God, My Rock and Refuge

        The solid feeling I had during prayer before Mass started this morning was that God is absolutely my rock and refuge.  I am free to go to him to unload a thousand concerns in my heart and he would gladly listen to them all.  Should I slip or stumble and fall, he'll be there to catch me.  I lean on him as much as I want and the support will always be there.

A Lesson in Humility

        Muammar Gaddafi was killed today and his demise was wildly celebrated by many Libyans shouting "God is great!"  I started to wonder ~ if God loves everyone, would it be OK to rejoice when someone is killed and praise God at the same time?  At any rate, the lesson here for us as followers of Christ is that we must learn to read the signs and have the humility to accept God's will, no matter how contrary it may be to our own.          

Nothing Besides God

        If God cannot satisfy you, nothing will and you remain unhappy forever.

Jesus Is Our Test

        In today's Gospel from Luke 12, Jesus told his disciples that he had come to establish division rather than peace on earth.  The division is cause by the fact that not everyone will choose good over evil or put his or her faith in Jesus.  This is proof that evil exists and Jesus came as a test to challenge us.  Faith in the Lord is then made meaningful. 

Jesus Is the Bridge

        We are sinners, and when God gave us his Divine Son Jesus, he laid down a bridge made of love, linking us to him for us to walk toward him.  Those who seek union with God will want to walk all the way to the other end to touch him.

Let Jesus Rule

        This morning before Mass began, I felt that Jesus was sitting on a throne ruling from my heart.  The weight of his presence gave me a great stability.  His ruling will be my guide from now on. 

Go Deep in Christ

        Go deep in Jesus and you'll find yourself alone in the most beautiful private world of his perfection.  Once you experience that, your whole outlook on life changes and you are free from all the snares, lures, and attractions of the world. 

Don't Miss God

        If you cannot find a god that's more loving than the Christian God, then you should grab him while you still can as it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!  You miss him once and you miss him forever.

The Business Christian

        From a "business" point of view, a Christian is like a shrewd businessman who has invested wisely for a secure future.  His assurance of it is reflected in his present living without fear nor anxiety, fulfilling what Jesus asks of us. 

God Planned It All Out

        I've been thinking about the Holy Trinity.  First, God the Father created all of us out of love.  Then Jesus, the Son of God, came into the world to show us just how much God loves us.  Finally, after Jesus left our world, God the Holy Spirit descended upon us as the Comforter, transforming us into temples of God.  We're assured now that God is always with us.   

God Forever Refreshing

        On the way home driving earlier, I turned on the radio and Wagner was playing.  The piece had plenty nice melodies ensuing one after another.  Soon the music became rather predictable and tedium set in.  Then I remembered God who stays forever the same, yet he is always refreshing and new.  

God's Love

        God defines love since he is love.  This love is noble, pure, and selfless.  No matter what much we offend him, his compassion and pity remain constant, with sorrow but never resentment.  This love touches the soul and can melt away all the impurities and dross in the heart.  This love liberated the spirit, opening the door to freedom and eternal life.  In fact, when with this love we can love him back, love all the saints and holy angels, and love all our neighbors, both good or bad in this world, then we know that God rules in our heart and we are in union with him.

Love Is Complete When...

God loves us and we love him back with the love we have received from him.

1,000 Reasons for Turning to God

        Every evil you hear about is one more reason (opportunity) for you to go to God to pray for his mercy on us and the whole world.  Today I read on BBC News is that every five hours a child dies from abuse or neglect in the US.  The latest government figures show an estimated 1,770 children killed as a result of maltreatment in 2009.  A recent congressional report concludes that the real number could be nearer 2,500.  As a result, America has the worst child abuse record in the industrialized world. 

God Is for Transforming Us

        Please note that God, Love, will never put fear, hatred, jealousy, anger, impatience, despair, or any other negative feeling in you; he only wants you to have peace and joy.  Therefore, if you have negative feelings, they must have originated from you.  Ask the Lord to take them away and transform you in the process.

The Rich & the Poor

        I don't classify myself as either a conservative or a liberal ~ I just follow the ways and teachings of Christ.  Here are some of my thoughts on the current Wall Street protest movement.

        There is nothing wrong with getting rich, but there is a lot wrong if the rich forget that what they have all came from God and that they have the obligation to aid the poor.  Why do the CEOs of large corporations earn millions in salary and bonuses, even when the company is losing money in some cases?  How much do you really need to live comfortably?  Last time General Electric made a profit around 16 billion dollars and didn't have to pay a cent in income tax.  It seems to me that they could have given away at least 1/16 of that amount to some good causes.  Even the CEO of American Boy Scouts earns over a million in salary and compensation! The president of the non-profit American Red Cross is well paid too ~ over $650,000 a year in salary ~ this fact alone probably keeps many from wanting to donate to the organization.

        As for the poor, if they are not holier than the rich, they will be just like the present rich once they become rich, and the situation is no better.  Basically, if we do not believe in God and do not let God change us, nothing will fundamentally change.  Mark my words.      

Barrier to Full Union

        Today is the Memorial of the great St. Teresa of Jesus, so the subject of self-surrender to God comes to my mind.  Since God is the Lord and Creator of all things and we are merely his creatures, just by common sense we see that our only role is to surrender ourselves to him ~ I just don't see any other logical alternative for us.  Many of us do believe in God, turn to him, pray to him, do works for his glory, and receive graces from him, but we still have not given ourselves over to him completely.  As long as there is still that last barrier between God and us, it will be an obstacle to achieving full spiritual union with him.

God Knows All About Me!

        I know that God loves me, but yesterday I felt good when I realized that God knows all about me.  He knows my thoughts before I express them; he knows my heart, seeing everything in it; he totally understands me more than I could understand myself.  With all this knowledge about me, surely he would know exactly how to guide me, and I'll never be lonely again.  

        This morning's Gospel reading from Luke 12 confirms my thoughts. Some excerpts: "There is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known.  Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed on the housetops.  Are not five sparrows sold for two small coins?  Yet not one of them has escaped the notice of God.  Even the hairs of your head have all been counted.  Do not be afraid.  You are worth more than many sparrows."