Discernment Advice

        When God leads us to do something, he would never want us to feel anxious about it. Therefore, if you think of something you want to do for God with anxiety, it could not have come from God.

No Getting-Old Blues

        When we clearly see signs of old age in us, we should not lament that our time on earth is getting shorter, but rejoice in the fact that our time of seeing Christ is getting equally shorter. Let this joy wipe out all our sorrows.  

Submitting to the Holy Spirit

        I have not said enough about the Holy Spirit in this blog. The Holy Spirit to me is the one who can change our lives. He is the one who can make us anew and keep us refreshed. In church at Mass this morning, I gave my mind, heart, and soul all to the Holy Spirit again so that there would be left in me only the consciousness that I am a child of God our Father.

We Can Be Ready Too

        Today's Gospel reading from Luke 2 was on the Presentation of the child Jesus in the temple. The holy Spirit had revealed to Simeon, a righteous and devout man, that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. When the parents brought in the child Jesus for presentation, Simeon took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: "Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation." Although we do not see Jesus with our eyes, we can see, hear, and feel him in our heart and be ready to go in peace too.

To Live Jesus

        Today's entrance antiphon at Mass is John 3.16: God so loved the world that he gave his Only Begotten Son, so that all who believe in him may not perish, but have eternal life. God made it so simple for us! Jesus died so that we may live! Let's seek union with him so that we may live Jesus.

Ego No Beauty

        Exercising your ego may make you feel good, but it also makes you look puffed-up and ugly to those who can spot you, let alone God.

Feeling Good

        There are many things I enjoy doing, such as expressing myself through photography, playing the piano, writing this blog, evangelizing for Christ, etc. But if I don't get to do any or all of these things, that's OK too. It feels so good to be able to say this!

Something About Jesus

        Have you noticed that we feel comfortable talking about sports, cars, politics, movies, cooking . . . just about any subject, among friends or acquaintances, yet when the subject is Jesus, people start feeling uncomfortable? Might it be because Jesus is God? The Lord himself said that he had come not to bring peace, but rather division (Luke 12.51). God intends to save, not please, everyone. If you feel uncomfortable with the Lord, then you have a problem.          

We Have Been Saved!

        I checked in on the site Pope Francis ~ Latest News (link in my Good Sites, Blogs, Web Pages... list). I found the Holy Father saying in one news piece that we have already been saved. This struck me as being true, since Jesus has come and done all the work necessary for us to be saved. God is ready so that if we believe and cooperate with him, we become shoo-ins. We are not saved only if we don't want to believe and be saved. 

Secret of Salvation

        Jesus gave us the commandment: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Today the Lord made me see that he had given us here both a measuring stick for and a test of our love for him. It also reveals the secret of our salvation.