorates and there's not much we can do about it. Our mental capacity remains pretty much constant, then weakens too over time. But the potential to grow spiritually for us is practically limitless, for we can submit to God to let him make us as holy as we wish. ln fact, this is what we should concentrate upon primarily, besides going to the gym and exercising our minds. The everlasting soul is infinitely more important than the passing body. In giving it the best attention, we are getting ourselves ready for eternity!

***Warning About the Warnings***

        Today's message from Fr. Goring is one to which everyone in the world should listen and pay attention. It is especially appropriate for the Catholics. If we do not let others know that the Lord is calling and warning us, then we are not totally with him yet.

***Exception to "Too Good to Be True"*

        In the world, if anything sounds too good to be true, you can be sure that it is false. If you receive an email informing you that you have inherited millions of dollars, you can be sure that it is a scam. Since God is always truthful, if something coming from him sounds too good to be true, you can bet that it is true! He tells you that he loves you even if you are the worst sinner in the whole world; it is true. He tells you that he will forgive you and make you all clean if you repent, even if you have committed ten million heinous sins; it is true. He tells you to just follow him and you'll have eternal life in heaven; it's absolutely true! The Lord God, being Truth himself, is totally trustworthy and is the only guide we need for our existence!

***True Haves and Have-Nots

        Here is a true case of "To anyone who has, more will be given; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away" (Matthew 13.12). The more you listen to God, the more you learn from him and grow spiritually until you attain complete union with him. On the other hand, the more you ignore God and immersed yourself in the world, the more you cut yourself off from him until you lose even your own soul.

**Cause and Effect

        Last night I went to bed later than usual, working on a book project. This morning I got up much later than usual. Even though I had slept more, I did not feel so good. Deviating from the normal has produced its effect. It comes down to "you reap what you sow." This made me see that everything we do affects us. If we continue sinning, the cumulative effect on our soul can be devastating. How good it is to do everything for the sake of God and not have to be concerned about their effect anymore!

**Realizing God Knows Best*

        When the Lord calls us to go to him, it's our time to go. I start thinking. I don't mind going, but what about the people I've tried to convert who have not converted yet? What about the events I've been praying for, but still have not taken place yet? Shouldn't I remain a little longer on earth? Then I realize the following. Of course, God knows best about everything, including the best time for me to go. And in heaven, I am certain that I can be even more effective in accomplishing his will on earth. Shouldn't I put all my trust in him? I see the light. No more questions.

**Predictable Results

        Reading 2 contains the well-known verse 28 from Romans 8: All things work for good for those who love God, who are called to his purpose. Of course, God has a perfect plan for each of us, and if we love him, we follow his plan and everything works for our good, that is, we get to heaven. On the other hand, I don't need to elaborate. If you don't love God, your life will end up a mess.

Why We Worship and Praise God

        We do it because deep down we know that we are finite and imperfect and that we need God who is infinite and perfect, and that he is our creator too. It's simply following our instinct.

*What Would You Ask of God?

        In today's reading 1 from 1 Kings 3, The Lord said to Solomon, "Ask something of me and I will give it to you." God was pleased that Solomon asked for understanding to know what is right instead of a long life for himself or riches or the life of his enemies. It'll be interesting to see how we would answer such a question. Normally, we pray for others more than for ourselves. Of course, we have to be truthful in what we say. I think each answer would reveal much about the person who was asked the question.  

***Sign You're Not a Serious Catholic

        If you do not look forward to confessing your sins, you are not a serious Catholic. It is a great joy to go to confession before God and be made clean again! Humility is the key to entering the kingdom for heaven.

**A Human Defect

         We humans are imperfect. No matter how good all our intentions are, we still have involuntary, undesirable thoughts going through our minds, not something we can prevent, but something God understands. I see this as a basic defect of being human. I believe that once we are in heaven, we'll be completely made anew so that we can worship, praise, and enjoy the Lord in perfect peace and joy. 

***Key to Entering God***

        Going back many decades, I remember I accepted Christ into my life because I felt the emptiness of life and was pretty much convinced intellectually that he was the Savior. I acted alone and felt relieved afterwards, nothing more. A couple of decades later, I experienced the Holy Spirit strongly after I got involved with the Catholic Charismatic Movement. I did not know much about being baptized in the Spirit, but I was open and desired it. So here's the key. You can know something and believe in it and nothing special happens. But even if you don't know much about something, but trust in God and desire it, he grants your wish. It is in desiring (not knowing) something that the Lord opens the door for you. So, desire to know the Lord to discover and experience his wonders!

