*****Transfiguration Joy

        As I was praying the 4th Luminous Mystery of the Holy Rosary, The Transfiguration of the Lord, this morning, a great joy burst forth from my interior and took complete possession of me. I felt that the Lord totally enveloped me. I didn't know whether I was crying or laughing or both, as I was overwhelmed by it. I recovered only after I finished praying the whole decade. This is so different from experiencing some joy in the world. You feel good for a while and it's forgotten. The joy from heaven comes from the Holy Spirit and makes a permanent impression on your soul. It's not something you can expect or suppress. It overcomes and frees you at the same time. You don't need to see the Lord to know that he is indeed real and personal.

**Jesus the Compelling One

        Go thru the four Gospels to see if you can find a single thing you think Jesus did wrong. You'll find none. On the other hand, if you are open-minded, you'll find so many impressive, amazing things he did showing that he is God and absolutely trustworthy. You must accept or reject him as long as you are still alive on earth. There's no one else as compelling as he, for no one else is God. Reject him and you risk losing your soul. 

**Sign God Dwells in You*

        Follow Jesus faithfully and one day you find yourself no longer worry or complain about anything. Now you know that the Lord dwells comfortably within you.  

***Everything Is Accelerating

         For millennia, the world had remained pretty much the same. Then Industrial Revolution started in the 18th century. Within the last century, the advance in science and technology has truly accelerated. As a result, materialism has pretty much displaced God, accelerating immorality and godlessness. You can be sure that the Second Coming of Christ is also fast approaching. Everything is fast coming to an end. I may not see it in my lifetime, but this is what I feel now.

***Being Nice ≠ Being Saved

        Being a nice person and being one obedient to God are two different things. You can be a very nice guy, even believe in God, but not follow him in every way, and your salvation remains uncertain. On the other hand, you may even be a bad sinner, but despite your failings, you do your best to obey God to become holier, you can be sure that you will receive salvation. In today's world, it's sad to see that there are many who claim that they believe in Christ, but since they think they have figured out how they should live their life, they follow their own ways and go against some of the Lord's teachings. This is a case of overruling God and the consequences can be most severe! Don't forget, with God it must be all or nothing. 

***Finding Peace in Christ

        True permanent inner peace can only come from the God of Christ when you have reconciled yourself completely to him.  There is not another way.  You can consider this to be a natural law, for that's how God has made us.

**We Are Not Unnoticed

         Do we just somehow happen to be born into this world, grow old and die, not knowing what life is all about? The fact is that there is plenty of evidence showing that God exists and that there is a spiritual world which we enter after death. Evidence further shows that those in that world actually see and know what we do on earth. Of course, logically, God should know everything about us. So the spiritual world exists right next to us, you could say, even though we don't see it. And we slip right into it after shedding our body. This awareness that our life is completely exposed should help us live a better life.

****Going to Christ Directly****

         In my lifetime, I have attended numerous spiritual conferences and heard many inspiring speakers. Some of them uplifted me for a few days, a week, maybe longer, but the effect is never long lasting. Reading about the saints helped me more. Now that I've always gone to Jesus directly, I wonder why people don't do that when they want to know him. I just received the announcement about a Saint Joseph Summit. It's an online conference you can register and attend. The list of over 50 illustrious presenters is impressive. I am sure they will inspire a lot of people. But I can't help wondering that if our ultimate goal is to know Jesus, why don't we go directly to him? Why do we need to go through many other fellow brothers and sisters to go through another saint to help us reach Jesus? Jesus helped all the saints directly, surely he will do the same to us. If you don't get all the help you need from Christ, could it be that you didn't go directly to him? Or perhaps you seek the Lord, but your heart is are not completely open to him yet? For if your heart is, you would want go to him directly. If not, you can go thru a thousand speakers and won't know him much better. 

***Evil of Human Trafficking

        I've posted about human trafficking before. To me, this is an evil that's as bad as abortion. Thank God that we have Tim Ballard and his organization Operation Underground Railroad devoted to fighting this horrible crime. When you pray to end abortion, please pray for ending human trafficking too.

*Nipping Sin in the Bud

        If you still have some conscience left, you would know it when you are about to sin. No matter how feeble that red light you "see" might be, obey it and you'll be happy that you did later on. Think of sinning as diving into an abyss with no safety net down there to catch you.

****True Sweetness!

        Worldly things that taste sweet merely satisfy our appetite, and we become enslaved. But the sweetness of God makes us want to satisfy him, to abandon ourselves totally to him, and thereby we are set free! 

***Endearing Ourselves to God

        We adore God, praise God, and thank God. What don't we tell him that we love him often too? I know that saying this from your heart will definitely please him and endear yourself to him as well. After all, God is our heavenly Father.

**How We Feel About the Cross

        For the Christian, the Cross is a glorious symbol. When I see it, I recall why Jesus came to us, how the Father loved us, how my life was completely transformed, and that I'll be going to my beloved Lord soon. It brings me gratitude and joy! I remember reading the story written by a Jewish convert. He said that the first time he entered a Catholic Church and saw the large crucifix showing the dead Jesus hang on the cross, he was absolute shocked. So the Cross can not only make you feel sad or happy, but also baffle or daze you. And that's how people feel about Jesus the Lord too.

**Living for One Who Knows Everything

        God must know everything that's going on. You can't run the universe if there's one thing you don't know. So I know that he knows everything about me, such as the number of hairs on my head, all my past and presents thoughts, and even what will happen to me in the future. Because of his omniscience, I know that whatever I do will affects him and ultimately myself. It's his awareness that makes me want to live for him alone.

**Aiming High for Heaven

        If you truly want to go to heaven, why not aim for getting straight there without going thru purgatory? Look at the criminal crucified next to Jesus. The Lord told him that he would be in paradise with him that same day. I believe that's because he had completely accepted his own suffering as his punishment and reconciled himself to the Lord. In general, I believe how much you long to see the Lord is also a factor. If you don't even wish to leave this world, don't expect that you'll enter heaven without any delay.

