Rebellion and Obedience are at opposite ends of the spectrum. Persistent rebellion against God leads to permanent separation from him and total obedience to God, to union with him ~ they are poles apart! All souls start out with rebellion, but they are absolutely tamable by God, as nothing is impossible with him. Know that when you rebel against God, you're fighting a fore-known losing battle. Wouldn't you rather let him tame you to bring you to perfect harmony with him? The answer should be a nobrainer.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Step by Step to Union
If you are not quite ready to fully surrender to the Lord yet, then each time when you receive the Holy Eucharist, just ask him to bend you a little bit more to draw you closer to him. In time, you'll be in full union with him before you know it. Remember that we cannot do anything on our own, but God can accomplish anything through us.
Going Up to God
Yesterday was a day of full moon and the moonlit landscape outside my window appeared especially beautiful after dark. I saw that it's all a part of the planet earth. Then I thought of Jesus who lived here and finally ascended into heaven as his disciples watched him being lifted up and taken from their sight by a cloud. Our Blessed Mother was also bodily assumed into heaven. And there's Elijah being taken up in a whirlwind. I know that I won't be leaving the world in such a dramatic fashion, but I also know that my soul will rise to the Lord one day, perhaps very quietly. That'll be a day of great, great joy for me. My only sadness would come from realizing that many who have not believed in Jesus yet may not experience any joy when they leave this world and afterward.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Suffering for the Sake of Love
Nobody feels good when someone suffers, yet as I was praying the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary today, thinking about the Lord's agony, the extreme physical pains he bore, the unjust insults he received, the shedding of his most precious blood..., I experienced the greatest sweet joy because this is how much he loves us! I'll never be able to thank him enough and shall rejoice in him forever.
We Are like Thomas
Today is the Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle. He is known as the doubting Thomas because he was not with the other disciples when Jesus came (after the Resurrection) and when they told him that they had seen the Lord, he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe." This was not really as bad as Peter denying the Lord thrice. Anyway, this honest account of Thomas makes me believe in Jesus even more ~ he's just like many of us today! We don't believe in Jesus because we are human like Thomas. Later Thomas finally saw Jesus and believed ~ this should be sufficient for us to cast away all our doubts and believe in the Lord.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Proper Response to God's Love
God loves us with an infinite love, so how should we respond to him? Of course, we should love him back; but since we'll never be able to love him as much as he loves us, why don't we just remain completely open to let him love us as much as he wants? Be "spoiled" by God!
Enjoyment, Not Attachment
There are many beautiful things for us to enjoy, but it would be wrong for us to become attached to them. Since I knew and was interested in music, I can cite some examples. I am sure that many of you are probably familiar with the Styne/Cahn song The Things We Did Last Summer. Both the music and lyrics are so beautiful that it can bring back old memories and make you cry. You can hear the many versions on YouTube, including Frank Sinatra's. If you feel good listening to it, just thank God for it, for all things beautiful come from him.
Two other piano solos you most likely will find enjoyable are these videos on YouTube,
The first piece is based upon Gershwin's song Embraceable You. The great American pianist Earl Wild just made a virtuoso etude out of it and in this video the Korean pianist Yeol-Eum Son interprets it possibly even better than Wild himself. The second video is based upon the song En Avril made popular by the French singer Charles Trenet. Then Alexis Weissenberg, the Bulgarian-French pianist arranged it for piano solo and in this video the Canadian pianist Marc-Andre Hamilin plays it. (To hear Trenet sing the original song, go on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2Piuuuzhho.) Again, enjoy the music, thank God, and move on. God gives us beauty for us to enjoy and not to become enslaved by it. We should let all enjoyable experiences draw us even closer to God, for his beauty is beyond comprehension until we are with him in person.
Fit to Follow Jesus?
In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 8 at morning Mass, we heard the following. A scribe approached and said to Jesus, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nest, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head." Another of his disciples said to him, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father." But Jesus answered him, "Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead."
The point is that if we want to follow the Lord, we must not be concerned about or attached to anything else. The priest in his homily told about a young man interested in becoming a religious came to the seminary to learn about the religious life and he showed up with two pets, a dog and a parrot. The seminary gave him a chance for trial, but he lasted just a few months and left. His attachment to his pets was a clear sign that he's not fit to follow Jesus yet. Of course, people have all kinds of attachments to different things, but only the one who's attached to Jesus alone is free to follow him ~ he or she has wisely chosen the best.
Certainty in Jesus
Even though Jesus suffered most excruciatingly in his life on earth, he's always optimistic, knowing that he would be victorious in the end. This Jesus has given us hope in him. No, more than hope...we can be certain in him, for his victory is now our victory!
Jesus Our Revelation
If we don't have God, we easily become self-centered creatures ~ this is for sure. Jesus came and revealed clearly that for those who believe in him, they will live forever (eternal life with him in heaven). His love for us is what attracts and draws us to him. Then we fully accept and believe in him and we are transformed into new loving creatures. This is a simple summary of the true Christian experience.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Selfless Serving
This is serving God when you no longer notice that you are doing it and only God notices you.
Three Beautiful Acts
At Mass I came to see three beautiful acts. They are:
(1) Giving yourself to God.
(2) Bringing souls to God.
(3) Serving God.
On Priesthood
This weekend our parish is celebrating our priest's 40th anniversary of his ordination to priesthood. I started thinking about the sacrament of holy orders. It's truly a high calling because an ordained priest will be given the power to change bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ and it is through him that we the faithful get to receive this Most Holy Sacrament. Priesthood is truly an awesome vocation. Thank God for our priests.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Thorough Healing by God
In my last post, I asked the Lord to work on my soul, heart, and mind. God always wishes us to have peace. Once he transforms us, we no longer experience the following: anger, impatience, worry, anxiety, nervousness, mental depression, fear, hatred, envy, jealousy, lust, greed in every form, obsessiveness of any kind, yearning for appreciation or recognition, and even insomnia. The love of Christ has now displaced all things negative. Thorough healing must begin in the interior and only God can reach our innermost. When we are in trouble, shouldn't we go see the One who created us?
Friday, June 29, 2012
Midyear Prayer Request
Tomorrow will be the last day of June. I do not ever look back on the past. What's in store ahead for me? I don't think about that either. At Mass this morning, which happened to be the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, the great Apostles, I just ask the Lord to further (1) heal my soul, (2) condition my heart so that I'll be totally obedient to his will, and (3) purify my mind. Joy awaits me when he complies with my request.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Levels of Knowing
My last post is concern about whether God knows us. So what is knowing? I know a lot of people, but do I really know them? On the other hand, I have never seen Jesus or met any of the great saints, yet I feel that I know them intimately. To know is a relationship after all. To know well is to have an intimate relationship. In this case, it's the love for Christ that's the common bond, making this intimate knowing possible. It's a knowing not on the physical or mental level, but through the soul.
Getting God's Attention
In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 7, Jesus said to his disciples, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not...do mighty deeds in your name?' Then I will declare to them solemnly, 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.'" Obviously, to call Jesus "Lord, Lord" to get his attention or pointing out that we did mighty deeds in his name won't do us any good. Jesus shows us that we must do the will of God in humility, then he will notice us.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
How to Be a Cool Christian
Many jazz musicians and pop entertainers are known to be cool. Kids nowadays want to look cool. To be cool is to do one's thing well and looking totally unperturbed. Jesus was definitely cool. Here's how we can be cool.
(1) Never judge anyone.
(2) Trust in God fully so that we do not worry nor get anxious.
(3) Show compassion for all.
(4) Be optimistic and joyful always.
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