**God's Incredible Sweet Love**

        Today's Communion Antiphon based on 1 Peter 1: 18-19: By the precious Blood of Christ, the Blood of a spotless and unblemished Lamb, we have been redeemed. Read it again. Let it sink in. It all happened for our sake; let your heart be moved by God's most sweet love.

**World Divided by Truth**

        In today's Gospel reading from John 7, some in the crowd who had heard Jesus, words said, "This is truly the Prophet." Others, "This is the Christ." But still others said, "The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he?" So  a division occurred in the crowd  because of him. Of course, the Pharisees did not believe in the Lord at all and thought that the crowd was accursed. Today we also hold different opinions. To seek the truth, we must remain objective, open, and humble. Too many people today have pretty much decided to follow their own hardened hearts, even hoping that Christ is not the truth. That is being as bad as the Pharisees of Jesus' day.

***Reality We Must Be Aware Of***

        It may be a beautiful day, but we live in a chaotic world in which evil is waging a fearsome war against the Lord God, fighting for our very souls. How we live our lives will directly affect our eternal fate. To remain complacent, as if nothing earthshaking is happening or will happen to us, amounts to saying that Christ's coming and what he went through are irrelevant!

**Following Your Vision**

        Anyone without a vision will not get anywhere. For me, that vision is to return to my creator and Father in heaven after this life—a path already made possible through believing in and following Christ. The way has been paved, and it's only a matter of time before my vision is fully realized!

**Christ, Only One Worthy to Believe In**

        Christ challenges us all; he will not go away as long as we are alive on earth. Reading the Gospels alone compels us to ask if Jesus is truly our Lord and Savior, and the stakes are too high to ignore him. Personally, I totally believe in him because he is incredible and amazing. I don't think that any of us would be happy with a mundane and ordinary god. And there is simply no one else who can even compare to him.

**Reflections on Growing Old**

        Having lived quite a bit beyond normal life expectancy, I am totally ready to meet Christ, my Lord and my God—a blessing in which I greatly rejoice. When you are old, the energy is just not there, which is why you see old folks doze off easily. A nap or good rest replenishes the body; a weak battery that needs constant recharging is a good picture of this. We all become like old batteries if we live long enough. The important thing is that we remain strong and vigorous spiritually as we leave this life and enter eternity.

***Our Ultimate Fulfillment***

        This is to love and be in union with Christ forever.

**Salvation Made Simple**

        What impressed me today is God's tremendous love and his perfect plan of salvation for us. In today's Gospel reading from John 5, Jesus said to the Jews, "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life." It can't be any simpler! The Lord has done all the work—we only need to believe as he has asked.

**Know God's Motive Clearly*

        Today's Communion antiphon, John 3:17, reads, "God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him." We must be clear about God's motive: He only wants to save us, not to judge us. This should remove any fear we have of the Lord. If we ever get judged, it has to be the result of our own actions. 

***Transformative Moment with the Lord**

         Today is the Optional Memorial of Saint Patrick. The Gospel reading from Luke 5 is on the Call of Simon the Fisherman. Alongside the Lake of Gennesaret, Jesus got into one of the two boats, the one belonging to Simon. He asked him to put out a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch." Simon said in reply, "Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets." When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them. They came and filled both boats so that they were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him and all those with him. Simon Peter gave such a beautiful, heartfelt response, realizing who Jesus was and who he himself was. Would that we all could have such a transformative moment.

***Called to Be Saints***

        We are all called to be saints, yet no two are alike. The Lord knows each of us intimately—exactly how we should serve and glorify him. Be holy as he desires, letting him mold us every step of the way for an exciting life!

**A Clear Picture**

        You either belong to God or the world. If you are not with God, then you are with the world. Since the God of Christ is eternal and the truth, the bond you form with him will last forever; whereas the world passes, and any bond you form with it is unreliable and only temporary—afterwards, you'll be left all alone for all eternity.

**Suffering to Be Offered to God**

        Once you experience the sweet, sublime presence of the Lord, every other worldly experience becomes boring. When you hear people incessantly blab or gossip about trivial, mundane things, you feel as though you are being dragged away from the Lord—a feeling that can be unbearable! This is a form of suffering anyone in union with Christ undergoes, and is to be offer up to God.