**Sinner's Precarious Position

        Jesus has already died for us to save us from sin, yet evildoers continue to "crucify" him again and again nonstop. Even committing a venial sin hurts him. Only a God with infinitive mercy can handle this. So if you reject him now, you'll get rejected by him in the end for sure. Know that unremoved sins will always come back like a boomerang to hurt you.

***Measuring Ourselves by the Lord's Prayer

        I see the Lord's Prayer as the prayer by which we can measure ourselves. "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name...": Do we treat God as our Father? Do we honor and revere his name? "...Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.": Do we long for his kingdom to come? Do we really do his will? "Give us this day our daily bread...": Do we acknowledge our daily dependence upon the Father? "...and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us...": Do we truly forgive everyone? "...and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." Do we truly run from temptation and abhor evil? If your answer to all the questions above is yes, you should be A-OK with the Lord.

**Growing Old Wisely

         As we age, first we retire from work, then gradually our physical condition weakens, and eventually we are no longer able to do most of things we used to do. Now would be an excellent time for us to focus upon the Lord, for we can contemplate and pray, exercising our hearts. This is the perfect time to reconcile ourselves fully to God or attain union with him, for abandoning ourselves to him should be a lot easier, unless you are a very stubborn person. Our whole life gives us the opportunity to reach this point. Old age is our chance and we'd better not let it pass.

***Are You Moronic or Wise?

        To go to hell, just follow your own will. To go to heaven, just follow God's will. A simple change make a huge difference! To be moronic or wise, it's our choice.

**Power of Prayer

        Prayer is powerful because it can move God to do things for us with his unlimited power. The Lord actually listens to us when we trust in him and ask for favors sincerely from our hearts.

***Operating on the Heart Level

        To live for God, we need to lift up or give our hearts to him to be filled with his love. And it's proper to consecrate our hearts to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Then we let this heart of love motivate all our prayers and what else we do. You are on your way to sainthood.

*Special Reminder

        I prayed the 5th Joyful Mystery of the Rosary, The Finding of Jesus in the Temple. Jesus was twelve when his parents found him in the temple in Jerusalem, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. When his parents saw him, his mother said to him, "Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety." And he said to them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?" Since God is also our Father, we need to be in his house too. So we'd better behave always.

*****Our Most Beautiful Relationship*****

        The more you trust in God, the more God is free to reveal himself to you and the more you know that he is real. God is absolutely real all right, but you must be open to him first. Open up all the way and he and you ultimately become soulmates with your soul completely secure in his hands. This is the most beautiful relationship you can have in heaven or on earth!

**Don't Forget the Evildoers*

        It is easy for us to pray for those whom we love and not to pray for our enemies or the evildoers. Yet Jesus wants us to love our enemies and do good to them. In Luke 6:32, the Lord said, "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them." Then in Mark 2:17, Jesus said to the Pharisees, "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners." So the evildoers are the the Lord's great concern. At Fatima, the Holy Mother asked us to add this prayer after reciting each decade of the Holy Rosary: O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell and lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy. Shall we then always pray for those who have the greatest need for conversion? 

***Incredible Humility and Love***

        Today's Communion experience. It was incredible and overwhelming that the creator of heaven and earth and the king and lord of the whole universe would stoop so low as to let me receive and consume his Body and Blood to become one with him! My only proper and logical response had to be total submission to him. And I knew I wouldn't be the same person again, for he makes all of us delightful and pleasing to him when we let him.

****Choosing Our Eternal Destination

        In today's Gospel reading from Mark 9, Jesus said, "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where 'their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'" We see how imperative it is that we do not sin or cause others to sin. Choose sin and you end up in Gehenna or choose God and you will enter heaven—all so clearly laid out before us. The Lord is definitive and we must pay attention to all that he has said. 

***Tribute to the Most Holy Spirit

        I did at one time ask the Lord how I would know that the Holy Spirit dwelled in me. And he did answer me clearly by letting me experience his presence in many ways. This story was told earlier on this blog. Now I can say that the Holy Spirit is the most gentle Lord who guides me in all things, teaches me his ways, and illuminates my mind. He molds and shapes my spirituality, sharpens my conscience, and heals and purifies my soul. It is he who keeps me spiritually vibrant and makes me long for the Holy Trinity. He is my God.

***We Are Most Fortunate

         In today's Gospel reading from Luke 9, Jesus said to his disciples, “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.” They did not understand this saying, but they were afraid to ask him about it. It is understandable that after witnessing his awesome power at work in so many instances, they were hesitant about asking him questions. We are in a most fortunate situation, for we already know that Jesus is God the Son, that he was handed over to men, got crucified, and rose from the dead, and that he became our Savior. So we are free to ask him any questions and even receive his body and blood in the Eucharist to become one with him! This is something we can greatly rejoice about.

***Awaken, World!

        The world is in a sad state. It does not see the love of God nor the existence of evil. Not realizing that we are sinners and need salvation is to remain lost. To follow ourselves is to follow the Devil, I want to be blunt and truthful about it. There are signs and messages all around urging us to convert now, it's sad that many Catholics don't even pay them any attention. To feel the urgency doesn't mean that you do not trust in God anymore. On the contrary, you now put yourself completely at the Lord's disposal to do all you can to assist him. If we all be attentive and obey God, God wins the spiritual war, period. God now needs us more than ever, or, rather, we now need him more than ever!
        Listen to the Holy Mother's counsel in the following video.

***Be Ready for the Unavoidable

        We'll face Christ when he comes next or after we die, whichever comes first. So facing him is unavoidable. Since we also do not know when either of these two events will happen, the time to be ready and prepared for facing the Lord is right now. (And I know I am correct in saying this.)

