How to Live Happily

        One will never be happy if he lives just for himself. The only way to be happy in this world is to live for God alone.

Be Ready to Obey

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 2, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and instructed, "Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him." It's such a blessed state to be in to listen to the Lord's instructions, obey them, and wait for more. "Be ready to obey" at all times is what the Lord expects of us.

Light and Darkness

        Today is the Feast of Holy Innocents. As you know, Herod the king ordered the massacre of the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under in the hope of destroying the infant Jesus. How much more evil can you be? Yet today, way over a million babies are eliminated through abortion every year in the States alone. Evil is real! In Reading 1 from 1 John 1, the Apostle talks about light and darkness. Jesus is our only saving light. As long as we believe and remain in him, we are safe from all evil.

Jesus Still with Us

        Today's Communion Song from John 1: "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and from his fullness we have all received." Today, in the Holy Eucharist, Jesus still comes to us to dwell in us, and we still receive grace from him. He is always with us!

        After I received the Blessed Sacrament, realizing how "ugly" I was and how beautiful and perfect the Lord is, I just wanted to die in him (whatever that means).

Resurrection Is Life!

        Today's Gospel reading, the first eight verses from John 20, was so beautiful that it moved me to tears. Peter and John found the tomb empty. The priest at the morning Mass pointed out that the fact the cloth that covered the head of Jesus was rolled up nicely in its own place signified that the Master would return again. After all, how can the creator of all life possibly die himself? Looking back, we see that his resurrection was inevitable! Now Jesus has given us the hope of living with the Eternal Life himself. Shall we rejoice?  

God Gives Life

        Today is the Feast of St. John, Apostle and evangelist. I might add that John is my favorite Apostle. The Entrance Song reads: "This is John, who reclined on the Lord's breast at supper, the blessed Apostle, to whom celestial secrets were revealed and who spread the words of life through all the world." Words of life are the words from the Lord, since he is the life. When I heard the song read, I sensed life in every word the Lord had spoken. Then when we hear his words, we are filled with life. And life calls for celebration! 

God's Great Sorrow

        I feel hurt if someone offends me, especially if that someone is a person I've always trusted and cared for. I know this because it had happened to me. The amount of sorrow felt has to be directly proportional to the amount of love you had for the offender. Now you can somewhat imagine how much sorrow the Lord must feel when so many of his most beloved children are offending him so much continuously.

The Way to Evangelize

        St. Stephen was stoned to death when he was spreading the gospel. He simply wanted to share the good news, not trying to shove it down others' throat. Contrast this with someone who pussyfoots around, so afraid of "offending" others' feelings ~ it's almost like being ashamed of God. The way to evangelize is to be filled with love for others, follow the Holy Spirit's lead and not let your own will get in the way. Then leave the outcome to God without any concern, not even for your own life.  

To Be Absorbed by God

        After receiving Communion, I keenly sensed that only God is important and I am basically nothing, like a particle of dust. It's entirely fitting for me to become truly nothing before the Lord and be absorbed by him entirely.

Don't Miss Surrendering

        During Communion time, I saw another chance to surrender myself to the Lord. Now, suppose God appears before you and calls you by name, how would you respond? Under such circumstances, I should think that total surrender would be the only option. Therefore, I saw that it's entirely fitting for me to surrender once again before receiving Holy Communion. After we die, the chance for surrendering is gone too.