***Unique Joy in God

        The joy you experience in God is unique. It is a joy the world does not know and cannot give you. This is the joy you receive from God after you let him satisfy all your spiritual hunger and thirst and know that your eternity is all settled! Only God can deliver all that.

***About the Holy Spirit

        The Holy Spirit is like the wind—you cannot see that he is here or he is there, but you can feel it. If your heart is on fire yearning for God, then he is in you. It is this Spirit that enabled Mary to conceive Jesus and Jesus to rise from the dead. Nothing is impossible for God the Holy Spirit. With him in you, you'll never feel alone again. And the purity of the Spirit will intoxicate you with heavenly joy!

***Only Hope We Need

        I am drawn to focus upon the Lord himself, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. First I see the Resurrection of Christ the Son as a unique event. He is the only one who has demonstrated that death has no power over him, proving that he has to be our creator! The Resurrection alone gives us all the hope we need, that we can also live forever like the Lord himself! I rejoice from the bottom of my heart. Lighten up and shout for joy!

***Our Greatest Challenge Today!

        Today is the Feast of St. James, Apostle. In Reading 1 from 2 Corinthians 4, Paul wrote, "We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed..." This is how we Christians feel today. How can we fight back? In the Gospel reading from Matthew 20, Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave." To fight evil and remain humble—how can this be possible? I see that it is possible only if we love the Lord with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind. Since God is love, we must let love motivate whatever we do.

*Isaiah"s Prophecy Fulfilled Today

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 13, Jesus quoted Isaiah to show how his prophecy was fulfilled in the crowds around him. Sadly, it is fulfilled by the crowds of today also. Here is what Isaiah said: You shall indeed hear but not understand, you shall indeed look but never see. Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears, they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted and I heal them. 

**What Ultimately Matters

        We all believe in different things and live the way we want. As a result, the world, my own country, and even my own family are more polarized than ever. We are all given the free will by God to choose to do his will or not. Coming right to the point, I'd say that division is the work of the devil. Do whatever you want, but what ultimately matters is whether you'll end up in heaven or not. Remember my advice: never do anything that will later make you regret doing? It's still good advice.

***Jesus Always with Us!

          Today is the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene. The Gospel reading from John 20 tells that when Mary saw that the tomb was empty, she thought someone had taken the Lord and started to weep. Yes, Mary loved the Lord. How blessed we are to know that Jesus is always with us and no one can possibly take him away from us! Alleluia!

***Enjoying Loving God

       Our love for Christ is more beautiful than all our other loves. The Lord first loved us with the greatest possible selfless love. When we embrace this love, our hearts are transformed and our souls healed. And we fall in love with him with a love as pure as his. I know that one day I'll be seeing him, but right now I prefer just to believe in him and enjoy being loved by him and loving him back.

**Learning from the Lord

         Fr. Mark Goring again. I post his messages because they are what we need to hear. We need to zero in on the Lord.

**Heaven Assured

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 12, Jesus said, "Whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother." Do every will of the Father and you become a member of God's family. It goes without saying that your future home will be in heaven.

*If I Were a Plant . . .

and follow Christ, he will turn me into a beautiful tree that blooms and yields sweet fruit. If I follow Satan, he would turn me into an ugly, stinky weed. At harvest time, the Lord will have all the angel gather up all the weeds and throw them into the furnace of fire (Matthew 13).

***Jesus Our Last Chance

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 12, some of the scribes and Pharisees wished to see a sign from Jesus. He said to them,  "An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and there is something greater than Jonah here. At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and there is something greater than Solomon here." If we do not repent at the preaching of the one who will be our finally judge or even wish to listen to him, then we are indeed doomed. 

Another Good Message for the Soul

**A Sin We Don't Realize

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 13, Jesus told the parable of the weeds in the field to the crowds. Later, he explained the parable to his disciples. I'll quote what the Lord said, for I believe that's what's going to happen at his Second Coming. "He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father." It is interesting that the Lord did not group those who cause others to sin with the evildoers. It is clear that causing others to sin has to be a grave sin. Most of us do not intend to do any evil, but neither do we pay attention to whether what we do might cause others to sin. If our bad behavior causes others to imitate us, the we have sinned. If our poor example as a Christian turn others away from Christ, we have sinned. So, we must not only reject evil, but also become holy. Aim for holiness and you can forget about evil.  