**Examination of Conscience*

        When I first became a Catholic many decades ago, I learned about the practice of examining your conscience at the end of each day to see what sins you have committed and how you can avoid committing them again. This practice seems to have been forgotten altogether. Examining our conscience on our own is necessary for making spiritual progress. One great advantage for one who has attained union with God is that his conscience remains so sharp at all times that he senses any tendency to sin, and every sin now repels him. This eliminates the need to examine the conscience regularly. The video I am posting below again talks about the coming illumination of conscience, but it also talks about the need to examine our conscience to prepare ourselves for the event.

***Christ, Unique and Compelling***

        This is to go over again what I think is important to know. Christ is the only one in whom we must believe totally or not at all, for we must accept him either as God or not God at all. No one else can challenge us like that, for no one else is God. 

***Greatest Joy in Heaven

        Although heaven is the most beautiful and happiest place in existence, I feel that in heaven I would derive my greatest joy from being with God, as he is love and the source of all beauty and our happiness. Of course, I would enjoy the company of all the saints and angels too, especially the Holy Mother whom I love. 

***Formula for Happiness

           Unhappiness is caused by the ego when our desires are not fulfilled. Since it's impossible to not have any desires, why don't we can make God's desires ours to make both God and us happy? This is the wise, proper solution.

***Satan's Big Trick

        Satan is good at tempting you with something to make you believe that it came from God. You give in and you lose all your peace, but the temptation can be so enticing that you hope that it indeed did come from God. You are now totally confused. This struggle can be so painful that you feel like you are going through hell. Of course, God does allow such a thing to happen to you to test you. If you fall for it, he wants you to taste the pain of going against him. If you win the battle, you come thru stronger than ever. All tests coming from the Lord are for our good and we'll pass them if we truly love him. By the way, the sign of losing our peace is always our best clear warning. Worth emphasizing, going against God will cause us the worst of all pains. I shudder at the thought that those in hell suffer this pain forever!

*God-Given Talents

        The Lord God gave each of us unique talents. As I have an eye for photography, I find it very easy to compose a shot to make it look right. I thought that was nothing until I met photographers who struggled to get the composition right. But they are probably better than I in other things, I am sure. Anyway, I realized that whatever talents we have all came from God. I entered the world and the talents were there; they certainly didn't originate from me. If I had acquired them from some source, they still wouldn't have be mine. Since the Lord created all of us, he created all our talents too. Know this in order not to inflate your ego.

**Depiction of a Sad Life

         In my last post, I talked about the purpose in life. Most people lack a clear permanent purpose. They try to have a good time, and when they are having one, they try to forget all their troubles. And before you know, life ends. This is a rather sad picture. Without God, all happinesses pass. Deep, permanent joy is found in the God of Christ only.

*My Purpose in Life

        There has to be a purpose in life for us to live meaningfully. The best purpose I have found personally is to live for Christ only, then everything becomes meaningful and the ending of this life will begin the best part of my existence. There are no better purposes, for Christ is already the truth.

*Conversion As Urgent as Ever

         As the world becomes increasingly chaotic and disordered, we feel greater urgency for the world to convert. We've already been warned about the impending illumination of conscience. Actually, the urgency for us to convert has always been around, for we must be ready and prepared, not knowing when the Lord will come again. Besides, we are all going to die anyway. Not knowing when that day will be alone makes our conversion urgent. That the times are more evil than ever now has only made us extra aware of that urgency.

*Timesaving Tip

        You may not realize that when you look for happiness, you are basically looking for God. For true happiness can only be found in God. Now that I have tipped you off, I should save you a lot of time. 

***Onwards to God!

         We have all suffered setbacks, experienced disappointments and frustrations, had dreams broken or never realized, did things that were foolish or wrong.... But once you are made anew by Christ, you don't ever look back again, for the new joy makes you forget all your past. There's the great beauty of the Lord to behold and nothing of the past to regret anymore. Onwards we march toward heaven!

**How to Influence God

        Pray as if your prayer would always tip the scales in God's favor in whatever you pray for, then you'll be able to influence the Lord greatly.

***Transformative Love

         Only the love of the God of Christ has the power to transform our inner being, for only this love can cleanse and heal our soul! Personally, knowing this love has made it impossible for me to ever consider abortion and possible for me to love all my enemies. This is the love that can perfect us.

**Jesus, Admirable and Inspiring

        I prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary today. Jesus went through his agony, was scourged, crowned with thorns, and finally nailed to a cross. I found the 4th mystery, The Carrying of the Cross, to be extra offensive; it added insult to injury. Yet the Lord took it in stride, in perfect obedience to the Father. This is truly admirable and inspiring. It shows that he is indeed the Christ. 

*****God Needs Our Permission!

        If we abandon only 10% of ourselves to God, he'll have only 10% of his freedom to help us. If we go 50%, he'll have a lot more freedom and you will know it because you'll find it a lot easier to refrain from sinning and grow spiritually. Imaginer what'll happen when you go all the way! When the Lord is allowed to take over completely, he is now 100% free to help you, and you start to grow spiritually by leaps and bounds effortlessly. Finally, your spirit gets to soar and glide in total freedom! Now you know how to receive all of what the Lord wants to give you.

****God's Constant Presence

        We live as if God is absent or not aware of what we are doing. The fact is that even if we don't see him or sense his presence, he is right present and knows each one of us to the most minute detail, more than we know ourselves. For example, we might have forgotten some of the sins we have committed, but not the Lord. I hope that once we realize his is all-knowing and always present, we will refrain from sinning so freely.

*Budapest Eucharistic Procession

        Another clip from EWTN showing the recent Eucharistic procession held in Budapest. It seems that Hungary is stilled a blessed country.   

