***Year End Thoughts and Wishes

         2022 is drawing to a close. What will come next year? There'll be both good and bad things for sure, and I pray that there'll be a lot more good things happening than bad ones. Good things will happen because the Lord is always with those who love him. He wants to be with everyone, but not everyone is receptive to him yet. Bad things will happen because the evil one is still allowed to wage his war against the Lord. I can only pray that the days of the evil one will be shortened, and this will happen if enough of us pray hard enough for it. For those who are faithful and love the Lord, there is nothing to worry about—it'll just be a matter of waiting a little longer. But for those who have gone astray and are lost, we can only pray for God's mercy on them. They will surely awaken if they see the truth. I don't need to celebrate another new year, for my heart celebrates the love and mercy of Christ every single moment. May the world see that we are nothing but dust without God's love.

***Love Is Tolerant

        You hear people say that they can't stand this person or that person. But if you let God fill your heart with his love, you will want to love everyone and pray for their conversion or salvation (never destruction). In Matthew 5:44, Jesus counsels, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." If you can't stand someone, the truth is that you really can't stand God and shouldn't stand yourself either.

**New Year's Wish for All**

        The Lord God alone teaches the truth. The light of Christ helps us see this truth. May this light shine on and illuminate you so that you may see and embrace the truth. Then evil won't be able to touch you and your soul will be kept safe for all eternity. 

***Sign of Spiritual Progress***

         You may be making spiritual progress nicely. Now, if it turns out that everyone else loves God a thousand times more than you do and is a thousand times holier than you, and you not only do not mind but even rejoice in that, then you have indeed progressed spiritually. 

*****Great Tragedies of Today

        Today is the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The families worldwide are under attack by Satan. So many families in this country have disintegrated, becoming disorderly or dysfunctional. Evil has deeply infiltrated all levels of our society and the Church. The way of today has been accepted as the normal, making an awakening to God's love and mercy ever much more difficult. People see nothing wrong with what they do. When the real warning from heaven comes, it may be too late for many of them. This is the great tragedy I see. 
       In parallel, most of the world's population is unaware that Christ can save us, turn everything around, give us the hope we need, set us free, and fill us with peace and joy. In a way, this is an even greater tragedy than the one I mentioned above. Is the world too far gone? I believe that nothing is impossible with God. As things worsen, acts of great mercy will come from him. But the time to pray and be prepared is definitely now for all who hear his voice.

***Complaining Is Out of Order

        I realize that all things that come to me, burdens included, are for my edification, for God loves me. It's the Evil One who wants you to complain. We should follow the example of the Lord Christ who is alway patient.

**Contentment and Joy

        Communion experience. The contentment I felt was heavenly and my joy was complete. I am sure that both contentment and joy would increase manyfold in heaven. 

**Consider What Comes from the Heart

         We sang some of the prayers and responses at Mass. One attendee sang everything out of tune. You noticed that right away and it sounded almost funny. Then I realized that he's doing his best from his heart, and right away he sounded even more beautiful than all the others to me. I think the Lord looks at us this way too.

***Freedom in Serving and Loving God***

        Be least to give yourself the greatest freedom in serving God. Be most humble to give yourself the greatest freedom in loving God.

**Appreciating Jesus

        Jesus is not only an amazing person, he is also our God. So we have an amazing God. And this is a tremendous blessing to us.

**Be Ready like Simeon

        Today's Gospel reading from Luke 2 is about the Presentation of the child Jesus in the temple. The Lord had revealed to Simeon that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. He came in the Holy Spirit into the temple and saw the child. He took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: "Lord, now let your servant go in peace: your word has been fulfilled: my own eyes have seen the salvation which you prepared...." We who have not seen the Lord, but have believed in him and known him intimately should surely be able to go to him in peace at any time.

***Amazing Lord***

        We do not see the Lord God, yet many of us rejoice and believe in him without the slightest doubt. How is this possible? Answer: It's possible because the Lord who created us knows how to speak to our hearts. The Holy Eucharist can be the big catalyst here. So we need to keep our hearts open to God always. 

****Most Uplifting Tidings

       Today's entrance antiphon, John 3.16: "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life." Response to readings from Psalm 96: Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice! This is huge news! If you truly believe in it, you can't help but be glad and rejoice. If you don't feel that way, then most likely you don't know the Lord personally well enough yet. 

**God at Our Disposal

        I slept on my right side last night and must have put too much pressure on my right arm. It went numb momentarily and I woke up. Well, like all other things that happen to me, it's all the Lord's doing. Then I am directly connected to him, so I can communicate with him about anything at any time. The subject can range from a numb arm to eternal life. The Lord is most personal to us!

***What God Asks of Us***

        All God asks of us is to not sin anymore so that we might have eternal life—nothing more, nothing less. Is this really a request that's unreasonable or too hard to accept? The Lord has done all be could for our sake and we have no power to change anything except by him.

****How to Succeed in Loving God**

        Yesterday I posted that to love someone, you need to make an effort to know that person well by sharing inner thoughts and feelings with each other. This works with the Lord God too. If you truly love God, you'd want to share with him all that's in your heart and be completely open to him to let him reveal all of himself to you, for love implies intimacy.

**How God Blesses Us

        As the priest invokes the Lord God to bless us all at the end of Mass, I feel that the Lord actually adorns all of us to make us more beautiful to him. 

*****Christ the Ultimate Experience*****

        Communion experience on this Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs. I just feel that Christ is my final quest, my ultimate fulfillment. I have come to an end and also a brand new beginning. He is the answer to all my questions and solution to all my problems. My existence is now full of meaning. Freedom, peace, and joy are all mine. I am going home, heaven bound. Nothing can top or outdo what the true God can do for us! 