*The Ball Is in Our Court

        Do you think that the Lord God of Christ is for you or against you? Ask yourself if your are a sinner or not. If you know that you are, then he is against your sins and not you, for he still loves you and wants to save you. If you don't believe that you are a sinner, then all he can do is pitying you. The bottom line, God is always for us and we are free to go with or against him. 

***Facing Reality

        I walked outside my house early this morning. I saw the familiar trees and plants; some were doing well and some not so well. The cracks in the asphalt-surfaced road seemed to have widened every year. I realized that my life on earth would soon be over. This sounds sad, but it is reality and I do not dread it. Holding onto this life and not willing to leave the world is sad. Pretending and hoping that you will not die is being foolish. Again, Fr. Mark Goring's short sermon today tells us the reality we should be aware of and believe.

*As Long as Your Soul Is Safe . . .

        We can get so hung up on getting something we want or want done that we lose our peace. The Lord God wants us to leave everything to him and not be anxious about anything. As long as you soul is secure, nothing else matters. In Matthew 10, Jesus said, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna." Again in Luke 14, he said, "When you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, 'My friend, move up to a higher position.' Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companion at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he one who humbles himself will be exalted." So be humble enough to abandon yourself to God, and he will exalt you.

**Mercy vs. Sacrifice*

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 12, Jesus said, "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." Both can please God, but mercy is superior. To be merciful is to love others, while sacrifice can be self-centered. One is positive and the other negative. Love is always more powerful, as God is love. To be like him is the best way to please and console him. In these trying days, to show even greater mercy is difficult, but we must be like the Lord. Loving others for his sake is what will get you into heaven.

**Reward for Putting God First

        Do you know that if you devote yourself to saving as many souls as possible for Christ, all matters that normally would bother you no longer matter much? The Lord always rewards those intent on serving him with freedom and peace.

***Secret to Freedom Revealed

        In Matthew 16.25, Jesus said, "Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." This is a profound and challenging statement that compels us to think. What I see is that Jesus is revealing to us the secret to freedom! That is, forget ourselves completely and follow him, and we'll have eternal life! This is the breakthrough for us to know and remember.

***Christ Our Life Changer

        If you have no idea what's going to happen to you after you die, I pity you. Those who follow Christ know that they are going home to their loving Father in heaven. Heading toward an unknown might be exciting, but a wise person will never enter one to find out what it's all about first. Christ being the way and the truth and the life is the only one through whom we go to the Father (John 14.6). Without him, you waste your life away.

***Beyond Our Comprehension!

        God is infinite in every good way and nothing is impossible with him. His beauty, perfection, and love for us are beyond our comprehension. So is the joy we'll experience in heaven. On earth, God can make us whole and empower us with his Holy Spirit to become holy, again beyond our comprehension. God is always greater than what we can possibly expect, making living for him truly exciting.

**Deep Prayer Deepens Faith

        It is easy to pray saying the words. To talk to God from the depth of your heart takes effort. If you go deep into your heart and mean what you say, you will sense that the Lord is right there hearing everything you tell him and is moved. This is a most rewarding experience, for you know you have connected with and touched the Lord, and your faith deepens. God truly responds to any sincere and humble heart.

***You Are Beautiful

        Starting the day with Fr. Mark Goring again. If you are not happy with yourself, it's because you do no know how much God loves you yet. The big sin of evildoers is believing falsely that God does not love them!

***Most Precious Blood of Jesus***

        On July 11, I posted Padre Pio's powerful healing prayer. He mentions the most precious blood of Jesus. This blood is indeed most precious to me, for by shedding this blood, the Lord has saved me! It is most powerful, for when I let it cover me, I am cleansed, healed and made whole. It is most endearing to me because it turns me into a new creature pleasing to my Lord. It is beautiful because it is His blood. And I even get to drink it to become one with him when I receive him in the Holy Eucharist! It's more precious to me than my own blood. 

***Repent Please!

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 11, Jesus reproached Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum for not repenting after seeing the many mighty deeds he did in those three towns. He said that on the day of judgment, it would be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon and the land of Sodom than for them. For us, the mightiest deed has to be the Lord dying on the cross so that we might have eternal life. Let us repent so that we might be exalted to heaven and not go down to the nether world.