*A Humble Request*

         If reading this blog does mean something to you, then I hope that you'll let as many people know about it as possible. This is not to make me popular; it's to glorify God. If each of you can glorify God a million times more than I can, I would be overjoyed being the least effective servant. I know that this blog is not for everyone. If it were, it would have gone viral a long time ago. If you have considered or are considering attaining union with God, then he has indeed called you. The first step is always the hardest one to make, then God makes every next step easier and easier. Once you take off, your spirit will soar with his effortlessly in total freedom. Life is short, but never too short for achieving union with God. Besides, your desire to be one with him is exactly what he loves to hear from you and shall unquestionably fulfill! (Do God's will always and your life will be a great success.)

**Prayer Demands Submission to God*

        When we pray the Our Father, the Rosary, or the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, every time we say "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven," "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death," and "For the sake of his sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world," we should surrender ourselves to God. Otherwise, we just say the words in vain.

**Solving the Puzzle of Life

        If life were a jigsaw puzzle, then Jesus is that last missing piece we need to solve the puzzle. Without him, life remains incomplete. 

**Test of Our Pride

        Psalms 145:8, The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in mercy. Indeed, God is  infinitely patient. If he weren't, we would have been wiped out by him a long time ago. Being human with pride and ego, we had always expected that our Savior would be someone like a king or military leader on our side and come and wipe out all our enemies so we would become powerful in this world. We never would have imagined that God could turn out to be humble and meek and be purely love to save all of us. This is one reason we find it hard to accept and believe in him. The test is whether we would realize our sinfulness, swallow our pride, and admit that we indeed need salvation from him.

****Something You Must Know*

        Never forget that we are mortal; only God is everlasting. But we can become everlasting like God if we love him as our Father. This is an irrefutable fact and you don't want to bet your soul against it!

**Our Best Preparation Now

        A true Christian lets the love of Christ rule over him. It's this love that motivates him to think, speak, and act like the Lord. He remains in union with him thru the Holy Eucharist. This is our best possible preparation on earth before meeting the Lord in person.

**Sure Way of Entering Heaven

         I live in California and Interstate 80 is the major highway connecting San Francisco and New York City. To go to NYC, I only need to get on I-80 about 5 miles from here and head east. When I-80 ends, I'll be just 4 miles from the city. To go to heaven, I know I only need to believe in and follow Jesus and one day soon, I'll be there with him. I don't even need a car. Unliking driving, the trip will be absolutely safe and direct. And heaven is a lot cleaner and more fun than NYC.

***Greatest Unseen Miracle

        Today's Communion experience. When the bread and wine were consecrated and became the body and blood of the Lord, it was the greatest invisible miracle. Believing in that just makes your faith extra special.

**Enjoying Freedom in the Lord

        In today's Gospel reading from Mark 9, Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all." So serve the Lord single-heartedly and think not about yourself at all. 

**Fear of Facing Reality*

        Good and evil are real. So is spiritual warfare. God wants you to follow him, while Satan wants you to follow yourself. This is not difficult to see. If you don't want to think about it, that's because you've chosen to follow yourself and want to remain so.

****Church Doesn't See End Times

         Many of us sense that we are near or in end times. There is a plethora of signs and prophetic messages coming to us from heaven. The urgent call to prayer and conversion you just don't hear coming from the official Church with the exception of Archbishop Vigano and a few other good bishops I know of in this country. The handful of brave priests who spoke up all got cancelled by their bishops. At most parish churches, social events are held as usual as if nothing is going wrong. It's been like this ever since things started going bad decades ago. It is very sad to see evil getting the upper hand all around the globe. We reap what we sow, and if we do not change, what we are going to reap won't be nice. Watch Fr. Mark Goring's video here about Catholicism being watered down. 

**Feeling of Freedom

         Trust in God completely with total absence of your own ego and you'll feel the freedom in the Lord.

***Prayer Power

           In Matthew 17:20, Jesus said to the disciples, "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Again, in Luke 17:6, he said to the apostles, "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you." Of course, what's commanded to take place here is all done through God. It just shows the great power we have in making God do things for us. Have faith and trust in God is what we need to know and practice. 

***Our Perfect Model

        Reading about Jesus in the Gospels, you see that he was perfectly obedient to the Father, did everything selflessly with love, practiced everything he preached, and always spoke the truth forthrightly. Forget that he is also God, as a human being alone he is worthy of our respect and admiration, one for us to imitate and learn from. Add the fact he is our Savior and he becomes indispensable for me to know and embrace.

***Wonderful Things Happen . . .***

when you and God are one, on the same wave length, in perfect harmony. (This is just a periodic reminder.) 

*God's Good Feeling

         When you want to be good or do something good, you feel good. This is God's doing. Imagine how good you will feel when you become one with him.

**New Awakening Needed

         Here's what I read from the 1st reading from 1 Timothy 6. "If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that. Those who want to be rich are falling into temptation and into a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains." We should be content if we have enough food and clothing. Then I see that the world has fallen into the trap of wanting to be rich and is pretty much out of control. Everybody is in the game; becoming rich is now the the accepted goal and way of life. Man has strayed further away from God.
       The reading continues on. "But you, man of God, avoid all this. Instead, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith." To make the change, submitting ourselves to God is the only answer. Since chances don't look too good, I believe God will do something big to wake us up. 

*****Disabling Satan

        Because we have inherited original sin, we all tend to sin. Satan knows that and he exploits that in his fight against God. So if we have God take away our urge to sin, then Satan loses all his power over us. Seeking to attain union with God will help us accomplish just that. Be one with God and he becomes your refuge and shield against all evil.

