No Point of No Return for Us

        Look at what's happening in Syria. During this so-called Arab Spring, some leaders are wise enough to initiate reforms or step down early enough to prevent worse unrest. In Syria, it seems that President al-Assad has already gone beyond the point of no return in dealing with his own people rebelling against him.   

        Then I thought of our loving Lord. With him, as long as we are still alive, there is no point of no return for us. It's never too late to return to him. Anytime we are ready, he is ready ~ this is the beauty of his great mercy, guaranteed by his love for us. How blessed we are!       

God Our Only Hope

        There is just so much bad news you hear from all over the globe. Again, I want to remind all that God is our only bright hope. Focus on the fact that God has turned many human beings into saints. So if we all let God transform us, then we'll have a peaceful world ~ it's as simple as that. In reality, of course, not everyone will listen to this truth, but this does not invalidate the truth that God, the God of Christ, is our only hope.          

The Christian Life

        The Christian life can be said to consist of two parts. You find Christ, believe in him and ask him to come into your life ~ this is the first part. You want him to transform you until you become like him ~ this is the second part. It's in this second part that you become holy, experience freedom, and know that you are now a new creature. Without this part, you are only a Christian in name only. 

Best Discovery of My Life

        I watched a documentary on a legendary photographer who photographed what people wore (clothes) in New York City. He's good and loved what he did. I totally understand it because I used to photograph a lot myself. And it's through this medium that I discovered myself. I reached a point that I felt exactly what emotionally moved me and knew how to capture that image, and that anyone who saw my work would recognize that it's mine. In other words, the images became me. This gave me great satisfaction because those serene, calm, and somewhat enigmatic images showed clearly what kind of person I was.

        The discovery of Jesus changed everything. I see now that the discovery of myself still kept me self-centered. The light of Christ has totally revealed him to me and me to him. It's this mutual understanding that matters. Essentially, knowing that I am loved by him has freed me, making my old discovery totally forgettable.

How Important Is Jesus to You?

        Today is Super Bowl Sunday, a big special day for football fans. It's a fact that many Catholics do not attend Mass on Sunday except when it happens to be Easter or Christmas, just to ease their conscience. Now, for many football fans who normally do attend Mass, skipping it on Super Bowl Sunday for their convenience does not seem to bother them either. The question basically boils down to whether you love yourself or God more. 

        The following comes to my mind. (1) Is Jesus truly your shepherd? As you know, his sheep hear his voice and follow. (2) The first disciples dropped everything instantly to follow the Lord when he called them. Hesitation or looking back shows unfitness. (3) Matthew10.32-33: "Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father." Obviously, if Jesus is not number one in your life, you won't be treated as number one by him in your next life. 

Taking Advantage of the Holy Eucharist

        As I received the Lord in Holy Communion this morning, I realized that I had done it innumerable times already. I started attending daily Mass in November, 2007; so counting just these last 4+ years alone, I have done it over 1,500 times! So, if I have not been a better Christian by now, I really should be ashamed of myself and might as well turn into a log. Fortunately, I am most grateful that Jesus has blessed me more than I deserve. If we will just become a tiny bit holier each day, we can go a long way after a thousand days! [This reminds me of a story about Irena Orlov, the pianist I mentioned in a post late last December. A student told her that a piece was too hard for him to learn. She asked him to count the number of measures in the piece and it turned out to be 54. Then she asked him if he could learn to play just one measure a day, and obviously, the answer was yes.]

Joy and Sorrow

        I was praying the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary today. The Sorrowful Mysteries, culminating in Crucifixion of the Lord, will follow later. Then the Glorious Mysteries come at the end. In our own life, joy and sorrow take their respective turns. It's easy for one to be in one state and not think about the other. But for us who believe in Jesus, no matter how much sorrow we experience, let's always remember that our final state will be everlasting joy!   

Dark Days Are Here!

        Just read on BBC News that a Christian group in Bath has been banned from claiming that God can heal illnesses on its website and in leaflets. The Advertising Standard Authority there said that such advertisements could encourage false hope and were irresponsible. The dark days are indeed here. Christians are now being squeezed on all sides. The happy news is that this will only hasten the Lord's return. The sad news is what he will find when he comes.  