***Treating Your Loved Ones Right*

        In any family, we normally help each other out in various ways. Providing material aids or services is common. At a time like Christmas now, gift giving is popular. But much more meaningful is taking the time to talk to those you love to really get to know them. This is not always easy because we are always so busy with other things in life and listening to another person takes both humility and patience. I've seen people regret when one of the parents died. They wished they had spent more time getting to know that parent. For anyone, to show love is to show that you are interested in knowing and understanding that person. So to all of you who read this message, do not neglect to get to know your parents well (or for that matter, anyone you love). If you show that you truly care for them from your heart, your children will treat you likewise too. We sow what we reap, and this is also true with the Lord God. Anyway, do all things for the sake of God's love for us.   

**Living Our Life Is Important

        Our time on earth is the time the Lord God has allotted to each of us. How we use up this time will determine the kind of life we'll live after we leave here. Basically, we reap what we sow. 

***Awake to God Now!

        Some old messages from Medjugorje, but it's good to hear them again. If we sleep thru life, we'll miss heaven. 

**What We Can Logically Believe

         There is a talk on YouTube now showing a Fr. Robert Spitzer presenting the latest scientific evidence of God and the soul. As usual, we can group people into believers, agnostics, and atheists. My private thoughts are that we don't even know how we came into the world, so we are just not qualified to say God doesn't exist or cannot be known. The only logical thing to do is to believe in God and the gospel. As it turns out, this leads me to freedom, peace, joy and the positive knowledge that God is both real and personal.

*****Something So Special to Us!

        Today I rejoice because the Lord God loves me. That's a fact and something huge! It makes all the difference to my life. This love is all yours if you believe in the God of Christ and be open to him. It can't be easier. We all need to be loved, but if you are loved by none other than God, that makes it extra special and in fact, perfect. It settled my whole existence forever! 

***Way of Regaining Peace***

        Many minor sins bothered me and I suffered. Then I decided to accept this suffering as my penance and my peace was restored. In others words, accepting our imperfections and moving on to become more perfect by abandoning ourselves in the Lord even more is the way to go.  

*The Imperfect Meeting the Perfect

        Communion experience. Before the awesome holy Lord, I was aware that he saw all my blemishes. I'd never be worthy to receive him. But because of his infinite love and mercy and my earnest longing for him, I dared to receive him and humbly submitted myself to him even more.

**The Day to Ready Ourselves For

        Today is the Feast of St. Stephen, first martyr. As his enemies were stoning him to death, he called out "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." The response to readings from Psalm 31 is its verse 6B: "Into your hands I commend my spirit." Jesus' cried out these exact words to the Father just before he breathed his last on the cross. We should likewise be ready to commend our spirit into the Lord's hands at any time. The day for the Lord to receive our spirit is the day we look forward to. 

**Facing's What's Unavoidable

    Death, our natural death, is unavoidable. Entering the afterlife is also unavoidable unless you believe that there's no afterlife and after you die, you just become nothing. Last, facing Jesus is also unavoidable, for he is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one can go to the Father except thru him (John 14:6). And he'll be our final judge too. Of course, if you can absolutely prove that Jesus never existed or is totally false, or can dismiss him outright and still feel at peace, then you can totally ignore what I am saying here. But if you can't, you'd better pay attention. 
          Death we have to accept. Afterlife, if we don't accept, then what are we doing here? What's the purpose? Why do we have a conscience that can tell good from evil? Believing that we have a soul and an afterlife leads us to believing in the God who created us and will take care of our soul after death. Everything now falls into place. Blessed is the one who believes in and prepares for all that's unavoidable.

**Request that Pleases the Lord

        Asking for his mercy on the whole world, your country, your family, and youself.

***Most Satisfying, Fulfilling Food***

        Communion thoughts. There have been various saints and saintly laypersons who lived on the Holy Eucharist alone for a period of time or all their lives. Of course, that had to be a special gift from the Lord. But truly the Eucharist is so satisfying and fulfilling that you wouldn't mind giving up eating anything else if you can survive without them.   

***Great Christmas Offering & Petition

        The Christmas Mass was beautiful. We had decorated trees, red poinsettias, infant Christ displayed, and beautiful liturgy and music. The Lord made me see that what he wants most from us are our hearts. Otherwise, it's just going thru the motions. So let us offer the Lord our hearts this Christmas day and ask him to set them aflame!

*****Incredible Love!

        Merry Christmas to all! I attended the early morning Mass and sensed the tremendous beautiful love that exists between the Father and the Son. And we are not left out, since the Father even sent his only begotten Son into the world to die for us in order to save us from sin. God' love s is truly incredible! If we have no sin, this wouldn't have made any sense. But since we do know that we are sinners, any of us with a heart would feel most grateful and want to submit himself to God with all his heart.

***Entering Heaven with Aplomb

        After death, we either go to heaven directly, thru purgatory first, or not at all. If we're headed for heaven, it's best that we go straight there and find the Lord and all the angel and saints joyfully anticipating our arrival. You wouldn't want to live a life such that you barely made it. That would be like squeezing thru the narrow slit of a door. By how you live your life, you determine the way you enter heaven. Don't take any chance, but live the most holy life you possibly can for the glory of God, and you start enjoying heaven right now.

***God, the Lord of All

        We are completely judged by how much we love the God of Christ. Whether we are united or divided, have peace or war, go to paradise or get ourselves condemned . . . it can all be traced to how we respond to him. For he is the Lore of all. (As for those who do not know Christ yet, the standards used for judging them will vary, but always fair.)

***Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes***

         I was fortunate enough to have visited Lourdes, where miraculous healings continue to happen.

*Impression of Life

        Looking back, life seems like a dream except for the part I spent time serving the Lord.  

**Just Ask Jesus

        Jesus is the one who has the answers to all our questions. Then, of course, he knows how to lead us to eternal life.  

