"Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48)

Friday, January 31, 2025

**Power of God's Word**

        This morning at Mass, I sensed the power of God's word. If you would listen to it with all your heart and with all your soul, it will wholly transform you anew!

*****A Most Serious Message***

         Revelation 3:16: Because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. If we do not take the LORD seriously, we are being lukewarm. For example, thinking that we are good enough to get into heaven as we are, choosing to disobey some of the Church teachings we don't agree with, believing that God won't be too harsh on us, confessing your sins without genuine repentance (this is a most serious sin), lack of humility; trusting in God but slack in doing any work, not wishing to go all out for the LORD; not always meaning what you say, etc. Is all this being rather strict? No, because if you do take God seriously (are hot), your reward will be no less than eternal bliss in heaven!

**Jesus Can Save Us Because . . .

he can make us holy.

Thursday, January 30, 2025

*Spiritual Rejuvenation

        Communion experience. I completely opened up to the LORD to let him eradicate all that shouldn't be in me and fill me with what should be in me to the full.

**Reason Christ Is Unwelcome*

        People turn away from Christ not because he is false or wrong, but because, on the contrary, he is the truth and the light that makes all those who dwell in darkness feel uncomfortable.

***Simple Rule to Follow*

        In today's Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus said to his disciples, "The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you." This is all we need to know to have God set the standards we want him to apply to us. The "power" is in our handsSo always treat others the way you would want God to treat you.

***Spiritual Joy Par Excellence***

        There is so much beautiful music I can listen to, yet I find sensing Christ's holy presence in silence a lot more satisfying and rewarding.         

Wednesday, January 29, 2025

**Praying to Restore Relationships*

        Many people have trouble getting along with others, be they friends or family members. To remedy this, you need to get the Lord involved. That is, you need to pray for those you don't get along with on their behalf, not viewing them as enemies. When you pray with love, you'll find yourself changing for the better too.

***Being Aware of God's Presence

         As you follow Christ, how often does your mind dwell on him? Is 60% the usual academic passing grade good enough? I do advocate seeking union with God through the Holy Eucharist for all Catholics. For once you attain union, you'll be aware of God's holy presence at all times.

***Best Tidings for Us*****

        We can never be good enough on our own to enter heaven, but Christ can make that a certainty if we believe in him. This is truly the best possible news for humankind!

Tuesday, January 28, 2025

***Timely Message

        I came across this video which is a 5-minute excerpt from a much longer speech given by President Donald Trump at the Arab Islamic American Summit held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in May, 2017. It's a message still good and worth listening to today.

****Most Pitiful State

        I am thinking about those who do not know or have Christ. When they die, not truly knowing what awaits them, helplessly they enter the unknown. What a pitiful state!

***The Only One***

         Communion time thoughts. Christ is the only one we need to listen to, follow, obey, please, and imitate.

**Happy Ending*

        We first realize that God loves us unconditionally and wants to save us from sin so that we may have eternal life. Then we realize that we are poor sinners who are not even worthy to receive him. This makes us fall in love and desire to attain union with him. Joy and gratitude now fill our whole being.  

***Living a Most Blessed Life and Improving***

          Today is the Memorial of Saint Thomas Aquinas. First reading antiphon from Hebrews 10:7: Behold, I come to do your will, O God. The response from Psalm 40: Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will. Gospel acclamation, Mark 3.35: Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother. It seems that the main message for today is to do God's will. Certainly this should be our No.1 goal in following Christ, for it will please him the most and get us into heaven. It is the way to live a most blessed life!
     
To do God's will perfectly requires perfect union with him. If we haven't surrendered fully to God yet, our ego can still dictate what we do. For example, someone says something that makes us look bad in some way; we without hesitation start to justify ourselves and even think of retaliation. You see, we are so ingrained in reacting the way we normally do and don't even consider how Christ would have reacted in such a situation. Of course, he had always remained calm and turned his other cheek, showing his great humility and meekness. Granted, we'll never be able to be as pefect as he, but we can certainly become more submissive to him to become more like him.  

Monday, January 27, 2025

**Christ Completing My Life*

        Communion experience. Christ completes my joy in this life with my eternity all set.