***How We Are Set Free***

        Jesus is the light. On our own, we remain in darkness and are self-centered; thus we are not free. Basically, we have the blind leading the blind. When we follow Jesus, we remain in the light always and center on him. By getting ourselves out of the way, we are set completely free. I might add that we also experience one of the greatest possible feelings.

***Urgent Call to Repentance***

        In today's Gospel reading from John 6, Jesus opened the eyes of one born blind. The pastor's message was that God can open our eyes to see the truth, but we often choose to remain blind. We hear the good news, but we just close our hearts to it—how sad that our pride has hardened our hearts, causing the Lord great sorrow! It is time for us to repent, for we are crucifying him all over again!

***Ultimate Fulfillment Is . . .***

 living in the will of Christ, feeling exactly what he feels at all times.

**Positive Outlook*

        I see people dwelling on the past, wasting their limited, precious time on earth, whereas we should be focused on Christ the LORD full-time, praying and serving him, while waiting for the joyful day of joining him in heaven!

**Endless Love**

        I was impressed by the phrase "endless live" in a video I watched recently—it perfectly describes God's love for us. We must never cease to love others at every opportunity for his sake. This is how we progress spiritually toward living the eternal life. If we remain stagnant, we are, in reality, falling behind the Lord.

***We Are Out of Control Too!

        We lament the fact that in today's society, our children are often out of control, not realizing that as children of God the Father, we ourselves are often way out of control!

**We Must Take Sides

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 11, Jesus said to the crowds, "Whoever is not with me is against me." Therefore, we cannot remain neutral—unless you have never heard of Christ. We must take a stand, for we cannot ignore the Lord God!

***The LORD is the One

        Common experience. The Lord is eternal and remains the same forever. He loves me with an everlasting love and is most trustworthy. He is now my rock and my stronghold . . . how can I not feel elated!

**Ego, Begone!**

        I've been asking the Lord to completely eradicate my ego. Early this morning I had a dream in which I was with a group of friends and had the chance to show off a little bit; however, I decided against the whole idea. I actually felt good about that. Now I am happy that if I could do that subconsciously, I ought to be able to do even better consciously. Praise the Lord for that!

***Our Great Delight***

        Communion time thought. Pleasing the Lord is always a delight, and that delight is great when you allow him to perfect you.

***A Reminder and Warning***

        In today's Gopspel reading from Matthew 18, Jesus says to Peter, "Unless each of you forgives your brother and sister, the Father will not forgive you." Sadly, many people today do not take this critically important statement seriously. When you no longer fear God, you may end up facing exactly what you fear the most! 

**Spiritual Sweetness**

        Communion experience. The heavenly, divine sweetness of the Lord engulfed my soul.

***Christ Our Model to Imitate*

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 4, Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth: "Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place." Later, when they disliked what they heard, they were filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built to hurl him down headlong. Ultimately, he was even crucified. This should teach us never to complain if people reject or persecute us for the sake of the Lord.

**God's Eternal Outlook**

        Communion experience. The Lord, being eternal, aims at solving all our problems for eternity. Eternal life for us is his top priority, and we should be grateful to him for that.

*****Secret of Soaring to God Effortlessly*****

        Go passive and surrender yourself completely to God, and he will lift you all the way to his bosom. (This can be accomplished in instantly.)

**Living Not by Bread Alone**

        Also in today's Gospel reading from John 4, Jesus said to his disciples, "My food is to do the will of the one who sent me and to finish his work." Likewise, we should live by doing God's work; this is what sustains us.

**Sign You Are on Way to Eternal Life**

        In today's Gospel reading from John 4, Jesus, at Jacob's well in Sychar, saw a Samaritan woman come to draw water. He said to her, "Give me a drink." The woman responded, "How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?" Jesus answered, "If you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him and he would have given you living water... whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." If you feel that Christ has completely quenched your thirst, you are on your way to eternal life.

**Sign You Are with God**

        The first part of today's offertory antiphon from Psalm 19 reads, "The judgments of the Lord are right; they gladden the heart, and are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb." If you feel that way about the Lord's judgments and welcome them, you are already with him.