*Slow Learners Risk Losing Out*

        All the Old Testament prophets, all the angels and saints, and all the demons and evil spirits know that Jesus is the Son of God, the Holy One. Let's not be such slow learners and lose out. 

**What Matters to Us**

        Everything on this earth passes. As far as we are concerned, it's where we pass to that matters. 

***To Kill Your Ego Completely

        Do not ever entertain any thought that feeds your ego. We are nothing before the Lord, even if the Lord may not think so.

***How to Stop Worrying

        Give all your problems and your loved ones to the Lord. Now they are all his and you can stop worrying about them. For it'd be extremely silly to worry for the Lord.        

**Great Opportunity Now

        Amidst all the evils, we can always extract some good from this (or any, for that matter) situation. Since it's a given that the LORD will triumph in the end, we can confidently remain in him more than ever. It's a great opportunity for us to be completely united with the Lord as one. This would ensure us a secure journey to heaven from now on.

*****Easiest Person to Deal With

        We all are sinners, and dealing with any of them can turn into a hassle. God alone is holy, perfect, and trustworthy. Besides, he understands and loves us totally. So I find the LORD to be the easiest person to deal with. In fact, it's such a joy to know him, share anything with him, and listening to and learning from him.

***Know Your Responsibility*

        Only God can save us from sin, but we are responsible for "allowing" the Lord to save us. So you can say that we are responsible for our own salvation. It is true that the Lord does not wish to condemn us ever. If we do get condemned, it's by our own choice. 

**Repentance Is a Joy!

        We know that there is great joy in heaven over one sinner who repents (read Jesus' parables in Luke 15). Repentance is a great joy for us too. It's going home to the Father who has wiped away all our sorrows for having offended him. We are now new and clean again! One big reason you need to believe in the God of Christ, for there is not another like him.

**Natural Consequence

        The more you love God, the more you feel sorry for having offended him. 

***Prayer Power

         I believe that the Lord hears everything we tell him, and he will surely respond to anyone who prays to him from the heart. How and when he'll respond we do not know. But we can be sure that anything we ask for out of love will be answered in our favor, unless there are hidden facts we are not aware of. That our prayers can make the Lord change the course of humanity and world events is undeniable.

**One-Way Giving and Receiving

        With God, I feel that it's practically a one-way thing. We receive everything from him, while the most we can give him are ourselves who were created by him in the first place. There's no way we can thank him enough. The best response to the Lord I can think of: "Keep his word" (John 14:23).

*Communion Protocol

        While the Lord is still on my tongue, I do not kneel, for the Lord does not bow down to anything or anyone. Once I have fully consumed him and he has become part of me, then I kneel and thank him. If Mass is not ending so quickly, I'd savor the Lord by keeping the Host on my tongue as long as possible. One time when I really yearned for the Lord, the Host remained in my mouth for over 20 minutes.

***Reality Check*

         Here's the basic reality in a nutshell. Evil is real, we are sinners, and only God has the power to annihilate evil and take away our sins. We need God to save us from sin and evil. 

*Saying Yes to God

         In today's Gospel reading from Luke 1, the angel Gabriel appears to the virgin Mary, announcing that she will conceive and bear a son to be named Jesus, who will be great and called Son of the Most High. Mary does not doubt, only curious about how it can happen, as she has no relations with a man. The angle explains that the Holy Spirit will come upon her and the power of the Most High will overshadow her. Mary consents, willing to let it be done to her according to the angel's word. We see that the Lord prepares Mary for the task he has for her. Likewise, we should always believe and let the Lord prepare us to carry out whatever task he has for us. We should always exercise our free will to say yes to God.

*To Be Holy Before God*

        No matter how holy we are, we are never good enough for the Lord. We recognize this and he shall be pleased. Fortunately for us, the Lord looks more at our intentions and less to how perfect we are. 

**Our Role Before God*

        The Lord God alone is omnipotent. Everything must go thru him. If we ever want to be fruitful or accomplish anything that's good, we ought to go thru him, that is, follow his will. Everything has to do with the Lord and our role is to participate in accomplishing whatever he wishes to be done.

****Great Surprise from God

        To become a slave to God, we actually gain the greatest possible freedom and become God's friends!

*****How Best to Help God

        When I feel helpless in helping the Lord and ask him what I should do, his answer is always "Be holy." This translates to "Be obedient" to me. 

**Source of Freedom and Joy

        In union with God, you pour your heart out to him every moment. This gives you such freedom and joy, knowing that you are always with him.

*****Knowing What God Wishes for Us*****

         No matter what we pray or pray for, it boils down to "Thy will be done." This is the very reason we pray so that we do not get in the Lord's way. Total obedience is what the Lord desires from us so that he may exalt us to the max, for he truly loves us. 

**Desire for Complete Belonging

        Communion experience. I ask the Lord to wipe clean everything that might rob me of my inner peace in me, even from my subconscious. For I seek complete belonging to him.

***Great Gift Idea***

        In my last post, the Lord made it possible for the mother of Samson to conceive him. We all know that Sarah became pregnant and bore Issac to Abraham in his old age, and Elizabeth bore John the Baptist in her old age. Of course, the Holy Spirit made it possible for Virgin Mary to conceive and bear Jesus. Nothing is impossible for God! Therefore, be open to let the Lord conceive in us all the good things he wishes us to bear thru us for his glory. That would be a most beautiful Christmas gift for us to give to the Lord.  

***Need to Be Stirred by God

        In today's reading 1 from Judges 13, an angel of the LORD appeared to the wife of Manoah from Zorah, who was barren, and announced to her that she would conceive and bear a son to be consecrated to God from the womb. He would begin the deliverance of Israel from the Philistines. She bore a son and named him Samson. The boy grew up and the LORD blessed him; the Spirit of the LORD stirred him. I like that last expression "the LORD stirred him." We need the Holy Spirit to stir us at all times. Without that, we become complacent; whereas like a fire, we need to be stirred by the LORD to keep burning hot for him.

