Beauty of God's Love

        "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son..."  We've all heard this so many times, but have you really thought about it to feel and sense the immensity and depth of this Love?  Today we might call it "extreme love."  Jesus himself said that there's no greater love than laying down your own life for others.  Yes, Jesus did it for each one of us!  To some of us, he must be insane.  Yet to God, this is his nature.  It's so incredible that this love becomes extremely beautiful.  Once you see and feel this, you can't help but fall in love with the Lord.  If you appreciate beauty, then I urge you to discover the beauty of his love ASAP.  The reward will be not just peace and joy in this life, but also in the next for all eternity.   

Repentance Is Happy

        Yesterday was the Solemnity of St. John the Baptist.  Immediately, the word "repentance" came to my mind.  This is not a happy word to many, since it calls to mind a sinful state.  Yet when I think about it more, I see repentance as something truly beautiful.  Repentance is to say "I am sorry" to God.  It is a prerequisite for reconciling with God.  When we repent, God forgives us, thus removing our burden of guilt and any prior barrier that existed between God and us.  Heaven rejoices and definitely, we should too.  Now, can you think of a happier word than "repentance"?       

Range of Beliefs

        Many Christians claim that they believe in God, but what does that mean? 

        Some merely believe that Jesus existed as a historical figure.  Some want to follow him, but they don't have the time to pay him much attention.  Some attend church regularly, but nothing happens much to them spiritually; they continue to "do their own thing" in life.  Some pray to God only when they face a crisis or just have a need to fulfill.  Some believe sincerely, but when they face a test, they give up.  Some only accept the teachings of the Church they like and reject or at least not try to face those they don't feel comfortable with.  Some only attend Mass for Christmas and Easter yearly, thinking that maybe this is sufficient to keep God happy.  Some believers always have questions about their faith.  Then there are those who study and know a lot about Jesus, but don't know him personally.  This reminds me of a non-Christian tour guide in Holy Land whose knowledge of Jesus was most impressive.  There are others who find one priest or fellow Christian offensive or just unfriendly to them and leave the Church.  Some never bother to take the time to study or learn the teachings of the Church.  Some think that they are good enough believers, compared to others.  Since the word "sin" is rarely heard in homilies nowadays, some have forgotten about the importance of repentance as a precondition for growth in holiness.  

        The above is not meant to criticize anyone, it's just assessed reality and we can certainly and should do better with prayer and God's help.         

   

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Be Hidden in Christ

        The Gospel Reading for Mass two days ago: Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-18.  It's so beautiful to be hidden in Christ so that when others see you, they see him.  In him alone, there is true freedom.  Experience it in this life and your admission to the next life will be free.  Alleluia!

The Pure Shall See God

        Yesterday the memorial to the Immaculate Heart of Mary was celebrated at Mass.  When we think of the Blessed Mother, purity of heart comes to the mind.  The homilist pointed out that only the pure can be humbled and will remain strong.  Mary is our perfect example.  The world is not happy and is afraid to approach God, because it is impure.  When you are pure, you feel light and know that you are with God.  "Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God."  What a wonderful feeling!   

New Awareness of Intimacy

        The day before yesterday the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus was celebrated at Mass.  We know that St. John, the beloved apostle of Jesus, reclined next to Jesus at the Last Supper.  I am sure that all of us who love the Lord would love to do that too, a chance to touch him in whom we trust.  That would give us such a comfortable and secure feeling.  As this thought surfaced during Mass, the Lord suddenly let me see that receiving the Holy Eucharist is receiving his body, blood, soul, and divinity, all of him, and nothing can be more intimate than that.  This was not exactly news to me, but at that moment, it struck me so hard that I became sharply aware of this fact more than ever.  Just thinking about how he loves us by giving himself to us in this way is overwhelming!  It's a tremendous blessing to know that he remains within you as you go about living your daily life.  Indeed, when you have him, there is nothing else you will want.
        Lord, who am I that you should choose to receive this most precious gift from heaven?  I thank you with all my heart.
  

The Ways of the Lord

        Pope Benedict XVI: "The ways of the Lord are not easy, but we were  not created for an easy life, but for great things, for goodness."  Amen. 

Church Under Attack

        Today, the Mother Church is coming under "attacks" in all forms from both within and without.  To all Catholics, religious or lay, who do not agree on any issue with your bishops, or any guidance or teaching of the magisterium and feel like speaking out, please realize that anything you say that would result in confusing the faithful or disunifying the Church in any way can not have come from the Holy Spirit ~ God will never ask you to disobey the very Church he has established for us.  No matter how urgently you feel like speaking out, this is the ultimate test.  If you do not pass it, the voice is your own and not that of the Holy Spirit.   

