Be Holy at Every Moment

        Today is the Memorial of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. My single thought: Every moment we have is precious because it provides a chance for us to love God. I posted about the importance of living the present moment. Life is just a series of continuous moments. If we can be holy every single moment, then we can be holy all our lives. Jesus wants us to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48) ~ obviously, with the help of God we can do it. 

What to Do with Life

        As I was driving home from church after Mass, I looked again at the many granite boulders on both sides of the road and knew that they wouldn't be around forever. The dinosaurs had disappeared. Geologists had shown that drylands were once land under water and vice versa. A large meteoroid hitting the earth can instantly change its landscape. Then I thought of the billions of celestial bodies in space and as far as we know, we are the only creatures living on this planet of earth with perfect conditions for sustaining our lives. And amazingly, we also happen to understand good and evil.  At this instant, I was sure of the existence of God our creator. Then I knew that mankind as a whole wouldn't be around forever either. In the first place, the size of earth is limited. Our survival so far is just a chapter in the book that has not come to its end yet. Now, I was certain that there would be the Second Coming of Jesus to end the present world as we know it. 

        With these realizations, it's clear that we must make maximum good use of the time we have. All acts not motivated by love for God would be simply wasted. It's good to know exactly what we are doing.      

The Good News Forever

        In today's Gospel reading from John 1, John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and started out saying "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." It's the Holy Spirit who revealed this to him. Of course, only God can take away sin and John testified at the end referring to Jesus, "He is the Son of God." Today, after knowing Jesus for so many years, I am still amazed to hear that he can take away all sins, yours and mine. This is indeed good news forever.

What God Asks of Us

        On the way to Mass, I was thinking how I should live today. I thought of all the mammoth or even horrendous problems around the world and near home, but I was so limited in my ability to solve any of them. Then I heard the Lord clearly say that all I needed to do was to please him as much as I could in what I do. Of course, he was right. If everyone in the world would do this, we will have peace.

Let God Heal Your Soul

        I looked forward to receiving the Lord again at morning Mass because I knew that he was going to refresh me again. This freshening goes beyond getting a bodily massage and shower or acquiring some exciting, new mental knowledge, for God heals the soul. When the soul is healed, the mind and heart are healed too and you are ready on your way to union with him. This is the easy way. Note: Everything becomes easy when you let God do it for you. 

Before Going Before God...

to worship or pray to him, it's proper and best that we set my hearts right by removing any hatred, resentment, anger, or even displeasure against anyone. God's justice is perfect and it's not our business to judge anyone in any way. Pray for mercy on all and let God alone reward or punish them in the end. We cannot hold grudges against our neighbors and expect God to listen to us. There'll be no peace in us as long as we do not forgive others. In fact, we should regard ourselves as the least holy ones among all. This will greatly please the Lord and keep us from judging others.

New Year's Message

        As the new year begins, let God make you into a new Christlike person. Every one of us is a unique, special creature before God. We were made in his image in the first place and we have the potential to become holy after him. We may not be called to be another Moses or St. Paul; but nevertheless, he has a plan for each of us. You can be sure that he wants us all to serve him, to love him, and to follow him; only the specific details in each case are different. The reason for it is that he wants us to have eternal happiness. Make union with him your lifelong goal and you will be amply rewarded and surprised. It is an absolute delight to let God do the work to transform you into a new, beautiful creature!        

Year-End Prayer

        To experience Jesus, you must get inside of him. You may be a believer, but as long as you stand on the periphery, no matter how much you read the Scripture, how often you hear the gospel preached, or how many prayers you say, you are still an outsider and you'll feel it. To become an insider, you must open your heart wide and ask the Lord to come in. Yes, prepare him a good supper in advance for him. Don't hesitate to show your love for him and he won't be able to resist you because you are whom he loves. Once you get inside of him (rather he's inside of you), then everything will begin to change ~ all he has ever said will make sense to you, the pieces of the puzzle of your life will come together, and you'll begin to experience the freedom of the heart. 

        It's my prayer for all of you out there who read this blog that Christ our Lord will shower great blessings on you and your families, fulfill all your holy desires, and grant you his peace and joy all the days of your lives. 