**Life-changing Salvation

        As Christmas approaches, I realize that our Savior has already come. In saving us, he's going to fill us with great joy and remove all worries, anxieties, and fears, for we shall be made clean and have eternal life.  

***Shocking News!

         It's is headline news that Father Pavone, head of Priests for Life and a heroic leader of our pro-life movement has been stripped of his priesthood by the Vatican. This has shocked many of us. If you do a search online, on YouTube for example, you'll find plenty of people speaking up against this action. It seems that the Church hierarchy has bowed to the left to be politically correct. Please pray for Fr. Pavone (who's been addressed as Mr. Pavone now by the hierarchy) and the Church that the Lord will straighten everything out and restore the purity and glory of his Church. 
       I posted the above over an hour ago and have some afterthoughts. Jesus always did things out of love, not following the rigid rules of the scribes and the Pharisees. It seems today, many bishops act more like the scribes and Pharisees. When they want to get rid of some priest who speaks the truth and irritates them, they just accuse him of having violated some rule sans any compassion. 

***A Love Story

        We who follow Christ have all found the Lord to be attractive. So I see the progress of a spiritual journey as the evolvement of a love story. To remain stagnant is to cease falling in love with God more. The best way to move forward is to remain in his love until you finally attain spiritual union with him. Now you and the Lord are united in his divine love as one forever.

**Be Ready Now and Always

        Jesus advises us to always remain vigilant and be prepared for his coming, for he shall appear at an expected hour. This is good advice, since we may die before his coming and meet him that way. So it's best that we be ready now and always. It does make sense to live each hour as our last one on earth. Prepare for the "worst" scenario is the wise way to go.  

***Perfect Pre-Christmas Prayer***

        Today after morning Mass, we continued praying the Christmas Novena. The verse. 1 Thessalonians 5:23, from the first reading is particularly beautiful to me: May the God of peace himself make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. May the Lord answer this prayer for all of us before Christmas. 

***Reaching the Spiritual Summit

        Communion experience. Receiving the Lord in the Holy Eucharist is reaching the ultimate spiritual summit in this life. You receive exactly what the Apostles did from the Lord at the Last Supper. Receive it only if you believe that it's truly the body and blood of Christ and you are in a state of grace. 

**Heart, Key to Reconciliation with God

        Do you know that our heart is our first and last obstacle to our reconciliation with God? Give your heart to God to clear the way.

***God the Great Heart Specialist

        If your heart is unclean, repent and God will totally take away your sins and make you clean. If your heart is heavily weighed down, tell God about it and he'll lighten your burden or lift it completely off you. If your heart is depressed, share you sorrows with him and he'll fill you with hope and joy. If your heart is badly wounded, seek help from him and he'll heal it. If your heart is broken, seek consolation from him and he'll make it whole again. Always share everything with God from your heart and it will become your great private joy.

**Dependence upon God Is Different

        We are always taught to stand on our own feet and not to depend upon anyone else. This shows that you are a real man or woman. But there is an exception. When it comes to dependence upon God, it's not only good, but also most beautiful. We who are created and loved by God are already dependent upon God for all things, whether you realize it or not. But we need to acknowledge that dependence to the Lord from our hearts. This reconciles us with him and can even lead us to full spiritual union with him. 

**American Sodom and Gomorrah

         Very sad reality. Just make sure that no children watches this video. 

 

***Again, Be Prepared and Ready

        A tragic car accident just took place in my little city, killing all four male occupants. The driver was a friend of a friend of ours. The car hit a tree, bounced off it, hit a second tree, and burst into flames. May they rest in peace. In these uncertain times when we are hearing so many warnings from heaven, we need to be prepared for whatever coming our way. But even in times of peace, we need to be ready, for we may die at any time. So it breaks my heart to see so many Catholics still remaining lukewarm or even straying away from the Church. For them, if any tragedy strikes, it'll come as a shock. How good it is to remain in the Lord and not have to be concerned, whatever happens to us.

***God to Go All Out For***

        With such a beautiful and magnificent Lord, not to go all out to possess him is just not good enough. In Matthew 13, Jesus said to his disciples, "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, it's like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it." This is how we should feel about the Lord. Once you find out how great and lovely he is, you will want to give up everything you have and go all out to possess and be possessed by him.

****Rejoicing in the God of Christ*

        Today's first thought at morning Mass: We are so fortunate and blessed to have a God who is pure love and loves us with the greatest possible love. This is what we should rejoice about every moment! And our most appropriate response should be to let him make us holy. 

***Most Satisfying Relationship

        Communion experience. It is supernatural because I experience the Lord as the most intimate person I can possibly know, an experience you can never have with anyone else in this world. The intimacy is life-changing and beautiful beyond words. He knows all about me and lets me know all about him. Christ is the only one we need to know, as he is our Savior. He truly fulfills all our desires.

***Our Pilgrimage

        We all go to God anyway, so it's best to make our journey a pilgrimage to him. Seeking union with God thru the Holy Eucharist is absolutely the best and quickest way us to get there. When you receive the Lord in this holy sacrament, you already accept his invitation to be with him forever. Then when you give yourself completely to him, you attain union with him spiritually as well. You have practically reached the end of your journey.   

**To Forgive All Others

         Here's why we should not judge but forgive all others. We are all sinners, captives of the Devil to various degree. Even all the great evildoers are captives, not the Devil himself. So there is always hope for them to change, to become good, especially if we pray hard for them. Be merciful as our Lord is merciful.

**Blessed and Happy Is the One . . .

who is ready to leave this world to meet his Lord.

