*****Be Concerned About God 1st

        When we sin against the Lord, we usually lose peace and feel bad about ourselves. But it's more appropriate to realize that we have hurt the Lord and feel sorry for him. Do whatever is necessary to console him first and he'll automatically heal us. Again, focus on God first always.

*****True Love*****

         We say "I love you" a lot to others, but this love is never pure like Christ's. His love for us is unconditionally selfless, willing to lay down his own life so that we may live forever! So if we love someone, but are not concerned about the salvation of that person's soul, there is no true love. We need to love the Lord first, then we can truly love others.

***Biggest Fools***

         They are the evildoers who reject Christ.

***Proof God Has Created Us******

        I've found that the Lord God is the only one who can fundamentally transform me (making me holy, that is). This proves that he is indeed my creator. 

***Minding God Alone (Wise Advice)***

        Never compare yourself with anyone else nor mind what others think of you. Care only about how clean you are before God and what he thinks of you. For everything will be settled between just you and God.

***To Be Most Thankful For***

        It was Thanksgiving day, the day before yesterday. There are many things to be thankful for, but Christians must be most grateful for God's love for us. Without his love, we wouldn't have all the nice things to be thankful for. Let me add that the God of Christ is our only God, Savior, life, bright beacon, truth, and hope.

***Another Reason We Need Christ***

        Admit it, our biggest problem is dealing with others without sufficient love. The only one who can fundamentally change us to become loving is Christ our creator. For this reason alone we need him!

**Lord, Have Mecy

        Communion experience. I felt like crying as I saw how horribly the world (myself included) had been offending him. Lord, have mercy on us all! 

***Prayer Not to Forget*

        We always want things to go our way instead of God's way. "Thy will be done" would make an excellent correction prayer.

***Only One to Live For***

        Christians should focus upon Christ only from whom all power and mercy flow. Any message preached not centered on him is invariably uninspiring. Christ is the only one who can stir our hearts and fill us with the Holy Spirit. Live for him only. 

***Only Way with God***

        First thought at Mass today: Worshipping the Lord God is of central importance; everything else we do must be subject to that. Both intuition and common sense tell us that with God it has to be all or nothing. Christ came and showed that it was to be so. Otherwise, what would be the point of believing in him?

***Most Grave Matter*****

        From today's reading 1 from Revelation 20, we heard that "The dead were judged according to their deeds." This had to be the final judgment, for the Lord does not judge us while we are still alive. So the time on earth is the only time we have to make sure that our deeds will be good enough for our names to appear in the book of life. Otherwise, we'll experience the second death that's eternal, according to the reading.

*****The Christian Truth*****

 

**Opposite Outcomes*

         For those who reject Jesus, going to heaven will be most difficult. But for those who follow Jesus, the opposite is true, that is, going to hell is now completely ruled out!

*****God's Rock Solid Assurance***

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 21, Jesus spoke of the coming persecution. He said, "You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives." How good it is to know that the Lord will protect those who follow him so that their eternal lives will be secure!

**Prayer Advice

        Before asking for anything from the Lord, enter into as close a relationship as possible with him. 

**Basic Truth*

        To enter heaven, we need to be free from sin; and only Christ, our creator, can take away our sins. 

****Being Captured by LOVE

         Communion experience. The Lord cleansed me and peace reigned in my heart. The overwhelming crush of his love came on and seized me. How good it is to be captured by LOVE!

***God Is Forever***

         In Matthew 28:20, one of today's Communion antiphons, the resurrected Lord said to the eleven disciples, "Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Such assurance, so good to hear! God is forever, one we can always trust! 

***Today's Joy

         Christ has redeemed me from sin thru his love and mercy. Now I am free and on my way to be with him for all eternity! This is an insuppressible joy!

***Joy of Abandonment***

        Communion experience. I remain completely passive, letting the Lord take charge, and my joy is complete.

**Enslavement or Freedom**

        In today's Gospel reading from John 18, Jesus admits before Pilate that he is a king, but his kingdom does not belong to this world. If we belong to this world, we become enslaved by it. But if we belong to Christ, we dwell in his kingdom and remain free from all evil influences. It's so very clear.

***Most Generous King***

        Today is the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. My first thought was that I could ask of him for anything that's good for me from his inexhaustible riches and it's mine!

