No Freedom Without Truth

        Jesus said in John 8 that "the truth will set you free" ~ I've found this to be true. In my opinion, any religion that does not make you feel free cannot possibly be true. Experiencing freedom in your God proves that he is love and the true One. There are also those who do not believe in God and think that they are free, but this is only pseudo-freedom felt when you think you have escaped from facing God. Such feelings are short-lived when you realize that you are a slave to the world and to your ego.

Unconditional Love for All

        Today is Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. In Reading 2 from Romans 5, Paul points out that God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. God's unconditional love teaches us to love all others in the world without discrimination, as he loves all sinners without discrimination.

God to Be Take Seriously

        This is how Jesus taught on judging others: "As you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you" (Matthew 7:2). In the Lord's Prayer, he also taught us to say, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." It follows that if we don't take God seriously, he won't take us seriously either.

Most Beautiful Things

        Anticipating the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus tomorrow, EWTN showed a film on St. Margaret Mary Alacoque who received the revelations of the Sacred Heart. In some scenes, you see the saint prostrating herself in front of the Lord on the altar ~ it is such a beautiful scene! And I saw that it's proper ~ so right ~ for us to surrender to the Lord, to abandon ourselves to him, to trust in him, to rest in him, and to serve him. It struck me that all these things are most beautiful. 

Falling in Love with God

        Meditate upon the love of Christ and you fall in love with this love. Now you have fallen in love with God.

Greatest Commandments Linked

        In today's Gospel reading taken from Mark 12, Jesus gave the first of all the commandments: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. Then the second: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. These two greatest commandments are intimately linked together. Following the second commandment faithfully fulfills the first one. Following the first commandment gives us the power and strength to fulfill the second one. 

The Lord In Me

        At morning Mass, I did feel that Jesus was sitting on the throne in my heart instead of being outside of me. I was elated that he was with me. He's still in me now.

Consider Eternal Life

        I ask the Lord to let me evangelize to as many people as possible, and the opportunities often come up, and the right moment to say something follows too. People commonly talk about their worldly problems. At the appropriate moment, I would let my listeners know outright that what I am going to say to them, most likely they won't hear from another person. I tell them that my main concern for them are not worldly problems but eternal life, which must be considered foremost. Then I present Jesus as our answer. My listeners always seem to understand my intention and that I speak it out of love. So a seed is sown and may bear fruit one day.  

The Human Plight

        Here's my simple view of the human situation. Since Adam and Eve disobeyed God, we ended up carrying the original sin and got banished as far from him as possible. Then because he loves us so much, he sent Jesus his own Son into the world to die in our place to redeem us. Now, we can believe in Christ and be adopted by God the Father as his children again, or ignore or reject Christ and remain banished. 

         A footnote. Because God has created us in his own image, he loves us and we can understand his love.  

Taking the Holy Eucharist Seriously

        Receiving the Holy Eucharist is not a casual affair. In 1 Corinthians 11:27, Paul wrote that "whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord." Before we receive the Sacrament, we should make sure that we are in as pure a state as possible spiritually. Then we ask the Lord to bestow on us whatever we need to be drawn close to him. We must become more like him, even for a tiny bit, after each reception.

Do not Neglect Loving

         Do not forget to visit your loved ones or any needy folks as often as possible ~ this is loving your neighbor. To follow the commandment of honoring your father and your mother, don't forget to keep in touch with them if they live away from you. If there is any animosity between you and your parents or any other family members, seek reconciliation, ask for forgiveness, before you face God ~ this is absolutely urgent, first-priority business. You must cast aside all pride and let humility rule!
       I've been visiting the homebound for quite some time and I am so happy that I'd made special visits to some of them and regret that I didn't go see some others more often before they passed away. One I saw a month ago was a laughing, talking person; two weeks ago, he lost all his energy, stopped eating, and had trouble breathing. Last week, he's gone. Let your loved ones know that you love them and you care for them before they or you leave the world. Show that you truly love God.   

Most Common Addiction

        Attachment to material goods is the most common addiction in the world. This spiritual failing makes you forget God, thus pleasing Satan greatly. The only remedy for it is to attach yourself to God.  

Living Our Only Day

        You've heard that we should live every day like it's our last. To add urgency to it, I'd suggest that we live every day like it's our only day. This should motivate us to pack as much loving God into one day as possible.

The World Is Our Stage

        It came to my mind this morning that "the world is like a stage." Then an online search showed that "All the world's a stage" is the phrase that begins a monologue in William Shakespeare's play "As You Like It." The speech compares the world to a stage and life to a play. Here's the beginning of that monologue: 

           All the world's a stage;

           And all the men and women merely players:

           They have their exits and their entrances;

           And one man in his time plays many parts .... 

This was exactly what I had in mind. In addition, each of us is free to play any character of our choice in our role on stage. And if God is chosen to be our director, he works mainly behind the scenes. After we exit at the end, our performance will be judged and that judge is God. I suggest that you ask God to direct you in the play. Get to know him well and he'll most likely judge you more leniently.

No Better Feeling!

        Communion experience today. By receiving the Lord with great reverence, love, and firm belief that he is the bread of life from heaven, my place in heaven is assured. There is no better feeling than knowing that we are in union with the Lord and heaven bound!

Same Division Today

       Today is the Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs. The Gospel comes from Mark 12. Jesus addressed a parable to the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders. In speaking he quoted this Scripture passage: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes. He was speaking of himself whom his listeners were seeking to arrest.

          It's same today. Those who have accepted the Lord know that it is wonderful in the Lord's eyes and those who have rejected him out of pride don't know what they're doing.

The Holy Eucharist Fulfills Us

        Communion experience. It's extra special to receive the Holy Eucharist on this Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. With Psalm 23:1 in mind, I could sum up my feeling by saying that "the Lord is in me; there is nothing I lack."

Power of the Holy Eucharist

        Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. The message I picked up during the homily: By receiving this Most Blessed Sacrament, which is Christ, we can become like him. Of course, if we receive it every Sunday at Mass just out of obligation, we shall remain the same. I've seen some who regularly receive the sacrament, yet still feel miserable most of the time. The power is there and will enter only those in a state of grace, open, and desirous of becoming holy.