***Pity the Sinful World*

        Christ is like the brightest light shining over us, yet much of the world, blinded by pride and enslaved in sin, remains in darkness. Is there any hope for all those people? Of course, but only if they'd let Christ into their hearts. For now, they behave like spoiled brats telling the heavenly Father to leave them alone. 

Sunday, January 26, 2025

**Living in Joy*

        You love Christ the Lord and receive his joy unceasingly. Every moment of your life now is a joyful one.

*****Pure Perfection***

         You are in full union with the Lord, knowing and understanding his ways and thoughts. You pray for what pleases him the most. He hears you and answers your prayer just the way you'd wanted. 

***Secret Love of Christ*

         This is his love for us to be shared with the whole world, but to be enjoyed secretly between he and you.

**Opposite Effect**

        Let the love of God crush you, and amazingly you'll feel free and more elated than ever!

**Questions for All*

        If we are not God and only he is, then who are we to reject his love for us? What good reason do we have? 

***Taking the Lord Seriously*

        If you truly believe that Christ has saved you so that you now have eternal life, you'd be walking around radiating joy at all times! If you don't feel that way yet, you haven't quite taken the Lord seriously. 

***Greatest Possible Union***

        In today's reading 2 from 1 Corinthians 12, Paul writes that all us followers of Christ are parts of Christ's one body. Therefore, if we all attain union with the LORD, we would have the greatest possible union in Christ and become the most powerful force for the good of humanity and the glory of God..

Saturday, January 25, 2025

**To the Strongly Opinionated

        There are many today who are strongly opinionated. This is OK if you also have the humility to listen to others' opinions. Unfortunately, they think that their opinions are always correct or the best. If they do not change in time, they'll be liable to judgment. 

***God's Healing Love***

        Today's Communion experience. I see God's healing power stemming form his great love for us. This love we need to accept fully so that we may be healed fully before returning to him. 

***Only Way Forward for Us**

        God remains holy forever, but we sinners can change and improve spiritually. So let's get going so that we may have life forever.

***Sign Jesus is God***

         Reading the Gospels, you realize that Christ is one whom you have to either accept or reject, for he is either all true or all false. To me, this clearly shows that he is God.

**Process of Becoming Holy*

        Remain in union with the Lord to keep your soul pure. Then you'll have a pure heart followed automatically by pure thoughts are pure deeds. Now you are holy.

Friday, January 24, 2025

**Viewing the Less Fortunate

        Matthew 9:35-36: Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. Jesus showed his compassion and pitied the people. We must also pity the less fortunate, especially the lost who don't have Christ guiding them. And we must never look down on or judge them.

*****Following the Lord Is Easy If . . .***

        We've heard said that nothing is impossible for God. This means that if we are intent on doing his will, we'll succeed without fail. We can also say that everything that's OK with him is virtually done. It follows that attaining union with God thru the Holy Eucharist is totally within our reach. In fact, if we open up and be totally receptive to the Lord, doing his will becomes natural and effortless.

***How to Make Christ No.1

        Do Everything in his holy name (or in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit).       

Thursday, January 23, 2025

***The One to Be With***

        Communion experience. It was crystal clear to me that Christ is the one to be with for all eternity! Looking for someone else would simply be a waste of time!

***Sin Our No.1 Issue***

        Sin is not to be ignored; in fact, it's the foremost issue we need to deal with, for it makes our life miserable now and can ruin our soul forever! To fight sin, seek union with God through the Hoy Eucharist. Once you attain union, sin will become absolutely repulsive to you. Being holy always gives you the best feeling, for it is what you'll feel in heaven.

****God Clearly Exists****

        It seems that our hearts beat and lungs breathe on their own, keeping us alive. What makes that possible? Is it food and water? If so, how do the various organs involved know how to play their part right? In the case of a piece of machinery or a moving vehicle, we can easily trail to the power source, but they really have no life. This points to the existence of a creator who actually keeps us alive. The fact that we also possess a conscience adds credence to that. Finally, Scriptures make it absolutely clear that God did create us and in fact, he is our loving Father in heaven.

**Are Chastisements Fair?

        The Lord God chastises his people from time to time when they become deeply immoral and corrupt. The flood at Noah's time was one example. You might wonder why the righteous also got wiped out. Well, dying is not the end of the world. In fact, for the righteous it's the beginning of a happy new life, not a punishment at all! It's whether we are going to live or perish forever after we die that matters.

