Grateful for God's Mercy

        Four days ago, I got up in the morning and saw a big black spot of irregular shape, roughly half an inch wide, through my right eye. It's fixed in space, unlike one of those tiny floaters I notice once in a while. About five minutes later, it's gone. So I went in to see my eye doctor today. He thought that what I had was most likely an ocular migraine, not something of major concern; but he did find the pressure in my right eye too high and see signs of glaucoma. I am now using an eyedrop to control the high pressure which can cause blindness if unchecked. I see that the Lord gave me the migraine sign to get me to see the doctor. Otherwise I might not go visit one for another few years. So I just want to thank the Lord for his ever present mercy, our greatest treasure. We only need to recognize it.    

The Greatest Good

        God who is love and all-knowing will always bring about the greatest good out of any situation you're in. And that greatest good can be the spiritual transformation of yourself. 

New Level of Freedom

        For most of us, life is all about getting ahead. We want our children to get into the best schools. We try to know people who can help us in matters. Who wouldn't take advantage of an opportunity that can make us money? This morning while driving to morning Mass, suddenly the Lord made me see that if I do all such things, but not in order to make gains for myself, I would feel free! In other words, selflessness leads to freedom. This was "revelatory" to me and I thanked him for uplifting me to this new level of freedom. 

Soul Food

        Communion time thoughts. Food feeds and sustains the body, book feeds and cultivates the mind, and the Holy Eucharist feeds and heals the soul.         

Repentance Necessary

        Believing in God may not involve a change of the heart, but repentance does. Believing in God alone does not make you clean, but repentance does. Therefore, we need to repent after we have believed. 

From Rebellion to Obedience

        In Galatians 2, Paul wrote: "I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me." This is union with God, making it possible to gladly obey God in all things. Man has rebelled from God. Obedience to God is going all the way home to him who loves us in the first place. Union with God is rightfully a heavenly state because it restores our place in heaven.    

The Real Enemy

        If you truly love Jesus, you will want everyone else to love him too, and this would include all your enemies. But if you do not forgive your enemies, how can you expect them and yourself to love the Lord? Therefore, "not loving your enemies" is the real enemy you want to defeat.

Two Spiritual Flaws

        To not want to be a saint is to not want to love God to the utmost. To not believe that you can be a saint is to not believe that all things are possible with God. Both are serious spiritual flaws.  

The Compelling Jesus

        Today is the Memorial of St. Bonaventure. In the Gospel reading Matthew 10:34 - 11:1, we heard some of the rather "shocking" statements from Jesus to his Apostles. He said, "Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter again her mother.... Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it."

         Here Jesus really challenges us. He knew that he had brought the sword because people would be forced to accept or reject him. His statements force us to conclude either he is God or someone who doesn't know what he's talking about ~ there's no third choice possible. And you will not have peace if you choose to ignore him. With Jesus, it has to be all or nothing, take it or leave it. Come to think of it, no one other than the true God can possibly be so compelling.

On Serving God

        Serving God is a full-time occupation. We live for God alone; we are always ready to serve him and we do all things in order to serve him. How is this possible? Seek union with God and you'll know that it's not only possible, but also the natural thing to do. 

Experiencing Freedom

        Today's Communion experience. When I received the Holy Eucharist, I knew I was receiving exactly what the Apostles had received at the Last Supper. I was so happy that I abandoned myself to the Lord and experienced great freedom.

Fruit of Listening to God

        A Christian who listens to God remains humble and does not judge others.

No Halfhearted Loving

        The Gospel reading at Mass came from Luke 10. Jesus used the Parable of the Good Samaritan to teach how we should love our neighbor. A man fell victim to robbers; they stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead. A priest and a Levite both passed by, saw him, and did nothing. But a Samaritan traveler came upon him and was moved with compassion at the sight. He poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. Then he took him to an inn, and cared for him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction, "Take care of him. If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back." It's clear that of the three, the Samaritan is the one being neighborly to the robbers' victim.

        Therefore, we are to give our all in loving ~ to do everything within our power and reach. So many times we have the chance to help someone, but we never really put our heart into it. Jesus' commandment You shall love your neighbor as yourself demands going all out because loving your neighbor is loving the Lord, our God.

I Know Jesus!

        In Reading 2 from Colossians 1 at Mass, Paul speaks of Christ Jesus as the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, and the one in whom all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, were created. Furthermore, he is before all things and in him all things hold together. He is also the beginning and the firstborn from the dead. All the fullness dwells in him and God reconciles all things through him, making peace by the blood of his cross. 

       I proudly "boast" that I know this Christ Jesus because he dwells within me and is the one who has made my life worth living, giving me the reason to rejoice. 

Enjoying God to the Utmost

        Rest in your heavenly Father to let him love you and transform you into a new creature worthy of this love. 

Surrender to God Now

        The best time to surrender to God is NOW. As long as you are alive, it's never too late or too early to make this commitment. Why surrender? God truly needs us to help him find the lost sheep and bring them back to him! Saving the soul is so much more important than saving the physical life. To work for the Lord, we must be ready and fit, and surrendering to God is the best preparation for us. Without it, we won't be able to follow him every step of the way. 

Easy Judging

        Yesterday I heard about a young man in a Catholic family who didn't want to remain in the Church, one of his reasons being that the Vatican is so rich and wealthy with all its properties, art treasures, etc. I believe that this was his honest question and not an excuse. He had a point, but missed the real point ~ he should have looked at Jesus and not the sinners that are all of us.

        In teaching his disciples not to judge others, Jesus said, "How can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove that splinter from your eye,' while the wooden beam is in your eye? You hypocrite, remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother's eye" (Matthew 7.4-5). Judging is precisely the problem of the world. It's too easy to point your finger at someone else and not ever to examine yourself. The young man mentioned above was no exception. This is why families fall apart. This is why nations are at war with each other. If we all follow just this one counsel of the Lord, there would be instant peace. No humility, no peace, and I mean peace for the heart too.

Freedom in God Only

        Communion experience today. The Lord made me sense that true freedom for us exists in God only, and this freedom is indeed the greatest freedom we can possibly experience ~ nowhere outside God is there true freedom.