The Holy Eucharist Is Holy

        I attended morning Mass at a different church today and it turned out that the priest had such a heavy foreign accent that I did not understand much of what he said.  No problem ~ I was drawn even more to focus on the Holy Eucharist, the center of  worship.  Being the true body and blood of the Lord, the Holy Eucharist is being viciously attacked by Satan more than ever nowadays.  Atheists and others ridicule us, mock us, laugh at us, or accuse us of being idolatrous.  They can do all they want and the truth remains the same.  I really feel sorry for them for not knowing what they're doing.  May God forgive them.       

        The Holy Eucharist is the bread of heaven, our spiritual food.  It is out of God's mercy that the bread and wine do not look like real flesh and blood.  Nevertheless, the effect is the same.  We must believe in the word of the Lord and not go by what we see or feel.  The Holy Eucharist sustains our very existence in God.  I now treasure it more than ever.     

God Is Transcendent!!!

        God is eternal; therefore, he transcends both time and space.  He is ever present everywhere.  Jesus came, to us a long time ago and in a distant land, but he is ever present everywhere too.  At Mass, it's just like being at the Last Supper.  You hear the Gospel read, it's just like hearing him actually speaking to us.  Time and space do not separate us from God at all.  Any separation we feel is an illusion!  He is here and we are in his holy presence at all times.  When we sin, we sin right before his eyes.  His light is always shining upon us.  If we don't see it, it is us who are blind or playing the ostrich.  So, wake up and shape up, for the Lord is present.

Easy to Be Holy?

        Is it easy or hard to be holy?  That depends upon how you approach it.  Let's say that you go on a long trip which you really don't want to do and you are all by yourself.  Being unhappy, you feel that the trip is just taking so long and wish that you have not started it in the first place.  Now, let's say that this time you take the same trip  and you have some friends to talk to along the way and you rather enjoy the conversation and company.  Before you know, the trip is almost over and you wish that it isn't yet.  These two examples just illustrate how one's view can directly affect the outcome.      

        When it comes to wanting to be holy, you could focus on you own sinful state and tell yourself that you'll never make it and give up, or concentrate upon God's mercy and power and ask for his help.  When you really mean it, he will reach down to make it easy for you to fulfill your wish.  (Always save your own energy and tap God's power.)

Do You Want the Lord?

        Do you want him in your life?  If your "yes" is based upon theory ~ in other words, you believe that you should want him ~ then the answer may not mean much.  But if you want him from the heart, then it means something or maybe even a lot more.
        (In theory, you should want the Lord in your life more than anything else.)

"Serving God" Is Beautiful

        I've been talking about the many beautiful things ~ "serving the Lord" belongs on that list too.  When you serve God, it's no longer self-serving ~ you glorify him.  This is more honorable and meritorious than doing anything for yourself.  Essentially, you gladden God's heart and accumulate treasure in heaven.           

How to Gain Peace

        I have come to see that the reason we don't have peace in the heart is because there is still so much we want to do on our own.  The I in me is still unstilled, making a lot of noise.  Check yourself to see how many of your thoughts start out with "I".  To gain peace, we need to silence (forget about) ourselves and listen for God's voice.        

God's Great Mercy

        Today at morning Mass, the Lord impressed upon my mind his great mercy.  I can be in any state of sin and if I just go to him with repentance and ask for forgiveness ~ in fact, even before I ask, he already knew ~ he's ready to make me pure and clean again. What great mercy!!!

To Know God Directly

        Today's Alleluia verse from Mass reads: "Receive the word of God, not as the word of men, but as it truly is, the word of God."  The more you listen to the word of God, the more you come to know God.  Of course, the direct way to know God is to go straight to Jesus.  Read about him in the Gospels and pray to him unceasingly.  Most and best of all, receive him reverently in the Holy Eucharist.  Once you achieve deep union with him, you will know that you know him.  You and God are now one. 

God Is...

infinite, everlasting, what he claims to be: "I am," and then some.  To complete the picture, we must not forget that he is also Love. 