**Total Fulfillment*

        Communion experience. Psalm 23.1: The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. That is totally fulfilled!

***The Lord Most Sweet***

        Today's psalm response from Psalm 119: How Sweet to my taste is your promise. We normally see the Lord as one who is almighty, holy, splendid, magnanimous, etc., but he is also sweet. To me, his voice and his words spoken always with great love are all most sweet!

**Calling on the Lord*

        Communion experience. i called on the Lord, not to ask for help, but to express my gratitude and joy for having saved me.  

**We Are Sombody*

        Today is Memorial of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary. God choosing to have his Son born through Mary, a human, shows how how highly he regards us. 

***In God's Eyes*

        1 Corinthians 3.19: The wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God. In the same vein, I dare say that "Relative to Christ, the absolute truth, we are all phonies."

***Double-Barreled Power*

        Communion experience. The Eucharist has the power to not only lead us to eternal life, but also make us holy.  

***All We Need to Do***

        The Lord has come and will come again, but we don't when that will be. So there is so point in thinking about it. All we need to is to be ready, which means that we obey the Lord in all things and be as holy as possible, no more and no less. 

***Living Outside the Box

        We accomplish many things in life, many of which are good and even amazing. But we do them shall I say in a horizontal space, never rising any higher spiritually. It's the humble Christians serving their Lord faithfully that rise above the box, so to speak, as they store up treasures in heaven.

***Incredible Union***

        Communion experience. By the Father's great mercy, the immense gap that separates a finite sinner from his infinite, holy creator is no more.

*****Christ Essential to Us*

        In John 14:6, Jesus declared, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Therefore, without him, we are lost and dead and doomed.

*****Critical to Be Open to God***

        From today's first reading from Revelation 3, we heard read: If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me. The Lord is always knocking at the door. In fact, anytime he comes to your mind, it's him wanting to speak to you, but he can't enter unless you open your heart. What a pity you shut him out your whole life and end up being shut out of heaven forever later!

*****Most Intimate Relationship***

        When you meet someone with the same interests, you can easily hit if off and enjoy each other's company. When I was studying math in college, I greatly enjoyed talking with other math majors about math. Since my other interests were piano music and photography, it's great fun talking about piano music with my teacher, and photography with other fellow photo enthusiasts. Now that Christ is my closest companion, do we talk with each other? Of course we do, but when you are in union with the Lord, you and he already know each other fully without any exchange of words or thoughts. The relationship is on the high spiritual level, the soul level. In all other relationships, there is much sharing, but no deep union. 

***Powerful Holiness***

        God's love is most powerful. Equally powerful is his holiness! When you bask in it, you become holy.

***Saving Faith Most Precious***

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 18, Jesus healed a blind beggar because of his faith. Indeed, it's by our faith that God saves us. No faith, no salvation; so treasure your faith and allow it to grow until you totally abandon yourself to the Lord.

***Becoming Victorious in Christ

        Today's response to readings from Psalm 1 based on Revelation 2:17—Those who are victorious I will feed from the tree of life. My thought was that when we follow Christ, we become victors as we overcome sin and secure eternal life! It's time for rejoicing from that point on.

*****Communion Awakening**

        The Lord fully gave himself for my salvation! 

***Our Imminent Appearance Before Christ*

        Today's Gospel acclamation based upon what Jesus said in Luke 21:36— Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to stand before the Son of Man. We'll all have to appear before the Lord one day—happy is the one who is ready and can't wait to meet his most beloved Savior and soulmate! 

*****Beware!***

        In this life, we experience both things that make us happy and things that make us unhappy. In our next life, we'll end up being either extremely happy or extremely unhappy for all eternity! But we do have the chance to predetermine all that while we're still alive now.  

***Powerful Payer Against Evil***

        The late Fr. Gabriele Amorth was Vatican's leading exorcist. Here's one of his powerful prayers that can benefit all of us.

***It Looks like a Miracle

        https://youtube.com/shorts/5wbG_M9rcPw?si=4sblX9FHaghY2Dh4

***Ultinate Fulfillment

        Communion experience. When you are in union with Christ, you are no longe concerned about life or death—you simply want to remain with the Lord. 

**Everything Is Possible For . . .

those who love God.

***True Intelligent Test***

        No matter how high your IQ is, if you don't see that God loves you and believing in Christ can lead you to eternal life, you are not smart at all!