**How to Be Real Heroes

        We enjoy watching films and videos showing Superman or some hero or a bunch of kids with super powers saving the world from being destroyed. Of course, they are all fictitious characters. But we can be real heroes in saving our real world. We simply become saints and do God's will only. Then God will save the world and all of us from eternal damnation. Now we are heroes in God's eyes. This will sound fictitious only to unbelievers. For those who have faith, it's a no-brainer.

***Thanking Mary*****

        If you had read my post "A Jewish Convert Story" of Nov. 8, 2018, you would have learned from that amazing story that Mary's favorite prayer is the one she asked St. Catherine Labouré to inscribe on the Miraculous Medal she ordered her to strike, which reads "O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse for thee." So many of us ask her unceasingly to pray us. Today I realize that she loves us so much that she prays for her children anyway. So it's time to thank her and to tell her that we love her. What a joy to have such a beautiful, caring mother! God is love, and Mary is our Mother filled with that love.        

***Our Ultimate Call from God*****

        To be like God, we need to know his ways and his thoughts, and then follow his will thoroughly and throughout. And the best way to achieve that is to attain union with God through the Holy Eucharist. This is the Lord's ultimate call for every one of us and is completely within our reach because it is what he wants for us. Say yes to God and it'll done for you! 

*****Our Concerns Now

        Our fundamental concern is the safety of our soul. With the coming of the illumination of conscience or our own death, our immediate concern should be our readiness for either of these events. The time to be ready to stand before the Lord is right now.

***God Is Hope*****

        As I prayed the sorrowful mysteries of the Holy Rosary this morning, the Lord gave me these thoughts. (1) When Christ suffered agony in the garden, only the Father alone was there to console him. Think of it, the only one who can truly console us in any agony is also our heavenly Father. (2) Christ knew all along that he's going to suffer and be killed for our sake, for he is God. Thinking about the Passion, how can you possibly not love him, I ask you? (3) After the Crucifixion, all the disciples thought that they were finished. Their Messiah was dead, what could they possibly do? Then we had the Resurrection and saw that the Crucifixion was a total triumph of the Lord. Yes, God is our hope!

**Division, the Natural Outcome

        In Matthew 26 or Luke 19, Jesus taught that "to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away." Does this sound unfair to you? I see this to be fair if you understand how one become someone who has or who has not. The one who has is the one who works hard and bear fruit, while the one who has not is the one who is lazy and does not bear fruit. Of course, one will grow rich and the other one lose everything. These are natural outcomes. This is how at the Second Coming, you'll chosen either as a sheep or as a goat. This is the division Jesus talked about.

****Praying freely to God

         There are many good prayers, the Lord's Prayer, the Holy Rosary, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, etc. But when you pray something long, the mind tends to wander. So I sometimes just pray the holy name "Jesus" or simply dwell upon the Lord silently. Such simple prayers makes it easy to focus upon the Lord and are just as efficacious as any other good prayer. I encourage you to let the Holy Spirit guide you in inspiring you to pray however he wishes you to pray to the Lord. The important thing is to feel free with the Lord as in union with him. After all, the Lord God is your home, your refuge, and your most beloved. 

***Satan Dumber than a Dog

        My neighbor's two small dogs barked a lot whenever they saw me walk by the low wired fence on the property line. Then I hung up a DogSilencer which emits an ultrasonic tone when activated by the barking. This sound which only dogs can hear apparently is unpleasant to them. In a short time they stopped barking. Here I see that dogs can learn to accept defeat, but Satan keeps on fighting God even though he knows he can never beat God in the end. In this way, Satan is not even as smart as a dog. This also tells you a lot about those who follow Satan.

**Another Christian Joy

         If you know Christ, know that you are in touch with reality and rejoice! 

***What the Lord Will Surely Do***

         Thoughts on the Lords's Prayer. The Lord personally taught us this prayer which I consider to be the most perfect prayer. He wants us to ask him (1) to give us our daily bread, (2) to forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, (3) to lead us not into temptation, and (4) to deliver us from all evil. Unquestionably he shall do all these things to us if we ask for them.

****Ideal Time to Die

        I was watching a documentary on the life of the composer Franz Schubert. He died when he was only 31. I know Chopin died at 39 and Gershwin at 38. They were all very talented or geniuses. The question "When is the ideal time to die?" came to me. The answer that came to me was "After you know the Lord thoroughly."

***Most Beautiful Exchange***

        Communion experience. The Holy Lord was present and I was about to receive him in person. He's the one of whom I desired all. As he entered me giving all of himself to me, I gave all of myself to him. Now we became one.  

**Secret of Saving Ourselves

      In last Sunday's Gospel reading from Mark 8, Jesus said to his disciples, "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it." Here we're given the secret of saving ourselves! Live for the Lord and we'll live forever, Live for ourselves and we'll be doomed. It's somewhat surprising, but expected. Now you take it or leave it.

***Eucharistic Mega-Procession

         Today is September 15. In catching up, I am supposed to start blogging what came to me on September 12. Then I just saw this video which cheered me up after my last posting. So I am going to jump ahead and post it now. This just happened in Hungary. It's good news indeed. :)

***Pray for Mexico!

        It's sad to hear that Mexico has legalized abortion. Evil is real! The only way for us to realize it is to know God. Not knowing God is openly inviting the Devil to enter your lives. The proabortionists have caused the Lord great sorrow, foolishly placing themselves on the edge of a precipice over hell. 

**God's Plan for You

        For everyone of us, God has a unique plan. Don't expect that this plan will make you feel somewhat important in this world or be marked with any remarkable events, for his plan is designed to make you holy and pleasing to him so that you will have eternal life. You may remain unknown in the world, but you will be "famous" to him. 

***Another Personal Warning

        Many sense that we are in end times as evil seems to have dominated the world. It is urgent that we repent and convert before it's too late. Since we don't know when the next warning or chastisement will come nor how much time we have left in this life, we should truly repent and convert now in any case. The longer you put off considering it, the higher the risk of losing your life forever.