Wednesday, January 22, 2025

*****Must-Have for Following Christ***

         The messages I've been posting so far are all common sense ones. They are usually brief, to the point, and presented at the elementary level. That has to do how the Lord has made me. I always feel that I am just a kindergarten kid before the Lord, so he treats me like one, and I really appreciate that. I've learned that to know God, you don't need much of an education ... instead, a childlike trust will work wonders. You may be an entirely different kind of person, but if you have faith and humility, the Lord will know exactly how to "make use of" you for your great good and his glory. 

**Preparing for Life*

       Our time on earth is the time we have for preparing ourselves for heaven, not for any other purpose. Repentance, prayer, loving God ... are all part of the process. We prepare for life, not death, for death will take care of itself. Rejoicing is in order for having such a loving Father, saving us from sin and having a place ready for each of us.

**Perfect Salvation**

        Communion experience. Christ prepares me for returning to the perfect Father in the perfect place to live the perfect life forever! 

*Realistic, Sensible Acknowledgment*

        It's a given that God is always perfect and we are most imperfect. Acknowledge this reality and let him make you as perfect as possible. This is being realistic and sensible to the max.

**Life-Long Leaerning*

        When we play God, deep down we know it because we lose our inner peace. Our whole struggle in life is about whether we should let God be God or not. Like always, we'll have quick learners, slow learners, and never-learners. Just be sure that you don't end up in that last category. 

**Minding Our Obedience Only*

        We know that God is in charge and everything will work out right according to his plan. If we follow his will, things may get worse before getting better. And if we go against his will, things may even be OK before worsening. My point is that for our own good, we always obey the Lord and leave the outcome entirely to him, knowing that he'll be victorious in the end. This is faith extraordinaire and total abandonment in God.

Tuesday, January 21, 2025

*****Momentous Moment***

        Communion experience. I received exactly what the Apostles received at the Last Supper ... the same Lord, the same bread. It was a momentous moment!

**Division That Matters**

         In John 8:51, Jesus said, "Whoever keeps my word will never see death." So each of us can be seen as one who keeps God's word or one who doesn't. The end result will be consequential! Do take this saying seriously.

***Source of Inner Peace***

        Total surrender to Christ the Lord is it. Now you know exactly why, when you feel restless.        

**Christ, the Peace Restorer**

        Whenever we commit a sin or make a mistake, we lose our peace. If it's a sin, you only need to turn to Christ, repent and ask him to forgive you, then he'll do just that and your peace is restored. In the case of an unintended mistake, get to know him well and you'll lose your pride over time. Then such a mistake just won't ever bother you again. 

Monday, January 20, 2025

***Ultimate Fulfillment***

         It is fulfilling what God wills for you always. 

**Remaining New

         Communion experience. The Lord renews me as needed. In union with him, you remain new.

***Becoming like Christ*

        When you are willing to die for Christ's sake, you have become like him. 

***Proof Jesus Is God***

        In union with Christ, you truly experience peace, freedom, and joy, the kind the world cannot possibly give. This is clear proof that Jesus Christ is indeed God.  

**Constant Joy of Having Christ

         In today's Gospel reading from Mark 2, people came to Jesus and asked, "Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?" Jesus answered them, "Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast." Since we have the Lord with us at all times, we really should feel and show our joy at all times.   

***Impressive Thought (a Truth)***

        Last night this thought impressed on me like a warning, even waking me up from my sleep. It was that We must never let our soul fall into a hellhole. For if it we let that happen in this life, we'll be stuck in one forever in our next life! I hope you'll see that this is a truth.

**Sad State of the Nation*

         This supposedly Christian nation is more secular and materialistic than ever. There are always faithful Christians for sure, but most people, Christians included, avoid facing Christ squarely. What makes it worse is that there are now more and more haters of Christianity, mocking and blaspheming the Lord. Even the Church has gone apostate. We are certainly in end times!

Sunday, January 19, 2025

***Love Song to the Lord*

        The Spanish hymn "Pescador de Hombres" (Fisher of Men) is beautifully covered by two Korean Catholic musicians and a Chilean sister. The singer is Junho Chu.