God Is Humble

        Again, after seeing some stunning pictures of galaxies on a TV program, I was in a way "stunned" by the humbleness of God, the creator of our universe. With such great power, God has never tried to show off in any way ~ that's saying that he never looked down on us. Jesus came into our world ~ he healed the sick and raised the dead, multiplied fish and bread and calm the wind and sea; but he did all out of love, never for a moment intending to show that he was superior to us. Of course, since the Lord is already the greatest, what's the point of letting others know that he is great? More basically, I believe that God is humble because that's his nature, for without humility you cannot genuinely love others. As for us who are definitely not the greatest, all the more we should remain humble. We should never show off before others to make others feel inferior.

Loving All Equally

        We naturally feel that our family members among all the people in the world are the closest to us. What does Jesus see? He said that whoever does the will of God is his brother and sister and mother (Mark 3.35). And he wanted to love our neighbor as ourselves. And Jesus identified himself with the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the ill, and one in prison (Matthew 25). It's clear that to the Lord, every single soul is equally dear to him. To follow his example, we must see all as loved ones of God and love them with no differentiation. 

Do All for Love

        Once you have been compelled to love Jesus, let this love, which really came from him, propel you in all that you do.

Love Compelling

        When you read the Gospels and finally realize how amazing God's love for us truly is, you will be compelled to love Jesus ~ only an irrational person will not so choose.

Battling Satan

        In fighting a battle, every little effort matters and every single moment counts. Remember that Jesus wants us to be perfect and this is how we should deal with Satan. In other words, we must be fully vigilant and do whatever we can to help without hesitation.

Time to Consecrate Ourselves

        Today is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, a good day to consecrate or reconsecrate ourselves to God. I feel great sorrow that the Church is being persecuted by the current administration at the top and "under attack" by other non-Christian organizations. Religious freedom as guaranteed by the Constitution is losing its protection. When Satan seems to prevail, we need to seek refuge in the Lord more than ever. 

Vision Affects Living

        A vision of a child is different from that of an adult who has many more life experiences. A farmer's vision is again different from what a high government official sees and understands. What we see affects how we live our lives. If we have the vision of truth, we will live right too. So, get to know Christ and ask him to let you have his vision of the world. 

Power over Sin

        This morning at Mass, the Lord made me see the power we can have to overcome sin. Of course, only he has the power to take away our sins, but he has given us the choice to repent, get our sins forgiven, and reconcile with him again. I thought about it and saw that it was a tremendous power we can channel from God for our benefit. This is a unique power that comes only from God. Whatever God does, he accomplishes. Prepare yourself and give the Lord the go-ahead and it will be instantly done. 

Sad State of the World

        I am greatly saddened by the fact that so many Catholics do not take they faith seriously. Attending Mass on Sunday is not on their priority list and the reception of the Holy Eucharist becomes perfunctory and produces no change in them. Being lukewarm is worse than being cold (Revelation 3:16). 

        Today I heard the absurd news that in France, quite a number of once baptized but now atheists want the Church to de-baptized them. One has begun a lawsuit already. Of course, this is something that cannot be undone. It's rather like deciding you don't want to live in this world anymore and asking your mother to put you back in her womb.  

        More saddening news ~ those candidates who are involved in fighting to become front runners in our political party primaries are spending vast amounts of money in media attacking each other, and these false accusations actually influence many ill-informed voters. Money definitely works here. With enough money, you can pretty much "buy" the office you want. By the way, the candidates are all known to be Christians!  

        I know, we all fall short or way short. Jesus came in the first century and was rejected by many and put to death. In this 21st century, we are acting no better. The next time he comes, he will be doing the judging and we shall not have the chance to say anything. My advice is: Wake up and reform before it's too late ~ that same age-old warning.

Listen, Obey, and Act

        From today's Gospel reading taken from Mark 1 at Mass, we hear that Jesus entered the synagogue to teach and the people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes. Now that we know Jesus is God, this is no longer surprising in the least. Therefore, we should not only pay attention to his teaching, but also do what he tells us to do. Listening alone is not enough ~ to obey and act becomes mandatory if one truly believes in him. Again, this is the logical conclusion.