*****A Warning and Reminder

         Everyday you put off accepting Christ, you put your soul at risk. You may pooh-pooh what I've just said, but I said it because I knew it to be the truth, not merely believing in it. When the Lord reveals something to you, you just know it's true, no proof needed! So this warning/reminder stemmed completely from God's immense love for all of us. 

***More Important Than Me***

        Communion experience. The Eucharist, the Lord himself, is the only thing that's more important to me than myself. For without Christ, I'll have neither life nor soul. 

***Warning to the Prideful***

        In Matthew 19:24, Jesus said to his disciples, "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." I am sure that this is even more true for one who is full of pride, for humility is a must for entering heaven.

*****BE PREPARED NOW*****

        In today's Gospel reading, Luke17:26-37, Jesus talked about the day of the Son of Man. You must read it yourself. The scenes described are unforgettable. Here are some samples. "For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be." "As it was in the days of Lot: they were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all. So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed." "On that night there will be two people in one bed; one will be taken, the other left." If you believe in Jesus, you'd better prepare yourself for that day, whether it comes in your lifetime or not.

*****Love, Our Ultimate Goal*

        Since God is pure love, selfless love is the solution to all our problems, including being damned for our sinfulness. For us, the direct path is follow Christ with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind, then we'll be able to love all others as he loves us.

**Our Life Aim

        Communion experience. I saw that getting ourselves ready for meeting Christ the Lord is truly our life aim. 

***We Are Called To . . .

enjoy Christ the Lord, not the world. 

*****Sign You're in Union with Christ***

         You know that the Lord dwells in you, as you feel his holy presence at all times.

***Be Imprisoned and Free***

        Today's first reading came from Philemon 7. Paul wrote this letter during an imprisonment, possibly in Rome. My thought: When we let the love of God imprison us, we are set free! 

***Unavoidable Realities to Face***

         (1) We are all sinners. (2) We need God to remove our sins in order to get into heaven. (3) We all shall die and leave this world. (4) Last, we'll be judged by Christ to see if we are clean enough to enter heaven.

**Experiencing the Holy Spirit*

        When you are in union with Christ, you are in tune with God the Holy Spirit and feel his power guiding you. You experience the Spirit live! 

***Greatest Gift and Blessing***

        Realizing that Christ is the truth and God

**Pure Foolery

        Since we are finite creatures, we cannot realize how omnipotent, wise, loving, and great God truly is. If we think that we know it all and don't need God, that would be pure foolery.

**The Renewal

        Communion experience. The Lord cleanses and heals our souls and makes us holy and whole again.

**Our Only Power Source

         We can pray as hard as we want, but power comes only from God. Pray hard to let him make us holy and fruitful. Without him, we are nothing.

**Christian Duty**

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 17, Jesus explained the right attitude a servant should have to his disciples. He said to them, "When you have done all you have been commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.'" Yes, serving God is our duty, not to show that we are being extra good. We merely do what we should and not think about receiving any rewards. God remains the Lord and we, his lowly (but beloved) servants.

***The Death That Gives Birth*

        Communion experience. To die in Christ is to begin living the new eternal life. 

***Perfect Combination***

         Today's entrance  antiphon from 1 Samuel 2: I shall raise up for myself a faithful priest who will act in accord with my heart and mind, says the Lord. It struck me that obedience to God is truly a beautiful thing! In the Gospel reading from Luke 17, Jesus said to his 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." Here I was struck by the beauty of having a great faith. Obedience and faith do make a perfect combination that can lead us straight to eternal freedom!

**Communion Wish

        To vanish from the world and dwell in Christ alone 

***The Right or Wrong Approach***

       When you want to know and love God, you can focus upon Jesus or yourself. Usually, when we see that God is not that close to us, we start thinking how we can get closer to him. This is never that helpful because you still think that you can do it on your own. The right approach is to do the very opposite—you focus upon the Lord and forget all about yourself. Remain open to let him inspire you and draw you to him. This is relying upon the Lord and not yourself. This is how we should live the Christian life. Any message telling you that you can do it won't work, but if you trust that God can do it, then it'll be done for you. 

**Sinning Depicted

         This was what I saw mentally this morning. Every time we commit a sin, we grow a thorn that pokes out, making us look ugly and hurtful to others. When we repent and beg Christ's forgiveness, he plucks it out. We hurt a little and are healed, looking wholesome again.