***Soul-Melting Moment

        Communion experience, To receive the Lord in the Eucharist is to allow him to completely melt your soul (and heart).

***Have You Attained Union with God?

        When you know that you are in union with Christ, you have.

*****Smart, Sensible Living***

        The Lord God, our loving creator, is the only one who can heal our soul. At Mass before we receive the Eucharist, we always ask the Lord to do that. Know that not only he can take away our sins, he can also heal all our inner wounds, hangups, repressed thoughts, etc. After complete healing, we are ready to grow holier or enter heaven. 

*****Spiritual Law*****

        The more we submit ourselves to the God of Christ, the more he exalts us and sets us free.  

**Through God Always*

        Do all things thru the Lord. If you want to convert someone, don't say "I am going to do it." Instead, say "I am going to turn to the Lord to ask him to do it." Now you'll be armed with great power to do the work intended.

***Under God's Watchful Eye*

        The Lord God knows all about us ... our every thought, our every word, and our every deed. If we become acutely aware of this, it should lead us to holiness! Know that the Lord is not with us to censure us; he only wants to keep us on the path that'll lead us to eternal salvation.

Saturday, January 18, 2025

**Sad State of Us Humans**

        Here's a simple question. It we do believe that God is almighty and that he created us and knows all about us, shouldn't we just drop everything and kneel down or prostrate ourselves before him to worship him? If it so happened that God even loves us, that would make it even more compelling for us to do so. Sadly, so many people are even attacking Christianity—it just shows how Evil has taken hold of so many of us. 

*****The Light to Be In*****

        Jesus is our light. In him, we see the whole truth crystal clear and know right from wrong, no more confusion or doubts. We also know exactly where we're heading. You cannot possibly feel any better

***Crucial Test of the Catholic Faith***

       In John 6, Jesus told the crowd that he is the bread of life that came down from heaven and whoever eats his flesh and drinks his blood would live forever. The Jews found it hard to accept this saying; even some of the disciples left him. For all Catholics who believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, you pass this crucial test of your faith. For those who don't, they are not truly Catholics. The following video bolsters the belief that the Eucharist is the flesh and blood of Christ. (I am starting it at 6:10 and you only need to watch it to 9:28 to catch the part relevant to this post.)

**A Perfect Day the Lord Has Made*

        I felt upbeat this morning. The Lord has chosen me, saved me, and is taking me to him; I am in a state of grace and on my way to receiving him at Mass. It was a perfect day!

Friday, January 17, 2025

*****An Epiphany Moment!*****

        God has always existed and will continue to exist forever, for he is infinite. We were created by him at a certain time and remain finite. Not understanding that God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all in so many other ways, we tend to think that we are quite able ourselves and know a lot on our own—this precisely causes our downfallIf we could see and understand everything just like the Lord, everything about him would make perfect sense to us! So accept infinity: Time, the universe, God's power and love ... are all infinite, and you'll be a lot happier!

***God Warns Us thru Fires***

        All the natural disasters that happen to us, I believe, are warnings from God. This NDE story on the current California wildfires is believable. Whether it's true or not, the message is beneficial for us to hear. (Video length: 15:39)

Blunt Observation*****

         After we depart from this world, we'll either be welcomed or rejected by the Lord God, depending upon how we treat him now in this life.

***Most Beautiful Thing in Our Existence***

        The Lord God has created us out of pure love. This is why we can sense in our soul that his love is the most beautiful thing in our existence! 

***Levels of existence***

        God is infinitely higher than we. If I strictly live on my own, I simply remain on the lowest level of existence, experiencing confinement and turmoil. When I attain union with God, he dwells in and takes care of me—I now reach the highest possible level of existence, seeing everything from the top down and experiencing peace and freedom. 

**Requisite for Following Christ

        Today is the Memorial of St. Anthony, abbot. The Communion antiphon based on Matthew 19:21 reads: If you would be perfect, go, sell what you have, give to the poor, and follow me, says the Lord. If you are a single person, that may be easy to accomplish. As for anyone who has a family or cannot practically do that for whatever reason, you can always practice getting yourself detached from all material things.

Thursday, January 16, 2025

***Right Attitude to Receiving Communion***

        In Complete surrender to God's will

**Believing to the Letter*

        If you truly believe that Jesus is your Lord and your God, you have no choice but to follow and obey him to the full. Otherwise, you are not a true believer yet. In Matthew 5:37, Jesus said to his disciples, "Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.