**Who Need Christ the Most?

        The more you don't think you need Christ, the more you need him. The more you don't want to know him, the more you need to know him. Christ is the one we must go through to get to the Father. He is unavoidable, for without him, we wouldn't even exist. He is compelling and absolutely indispensable to us. It is by him that we'll be finally judged. In John 8:12, Jesus said to the people, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." This is so correct, for light is precisely what those who walk in darkness need the most.

***Most Amazing Feeling***

        I walked up to and looked out of the sliding door in the family room this morning and saw the blue skies above and all the tall trees and various plants down below. I realized that the Almighty Father created all that and the whole universe with all its galaxies; and through receiving him in the Holy Eucharist, he now dwells right within me. What an amazing, incredible, and wonderful feeling!

**God's Consolation More than Sufficient

        In this life, tragic things happen and it seems that when it happens, our only resort is to seek consolation from God. Is this good enough for us? I'd say yes, for God alone is sufficient. Whatever happens is only temporary for a reason; it's never that God is abandoning you now. Stick with him and your eternal happiness is assured. There are those who seem to have everything and success in everything they do in the eyes of the world, but are they happier? I doubt it. True happiness is interior and can only come from God. Trust in him unto death and your reward will be great in heaven. We live for God and eternity, not for the world. Those who live only for the world will perish with the world, but those who remain in the Lord will be with him one day soon. A Christian always hopes in the Lord and never pities himself, for he knows that he is loved by God the Father.

***Greatest Satisfaction

         You can receive all the honors and accolades the world can possibly bestow upon you, but the satisfaction can not possibly compare with knowing that God is pleased with you when you do one small act of love for his sake. Live for God in secret and you'll have satisfaction after satisfaction throughout your whole life!

***What You Must Not Die to Find Out***

         It is if Jesus is truly your Savior or not. Believe in him now is being super smart. 

***God's Transforming Love

        All sinners are self-centered, but the amazing love of the God of Christ can make us become selfless. Normally, when we find a treasure, we would want to keep it to ourselves. But once we discover that Christ is our greatest treasure, you become so joyful that you would want everyone to know about and have this treasure. In fact, you wouldn't mind a bit if everyone else loves the Lord a lot more than you do. Instead of feeling jealous, you feel great joy because now everyone loves your Lord.  

**Preparing for the Second Coming

         If Jesus is coming again, then we need to prepare for that day. Even if it does not happen in your lifetime, you still need to get ready for meeting him. Prepare for his Second Coming should take care of things. The following video shows encouraging words from our Holy Mother on this subject. 

**Making Heaven Sweeter

        After attending school for many weeks, the vacation that comes afterward is most welcome. After a torrential rain, the sunny day that follows appears especially beautiful. So after undergoing sufferings for the sake of the Lord, you can be sure that heaven will taste extra sweet for those who are on their way there.

**The Lord in Control

        It was a hot evening and suddenly, thunder roared and lightning flashed. Rain came later in the middle of the night. The next morning everything was back to normal. I know that God is in full control of nature and everything else. Also I know that our soul is under his full protection. 

**Caution, Would-Be Sinners

        Before you commit any sin, consider how it would affect others, you own soul, and above all, offend the Lord God. Sinning is never something to rush into. In fact, it's something you should run away from ASAP. Do you realize why our world is in such disorder and chaos? We are the cause, being the only creatures in this universe rebelling against God!

**Prophecies of Maria Esperanza

        I had personally visited Betania, Venezuela, where Maria Esperanza was from in 1993, and two years later was on the same pilgrimage to the Holy Land as she and her whole family. I met her and she probably read my soul and said something to me I exactly needed to hear at that time. So this video interests me and is worth listening too. 

***Warning Coming

        A review of the coming Illumination of Conscience. Awesome or Awful, that would depend upon whether we are ready or not.

*****Living in and for the Lord

        We should live for the Lord and this means we live for ourselves in the Lord and not the world. The ideal Christian living is to remain hidden in the Lord and unknown to the world. When the Lord and we become one, the Lord receives the greatest glory and we the greatest satisfaction. 

**Untrendy Christians

        Most people follow trends. They want to be popular and not look like oddballs. On the contrary, true Christians want to remain humble and do not care about what others think. They follow only Christ Jesus and care only about what he thinks of them. They are joyful, proud "oddballs" beautiful to the Lord.

*How Sinners Behave

        I've had the chance to tell others about Jesus. A few days ago, I met one person I'd witnessed to and she still seemed uninterested about the Lord. I could understand that. For she is still young, has a decent job, and is free to do what she enjoys doing. Even though she might realize that she is a sinner, the pressing need to think that she would need salvation is just not there. To me, those who do not want to face God behave just like those kids who have misbehaved and try to avoid facing their father when they can. Of course, the day will come for all of us to face the heavenly Father.     

***The Right Way to Know God***

         The good people who follow Christ want to know him better, but they go about it not in the most effective manner. They attend conferences featuring eloquent and knowledgeable speakers to encourage them to love God, they celebrate certain feast days of the Church, dedicate statutes of saints, hold Bible studies, read spiritual articles, etc. Let's realize that our goal is to know the Lord, so why don't we go directly to him to let him know us? You see, when we open ourselves up to him, we get to know him! If you really don't know the Lord well yet, doing all the other things shows that you don't really want to know him. It's like you want to go somewhere and you spend all your time getting your cart ready, but not going about looking for a horse to pull the cart. To really want to know the Lord, you must be willing to surrender yourself completely to him, no holding back. This is the basic challenge we all face.

***What Matters More*

         It's a happy day, for I finally got my laptop back and can start blogging again. The computer now works flawlessly. For months I had been getting double letters when I typed some of the single letters. Now I know that was caused by the swollen battery pushing on the keyboard from underneath. I shall date each posting as of the day I received the thoughts, so it may take me three days or longer to catch up totally.
        (1) How much you love God matters more than how you love God. (2) How willingly you accept suffering for God's sake matters more than how you suffer. (3) How much your heart is involved in praying to God matters more than how much you pray.