***Call to Believe***

        Many prominent scientists and notable individuals have studied the Shroud of Turin for decades, concluding that no human could have created the image and that the man on the cloth was a crucified person whose suffering matches the biblical description of Jesus. Recently, scientists have found the DNA on the Shroud to be unexplainable. Yet, some still think it might be just an anomaly. It seems some people never come to believe, no matter how overwhelming the evidence may be. For me, the moment I saw the image on the Shroud many years ago, I just knew that it was the Lord, and I believed!

***Pure Joy

        Communion time experience: To be in union with Christ is pure joy!

*****We Are Loved by God!*****

        Today's Gospel reading from Luke 15, the Parable of the Lost Son, beautifully illustrates how deeply our heavenly Father loves each one of us. You'd need to have a heart of stone not to be moved by it. It's incredible that we are loved so much, and when we return to him, all of heaven rejoices! 

**Cherishing the Lord**

        Communion experience: I deeply enjoy the Lord and his love.

**Another Simple Realization**

        If I don't do anything about my sin, it will destroy my soul!

**Simple Realization*

        The Lord is infinite, almighty, and holy, while I am finite, lowly, and a sinner; therefore, my place is to obey and follow him totally.

***Our Only Chance Now***

          This morning we heard the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus from Luke 16. After the poor man Lazarus died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died, and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he cried out, "Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames." Abraham replied, "My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented. Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing." He said, "Then I beg you, father, send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment." But Abraham replied, "They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them." He said, "Oh no, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent." Then Abraham said, "If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead."

       We have a poignant exchange here. Today we have Jesus the Lord among us. He is the only one who can save anyone who listens to him. It's strictly between each of us and the Lord: it is now or never!

**The Only Trustworthy One**

        We have from today's First reading, Jeremiah 17: A curse on those who trust in mortals; a blessing on those who trust in the Lord God.  It is true that we can never trust in any mortal fully, but we can trust in the Lord God unreservedly, for he takes care of us for all eternity.

**Resurrection Experience**

        Communion experience. The definition of resurrection is the act of rising from the dead. Without Christ, I was spiritually dead. When I received the Lord I believe in, I was saved and granted eternal life—a spiritual resurrection now, prior to my final resurrection.

***Recipe for Peace**

        If you want to have peace, don't look for it outside of you. Instead, let go of your ego so that you may trust in God fully.

**"Jesus Is Our Lord and Savior" Made Clear**

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 20, Jesus predicted his own Passion and Resurrection to his disciples. Then he said to them, "The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many." His purpose was also made clear; all has come to pass. This leaves no doubt that he is our Lord and Savior.

**Manifestation of God's Love**

         Communion experience: When we love God, his love for us turns into mercy.

**Proper Behavior in God's Presence*

         Since the Lord is ever-present, we must always remain humble.

**Not Practicing What You Preach**

        In today's Gospel reading rom Matthew 23, Jesus denounced the scribes and the Pharisees for not practicing what they preach. As long as our ego still exists, we are not as good as we sound. Sometimes it's better for us to listen than to preach. Anyway, preaching should be motivated by the Holy Spirit, not your ego. 

**How We Need God*

        If you feel good after repenting of your sins to God, it clearly shows that you did sin and God can take away your sins. For this reason alone, we need God.

**Bang-Up Job**

        Communion experience—the Lord entered and banished all my sins forever!

****Sinners' Concern****

        We are all born with a conscience, meaning it is impossible for us to ignore that we are sinners. When we do things that steal our peace of mind and cause us to hide, it shows we have sinned. If we don't address this, we are sure to face eternal death. The good news is that if we confess our sins to God and ask him to take them away, we are saved forever.

**Cause for Great Joy**

        Today I realize that no matter how imperfect I am, Christ will always be with me. Being abandoned or lost is impossible now; I am all set for eternity!

**Everlasting Faith!

        Today's Entrance Antiphon, Psalm  27:8-9, reads: Of you my heart has spoken: Seek his face. It is your face, O Lord, that I seek; hide not your face from me. There are many other verses in Psalms that earnestly seek and express a longing for the Lord. It is amazing! Since now we have Christ, the Son of God, who descended into the world to be with us for 33 years, we should feel closer to God more than ever!