**Conditioning the Heart*

        Today's Psalm 95 response: If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts. Our hearts allow God to enter us or not. A closed hardened heart can shut you out of God's kingdom forever, while a soft open heart lead you to full union with him. The difference couldn't be greaterThus, be wise and offer your heart up to God to let him make it humble and pliable for you to live the best possible life. 

***A Christian's Foremost Goal

        To bring all to believe in and love Christ, not minding how you'll be received by them.

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

***True Love***

         **If you don't care about the salvation of all the souls or don't forgive all the sinners, then the love of God is not in you, and you need to seek his forgiveness and mercy without delay. 

***Total Submission

        Communion experience. I wish not to possess the Lord, but rather to be possessed by him. 

***Most Imporant Prayer***

         It's the Our Father Christ taught us. Not only it defines the role of a Christian, it is also the prayer against which we'll be measured and by which, judged.

**Essence of Prayer

        In prayer, how sincere and trustful you are matters infinitely more than how perfectly it's said. For God listens to your heart, not your voice.

**Great Consolation*

        Today I feel very much what David wrote in Psalm 139:7-10: Where can I go from your spirit? From your presence, where can I flee? If I ascend to the heavens, you are there; if I lie down in Sheol, there you are. If I take the wings of dawn and dwell beyond the sea, even there your hand guides me, your right hand holds me fast. The Lord is everywhere present with me, and it's such a great consolation to me!

Tuesday, January 14, 2025

*****The Only One***

         Love the one who loves you with the greatest possible love and trust in the one who is completely trustworthy. The two turn out to be the same one, Jesus the Christ. Alleluia!

**Getting into Heaven Ways*

         We can be barely good enough to get into heaven or make it there with flying colors. The former case could be someone who sins most of his life and finally repents in the last minute of his life. The Lord has the door open just wide enough for him to squeeze through. The latter mostly likely would be someone who is quite holy and blameless, and the door to heaven is held open for him at all times. Since I want to avoid going through purgatory in order to get to the Lord without delay, I much prefer doing it the second way.

***Facing God's Wrath (Big No-No)**

         God is always loving, merciful, and patient. He proclaims the truth, leaving us to decide whether to accept him or not. We won't be judged until after we leave this world. But if we totally reject, disobey, or revile him, we'll definitely face his wrath after we die. And he'll say to us, "I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers" (Matthew 7:23). This is something we should never ever hope to hear from the Lord, for even dying from a head-on collision would be better.

Monday, January 13, 2025

**Heavenly Experience**

        Communion experience. Experiencing Christ is experiencing heaven. 

**Yearning for the Lord**

        Once you fall in love with Christ, you just want to be with him every single moment. Today it's his holiness that especially makes me yearn for him..

***The Three L's***

        They are Love, Life, and Light. We already know that God is love and Jesus is God. In John 8, Jesus declared: "I am the light of the world. In John 14, "I am the way and the truth and the life." But he is more—he is everything that's good for us!

***Wise Advice

        One of my brothers-in-law just passed away. He's one I'd been praying for for decades. The good news is that he finally accepted Christ as Savior before he left. It'd be so much better that we all accept the Lord as early as possible to maximize our time of enjoying peace, freedom, and joy on earth. Christ can save us in an instant—why procrastinate? Also, when the soul is at stake, we mustn't take any risk.

Saturday, January 11, 2025

***Where Is God?***

        The current Los Angeles areas fires are still raging out of control. So far on day 5, thousands and thousands of structures have been damaged or destroyed, and close to 20,000 people have evacuated. There are people now starting to ask where God is. Here are some of my thoughts. If you think that God should not let bad things happen to us, then you are mistaken. God does not guarantee that we'll be happy in this life; he only promises that we'll be happy in our next life if we believe in him. As long as we sin, bad things will inevitably happen to us either as a warning or punishment. Also, misfortune is not necessarily bad for us. Let's look at two cases. A young person loves God very much, dies from a tragic accident, and goes to heaven; another unbeliever never has anything bad happening to him, lives to 100, dies peacefully in sleep, and did not make heaven. Which of the two is the fortunate one? I think you get my point. Yes, the Lord God is always with us. We are the ones who try to configure him to suit our like. By the way, pray for the victims of the LA fires if you feel so called.

