Sr. Mary Samuele

        I came across this website 

http://www.salvationisfromthejews.com/samuele.html  about Sister Mary Samuele.  After it was discovered that she had cancer spreading through her body, she was hospitalized.  Her novice directress writes, "The last four months of Sr. M. Samuele's life were nothing more than the breaking loose, in all its tenderness and fury, of God's love for her..."  Sister herself said, "He has broken me down completely. He can do whatever he wants with me."

        It's so beautiful to have God break loose his love to break someone down.  It would be the experience of a lifetime, the new birth of a soul, the ultimate fulfillment of one's desire, the lifting up to the bosom of the Father, the union of the Almighty and a poor sinner, and the end of one's arduous journey. 

        Sr. Mary Samuele, pray for us.

Face the Truth

        I believe that people don't believe in God, not because they don't believe that God exists, but because they are not ready to believe yet.  God is a threat to them at this point and they are not ready to give themselves up.  The truth is that God is love and the threat they feel is not caused by God, but by their own selfishness and blindness.  My sincere advice to them is: "Don't put off facing the truth that will always be present while there is still time."   

Focus on God's Mercy

        Today I committed a venial sin and lost my peace.  Naturally, I turned to the Lord to repent and pray for forgiveness.  But peace did not return to my heart.  After more praying, I finally realized that my pride was still in play ~ basically, I was bothered by my own spiritual failure.  You see, I was focusing on myself instead of God's infinite mercy.  There's no question that I'll be sinning again and again, but the Lord will set me free again and again.  Finally, I was set free this time.

Heart of the Matter

        The condition of the heart determines our eternal destination.  You could say that if the soul is a ship, then the heart is the pilot.  To keep us heading in the right direction, the heart must always be in the right place, that is, be pure, loving, and trusting in God.  The problems of our world can all be traced to the deplorable condition of the human heart.    

Sweetness of the Holy Spirit

          Today at Mass I experienced the sweetness of the Holy Spirit.  To get in touch with the Holy Spirit, you must go deep, deep within yourself to sense his presence.  His sweetness will melt your heart, purifying it in the process.  It is a sweetness intoxicating to the soul only. 

No Better Model

        We talk a lot about the importance of having good role models, especially for the younger generation.  I look at Jesus and see a perfect model.  What can be more perfect than being holy??  He shines and towers above mankind.  If you want to be godlike, just let him be your model.  Besides, he will actually help you achieve your goal along the way.      

God the Sole One

        Let God be your sole lord, your sole love, your sole hope, your sole joy, your sole guide, your sole teacher, your sole true companion, your sole source for strength, your sole comforter, your sole refuge, your sole... 

Self-Importance Important

        There's the right way to feel self-important and the wrong way to feel so.  To feel the right way, realize that you serve God to help save souls, and that's an important position.  You are to be a shining light in the world.  To remain fit in serve, it's imperative that you maintain your grow in holiness so that you'll be able to do the greatest possible good for the glory of God.  You are now indispensable to God ~ that's how important you are!

Life Has No Meaning?

        As I was praying the Sorrowful Mysteries today, this question popped into my mind.  If life has no meaning, then why would Jesus even bother to go through all the sufferings and die on the cross??

Store Up Treasure in Heaven

        Time is passing and so are the things of the world.  Nothing in our material world lasts forever.  A museum can house many valuable collections, but how long will they last?  How about the most impressive structures man has built?  No one knows, but certainly not forever.  Anything can happen.  The only things that last are the treasure we store up in heaven.

        Looking at all the things people do, I see so much time and effort wasted because they are not expended for the glory of God.  Television is said to be a vast wasteland, but many shows are even worse as they suck people away from God.  All things done out of selfishness or without love are wasted efforts.  Life is brief and the time left for storing up treasure in heaven, even briefer.  Yesterday I got the news that someone I saw at a wedding six days ago had drowned.  The Lord knows exactly how much time we spend and what our intentions are in doing each thing.  When we see the Lord, how good it will be to hear him say, "Well done, my faithful servant."