**Spending Time with the Lord

         If you are a Catholic and wish to know the Lord better, just pour your heart out to him. The best time to do that is right after Mass after you had received the Holy Eucharist earlier. You need to find a church where you can remain after Mass and that's quiet enough for prayer. Go sit or kneel as close to the tabernacle as possible. The chapel I go to for daily Mass is ideal. A small space that's peaceful and comfortable. Attendance is small, so after a few minutes, most attendees will have left, often leaving me as the only one there. I spend up to around 40 minutes with the Lord. This is how I make my spiritual progress. 

***Common Sense Conclusion***

        God is omnipotent and we are 100% dependent upon him. Without his sustainment, we won't be able to exist at all. If you have any common sense, you would see this truth. It follows that we should obey God as our Lord and Savior always. That's all.

**A Very Sad Observance

         The worst part of hell is not that the punishment is horrible, but that the suffering lasts for all eternity. I do pray that all souls will be saved. The very sad thing is that living people in general don't think much about hell and all that. They take out insurance on their house, their car, their life, etc., leaving their next life completely unprotected. God's mercy is appropriately infinite to cover such cases if need be. 

***All God Has Created Are Miracles

       When we're to enter this world and when we'll depart from it are not under our control or volition. While here, we get used to seeing and experiencing the things that are already here, but don't you realize that they are all miracles created by God? Yourself with all the wonderful parts is a miracle! When my two sons were born, they were miracles to me. Now we consider things extraordinary or phenomena we can't explain to be miracles. But they are just like all the other things with which we are familiar. God could create a lot more miracles for us to see and get used to, should he so choose. Anyway, the most amazing "miracle" to me is the Lord himself. If you see that, everything else is not that miraculous anymore. Once you know the Lord, you are no longer thrown off by any extraordinary thing that happens. Take the Resurrection of Christ. Since he is the creator of all life, of course, it's no surprise.   

**Making God's Blessings Work

        Before dismissing us at Mass, the last thing the priest does is asking almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, to bless us. We must not take this blessing lightly. If we believe, we are surely to receive tremendous blessings from God. If we just regard it as a routinely said thing and don't think much of it, then nothing's going to happen to us. So treat all God's blessings as you own prayers—believe in them, and you'll indeed be blessed.

*Conversion Is for the Lord

        Try to convert someone on our own and it's not always easy. Well, the Lord is really the only one who can change our hearts. So I'd recommend entering deep into him to implore his help first. This is also a great way for us to show our unyielding trust in the Lord and to unite with him even more intimately. 

***Astounding Humility*

        The Lord comes to us at Communion time, offering himself to us in the Holy Eucharist. This humility is astounding! Then it dawned on me that he's also ready to offer all of himself to us at any time! You desire him with all you heart and he is yours. He will say no to you only when you want to do something that would harm your soul. Be humble so that you may become like him. Then you'll always listen to him and get his full support.

**God's Plan Revealed

        Today is the Memorial of St. John of the Cross. In the first reading from Isaiah 45, in verses 456C-8, 18, and 21C-22, the Lord makes it absolutely clear thru the prophet that he is the LORD, and there is no other. In the reading from Psalm 85, we hear that the Lord will bring forth a Savior and we'll all have truth and justice. Then finally, in the Gospel reading from Luke 7, Jesus makes it clear who he is by declaring that he has made the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers clean, the deaf hear, and the dead rise, and proclaimed the good news to the poor. These three readings sequentially present a quick picture God's plan for us. Since all the events had evolved logically over time, we can confidently believe in their authenticity.

*Eternity to the Christian

        The the faithful Christian, eternity is everlasting life. 

***Avoid Making This Mistake!*****

        We usually start out resisting the God of Christ. But if you change your heart and decide to pursue him with persistence, the day will arrive when you find him to be totally irresistible. You now know that he and you do belong to each other and you can live happily with him ever after. This is no fairy tale ending, as there are tons of people who can testify this truth to you, and I am one of them. Resisting Christ has to be the worst mistake we can possibly make.

**Do Not Ruin Your Life

        We are capable of doing good, but we are also prone to sin. Doing good usually requires some effort, while sinning is a lot easier, especially in today's world with so many temptations and so many people all doing it. The only way to safeguard our souls is to listen to the words of Jesus and act on them as he'd advised in Matthew 7. This would be like building your house on rock so that it will not collapse when the rain falls, the floods come, and the winds blow and buffet it. A faith firmly rooted in the Lord is our best protection. Again, I advocate attaining union thru the Holy Eucharist to achieve the goal. Always go all the way with the Lord—this is the best policy in my book.

*****Most Exciting Journey Ever!!!!!

         I have traveled and seen various exciting parts of the world and gone on pilgrimages that brought me closer to God, but none of these journeys can even come close to the journey I am on now, that of seeking union with the Lord thru the Holy Eucharist. On this journey, my travel just consists of attending Mass, praying, and blogging, all done between the church and my home. Compared to all the other journeys, the encounter with the Lord is more private, more intimate, and filled with great joy. It's more exciting than anything else I've ever experienced, for the Lord truly touches my soul! Anyway, with the Lord, you just have to plunge right into him and let him carry you everywhere he wants you to go, and you'll discover that he is good, loving, most beautiful, most personal and understanding, and the most exciting person to know. 

***Fulfilled and Content to the Hilt*

        Communion experience. Receiving the Body and Blood of the Lord forms the most intimate bond with him that's most fulfilling and satisfying. I wouldn't switch places with anyone else under any circumstances. No wonder that the Eucharist is known as the Most Blessed Sacrament.