Unsurpassable Joy

        At Mass this morning, I felt that Jesus is truly the ultimate. If I comb through the whole universe, I may find things that point to his glory, but I won't find him. Then I look within the deep interior of my heart and lo, he is there. What joy I felt when I found him! This is a joy that surpasses all understanding. 

Celebrating the New

        New Year is just around the corner. Why do we call the year new? In asking this question, I see that only God can make things truly new. The new year will become old again long before it's over, but when we become a new creature in Christ, we are in him forever ~ this is worth our celebration.      

True Progress

        I am thinking that if we can all wear a pair of glasses that enables us to see sins, we would see an ugly and filthy world with only God standing out, pure and beautiful. Since we don't have such a pair of glasses, we can only realize the miserable, sinful states we are in. To seek our way out, we must look upon God, for he alone has the power to deal with sins. Only he can free us by making us holy and pure. Now, this is what I call true progress.  

"Keep God Waiting"

        Some people have told me that they cannot embrace the holy life because they are still in this world dealing with real problems and being holy would put them at a disadvantage. Another somewhat different point of view is that those who are old and retired and those who live in monasteries and convents have it easy because they are no longer active in the real (what they mean is secular) world and so can afford to pray much and live spiritually.  Do these people have a point of view? Yes, but invalid. If you agree with them, then you are saying that God is not needed at all times, that he cannot help them with their problems, that he can get in their way, that he doesn't understand the real world, and that he is to wait for them and not the other way around. This thinking goes directly against the first commandment of the Lord about how we should love God. I believe that they are basically giving excuses for not wanting to believe in God yet, if not rejecting him. "Keep God waiting" seems to be the popular game to play.  

Transforming Power of the Eucharist

        After I received Holy Communion this morning, the consecrated host started melting slowly in my mouth and I knew that the Lord was again starting to transform me. To maintain your personal computer in top condition, you need to delete old files, run virus checks, update the browser, and so forth on a regular basis. Similarly, to maintain our spiritual well-being, we resort to frequent reception of the Holy Eucharist.    

Great Stillness

        Today is the Feast of the Holy Family. Before Mass during prayer, I felt that the Lord was at the center of my soul and he was "collecting" my whole being ~ body, soul, and spirit ~ into him and a great stillness came over me. How beautiful it is to be still in the Lord! Later, the Gospel Acclamation from Colossians 3 echoed my feeling: "Let the peace of Christ control your hearts." This peace alone is reason enough to seek out the Lord. 

Beauty of the Christian Faith

        Is the prodigal son a bad boy or a good boy? He was really bad, then he became extremely good. All it took to bring about the transformation was his repentance, and the father took him right back with great joy. The example of the son is inspiring and the mercy of the father, comforting. 

        Here's the beauty of the Christian faith ~ our heavenly Father is always ready to take us back the moment we repent ~ truly the mark of a loving God. 

Best Loving Advice

        This morning while I was exercising on a bike machine, my nose started to itch. Since my hands were on the handle bar to keep the machine reading my heartbeats, I just hoped that the itch would go away soon. But it didn't and I had to let go of the handle bar and use one of my hands to rub my nose hard to stop the itch. And this thought popped into my mind. Since I couldn't even endure an itch for even a few seconds, I would never, never be able to stand eternal separation from God. Would you be able to stand it? Let me say emphatically: Make sure that you will never have to experience it! So, by all means do not let go of your loving God. If you want to be by his side later for all eternity, start loving him now. This is the most loving advice I could ever give you and you should take it.    

Ready to Go in Peace?

        Today's Gospel reading is from Luke 2 on the presentation of the child Jesus in Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit had revealed to righteous and devout Simeon that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. After he saw the child Jesus at the temple, he's ready to go in peace. Now, any of us who has Christ dwelling in us should certainly be ready to go in peace too. We already have the Lord in us ~ what else in this world would you still need?      

How to Bring Others to God

        The best way to bring others to God is by your example. To be perfect should be your aim. Jesus is our example ~ look at him for inspiration and imitation. See Christ in everyone and let everyone see him in you. Then pray always and live in peace.