***How to Hear God's Voice

        Hear Fr. Mark Goring today. It all has to do with our heart, how much we are willing to submit ourselves to God. The Lord has so many graces, riches, and good things he wants to shower upon us, yet we do not even turn to him. How pitiful we are! Let the world go for just a moment, turn to him, look inward, and talk and pray to him from your very heart, and you'll hear his voice. God is before you like the bright shining sun, but you have your darkest eyewear on, living in fear. What Fr. Mark suggests we can easily accomplish, if you are willing. Those who have a stubborn, unwilling heart are the ones who needs humility the most. Only the humble will enter the kingdom of heaven!

*How We Should Live

        We can live our lives by (1) serving Christ and doing only good deeds, (2) serving ourselves only and not minding anything else, or (3) serving ourselves and doing evil to others. Even though this is a broad categorization, it makes it clear which way we should choose to live. I don't know of another better way.

***Call to Storm Heaven***

        Just read the news, not the fake news which glorifies evil, but the news from the many smaller independent sources, you'll see how evil has take over much of the world. It's time for the faithful to storm heaven in these dark days. The Lord listens to us, even if we are not in the majority. We need to pray hard and mean it. God is so much more powerful than the evil one. Start doing it right now, for every second counts!

**A Simple Law

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 13 on the parable of the sower, Jesus said, "To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away." Does this sound fair? In reality, this law works in our material world well. And it works spiritually too. It has to do with the mindset. If you want to become holy, God will help you and you grow holier and holier. One the other hand, if you don't believe in God and reject all his graces, you end up losing even your own soul. It's all simple and logical. It's the haves vs. the have-nots. The former understands everything, while the latter knows nothing.

***World without the Word***

       Today's alleluia at Mass: The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower. All who come to him will have life forever. Christ is constantly sowing the word of God. It falls on us, but we do not accept it. So we remain apart from him and yield nothing. And we'll end up worse than being nothing! This is the sad state of the world. Hardened hearts are to be most pitied.

**Suffering Leads to Glory

        Paul wrote in today's second reading from Romans 8: I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us. Through this saying, the Lord made me see that we as sinners must undergo suffering in order to be able to know God's glory. It's like we must go through fire to be purified. If there are no sufferings, we are already in heaven. Suffering makes heaven all the more sweet. Revelation 21.4: God will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order has passed away. I can't wait. 

*Responding to God's Words

        In Matthew 24.35, Jesus said: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." In that case, we must believe in and follow every word he has said and is saying to us now.

Different, but Unified as One

        God has made us all differently. He wants all of us to be holy, but holy in our own individual way. Let him make the best of us so that we might become like him. Again, we still remain ourselves, each a disciple of his, but now united as one in him. 

**Church Burning!

        Two church fires, one in Florida and one in California. The first Florida church burning is definitely premeditated. The second is still being investigated. Watch the first 15 minutes or so to learn about the Florida incident. You can witness a small miracle there. It's time to consecrate yourself to the Immaculate Heart of Mary if you have done so yet. Pray the Rosary daily.

***Pity the Evildoers!

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 10, Jesus said to his Apostles, "Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known." Pity the evildoers who are already getting themselves condemned when God has not even judged them yet!

Truth That Should be Obvious

        We cannot save ourselves until we have reconciled ourselves to God.  

***Padre Pio's Healing Prayer

        Beautiful, Powerful words. 

        Below is the full text of the prayer:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for loving me. I thank you for sending your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, to the world to save and to set me free. I trust in your power and grace that sustain and restore me. Loving Father, touch me now with your healing hands, for I believe that your will is for me to be well in mind, body, soul and spirit. Cover me with the most precious blood of your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. Cast anything that should not be in me. Root out any unhealthy and abnormal cells. Open any blocked arteries or veins and rebuild and replenish any damaged areas. Remove all inflammation and cleanse any infection by the power of Jesus’ precious blood. Let the fire of your healing love pass through my entire body to heal and make new any diseased areas so that my body will function the way you created it to function. Touch also my mind and my emotion, even the deepest recesses of my heart. Saturate my entire being with your presence, love, joy and peace and draw me ever closer to you every moment of my life. And Father, fill me with your Holy Spirit and empower me to do your works so that my life will bring glory and honour to your holy name. I ask this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

**Difference Awareness-of-God Makes

        If you are only aware of living this life, you will end up doing many wrong things, since you don't have truth guiding you. On the other hand, if you are fully aware that there is life after death, that heaven and hell are real, and that God can save you, you will live this life doing all the right things to stay on the path that will take you straight to God and heaven. 