***To All Proabortionists:***

         Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Gospel reading from Luke 1 is about Mary, already pregnant with Jesus, visiting her cousin Elizabeth who was pregnant with John the Baptist six months earlier. Mary entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." We see that the infant, still in the mother's womb, responded to the prompting of the Holy Spirit! How dare the proabortionists say that they have to right to terminate the life of any unborn child for whatever reason? Do they not also see that God wishes that the unborn remain in the mother's womb for nine months so that it receives all the nurturing it needs before birth?
       By the way, I just remember that you can see the scene of Mary visiting Elizabeth in this video I posted on March 30, 2014. If you wish to watch it, just click here. 

**See Reality Clearly

        The sins of the world have muddied our vision. Think clearly and you'll see that God is in charge, is taking complete care of us who believe in and follow him, and will certainly lead them to final victory. 

**On Liking and Disliking Myself*

        I like myself, for l was wonderfully made by God. The part I dislike is my sinful nature, then Christ is taking complete care of that now. I only need to be patient for a little while longer before I become perfect in my Father's house.

*Joy Realized**

         This is the joy that I can communicate with my Lord and God so easily at any time. I merely think what I have to say and he knows everything already. Our Father loves to hear from us and listens too. 

*****Only Choice That Matters to Us*

         The choices in life available for us to maker are infinite, but there is only one choice that's most fundamental, absolutely crucial, and of the utmost importance to us. This is choosing whether to believe in and follow Jesus as the Son of God and our Savior. Make your choice and nothing else matters anymore.  

**To Trust in God Is . . .

 to not complain about anything.

**To Love Others Is . . .

to pray for the salvation of their souls.         

***God's Amazing Love

        God's love for us is pure, unconditional, and steadfast. When we sin against the Lord, we sadden him and make him pity us even more, while his love for us remains undiminished. He has demonstrated the greatest love by laying down his own life for us. We can learn a lot from this love. Accepting it and we receive power to overtime all evil, are set free, and are made fit to enter heaven. Rejecting it and you miss out on experiencing a joy you can rejoice in forever.

**Good, Happy Feeling

         Knowing that you actually serve God and are useful to him.

*****Incredibly Amazing Fact*****

        The Lord God is most lofty and mighty, yet we can attain intimate spiritual union with him through receiving the Holy Eucharist. 

****Most Smart Living

        God knows everything about us—our thoughts, our motivations, our intentions, even our subconscious mind. So let's live with this awareness and become perfect. That's right, I said perfect, for nothing is impossible for God. To give ourselves up to him has to be the smartest move we can possibly make. By the same token, to think that you can do anything without God's knowledge makes you instantly the biggest fool of all.

**Time to Decide and Act*

       In our time, we can follow all the news and propagandas, what's going on around the world and happening in our own country, our own society, and read about what many others are saying on all the social media. What we learn may be interesting, but could be all fake, rumors or projections. Will all these things draw you close to God? On the other hand, you can pray a lot for all, read the scripture and other inspiring books, receive the Lord more often at Mass, and serve him with great diligence. Which of the two ways do you think is the better one to follow? Time is running out, so we need to decide and act before it's too late.

**Pristine Conscience a Must

        The Lord God has given each of us a conscience. But living in this sinful world, our conscience can grow muddy or dull. Once you know the Lord or better yet, attain union with him, he clears up and sharpens your conscience so that you see what's right and what's wrong, what's clearly his will and what's not. To become holy and pleasing to God, a pristine conscience is necessary. And it'll make you feel good!

**Enjoying the World in Freedom

        Most popular songs are love songs. They are about romantic love, falling in love, etc. The tune is usually beautiful, but the lyrics can be sensual at times. God's pure love is on an entire different level. Once you have tasted his love, you'll feel differently about those songs. In fact, because they are not pure, they can pull you away from God. When I hear these songs, I marvel at how those composers came up with such catchy melodies and the writers, such clever lyrics. Now, they make nice background music while I wash dishes. Still enjoyable, they just don't have any hold on me anymore. I use this as an example to show that once you know God, you start enjoying the world in freedom, meaning that you are no longer attached to all things of the world. The Lord does set all those who seek him free.

***Suffering, Our Crucial Test***

        Accepting all sufferings in this life for the sake of Christ will lead you to eternal joy in the next. Rejecting them for your own sake now will lead you to unending suffering later.

**Big Flaw of Our Generation

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 11, Jesus spoke about his generation. It became clear that our generation today is the same. The people are so conceited and opinionated that they are quick to criticize and judge others, and don't have the humility to listen to anyone who might be speaking the truth. 

**A Secret Process

        If you want to become a saint, be sure that solely it's because you love God. Therefore, go about it in secret, known to him alone. 

**God's No. 1 Wish for Us

        It is to give us eternal life, for he loves us so much. Please make a note of it.

***Best Thing I Do***

        We do a lot of things in our lifetime. Today I see that the best thing I do on any day is going to Mass. For at Mass, I get to receive the Lord into me, he removes all my sins and heals my soul, and my union with him in the Holy Spirit is strengthened again. The Lord just sets you right before him. There's nothing else I do that can top this.

***Living-Your-Last-Day Advice*

        One good piece of advice is to live each day as our last day on earth. Naturally, if you are still young, you're not likely to take this advice seriously. Since I am already old (and wiser), I automatically realize that any day can truly be my last day on earth. As a result, I now always do what matters or is important to God first. I try to do my best and not be concerned about whether I get to finish doing it. This removes all anxieties, leaving me with only peace. I believe this is how the Lord wants us to live, no matter what age you're at.

**Proper Response to God

        Communion experience. When the Lord was ready to offer himself in the Holy Eucharist for our consumption, I saw it as a completely selfless act with great humility. The only proper response I felt was to give all of myself to him as act of total obedience. 