***Smart Move*

        Communion time thoughts. Things happen unexpected all the time, so we are not in control at all! Realizing this, if you were smart, you would completely submit yourself to God. 

***Going All the Way with God (Most Exciting Living)***

        The LORD is infinitely good and powerful, so feel free to ask him to make you holy and great in his eyes. Do not limit him nor yourself! The more you trust in him, the more power you receive, and the better and happier you become. Only with God can you go all the way, for his mercy is unlimited and his riches inexhaustible. This way you gain all he has for you, and you'll be overwhelmed!

***Reverencing the Lord Always***

        In today's Gospel reading from John 2, Jesus cleansed the temple by driving out all those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers, for making his Father's house a marketplace. This makes me realize that we must reverence our churches as our Father's houses, especially if the Holy Eucharist is present in the tabernacle. In such cases, irreverent talking, unrestrained laughing, indecent dressing . . . would all be inappropriate. Last, if we regard ourselves yo be temples of the Holy Spirit, we should keep ourselves pure, blameless, and pleasing to God.

***Best Evidence for God's Existence

        Though we do not see God in person, the fact that Christ has come, told us all about the kingdom of God, died for us so that we might have eternal life and then rose from the dead is ample evidence that God exists and loves us. To believe in Christ is to believe in God, as he is God.  

***Christian Requisite*

       To be open to God and clean of heart always. 

*****Future of the Church?*****

        This is a disturbing video and it seems like we are heading in that direction. We need to beg for and trust in God's mercy!

***Our Biggest No-No***

         There is just one thing we must not do—it is sinning against God, the God of Christ. Remember this and persevere, and you'll be happy forever one day.

*****Great Communion Joy!

        I have akready said that the Eucharist, being God's most humble miracle, is his greatest miracle. To me, the transformation of the bread and the into the real body and blood of our Lord without any visible sign is absolute astounding! It's so earthshaking that should the earth know how great this miracle is, it would shake in its orbit. And if I can truly comprehend its greatness, my soul would leap out of my body for sheer joy!

***How We Impact Heaven***

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 15, Jesus addressed the parable of the lost sheep to the Pharisees and scribes. "What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance." We are like that man in the parable, and God who created us in his image is like us. The parable reveals how precious we are to God. So the question is "Do we want to bring joy or to bring sorrow to heaven?" Of course, our decision will greatly affect our own destiny too. 

*****Important Message for the Rich***

        In Matthew 19, Jesus said to his disciples, "Amen, I say to you, it will be hard for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." Now, one of gates into Jerusalem was named "The Eye of the Needle," and was quite small, since camels heavily loaded with goods would have to be unloaded to pass thru. If that were the eye of a needle Jesus had in mind, that would mean it's definitely possible for anyone rich to enter the kingdom of heaven, but he would have to unload all his possessions first. Anyway, all of us who are not poor should take this message seriously. If in practice we cannot unload all we have, we must at least become detached to it.

***Power of the Heart

         By choosing to submit yourself to Christ and follow his will, you are set free and become heaven bound—all done with a change of heart. 

**Exciting Following Christ*

         Communion experience. There's no limit to how deep you can enter union with the Lord, that is, no limit to how much you can love him. This is what makes following Christ exciting!

**Price/Reward Ratio Considered*

        When you follow Christ and become divorced from the world, there's a price to pay. But relative to the reward you'll be receiving, it's practically nothing. 

***Requisite for Discipleship

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus addressed the crowds, "If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple." The Lord spoke as the Lord God here, measuring our discipleship by how wholeheartedly we follow him. It's perfectly logical and makes sense that we should follow him with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind.

**Making Our Love Great**

        We show our love for others by helping them financially and/or materially; while Christ, whose love for us is most pure, wishes to save our souls foremost. So if we love others but are not concerned about their souls, then our love is not great enough. 

*****You Ain't See Nothing Until . . .*

you know Christ. As we grow up in this world, we see and learn new things every day. We can see the whole world and earn high degrees in various fields at colleges and universities. Our knowledge and vision are constantly expanding and this can be exciting. Then one day we run into Jesus Christ and discover the reality and truth, and our understanding and perception change completely. We now see the world to be utter lost and boring, heading into self-destruction. Only God and heavenly things are now meaningful and exciting. This is enlightenment and progress, as we are set free from sin and become new creatures in Christ. Existence now is fantastic and life totally fulfilled.