***Unavoidable Moment of Obedience

         While on earth, we can choose to obey or disobey God. After we die and go before the Lord, we'll absolutely have no say but obey when he tells us where to go: heaven, purgatory, or hell. Be smart and learn to obey him on earth.  

**Letting Nothing Upset You

         Jesus tells us not to worry about tomorrow nor be afraid. This challenges us, but deep down we know he is right. Why should we let anything upset us? How foolish of us to want everything to happen the way we want! Who are we? This is rebellion against God, causing the world to be in such a sorry state. Overall, God is in total control. We are living through a tiny chunk of time and shall be gone. While here, he just wants us to trust in him, experience inner peace, and secure our own soul. Anything more is from the evil one.

***Be Holier than Others

        One should never think that he is holier than others, but he may desire to be the holiest person in the world, not out of pride, but out of his desire to humble himself before the Lord. We often see others' faults easily, but not our own serious sins. Our first order of business should be to perfect ourselves as much as we can and not ever compare ourselves with others. Some of the great saints saw themselves as the most wretched sinner before the Lord, and they were exalted by him.  

**Learning to Fight the Spiritual War

       In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 10, Jesus talked about coming persecutions. I am going to quote some of the things the Lord said to the Apostles that impressed me: "Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves." To be simple as doves is to remain pure and to be shrewd as serpents is to be smart enough not to fall into the traps of the Devil."

          "Men will hand you over to courts and scourge you in synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans. Do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." When you depend upon God to the utmost, he will always come through for you. The Lord can and is to be relied upon to the max, for he is infinite.

          "You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved." Never forget this. Be strong and tough in the Lord to endure whatever comes our way. Never give up and always hope in him. Our best awaits us.!

***Knowing Your Freedom in God!***

         In John 8.32, Jesus said, "The truth will set you free." How true that is! Once I know the Lord, I know that I am free. It's not just the feeling or something I heard—I just know it in my heart. When God lets you know something, you truly know what you know! This is a wonder of God those who do not know him cannot comprehend.

***Another Wake-Up Call*

        If you can realize for a split second that the Lord has a truly merciful soft heart filled with pure love for you, you will be so overwhelmed and filled with grief for yourself and want to prostrate yourself before him to ask for forgiveness and love him with all your heart, all you mind, and all your soul! But if you close your heart always, you sentence yourself to living a miserable life forever. This I can tell you.

*Law of Reciprocity

        In Matthew 16, Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." Of course, we are weak and cannot always perform as well as we'd like to, but it's our intention that matters. Back in Matthew 11, Jesus said, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light." So the Lord can lighten all our burdens. If we'll let him, we can be strong as we want! When we wish to serve him well, he will serve us well. 

**Difficult Question Made Easy

        The difficult question: "Should I believe in Christ?" Ask yourself this easy question first: "Do I want to go to heaven?" The two questions are different, yet the same.

*Why Catholics Are Weak

        Catholics become weak when they do not take their faith seriously. When you recite the creed or pray the Our Father, do you really mean every word you say? Above all, how much does the Holy Eucharist mean to you? After you receive this Most Blessed Sacrament at Mass and leave the church afterwards, do you still think about your Lord? As long as Christ remains superficial in your life and you do not commit yourself to love him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your soul, you remain weak.

**Fight for Christ or Perish!

        Let Keith Nester inspire you!

***Archbishop Viganò's Prayer for USA

        Here is the Prayer for the United States of America composed by His Excellency Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò. To download a pdf version of this prayer, go to taylormarshall.com/vigano.

Prayer for The United States of America  by His Excellency Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò 

Almighty and Eternal God, King of Kings and Lord of Lords: graciously turn your gaze to us who invoke You with confidence. 

Bless us, citizens of the United States of America; grant peace and prosperity to our Nation; illuminate those who govern us so that they may commit themselves to the common good, in respect for Your holy Law. 

Protect those who, defending the inviolable principles of the Natural Law and Your Commandments, must face the repeated assaults of the Enemy of the human race. 

Keep in the hearts of Your children courage for the truth, love for virtue and perseverance in the midst of trials. 

Make our families grow in the example that Our Lord has given us, together with His Most Holy Mother and Saint Joseph in the home of Nazareth; give to our fathers and mothers the gift of Strength, to educate wisely the children with which you have blessed them. 

