One Beautiful Act

        Submitting ourselves to God so that his will becomes our will. 

Sitting at the Lord's Feet

        The Gospel reading at Mass was taken from Luke 10, the well-known Martha-Mary story. Jesus was at their house and Martha was burdened with serving, while her sister Mary just sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha complained to the Lord that Mary had left her by herself to do the serving and wanted Jesus to get Mary to help her. The Lord replied that "Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her." I see that Martha's work was necessary, but perhaps her attitude was not the best. One thing is clear ~ we must set spending time with the Lord as our first priority in life. Better yet, integrate the awareness of his holy presence into our lives, then we shall be sitting at his feet and listening to him speak at all times.  

We Are Apostles Too!

        In today's first reading from Galatians 1, Paul mentioned the Apostles before him, since he was called by the Lord most likely three years after the Apostles were. It dawns on me that the Lord can call anyone at any time. We who have been called are to be his apostles too! We can imitate the original Apostles by following the Lord everywhere, listening to him, learning from him, obeying him, and even dying for him. We are given the chance to continue spreading the glory of God today ~ what an honor and privilege!  

Achieving Sanctity Anywhere

        For those of us who do not belong to a monastery or convent, we can also live a life of prayer and obedience to God. For the religious, there are established rules to follow and personal guidance. The difference may be likened to that between working out at a gym under the supervision of a personal trainer or working out at home by yourself on your own machine. The same result can be achieved. You don't need to be a religious to achieve sanctity or union with God. The Lord's help is available anywhere.

God Calling

        Yesterday I mentioned that the Lord made me yearn for him. Today he made me see that it's his way of calling me to serve him even more and better. Then I would be more in union with him, fulfilling my desire.

Give God Freedom!

        St. Teresa of Avila in Chapter 28 of her The Ways of Perfection wrote: "The Lord doesn't give himself completely until we give ourselves completely. He never works in the soul as he does when it is totally his without any obstacle, nor do I see how he could." This is really saying that God does not have a freehand in shaping us if we have not surrendered to him totally. Wonders happen only when we let God do whatever he wants with us.

God and the World

        (1) Care only about what God thinks of you; never mind what the world says about you. When the world praises you, consider it a curse because it can snatch you away from God. When the world condemns you, consider it a blessing because you are now closer to Jesus. As for God, he'll never condemn you, and any praise coming from him will make all the praises you can get from the world look like dung. 

       (2) Following God and following the world are like two tracks running parallel to each other. Which one you travel on is a matter of great consequence. Many travel on the world track and occasionally get on the other track or get on it the last minute ~ this is not good enough. We should stay on the track to be with the Lord at all times lest we risk losing our life in the end. 

Sweet Words of the Lord

        Today's Communion experience. When I heard the priest repeating these words of the Lord at the Last Supper during consecration of the bread and wine: "Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my body which will be given up for you" and "Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins," these had to be the sweetest words I had ever heard. I was ready to be transported to anywhere he wants me to go.

Lost Divine Origin

        In today's 1st Reading at Mass from Galatians 1, Paul wrote: "...the Gospel preached by me is not of human origin. For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ." I can't help lamenting the fact that today we have so many Christian denominations following various human leaders whose teachings do not agree with each other's. They all have their own way of interpreting the Scriptures and own version of the gospel to preach. Chaos and confusion result when humans replace the divine.   

Into Jesus!

        Before Mass began this morning at church, I experienced a tremendous yearning for Jesus. I just wanted to be totally absorbed into him, to be "lost" in him, to be an integral part of him.... You don't just want to be drawn to him ~ you want to be drawn into him! What happened? The answer is that the powerful, sweet love of Jesus leaves an indelible imprint on your soul and you are transformed forever. He then sends you on an enthralling journey heading straight for heaven where your name is written. Do you think that you can wait?