***We'll Always Have Hope

        Today is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the Gospel reading from Luke 1, the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary to announce to her that she would bear a son to be named Jesus. When Mary asked the angel how that could be since she had no relations with a man, the angle said to her that the Holy Spirit would come upon her . . . for nothing would be impossible for God. I am so happy to know that everything is possible for God, for this means that we will always have hope! God is indeed our way, our truth, and our light, 

**What Judging Is*

        Earlier this morning I was somewhat annoyed when I learned that someone had made a small mistake, unintentionally. The Lord made me see that that was also a form of judgment. In other words, we should always be filled with God's love and be kind to others. Judging is basically being critical of others without love. 

**How God Frees Us*

        In life we are always solving some problem we face. Once we know Christ personally, such problems just don't bother us that much anymore. After all, we've found the the absolute truth and now integrate everything into serving Christ as a whole. We are no longer attached ourselves to anything but the Lord. Now we do all things in great freedom.   

**Compelling Question

       Communion experience. God gave all of himself to me, how should I respond?

*****Our Incredible God*****

        Think about the God of Christ. Meditate upon him. I am not going to list all the amazing things he's done for us, but they are all incredible! You could never have guessed that he loves us this much. It's easy to live in a dream world, but we who know him are living in a real incredible world!  

**Welcome All God Wants to Give You

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 11, Jesus said to the crowds: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. 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.” There is a big misunderstanding here even among Christians. They hesitate to take the Lord's yoke, thinking that it would be a heavy burden to them. We must believe in what Jesus has said here. He knows our individual capabilities and limitations and will only give us what suits us best. Believe me, the more you trust in him, the more he makes it easy for you. To be afraid of what God wants to give you can only come from Satan. Welcome all that comes from him in meekness and with humility and you become a "superman."

**Sane, Realistic View of Life*

        Life has its ups and downs, but that doesn't matter much in the overall scheme of things. It's your final victory that counts. Remain patient and be steadfast in following and serving the Lord. Soon this life will be over and you'll enjoy eternal happiness. I am not being pessimistic nor optimistic; I am simply being realistic. 

**State of Being Lost

        It's interesting that those who know they are saved know exactly where they are going, while those who don't, don't. If nonbelievers knew where they are headed, they would've stopped and turned around. It just shows that when you are lost, you are lost. 

**God Has a Plan

        God has a plan for each of us. We all have a particular role to play at any particular time in serving him. It'd be tragic if we are unaware of this and end up wasting our lifetime following our own plan or wondering what we should do. Of course, to follow God's plan, you must know God first and trust in him. It comes down to either knowing where you are going or remaining lost on your own.

***No Better Way to Live

        When I blog, the thoughts are already there. That is, I never have to think about what to blog in advance. I love this, for it teaches me to trust fully in God. The days I don't blog are usually the days I don't receive anything, and that's fine with me too. The Lord gives and takes away, all is up to him. You just go along with him all the way and end up always being with him. There is no better way to live!    

***Communion Appreciated

        Communion time thoughts. Receiving the Holy Eucharist is not just going thru the motion of an empty ritual. It is receiving the Most Blessed Sacrament from the Lord that can completely renew my spirit, heal my soul, bestow upon me the power to overcome all evil, and draw me into union with him. There is absolutely nothing else that can accomplish so much in us.

**Made in God's Image Were We

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 18, Jesus told the parable of the lost sheep to his disciples. He said to them, "If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? And if he finds it, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray. In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these littles ones be lost." In this respect, we are just like the Father, showing that we were made in his image.

**Have You Lived Right So Far?

        Suppose you have just one more hour to live, and you think of all the things you did to others that you shouldn't have done as well as all the things you didn't do to others that you should've done. If you come up with quite a list, you haven't lived your life right so far. If you can't think of anything major, then congratulations for being ready to meet your maker.

****Clear Evidence Abortion Is Evil*

        The Lord God chose Virgin Mary, a human being, to bear his Divine Son. This act alone shows to me that abortion would be evil.  

***No Action Is Best Action***

        God is our leader. To follow him, it'd be a mistake to go chasing after him. The right "action" is no action—you simply remain open to let him lead you. That is, you get out of the way to let God come to you to make your life wonderful!

***Key to Winning God

        When we kneel or prostrate ourselves before God, we show our submission to him. When he sees that, he is free to give us all the help and blessings we need. This is the secret of winning the Lord. No submission and you cut him off from you for good.  

***Salvation's Choice*

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 5, some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed but determined to see Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "As for you, your sins are forgiven." And he healed the man too. We see that to have your sins forgiven, you must have faith first. This seems quite obvious. So anyone who feels the burden of sin should consider putting his faith in Jesus to have his sins forgiven by him. This is the only way to become sin free, for Jesus is our only Savior. It all comes down to choosing Jesus or sin. 

**Happy Realization!

        Today I realize again that God has come, is with me now, and will meet me again in person. I am no longer lost, for I know exactly where I'll be going after my time here is over! This makes all the difference to me.  

***How God Treats Me*****

        Communion time thoughts. The heavenly Father loves me with warts and all. Christ the Son died for and saved me. The Holy Spirit illuminates and consoles me. This is how the God of the Most Holy Trinity treats me.

**Our Operating Levels

        In Living, we can operate at the mind level or at the heart level. Sometimes you hear a homily at church that's too intellectual and it leaves you cold. While anyone who shares personal experiences from the heart usually makes a better impression. We operate at the mind level a lot in socializing with others, as we talk about mostly superficial, worldly things. To operate at the heart level is to be more genuine, the way we'd be when talking to God. Since the Lord is always present, it'd be better for us to operate at the heart level whenever possible.  

**Most Fundamental Prayer Intent

        At Mass today, I heard the prayers of the faithful read. They are good prayers, very much like the ones we pray on our own. Then it struck me that the most fundamental prayer that should take care most of these prayers is praying for the conversion of sinners. If we all convert, then the world will become the best possible place for us to live in for the time being. So I urge you to pray for the conversion of all sinners first. For that is also God's foremost intent for us. Go with God always.