Give courage to those who, in spiritual combat, fight the good fight as soldiers of Christ against the furious forces of the children of darkness. 

Keep each one of us, O Lord, in your Most Sacred Heart, and above all He whom Your Providence has placed at the head of our Nation. 

Bless the President of the United States of America, so that aware of his responsibility and his duties, he may be a knight of justice, a defender of the oppressed, a firm bulwark against Your enemies, and a proud supporter of the children of light. 

Place the United States of America and the whole world under the mantle of the Queen of Victories, our Unconquered Leader in battle, the Immaculate Conception. It is thanks to her, and through your Mercy, that the hymn of praise rises to you, O Lord, from the children whom you have redeemed in the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

**Consequences of Rejecting Christ

        Believe in Christ and you'll have eternal life. The flip side of this truth: "Reject him and you'll die in sin forever." In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 10, Jesus commissioned the Twelve to go to the towns and villages of Israel to proclaim the kingdom of heaven at hand. He told them, "Whoever will not receive you or listen to your words—go outside that house or town and shake the dust from your feet. Amen, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town." Rejecting the Lord matters as much as believing in him! 

**We Choose Either Death or Life

        Romans 6.23: The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. As sinners, we must choose if we want to die or live! Ignore it and everything will not be fine. In today's alleluia, Mark 1.15, Jesus proclaimed "The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and Believe in the gospel." There's our answer.

**Seek Refuge in God Now

        Read the Old Testament and you'll find that people turned away from God again and again, forgetting all he had done for them. It's the same today. This is why I strongly urge you to seek union with the Lord. You want to cement your relationship with him completely so that you'll never ever want to leave him. It's so important to do this when we are now being assaulted intensely by Satan and tested by God. Before the Second Coming, there'll be continuing trials and tribulations coming our way. Seek refuge in the Lord now to safeguard your soul. 

*Have I Gone to Extremes for Christ?

        To those who say that I've gone to extremes believing in Christ: It's not me wanting to tell you about Christ; it is the Lord drawing me to him, wanting me to spread the good (fantastic) news to you for your sake. I am just his messenger. If it hadn't come from the Lord, then I would be crazy. I don't expect you to understand, since you don't know him yet. That's OK, for it's not about whether I get my way or not. Besides, it's a great blessing to be misunderstood for Christ's sake. 

Foolish Earthlings

        We are just passing through, stopping briefly on earth. So who gives us the right to consider that anything here is ours? We can't take anything with us either when we leave. So it's extremely foolish to let the world shackle us and weigh us down. We'd only be holding onto things that also pass for a short time and depriving the soul of its freedom to ascend to God.

***Fatima Prophecy

        You must be warned about this.

Yourself Comes First

        If you want to save souls, don't forget to start with your own first.

**How to "Control" God

        Simple. You want God to be on your side, so you join him. You surrender yourself to him and he and you become one. Now, your wish is his wish which becomes his command.

**Settling Believing in God or Not

        Business investors look at the benefit/cost ratio. If the number looks good, they put in their money. If I receive an offer that would benefit me in some way, I look at the reward/effort ratio. Would it be worth my effort to get that reward? Now, consider if we should believe in God or not. Here the benefit or reward is infinite because you get to go to heaven! Infinity over any number is still infinity. No other ratio can possibly beat that. So, I should believe in God at any cost or effort. 

***Ultimate Humility

        When God chose to come down to earth to go through agony, scourging, being mocked at, and finally crucifixion, experiencing it all as one of us, this is ultimate humility! Besides showing how much he loves us, he is showing us that the most exalted one is most humble. So be like him to be exalted by him.

*Heaven Makes Us Forgetful

        Once you arrive at heaven, you'll be so joyful that all the pains you suffered on earth will be forgotten in an instant. A hundred million years of pain on earth is nothing compared to one second of joy in heaven. Our goal is to return to our creator so that we may fully enjoy his love again. Christ has shown us the way by his example. All we need to do is to follow in his footsteps.

***Boundless Mercy***

        What is so wonderful about Christ is that you can always begin anew with him! You may be a habitual sinner, but as long as you repent you sins, no matter how great they are, you become clean again. There is no limit to how many times he will forgive you. His mercy knows no bounds. That's why he wants us to forgive others too. In him, there is always hope! This is something to appreciate. Otherwise, we don't stand a chance of being saved. Of course, the door will be shut when we die. What we need to do is to be smart and get inside that door before it closes!