Obedience Is Beautiful

        God is beautiful and it follows that following him is also beautiful.  The best way to carry this out is to be obedient to him. 

        In today's reading from Hebrew 1, Paul tells us that God spoke to us through the Son, whom he made heir of all things and through whom he created the universe.  This is a complete turnabout from his early days during which he persecuted Christians relentlessly.  Then Jesus called and he obeyed.  Again, in the Gospel reading from Mark 1, Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, James, and John to become fishers of men and they obey him by dropping everything right there and then to follow him.  

        Obedience to God leads to eternal life, while rebellion against him brings on eternal separation from him.  Learn to say yes the moment God calls and he'll fill your heart with joy and peace.

Self-Consciousness Is Self-Centeredness

        Earlier today I said something quite normal (nothing extraordinary) in the presence of others and was self-conscious about it; immediately afterwards, I realized that I was still self-centered because I cared about what others thought of me.  I should be solely concerned about what God alone thinks of me.  If doing his will causes others to misunderstand or even laugh at me, so be it.  The self must decrease to nothing before God. 

        Later, the homily at today's Mass (Feast of the Baptism of the Lord) confirmed this.  The priest emphasized that "we are not to fall into the trap of always thinking what I can do, but to concentrate on our relationship with God."  We must get our priorities right.

God Fills "Nothing"

        An afterthought to the last post.  To be nothing before God makes us empty, and we are ready to let God wipe out our sins and fill us with his love and graces. 

"Nothing" Is Beautiful

        We are merely instruments in God's scheme and are nothing before him.  All glory should go to God alone.  Many in our world seek fame and fight for recognition; they love to bask in the honor and glory bestowed upon them by other worldlings.  By contrast, to be able to humble oneself to become "nothing" before God is downright refreshing and truly beautiful before him. 

An Ego Test

        If you feel hurt or get upset when someone misunderstands or blames you and you really haven't done anything wrong, then you still have some of that ego in you. Here's a chance to ask God to crush it for you to remain peaceful.

Planned Parenthood Exposed

        At http://www.UnplannedWebcast.com, you can register to hear Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood director, talk about her new book "Unplanned."  The webcast has been scheduled for next Monday, Jan. 10 at 9 PM Eastern (8 PM Central, 7 PM Mountain, 6 PM Pacific) and the book is coming out the following day.  She is going to reveal the shocking details of what she saw inside the abortion business...and why she resigned her job and joined the pro-life movement.  This should be a huge event.  Watch it if you can and tell others about the webcast and the book too.

Doing God's Will

        This thought came to me today.  I could very well do only what I feel like doing, take control of my life and be just myself.  I may even achieve something in this world, making a name for myself and even benefiting others as a result.  I could really enjoy my own "freedom," even though I may have to fight many battles along the way on my own.  Well, I used to think and live that way.  Now I see clearly that if I were to go through all my life like that and do not change to become a holier person before God, then I shall have wasted all my time on earth.  In other words, I busy myself all life and end up being still the same old me (or possibly a lot worse).  

        Doing one small will of God is infinitely more meaningful and meritorious than doing one million wills of my own.  I am happy that by God's grace, I had come to realize this truth. 

The Depth of God

        I had sensed the great beauty and sheer perfection of God in the past.  Today at Mass I sensed the awesome depth of God.  I would like to remain deep in him, learn from him, and draw all I need from this depth.  I believe that if I continue searching and exploring in it, I'll discover even more treasures, wonders, and be amazed.  There is unlimited power in this depth for us to tap.  God is all we need, more than sufficient for us.  I could even say that God is too much of a good thing for us.  Thanks be to Jesus for revealing the Father to us. 

Distributing God's Love

        This is kind of a sequel to the last post.  Since God loved us first, we can think of ourselves as empty vessels, continuously filled to the brim with God's love, as we distribute this love to others as needed.  This should help us remember that we are not the source of this love, but merely channels of it.