Being Fed from Heaven

        I was getting a consecrated host this afternoon to take to a homebound person.  As I knelt before the tabernacle on the altar, I knew that I was going to get the bread that came directly from heaven.  Every time I receive the Holy Eucharist myself, I am being fed from heaven.  The journey toward heaven has already started on this earth.

The Sad State of the World

        There have been so many natural disasters happening around the world, almost continuously ~ earthquakes, tsunamis, storms, tornadoes, floods, mudslides, and at this moment a volcano still erupting.  The occurrences have been more violent than ever, resulting in losses and destruction on an unprecedented scale worldwide.  Does God have a message for us in all of this?

        First of all, nothing can happen without God's permission and God is always trying to speak to us one way or another.  Of course, the disasters have saddened the world, but what's even sadder is the fact that we are not aware or don't believe that God send us messages.  It's so easy to simply attribute all the happenings to nature.  Politically, mentioning God in public is no longer correct.  How often does God come into our minds?  How many Christians actually talk about how the Lord works in their lives?  Why is he always shoved into the background and ignored?  Are we ashamed of him?  Do we care more about what people think of us than what God thinks of us?  A lot more questions.  

        Yet the Father always has us in his mind, on his heart, and under his watchful eyes; but we dismiss him at will.  It's just so one-sided! Jesus, the cornerstone, was rejected by the builders; now the Lord, our creator and savior, gets ignored by his own creatures whom he loved with his own life.  What a sad state we are in!     

Three Spiritual Nourishments

        (1) Faith in God

        (2) Every word that comes forth from the mouth of God

        (3) Doing the will of God

Think Only What God Thinks

        If I have enough humility, not to receive any praise or recognition for any good I've done is not difficult to accept.  But if someone says something that's not true about me or makes me look bad, that's a lot more difficult to deal with.  After Mass during prayer, the Holy Spirit made me see that these two situations all had to do what people think of me and should be looked at the same way.  If I only care about what God, not anybody else, thinks of me, then I shouldn't have any problem.  Thank you, Lord Spirit. 

Real Presence Shows Great Mercy

        During Communion time, I was aware of the Real Presence of the Lord in the Holy Eucharist.  Jesus could have given us just ordinary bread and wine to symbolize his true body and blood, yet he didn't ~ that's because his mercy is much, much greater!  He gave us the Real body and blood, so that we not only get to touch him, but also become one with him, achieving the most intimate union this side of heaven.   

Holy Spirit, the Great Teacher

        At this morning's Mass in John 14, Jesus said to his disciples, "The Holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you."  I had the strong desire to want the Holy Spirit to teach me, to illuminate my muddy mind, to make me see what's right and what's wrong, and to guide me always.  I shall now post what I did learn during and after the Mass.  

Jesus Is God

        Pretty much all this week in the Gospel readings this week at Mass, Jesus let it be known that he is in the Father and the Father is in him, that he and the Father are one, and that whoever has seen him has seen the Father.  In that case, Jesus is God.  In that case, we must believe in him 100%, not any less.  Once you have that rock solid faith in him, you will see wonders happen and be rewarded with deep satisfaction.

God Makes the Difference

         Thoughts this morning.       

        Without God, I would be living a self-centered life, grabbing whatever I can for myself, wanting to do better than or at least keep up with the others, and enjoying the things of the world as much as possible.               

        With God, everything that's important before is no longer so.  Now I have him guiding and leading me ~ I do not have to struggle for myself anymore.  A new, free way of living with peace in the heart ~ it's God's way, which makes all the difference in this life, and the next too (I almost forgot).   

Ego, Still an Enemy

        I was telling a friend something.  That something was true and appropriate for the moment as it illustrated a point relevant to the topic we were on.  I realized that telling the story would reveal the fact that I was involved in a ministry that might make me look "holy" to the other person; but since that's not really my intention and the story was interesting, I went ahead and told it.  I did feel a little uncomfortable afterwards because it made me feel like a name-dropper. 

        I started thinking about this.  I feel that the buildup or formation of the self (ego) starts from the moment of our birth.  Over time through upbringing, learning, and experience, we become the center of  ourselves.  From this center, we think, speak, and do things our way.   You hear people say "That's the way I am" or "God has made me this way."  Of course, we can change; but after years of forming shields and protective layers around the ego, it becomes difficult.   Surrendering to God by displacing the ego with humility provides the solution.  Nothing is impossible with God. 

God's One-Way Giving

        After receiving Jesus in Holy Communion, again I felt that the Lord had been giving me everything; that is, everything I needed and that's good for me had come from him.  Even myself he had made.  So the only logical thing left for me to do was to love him with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength, as he had requested.