***A Relationship Made in Heaven***

        One greatest joy is to share everything about yourself with your Lord. Guess what, he in turn shares everything about himself with you. And you have a relationship that's completely open and honest, with you and the Lord becoming one and soulmates with each other! Can you imagine that now there are absolutely no barriers between you and the Lord anymore? Time to rejoice in the Lord forever!

***Trying to Understand Faith

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 9, a woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind Jesus and touched the tassel on his cloak. She said to herself, "If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured." Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, "Courage daughter! Your faith has saved you." And from that hour the woman was cured.

         I am still trying to understand faith more. If I cut my finger, it would be nice that I pray to the Lord for healing and it's healed instantly. In reality, it doesn't happen like that. First of all, I know that the finger will heal in a few days and the pain I feel is not bad at all, and I really don't want to bother the Lord for that. In other words, my strong desire to be healed is absent. Should I be suffering as much as the woman with hemorrhages, I probably would strongly desire that the Lord heal me and he very likely will do just that. So faith comes forth from our heart's desire in a natural way. I'd like to mention again the time my son could have died from a virus attack. While he was in critical condition in ICU, I walked up to him and said without hesitation "Be healed in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit," while making the sign of the cross on his forehead. Three days later, he recovered and was sent home. So I think the secret is to trust in the Lord with all your heart and pray when you are called to pray. You cannot force yourself nor the Lord.

***The Father We Need

        Without a father, none of us would be here. A father can guard us, guide us, support us, and inspire us. Unfortunately, not all of us have a good earthly father. As a result, their children go astray and become lost souls. But the great news is that we have a Father in heaven who is perfect and most loving, someone in whom you can totally abandon yourself. Obey him and you'll go to him to enjoy eternal bliss when you leave this world! This has to be the best news ever! So follow Christ to know the Father who knows and will always give you what's best for you. The riddle of life is no more!

***Hatred of God the Father

        You need to know this today!

*What Makes You Wise and Learned

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 11, Jesus blessed the Father for having revealed the mysteries of the kingdom to the littles ons, but not to the wise and the learned. Of course, the wise and the learned of the world are not not truly wise and learned if they do not know or understand the kingdom of God. It is believing in the Lord that makes you truly wise and learned, for you now know the truth.

**Letting the Spirit Give Us Life

        From today's reading 2 from Romans 8, "If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you." If we belong to Christ, his Spirit dwells in us and we become the temple of the Holy Spirit. Certainly, this Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is capable of making us holy and perfect. Remain in this Spirit to let him transform you anew. Then you can be whatever you want to be and be most pleasing to the Lord at the same time. This is exciting news for all of us!

**Father Rothrock Removed!

        It came as no surprise that Father Rothrock was removed by his bishop. Don't feel sorry for Fr. Rothrock whom the good Lord will surely reward, but feel sorry for Bishop Timothy Doherty who has cowardly caved in to the mob and betrayed all of us. He's the one who needs our prayer.

***Do More for Christ!

        What are we doing in this life? The worst way of living is trying to succeed in this secular world without regard to others. God wants all of us to go to heaven, so it'd be sensible and logical for us to do our best to fulfill this desire of his. If we do our best to obey him, then after our short life expires on this earth, we will be with him forever. It's that simple. Let every moment be your moment of glorifying him, not matter what you are going through, and you are free. The more you surrender yourself to him, the more you are liberated by him and the more he makes everything easy for you to accomplish for his sake. And your reward will be great in heaven! Start living right right now.

Praying for Evildoers

        The evildoers are afraid to get themselves exposed. They scheme, plot, do their evil deeds, and then run or hide. They are blind or dumb because they think that God does not exist or they can get away from him. So they are to be pitied. God exists and is always merciful—this is the truth we must pray that they will see. 

**God Raising His Good People

        On July 1, I posted Amazing Video. It seems that the Lord has chosen Donald Trump to lead America back to God. As evil has infiltrated and weakened the Church, I see the Lord raising good non-Catholic people to fight for him. I never knew Nick Vujicic until I heard him speaking at a prison in Texas online a few days ago. He was born with no arms and no legs, but his faith in Christ in astounding. You can easily listen to any of his numerous speeches on YouTube to be inspired. I am posting a short video below for you to see and hear what he sounds like.