**Totasl Fulfillment**

         Common experience. I know that Christ is my endpoint; there is no one else I can go to nor want to go to. He alone fulfills my existence completely.

***Christian Privilege*

        A sinner who does not repent of his sins piles sin upon sin, causing his soul to sink lower and lower—what a horrible state to even think about! On the other hand, a Christian repents and gets his sins taken away by Christ and remains clean at any time. What a delight state to be in!

***Our One and Only Obligation***

         It is to do everything for the glory of God, the God of Christ, no matter who you are.

**Christ the Judge of All**

        We'll all be judged by Christ. In the case of someone who doesn't know anything about him, he'll be judged by how much he loves others. In the case of a Christian, he'll be judged by how faithful he is in following the Lord. And there are numerous cases falling between these two extremes. I can't say what will happen to them, but I know that Christ will always be merciful and just in dealing with them. 

Friday, January 10, 2025

**Fundamental Prayer**

        So many evildoers continue doing evil publicly, showing no sign of remorse. I feel sorry for them because they don't seem to realize that we go from life to death in no time, for we are either alive or dead. Having no concern about the consequences of one's actions borders on lunacy. Only God can help us develop a sharp conscience. So pray unceasingly that every single one of us will come to know Christ and be saved.

*****God's Perfect Gift for Us***

        Communion time thouights. By accepting and consuming the Holy Eucharist, the perfect gift God has given us, we can become holy and perfect, and eternal life is ours! In John 6:51, Jesus has said, "I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world."

*****Choosing to Live the Best Life***

        In Matthew 16:25, Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.We have two lives to live, our brief life on earth and our eternal life after death. The time we have on earth is all the time we have for preparing ourselves for our next life. Our present life we'll have to give up for sure at the end, then our next life will be ours forever, good or bad. So it'd be super smart to give up our present life for Christ's sake so that we'll end up living with him in heaven forever. If you don't let go of it now, you'll lose it shortly afterwards and spend eternity far far away from him who was your only Savior.

Thursday, January 9, 2025

**Key to Entering Heaven

        Since only the humble will repent their sins to God, humility becomes the key to entering heaven.

**Taking Advantage of God's Mercy*

        The Lord God is forever merciful and ready to grant us whatever we need to make me holy, free, and ready for returning to him in heaven. How much blessing we receive would depend upon how receptive we are. Since his mercy and generosity know no bounds, always go all out to receive all he has ready for us. 

**Sure About Going to Heaven?*

        How sure are you about going to heaven? Maybe is not a good enough answer. If you are not absolutely sure, you need to work on that. Again, work doesn't mean struggle here. Instead you need to let go in God even more. Once you are 100% sure, you'll live a new life in freedom. With God, faith and trust is everything.

**Our Only Hope**

        We all need God, not just for our salvation, but also for solving the problem of not getting along with each other on earth. Just look at any number of families, chances are most of them have at least one member not getting along with another. The same happens in any government and among the nations worldwide. We, of course, are incapable of fundamentally changing ourselves unless we let God our creator transform our hearts and purify our souls. Here's another reason we need the Lord God in our lives. 

**Love and Humility**

         Today's entrance antiphon: In the beginning and before all ages, the Word was God and he humbled himself to be born Savior of the world. God is love and most humble. Love and humility go hand in hand. You cannot love God or others if you have a lot of pride, and you cannot be humble if you don't love anyone. To be like God, we must learn to be humble. To get into heaven, humility must be your password.  

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

*****An Epiphany Moment***

         One big realization is that we are sinners and we need salvation. The other big one is that Christ is our Savior who loves us and has already died and paved the way to salvation for us. Now, if we hear a big click, realizing that these two are inherently integrated like cause and effect, then we have a new hope, a new joy, a new beginning, and a new journey! It is truly life-changing! 😇😇😇

***It-Is-I Moment***

        Today's Gospel reading from Mark 6 is mainly about Jesus walking on water. When the disciples from the boat first saw Jesus walking on the sea toward them about the fourth watch of the night, they thought it was a ghost and were terrified. But at once he spoke with them, "Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!" I wonder if you ever have moments hearing the Lord say "It is I" to you. Most likely, I think we hear it when he has a message for us. Whenever I have something to blog from my heart, I know that it's from him. I treasure hearing his voice because it lets me know that he loves me and I am one of his sheep. 