**Secure Your Soul First

        In Matthew 10:28, Jesus said to his disciples, "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." If you have already secured you soul with Christ, then there is absolutely nothing for you to fear anymore. [I'll have to take my laptop into a shop to get its swollen battery replaced. I do not know yet how much time this repair will take. If you don't see me blogging, you'll know why.]

*Wise Move as You Age

        Do you get busier when you get older? Some old folks feel that there isn't much they can do and simply wait for death. This is rather sad. Others see that their time is limited and hustle to do all the things they enjoy doing. This is better but not necessarily profitable, depending upon their motivation. The wisest choice as you age is to serve God as best as you can in every way in the remaining time you still have left. This last effort may very well put you comfortably across the finish line to heaven.

**Death Is No End of Life

        If I die right now, how would I feel? This thought came to me this morning. I would feel all right because I see life continuing on. One difference would be the change of environment. When I leave this world, I simply let everything in it go. As for those for whom I am praying, I'll just continue praying for them from heaven if necessary. Of course, the environment up there will now be divine! So dying does affect serving the Lord; only your environment becomes infinitely better. Now you are in union with the Lord God more than ever. 

**Persevering to the End

        Encouraging, consoling words from the Holy Mother. She said, "Those who remain faithful to the end will receive great reward." Let's remember that!

*****Awesome Power of God's Will

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 6, on a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him. But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, “Come up and stand before us.” And he rose and stood there. Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” Looking around at them all, he then said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so and his hand was restored. It's awesome to see that when we let the Lord do what he wills, all that's good for us is done.

***Only Way to Live

        Our first duty is to love God. And it's perfectly all right to let your desire to get to heaven motivate you to love him, for it is exactly his desire for you too. He treasures you, so you should treasure yourself. This is how you can live a fruitful, rewarding life. Living without love for God is no living at all.

*Elementary Formula for Peace

        We want to change the world to make it better, right? But when the world is filled with self-centered sinners, there's no chance it can happen. Let's get right down to the fact that only God can make the world better, for he can change us. So the only way improve the world is for each of us to trust in and follow God, the God of Christ, to let him change us first. This is so clear and simple. Obey Good and we'll have peace and salvation. Ignore him and we'll have continuing chaos and damnation of many. We must work everything thru our God for his glory and our good.

*"Fear" of God

         When a righteous person "fears" God, he loses all his fears. When an evil person does not "fear" God, he'll end up in fear of God for all eternity.

***Holiness Starts with Us

        The supplications to God we make in public always seem to be prayers for the Pope and the bishop, our government officials, and others in needs, rarely for ourselves. Perhaps we pray for ourselves in private only? I hope so. Praying for others is always easier than praying for ourselves, as many of us have not completely discarded our pride yet. The truth is we need prayer as much as others. Indeed we should humbly pray for our perfection first so we can become more effective in praying for others. We say charity begins at home; we could also say holiness starts with oneself. We won't get far if we pray for others to become holy, while we remain poor examples.

***How We Should See Sinners

         It's in current news that the defrocked Cardinal McCarrick has finally been brought to court to face sexual assault charges. So far, he has pleaded not guilty. To me, if one is guilty, it would be do much better for him to repent and suffer public humiliation than not to repent and suffer eternal punishment later. Therefore, I urge you all to pray for the salvation of this former cardinal.
         How we see other sinners genuinely shows how much we know Jesus. In general, we don't like evildoers and often wish literally that they go to hell. But this is pure human thinking, no at all in line with what the Lord wishes. God loves the evildoers as much as the righteous ones. In fact, it's specifically for their salvation that he came to us from heaven. If any one of them goes to hell, Satan wins. Which side are you really on?  Next time you wish someone to go to hell, recall how Jesus rebuked Peter in Matthew 16:23, “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

***Easiest Person to Get Along With***

         On earth we all have family members and/or friends, and not everyone we know we can get along with easily. Even with our most loved ones or best friends, we can misunderstand each other at times. Personally, I've found Jesus to be the easiest person to get along with. How so? First of all, he understands you perfectly, knowing all your weaknesses and imperfections. And he's most forgiving; once you admit you're wrong, he forgives you totally. Of course, he never holds grudges against you. And he's most patient, for he always listens to you. If you fall short of loving him, he helps you there too. You can trust in him completely, as he is completely reliable. He's indeed the easiest person to get along with because he doesn't mind your mistakes, imperfections, failures, as long as you trust in him. Besides, he can make you so perfect as to get along with him swimmingly. Now he and you become soulmates. Once you have the Lord as your most beloved lord and friend, you have all the people you need to know in life.

**Reacting to Any Situation

         I have an earwax buildup in my right ear, affecting its hearing. So I started putting a few drops of mineral oil in it a couple of days ago to soften the wax. This had worked in the past for me. But this morning as I tried to dab my ear to get the excess oil out with a paper tissue, I found blood stains on the tissue. Two possible extreme scenarios of how one can react in such a situation. First scenario, you become alarmed, panic, and rush to see your doctor, thinking that you may have a serious infection and lose your hearing in that ear. Second scenario, you remain calm, knowing that panic or worry will not help you a bit. You don't need negative thoughts to cloud your thinking. Mostly likely, there's nothing to be alarmed about. You should wait and not jump into any conclusion.
          I am sure that you would agree with me objectively that the second reaction is the right one. But we do know that reacting the first way comes more naturally to us and reacting the second way is difficult or nigh impossible for many of us. This is where God comes in. By trusting in him, we should be able to remain in peace under any circumstances. This is not just a theory, but a fact. Here's the Lord ready to take you to heaven—how can he possibly not take care of you on earth? (As for my ear bleed, I think I've figured out the cause. I just cut my fingernails. Earlier they were a bit long and I did try to get some of the wax out of the right ear with my index finger. Very possibly, the nail had scratched the outer ear and caused some bleeding. In that case, I should be all well in a few days.)