*****Attention All Catholics*****

             All Catholics must watch his video. We are being tested by God to see if we are hot, lukewarm, or cold right now. Last month, Tim Gordon, a theology teacher at a Catholic high school in Bakersfield, CA, got fired from his job after he referred to Black Lives Matter as a terrorist organization on his Twitter account. The diocese did not back him. Recently, when Bishop Barron was asked what he would do to stop the toppling of valuable statues of saints and others, I didn't quite expect him to say that it's the laity's job. We need to place our trust completely in the Lord more than ever! All souls are at stake! (Today, July 7, I learned out that Bishop Barron did stand up to Black Lives Matter. You can see this photo on Twitter. God bless him for humbling himself.)

     
        To show your support for Fr. Theodore Rothrock, email Bishop Timothy Doherty of the Diocese of Lafayette, IN, at bishop@dol-in.org and email Fr. Rothrock directly at parish@setoncarmel.org.

**Irreconcilable Opposites

        God and Satan; good and evil; heaven and hell; being saved and being lost—we can have only one or the other. If you are somewhere in the middle and you don't care, you don't need do a thing. But if you want to be sure that you'll be happy forever later, you'd better start moving toward the good end fast.

***Only Way to Save Ourselves

        Today is Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle. In reading 1 from Ephesians 2, Paul addresses his brothers and sisters: "You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord, in him you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit." So Christ is the one who holds the Church together and makes each one of us a dwelling place of God. At this critical time when Evil has infiltrated much of the world, we must be united to the Lord more than ever to remain holy and strong in order to save mankind from being lost forever!

***Wake-Up Time

        Another message from Fr. Goring for us. All Catholics must wake up now!

*Garabandal, Unstoppable Waterfall

        On June 20, I posted the video Our Lady of Garabandal. Today the brand new film Garabandal, Unstoppable Waterfall premiered. It's 1-hour-24-minute long. If you are interested in the story of Garabandal, you may want to watch this one, for it's more complete.

**Padre Pio, God's Amazing Servant

       Padre Pio, now Saint Pio, was well known for his amazing life as a holy priest. He passed away in 1968, so many of you today probably have not even heard of him. Here is a short documentary on him. If you find it interesting, you can find many more videos and also books out there telling you about him. 

**Living the Christian Life

        How to live the Christian life? There can be many answers. To love God with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your soul, of course. To be a little more specific, I would say that we be completely truthful to God and to ourselves. Satan is all lies and deception, so we want to be the very opposite. Only truth will last forever. Therefore, never hide anything from God. Let him see everything in us. Be one with the Lord, the eternal truth, and you will be so strong that you'll never fall again!

***Encounter with God*

        You may have believed in Christ for some time, but not yet encountered him in a personal way. Encountering the Lord can be a breakthrough in your awareness of God, an illumination of the truth, or a sudden realization of God's existence. It is a special grace that draws you closer to him. It could happen when you are praying, reading a book, taking a walk, or experiencing suffering. As Catholics, if you truly believe in the real presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, you should know that you encounter God every time you receive this Most Blessed Sacrament. I advocate opening up yourself completely and receiving the Holy Eucharist as often as possible, then you'll become one with the Lord and don't ever need to think about encountering him anymore. 

**Doomed or Saved, Your Choice

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 8, even though Jesus healed the two demoniacs by driving the demons out of them, the townspeople became afraid and wanted Jesus to leave their district. This is happening today too. No matter how much good the Lord does, people just do not wish to see the truth and reject him outright. Of course, if you reject God, you are doomed. But the merciful Lord is waiting for that one nanosecond of awakening from you. If you'd just repent and return to him, you are saved! To be doomed is easy, but to be saved can be super easy.

**Know Our Role

        What are we living for? Are we here just to pass the time of this life? Every Christian serving the Lord needs to know his or her particular role. We are all different and are called to serve him in different ways. The saints were vastly different from each other. So were the Apostles. Jesus wants us to mind our own business and serve him as best as we can with the personality, disposition, ability, and talent he has given us. We aim solely to please the Lord. And this is made super easy when we surrender ourselves completely to him first!

***Amazing Video

        This is a most interesting video. John-Henry Westen of LifeSiteNews has always been trustworthy. One thing I learned from Thomas Raymond Zimmer, the prophet in the video, is that prayer can be powerful. Sometimes we feel that we can do little to help God. Wrong! We can always pray hard and from the heart, and God will accomplish great works for us!

***The Lord IS Our Shepherd

        Let's start off July on a positive note. Hear Fr. Goring's talk and say "amen" to it.