        The Church is being ridiculed, laughed at, belittled, insulted, slandered, stepped on, and accused for just about anything not pleasing to the attackers nowadays ~ this is because we do have the true church!  Look at what the Lord himself went through on earth ~  how can you expect the Church, being the Body of Christ, not to suffer likewise?  The good news is that the Lord guarantees that the gates of hell shall not prevail against his Church.  Rejoice that we are being persecuted for Christ's sake.  This is the perfect time to practice what he taught about forgiving others and loving your enemies.  Pray extra hard and love the Lord even more fervently.  Seek total union with him first before all else.   

How Oppression Works

        Found on one webpage: "Everyone who supported slavery was free. Everyone who supports abortion was born. And that, my friends, is how oppression works."

Values Worth Dying For

        A thought from Pope Benedict XVI:

        "Where there is no longer anything worth dying for, life is no longer worthwhile."  Amen.

       

First Beatitude

        The first Beatitude:  "How blest is the poor in spirit: the reign of God is theirs."

        What does 'poor in spirit' mean?  I wasn't sure until I came across Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis' beautiful explanation.  Note that this Beatitude is in the present tense. 

        In essence, he explains:  "The poor in spirit are those who literally 'beg for their life's very breath' ~ those who depend upon God the way we all depend upon air to breathe.  Poverty of spirit is the grace of those who have emptied themselves of everything but the desire for God's presence.  And those who achieve poverty of spirit have their reward in the present as well as the future, for to live in poverty of spirit is indeed to live in God."

        Praised be Jesus.  

Two Become One

        I used to pray to God, seeing him as a separate being in front of and high above me.  Now I realize that he dwells in me and we are now one, inseparable.  In such an intimate union, we know each other so well that he makes his will clear to me.  It's no longer going out of myself to seek another for answers.  God simplifies everything and simplicity leads to freedom.  How glorious is his love!    

The Ego

        The ego is an ugly thing.  It gets in the way as we journey toward God.  Again, it boils down to Us vs. God.  Therefore, the ego's gotta go.  And, with God's help, it can indeed vanish, liberating us.  God must increase and we decrease.  In fact, we should die completely to ourselves so that we become Christ-like.  Then we shall be free and see others and the world as he does.  

Unbeatable Bargain!

        From St. Bernadette: "If we receive Jesus with love and make sure that he dwells happily within us, he is bound to pay us rent."  I love this saying of hers.  Then I remember that Jesus also told his disciples that he's going to prepare a mansion in heaven for them.  Now, our life, compared to eternity, is practically of zero duration.  So, if we just let Jesus dwell in our heart for the few years of our short life, we get to live in his mansion later for all eternity ~ can you possibly think of a better bargain?  What a deal!  I am going to take it. 

Beautiful Paradoxes

        Here are two beautiful paradoxes:

        (1) The more you acknowledge your own helplessness, the more God reaches down to help you.

        (2) The more you surrender to God, the more you become free.

       

Biggest Fool of the Universe

        If you want to be the biggest fool of the universe, that's easy.  All you need to do is to believe that God does not care about what you are doing or that you can get away by doing certain things.  In other words, the biggest fool is the one who thinks that he can fool God.  Naturally, he ends up fooling only himself.
        The smart person is the one who realizes that the God knows all things anyway, so you might as well let him in on all things.

God the Psychiatrist

        God is the greatest psychiatrist in the whole universe.  He knows and understands everything about us, our problems, our needs, our desires, etc.  After Holy Communion, I go before the Lord letting him see everything that's in my heart.  If there's something that bothers me, I simply open myself up to him without reservation (this may require some effort on my part as I search and reflect hard).  The Lord now will help me see deep down exactly what is bugging me.   It's like God holding up a mirror and I see the interior of my heart in it.  Often what we think the cause is is not necessarily the true one, for we are complicated creatures.  Once I see clearly what made me lose my peace, I become instantly relieved.  If healing is needed, the Lord will do just that then.  The resulting feeling is exhilaration.  Truly, self-understanding is the key to freedom of the heart.

Successful Self-Transformation

        The "secret" to transforming yourself successfully is really simple.  You might even say obvious.  It's letting the Lord do the work. Jesus told us that apart from him, we can do nothing.  This is absolutely true.  I am talking about doing things that truly give honor and glory to God. 

        When you receive the Holy Eucharist, you become mystically united with Jesus, who is the source of all the graces that can benefit you.  This is the time to "get greedy" and ask for all the graces he can possibly give you to make you holy.  If you are in good grace and really mean it, how can he refuse you, as he loves you so much?  If you strive to become holy on your own, you'll find it about as effective as making a New Year resolution stick.  But if you put your trust in God and let him do the work, everything becomes automatic over time.  The Holy Eucharist is the Lord himself, transforming you.