*****Most Serious Reality***

        Life is our big test. At some time early in our life, perhaps around the time we started elementary school, we became aware of the existence of good and evil. Since man disobeyed God at the beginning, we all inherited the original sin. God can just pardon us all, but that would be going against his principle. So in this life, we must choose to repent and return to God or not to repent and remain in sin. This is what the test is all about, and it's absolutely critical, for the consequences of our choice will affect our eternity.

*How to Feel Good

        Just serve the Lord with your whole heart. 

*To Be Taken Care of by God . . .

we only need to obey him (keep his word).        

**Simple Way to Become a Saint

        This is the Little Way of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. We do everything little thing for God with great love, and we become saints. So, just do everything for God to show that we love him and let him take care of the rest.

*Ready to Meet God

          When we are ready to go to God at any time, we are ready for him to come at any time. 

***How to know God Fast*

        Plunge yourself directly into the God of Christ, cry out to him from your heart, and asking anything you want to know from him. This takes courage and may not be easy for you right new, but if you remain timid, you won't get anywhere. If you do that, the Lord would be overjoyed, this I can tell you! What can you possibly lose? Would he strike you dead? Of course not! On the contrary, he most ardently desires that you live happily in heaven with him in the end! Go to him boldly and you'll experience a breakthrough. It is truly exciting to know the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. You want to enjoy peace, freedom, and joy now and forever.

***Beautiful Truth***

        A slave of God is the freest person ever. 

***A Denial We Must Not Deny*

          Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." (Matthew 16:24) Today, we not only do not wish to carry our own crosse, we create crosses for others. This goes directly against following the Lord. We are no better than the Pharisees to whom Jesus had said "Woe to you" on many occasions. Despising carrying our own cross is despising the Lord carrying his cross for us now. 

***Present State of the World

        Today I feel that the Lord wants me to go over the basics of following him. He has already revealed to us all we need to know to be saved for all eternity. It's now up to us to carry out what he has commanded of us. If we have no faith, we won't witness any miracles. If we do not pray, we won't ever hear his voice. We then simply remain where we are and wither spiritually. While we continue thus, the Lord suffers horribly. This is the sad state of our present world, self-centered with hardened hearts.

***"Challenging" God

         The Lord God challenges us. He promises that if we do what he tells us, he'll give us many good things, including eternal life. Our heavenly Mother promises to save us from the fires of hell if we faithfully wear the brown scapular. So it strikes me that we can "challenge" the Lord and the Holy Mother to fulfill their promises by doing exactly what they ask us to do. Since the Lord God can never make empty promises, we can be sure that we'll receive all the blessings as promised, including eternal life.          

***Knowing God Is Pivotal

        If there were no God nor heaven, then life wouldn't be worth living. If you still think that you can do good and live happily sans God, you are simply trying to make yourself feel good. It won't work, for you don't have anything solid to back you up. Knowing God changes everything, as I've been testifying to you on this blog all these years. He becomes your rock solid foundation, your source of guidance and inspiration, and your eternal hope. Now you are wide awake, living in the most beautiful reality.

***Joy of Following Jesus!

           In today's Gospel reading from Luke 5, Jesus taught the crowds by the Lake of Gennesaret from Simon Peter's boat a short distance from the shore. After he had finished speaking, he asked Simon to put out into deep water and lower his nets for a catch. Simon had worked hard all night and caught nothing, but at Jesus' command he lowered the nets. When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish that their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him and all those with him, and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners of Simon. Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men." When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him.
           Earlier, right after I read that Simon Peter fell at the knees of Jesus and said, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man," the Lord right then filled me with unspeakable joy because he made me feel the joy of following him. An unforgettable moment of the Holy Spirit in action.

**Either Saved or Lost*

        Today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 98, tells us that the Lord has made his salvation known to us. Is there anyone who really believes that he doesn't need salvation? If you do not know where you'll be going after you die, then you are lost and need salvation! We are either saved or lost. To me, the feeling of being lost would be unbearable. I believe this is how God has made us so that we may look for him. And I praise and thank God that I've found Christ to be precisely the Savior I need to make my existence both meaningful and glorious!

**Pray, Pray, and Pray

        Another sensible talk on prayer and the hour of our death by the speaker of the previous post on purgatory.

***Purgatory Made Clear

        A good video on learning more about purgatory.

***Reason for Prayer

         We pray to God for various reasons. Many prayer are supplications, for we need his help. Then I also pray the Holy Rosary, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, etc. simply because the Lord wants us to pray them now to help him save souls. Whatever he wants us to do for whatever reason, we should comply gladly. Obedience to God in all things is the best way to show our love for him. 

*****Remaining New Forever (Most Exciting Living)

        We all like new things. Living in a new house, wearing new clothes, visiting a new country, beginning a new year...all such experiences are exciting. Now, do you know that the Lord God can make you new continuously? Remain in him and he cleanses you and refreshes you at all times, and you remain new. All new things get old, but God can keep you new forever! Is there another way of living that's more exciting and delightful? I don't think so.

**To Be in Tune with God

        Today is September 1; we are entering the last third of the year already. Ever since the pandemic started, most of us have spent much time staying home. If we became more aware of God's presence, that would be time well spent. To be attuned to what God is telling or showing us is central to our spiritual well-being. God shapes all things and there is always a message in whatever we experience. Tuning the Lord out is to be lost forever. The more attentive you are, the more he helps you understand. The ultimate is for us to attain union with him, then we'd be completely in tune with him.