On Feb. 1, I mentioned that I probably would not be able to blog until after Feb. 10. Well, things have turned out differently – I am back and blogging. Here's what has happened. I was asked to see three people south of here in Los Angeles, Temecula, and the San Diego area. My wife was already in Los Angles. I did not get a strong call to go until I heard that the friend in the San Diego area who recently lost her husband was feeling somewhat down, so I thought it would be a good time to lift her spirit by telling her about the Lord who can fill us with so much joy and hope. Yesterday I took the short flight in the morning. It had been raining hard all along the coast. At times in flight, the turbulence was so bad that the plane shook and jerked you thought it might break apart. Anyway, after a little over an hour, the flight continued past the arrival time for about 20+ minutes in grey and murky layers of clouds with horrible visibility. The time was before noon, but it looked so dark outside that you thought it was almost evening. Finally, the pilot announced that the plane was going to return to where we started, for he could not locate the airport landing strip and did not want to waste more fuel. It was all very dramatic. We finally got back, all passengers cheered. Clearly, the Lord did not want me to complete this trip for reason not clear to me yet. I also suffered from motion sickness, feeling dizzy and nauseous. Slept all afternoon and all night, feeling almost normal now. I thought of the suffering in hell again. It would be so much worse than feeling motion-sick and, worst of all, suffering for all eternity! I truly wish that no one would ever end up there. Do not commit any mortal sin. If you already have, go to confession and get it absolved. Salvation means saving your own soul too and first! This may be one of the reasons I did not complete this trip.
Sunday, February 3, 2019
Friday, February 1, 2019
Absolutely Sensible Advice
In Matthew 6.33, Jesus said, "Seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things [the pagans seek] will be given you besides." He is saying that we should choose God and heaven first, and not worry about everything else. [Note. I probably won't be able to post anything until after the 10th of this month. Meanwhile, God's blessings on all of you who visit my blog.]
Letting the Kingdom of God Grow
In today's Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus said to the crowds, "The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade." This is a beautiful picture. We should be the soil for the Lord to make rich so that the seed he plants in us can grow to its fullest potential. Know that what we produce may not be impressive or even visible to us, but it would be great in the eyes of the Lord.
Safe in God's Light
I see the Lord, the only one radiant in the darkness all around me, and I know that I am safe in his light which dispels all evil.
Thursday, January 31, 2019
*How to Stop Hiding!
It is easy for us to hide things from others, things that would make us look bad. But it is impossible to hide anything from God. Therefore, if you can completely open yourself to God, letting him take away everything that shouldn't be in your heart, then there'll be nothing you need to hide from others anymore. You are now liberated and free!
**Unequal but Fair
In today's Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus told the parable of the lamp and ended by saying, "To the one who has, more will be given; from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away." How does this make sense? Think of yourself as a receptacle. If you leave it uncovered, wide open, God would fill it with all he wants to give you, so you receive more and more. If you leave your cover on, then pretty soon whatever you had would either rot, so you have to throw it away, or be used up, leaving you empty with nothing. Lesson: never close your door on God.
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
**Right Way to Approach God
Martha Argerich is unquestionably one of the top pianists in the world. I watched this old video on YouTube when she was rehearsing the Schumann piano concerto and liked what she said about how she approached music. You can watch the video by clicking here. To find out what she said that resonated with me, read below.
"You must try to achieve directness with music. You know, like with a person. If you figure you know how you'll act with someone, it' a fiasco. That's not how it works. You have to be in tune to how that person is at that given moment, not to the idea you have of him."
We should approach God this way too. That is, we go directly to him, remain open and spontaneous (no preconceived ideas), and tune in to him. And great benefits will come through to us.
***Be Meek, Not Weak
There is a fundamental difference between being meek and being weak. It takes courage to be meek, which is to remain humble without ego. If you do not have the courage to speak out for the Lord or do what is right, then you are being weak or timid. For me, the Holy Catholic Church was established by Christ who promised that the gates of the netherworld should not prevail against it, so I firmly believe that the Church will always teach and safeguard the truths as she has so far done. Then because of it, all the more Satan wants to ruin her. With evil prevailing over the whole world, the time is so urgent that we follow Christ and be extra strong and active in fighting the battle for him. Sadly, there is a lack of both unity and strong leadership within the Church. At the meeting of the U.S. bishops in Baltimore last November, there was really no progress made in addressing the abuse crisis within the Church. Three days ago, I posted about the New York Catholic Governor Andrew Cuomo signing the horrible pro-abortion bill into law. The response from Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York as to whether Cuomo should be excommunicated as some other bishops had suggested was weak and evasive, showing that he was definitely no warrior or even soldier for Christ. He basic message is that we can go against the teachings of the Holy Church or commit other mortal sins and still receive the Lord in the Holy Eucharist when we feel like it. I also personally wish to hear a clear, strong, decisive voice coming from the Holy Father. This is no time to play nice, for billons of souls are at stake, while Christ is continuing to suffer because of us. The Lord was meek and humble, but he also spoke out without any fear. You can say that he is God and we are not, but aren't we supposed to imitate him?
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