**Crowning Moments of Life

         (1) Realizing that you are a sinner, searching for a savior and finding Christ. (2) Falling in love with the Savior, desiring union with him and attaining it through receiving the Holy Eucharist.

**Awakened to Beautiful Reality

        At Mass this Sunday, it dawned on me that if God were not infinitely merciful, we'd all be doomed! But because we have a God who is all love, we now can confidently secure our place in heaven in advance.   

***Most Important Reminder***

        The Lord God is readily available and totally accessible to us. He's forever waiting for us to wake up and turn to him so that he might turn us into holy saints, ready for entering heaven. Union with God is easily attainable thru receiving the Holy Eucharist if you'll let the Lord do the work. All I've said is no hyperbole. It is all true and worth every bit of our attention.

****Don't Be Traitors

        When we sin and do not repent, we offend Christ our Lord and Savior. Of course, he's hurt by our action, but most of all he feels sorry for us, for we now are headed in the direction of losing our soul. Christ has died for us, so he truly loves us more than he cares about himself. Let's not betray our only Savior. 

**Liberation Through Death*

        Today I see that death is liberation. It is thru death that we enter total freedom in God. We have gone thru our trial and passed our test on earth. Now we are finally fit for heaven forever! We are back to the home intended for us to really experience the magnitude of the Father's love for us! Joy now reaches its apex. Death is to be welcomed!

**Total Dependence on God

        Communion experience. I acknowledged my total dependence upon the Lord and knew that he's going to give me all the support I need to get thru this life on earth. I could now die in peace. 

***Best Way to Live***

        I've more or less talked about this at various times in the past. Let me just sum it up in one sentence here: Live for God alone and be not concerned about anything else. That's right.

****No God, No Freedom*

        0ur Father, being our creator, knows all about us. The smart thing for us to do is to share everything we have on our mind with him from our heart. Cry out to him if you feel like doing so. This removes all the barriers between you and God the Father—you are now free! When you don't have God, you simply remain your own prisoner.

**God's Transforming Power

        Communion experience. Trusting in God's power of transforming us, I knew I wouldn't be the same old sinner again.

***Do Not Limit God

        An afterthought to the last post. The blind men believed that Jesus could heal them and he did heal them according to their faith. So whenever we ask the Lord to heal us or someone else, we should ask for a miraculous healing first, for the Lord is almighty and he loves us. As a matter of fact, whatever we ask from him, always ask for the most from him and it might turn out to be the best for us too. This I know: The Lord is most happy when we trust in him the most. 

****Obeying God First and Always*

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 9, two blind men believed that Jesus could heal them and he opened their eyes according to their faith. Then he warned therm sternly to tell no one about it. But they went away and spread word of him thru all the land. Of course, if something good happens to you, you want to share your joy with every one else. But here, the men should have rejoiced in God's mercy first and less in their own freedom. Besides, they should've heeded Jesus' warning. We are human, but we must obey God and not always follow our own inclination. Sure, we feel bad that Christ got crucified for our sake, but rather than wishing that he didn't have had to suffer, our right reaction should be to thank him and be willing to suffer along with him. 

**Suffering in Peace

        If we all believe in God and faithfully follow his will, we'll have peace on earth. But there'll still be sufferings, for natural disasters can strike, we can get sick, and accidents invariably happen. You could say that it's a good thing that we won't be living on earth forever. I do see our time now as an opportunity for us to learn how to suffer. If we accept our sufferings patiently and offer them up to God, we not only atone for my own sins and those of the world, but also get to unite ourselves to Christ in his suffering. This surely is an excellent way to prepare ourselves for entering heaven.

***On Our Own Without the Lord

        When we simply do all things, usually fun things, and not't think of God at all, we just while away our time. As Catholics, we should do all things in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is not hard. It's just being aware that we do everything in his presence and should do it for his sake and glory. In John 15.5, Jesus said: "I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing." Sure, we can do a lot of things on our own, but we won't be bearing any good fruit, if at all. 

**Heart to Provide Sixth Sense

        We experience the world thru our five physical senses. To experience God, we need to have our heart provide the sixth sense, for you can not know God without involving the heart. Let us treasure our heart and put it to good use.        

***Different Ways to Success***

        To succeed materially, you go after something you want and never quit to make yourself rich. To succeed spiritually, you do the exact opposite—you let yourself go in God to allow him to do all the work to make you holy. Of course, what God can achieve is always far greater than what we can.

***Fulfilled to the Max

        Communion experience. I belong to Christ totally and he is all mine. You can't possibly get fulfilled more.

***Most Beautiful Name***

        At Mass, we call on the Lamb of God to have mercy on us and grant us peace. This Lamb of God sacrificed for God the Father for our sake. He is most humble and also most exalted. What a beautiful name! How blessed we are to have him to follow as our Lord!

***Relationship with God Says It All

        If your relationship with God is right on, you would feel good about everything. But if you try to avoid or hide from God, you'll never be able to feel good about yourself! This is how God has made us.

***Formula for Entering Kingdom of Heaven***

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 7, Jesus said to his disciples: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven." Here revealed is the simple formula for entering the Kingdom of heaven. We do the will of the Father and our future is taken care of for all eternity, and we don't have a thing to worry about anymore. Truly believing in God requires being obedient to him. So let's make everything we do an act of submission to God. 

**The Lord God Most Reliable

        Winter hasn't officially begun yet, but the local weather has dramatically changed. When I went to St. Joseph's Chapel for Mass this morning, it was darker than usual and raining, with strong winds howling. Normally, from inside the chapel, the stained-glass windows appear bright and colorful, but this morning their all looked dark as if the light outside had been switched off. Anyway, with weather changing for the worse, I know that my Lord and God will always remain the same and be trustworthy. This is a great comfort to me.