***Praying Alone a Must

        In today's Gospel reading from Mark 6, after Jesus had multiplied the five loaves and two fish and fed the five thousand, he made his disciples get into the boat to precede him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. Then he went off to the mountain to pray. It strikes me that it's really important that we spend time with God alone. We are so occupied doing the many things of the world that we practically lose touch with him altogether. Worshipping the Lord with others at Mass is necessary, but praying to him on our own is equally important. This is to truly enjoy his company, get to know him as a friend, and learn to become like him.

Tuesday, January 7, 2025

***Way to Find Rest**

        Communion experience. I am home, no more drifting, wandering, or searching. In Christ I find my eternal rest! Here's the most efficient way to find rest in the Lord: Go straight to him, open up fully to let him draw you to him, and you are home. (The Holy Eucharist can serve as a great catalyst in this process.)  

**Live What You Believe In**

        Nothing is impossible for God. Common sense alone tells us so. He has always existed, so he has to be almighty. If that were not true, how would he be able to manage our little planet, let alone the vast universe with seemingly infinite stars and galaxies? So if you believe that God, the God of Christ, that is, for there are no other qualified candidates that can even approach him, then you should live what you believe in by placing your whole trust in Christ!

Monday, January 6, 2025

*****Eternal Life Secret*****

        When we live for Christ, we are so happy that we are willing to die for him, then we "find out" that we are going to live forever! It should be obvious that if we are afraid of dying, we really need to live for Christ or we'll surely die.

***Plain Reality (Blunt Truth)***

         Jesus is our creator and our loving God. Without him, we wouldn't even exist. Not believe in him and we become lost souls, for there's no on else who can save us.

**Disadvantage in an Antichrist World*

        In today's first reading from 1 John 3-4, the Apostle talks about the antichrist and the world. It made me realize that we are already starting off with an antichrist world; so to follow Christ, we need to be set free from it in order to belong fully to the Lord. I hope that realizing this disadvantage will make us all the more  want to become detached from the world as quickly as possible. 

***Know How Much We Can Hurt God!***

         We all know that when we sin, we hurt the Lord, but do we really feel it? Say someone we don't care for much ignores or offends us, that probably wouldn't affect us much. Then if it were our own son or daughter whom we love very much doing it to us, I'm sure we'd feel greatly hurt. Now, our God loves us with the greatest possible love, even dying for us on a cross so that we might enjoy heaven. Imagine how much he would feel hurt if we ignore or offend him! That would be beyond our grasp! If you could experience a tiny fraction of how he feels, I am sure that you'd never want to sin against him again!

Sunday, January 5, 2025

**Our Dreams vs. God's Will

        Chasing after our own dreams for personal gain invariably leads to a feeling of emptiness of life, while doing God's will always fulfills the desires of our hearts. 

***Best Thing You Can Do***

        When you surrender yourself totally to God, your estrangement from him is no more, now everything about you is made right, and heaven rejoices. This is the best thing you can possibly do for both God and yourself! 

***Sharing God's Joy*

        Let the love of Christ overwhelm you completely and you'll receive the joy that lasts forever!

**Sharpening Our Conscience**

        Only by knowing Christ and God's love for us shall we be able to discern clearly what's right and what's wrong.

***What Following Christ Entails

        A Christian in union with Christ is always joyful and content; he does not complain about anything. Suffering will be his only burden when he sees the world offending the Lord, then he will offer it up to him to console him. Following Christ is to be with him every step of the way.  

Saturday, January 4, 2025

***Relationsiop with God Test

        Christ Jesus is to be enjoyed and appreciated now and forever. If you don't experience much joy with him, your relationship with him is still not quite up to par yet. 

***Definitive Proclamation*

        Today is the Memorial of St. Elizebeth Ann Seton. John 6:51 is the Communion antiphon: I am the living bread from heaven, says the Lord. Whoever eats this bread will live forever; the bread I shall give is my flesh for the life of the world. Here is one definitive statement made by Christ. The message is so clear that to reject it, you'll have to know that Christ totally didn't know what he's talking about or it's because your pride has blinded your mind's eye.