***Perfecting the Union***

        Communion experience. When you receives the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, you absorb him physically totally. If spiritual union doesn't follow, you have received him in vain—it's the spiritual part that completes the union, making it perfect. That is, we receive him physically in order to achieve spiritual union with him.

**What's Your Excuse?**

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus told the parable of the great feast. A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many. When the time for the dinner came, he dispatched his servant to say to those invited, ‘Come, everything is now ready.’ But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves. Today Jesus invites all of us to dine in the kingdom of God, but many reject his invitation, giving various excuses. Could it be that they want to play God themselves? If you really believe that Jesus' intention is bad or that he is false, I can respect that. But if you are not being honest with yourself, then I can't really respect you.  

***Power of God's Peace*

        Communion experience. When you receive the peace only the Lord can give that surpasses all understanding, you are ready to go to him, dropping your worries and concerns about all things. Basically, you are ready to comply with whatever he wants you to do at any time.

***Loving God***

        At morning Mass today, I felt so grateful to the Lord for having loved and saved me that I willingly surrendered all of myself to him. When you let God make you feel good, you gladly want to make him feel good to feel even better. Loving God becomes natural and a joy.

***Goal of the Christian**

         He is to forget all about himself and focus upon glorifying Christ alone. He is then set free and heading straight to heaven! 

***Most Precious Special Gift

         Communion experience. Historically, humans have sought the elixir of life, hoping to live forever; but do you really want to live in a sinful world like ours forever? The Holy Eucharist is in an entirely different class, for it can actually bring us into union with God so that we end up enjoying heaven for all eternity!

***Instant Perfection

        We are measured by how much we are like the Lord. So if we can love others like how he loves all of us, we become perfect.

**Compensating Physical Weakness**

        Today's offertory antiphon came from Psalm 103; Bless the Lord, O my soul, and never forget all his benefits. And he shall renew your youth like the eagle's. The last saying made me realize that God can renew us spiritually! It is most appropriate that as we age and grow weaker physically, we can always ask the Lord to help us grow stronger in him spiritually!

***Great Simple Secret***

        Today's Gospel acclamation based upon John 14: Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our our dwelling with him. Here's the secret of making the Lord God come to dwell within us! Wow!

***God's Special Mercy

        Only God our Father is perfect, whereas we can never be. Fortunately for us, as long as all our intentions stem from love and we do our best to carry out his will, it is good enough for him.  

**Reminder

        We want God to wipe out all evil, yet we want God to save everyone, for he loves us all. So pray for all evildoers, not hate them. 

***Ultimate Expression of Love***

         Jesus' laying down his own life for us

*****To All Whom God Loves*****

        Following the Solemnity of all Saints, we today commemorate All the Faithful Departed. As sinners, death is imminent for all of us. If we do not do anything about our sins, we are heading straight to hell. Now, Christ came to and died for us precisely to make it possible for us to change our course and go to heaven instead! He wishes that we would accept the Father's love for us and inherit the kingdom prepared for us from the foundation of the world! (Mathew 25:34) My loving advice to all: Prepare yourself now so that you may look forward to your day of departure from this world in peace and with joy.

**Letting Christ Heal Me*

        Communion experience. I let the Lord heal my entire psyche, my innermost.part, which only he can reach and touch.

***We Must Be Active Followers!

        In the Gospel reading from Matthew 5, Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount to the crowds. In the beatitudes, he said "blessed are the poor in spirit, they who mourn, the meek, they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the clean of heart, the peacemakers, they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, and you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me." Clearly, to follow Christ we must actively follow his example. To remain complacent, not getting involved with anything and only believing that he will take care of everything, just won't cut it!

***Our Best Day to Come***

        In reading 2 from 1 John 3, the author writes, "Beloved, we are God's children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." How exciting it is to know that one day we'll be like God the Father! We should look forward to that day with great joy and anticipation!

**Forever Happy Later!

        Today Nov. 1 is the Solemnity of All Saints. The first part of the offertory antiphon from Wisdom 3: The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. This is God's assurance that we who follow Christ will not suffer after we die. How comforting it is to know!