Friday, January 3, 2025

*****One Worth Dying For*****

        One burger joint named Murder Burger used to advertise that their burgers were to die for. Classical music lovers talk about music-to-die-for recordings. Of course, here something to die for simply means something you really like or want, not something that's truly worth dying for. The only exception is Christ our Lord and our God. For if you are willing to die for him, you'll surly inherit eternal life! Live for him and you live forever! The one who has died for us purely out of love is the one truly worth dying for.

**Revealing Detail*

        In today's Gospel reading from John 1, John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, 'A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.'" Although John the Baptist was six months older than Jesus, since he knew who Jesus really was, it's correct for him to say that Jesus existed before him. The Lord God had revealed the truth to John.

*****Warning Against Laxity*****

        According to St. Teresa of Avila, a bad confession can land a Catholic in hell. My point is that in dealing with the Lord God with our soul at stake, we must not take any chance. There are many who think that they are basically good people and God is not going to care about every little thing they do that might not be right—well, their are dead wrong here! The Lord God is merciful, but that doesn't mean that he should lower standards. Remember that he did ask us to be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect! He remains fair and just, and we must take him seriously. In fact, for the sake of securing our soul for eternity, it'd be wise to over-prepare ourselves for our final judgment. If we don't need the extra merit earned ourselves, the Lord can always use it to benefit other souls.

Thursday, January 2, 2025

*****Urgent Advice to All*****

        Lately, I have blogged that God is always calling us. Anytime you do something and lose peace, it's the Lord trying to get your attention. He wants you to turn to him to seek help and guidance from him. What I want to add here is that if you persist in remaining hard-hearted, the Lord would have no choice but to get your attention by doing something like hitting you on the head, so to speak. When that happens, it won't be pleasant and may even shock you! So be smart and turn to him list it happens to you. Although God is even capable of giving you a last chance to choose him when you're on death bed, I wouldn't take that chance. It's total foolery to push the Lord to the point of losing your eternal life altogether! Amen.

**Abandonment to God*

        Communion experience. You just let the Lord draw you to him as close as possible, letting him do whatever he wishes with you, knowing that you'll always receive the very best from him. Trust in God is the fountainhead of our peace.

***Ready to Go to God***

        Once you attain union with God through the Holy Eucharist, you know you are ready to go to him. Then your time may not be up yet; nevertheless, you feel good about it!

***Proper Way to See Christ***

         He is our God, creator, and Savior, who wishes to transform us into a new creature fit to enter heaven. As the eternal truth that has always existed, he is to be discovered, believed in, loved and worshipped with all our heart. So we must never ignore him, doubt him, or offend him in any way.

***Amazing, Unique Power***

        Today's psalm response from Psalm 98: All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God. Any power we have is incompetence compared to God's. Of all his powers, his saving power is unique, for only he can save us from sin, and extraordinary, for it's purely motivated by love. How good it is to have a living God and Father who loves us so!

Wednesday, January 1, 2025

***Secret to Inner Peace*

         Give Christ your heart and mind and ask him to root out all your impure desires and plant pure ones in you, and he'll easily accomplish that for you.

***Three Inherent Needs**

        Today's is the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. We all need a perfect father, and the Lord God, our creator, is that Father. We all need a perfect mother, and Holy Mary, the Blessed Virgin, is that Mother. Then we need a perfect friend and soulmate, and Jesus, our Savior, is that friend and soulmate. There you have all these inherent needs met.

**Salvation 101*

         God always loves us; we sinners are free to love or reject him. If we love him, we'll be welcomed to return to him. If not, we'll get ourselves cast out by him forever.

**First Supplication of the Year**

        In our secular society, the family is no longer a strong unit. Late last night just before New Year began, I learned of the sad breakup in a family I know. Essentially, you have the grandparents wrangling with the son's family. Normally, in such a situation, caring relatives and friends would offer a lot of secular advice. Unfortunately, without including God, this kind of conflict just cannot be resolved fully without a change of heart on all those involved. And God is the only one who can fundamentally change our hearts! I'd like to start the New Year off by praying that he will shield all families in the world from attacks by the Evil One.