The Christian Life

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 10 at morning Mass, Jesus said to his Apostles, "Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give." This is the perfect instruction on how to live the Christian life ~ we receive freely from the Lord and give freely for his glory. We own nothing and we are free.

Sign of Holiness

        We get caught in slow traffic and start to cuss, in our mind first anyway. It's so easy to lose patience. Since we are not lord of the world, why should things always happen to please us? Even Christ encountered "inconveniences" so much worse than ours when he was on earth. We live in an imperfect world and what happens to us is permitted by God, not to screw us, but to make us more perfect. And this definitely makes patience a sign of holiness. 

We Are Debtors!

        Someone is greatly irritated because the person who owes him some money is late in returning it to him. I start thinking that we owe the Lord for everything and don't even consider giving any of it back to him! The Lord will surely deal with us as we deal with our debtors.

All About Love

        God is love. In fact, he alone is love, so love is God. All our love comes from him, the source. It is this love that can transform us, making us new, so that it may override everything in the universe.

Union and Hypocrisy

        This may sound harsh, but if we are not in full union with God, we can easily be hypocritical. In full union, one appears as he truly is. In partial union, one projects a false image.

Importance of Focusing on God

        When we lose our focus upon God, the ego can easily surface, making us lose our composure (peace). Then we start to speak unfavorably of others, though not in a deliberate way. I've seen this happening in people (myself included). This is judging, which the Lord wants us to stop. Take our eyes off the Lord and we'll surely slip, stumble, and fall. 

God in Full Charge

        Jesus promised that the gates of the underworld could never overpower the church he's going to build on Peter (John 16.18). God is in charge. It follows (yes, logically) that he must hear and answer all our prayers.  

A Most Reasonable Request

        God first created us out of love. We fell from grace and he gave his only Son to save us. We who believe in him are restored to being God's endearing children and become heaven bound. God initiated it all; we only need to listen and obey. 

True Happiness

        Any happiness that does not last for all eternity is not true happiness. In heaven we'll be truly happy. In fact, that is what it is for. Our heavenly Father wishes us to go to heaven and his Son has already paved the way for us. In our life on earth, the most happy we can ever get is to experience inner peace and spiritual freedom in God. Any earthling trying to find true happiness outside of God will only experience frustration and misery.

What to Do with Enemy

        If you have not done anything wrong, then the person who sins against you must have problems. In that case, pity and pray for him, and God will deal with him. The best way of changing others is to be the best example yourself. 

Being Made Whole

        Communion time thought. Jesus came to make us whole so that we would be fit to face anything in life, including martyrdom.

The Immediate God

        Communion experience. God is way up there in heaven and I am down here on earth. Yet the separation totally disappeared when Christ in the Holy Eucharist entered me. 

The All-Knowing God

        Today is the Feast of St. Thomas. The Gospel reading came from John 20. Thomas was absent when Jesus appeared to the disciples. They told Thomas that they had seen the Lord, but Thomas said, "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." A week later Jesus came to the disciples again and Thomas was present. Jesus said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." What didn't stand out to me until today was that Jesus knew exactly what Thomas had said a week earlier and responded to him. Conclusion: every single thought I think, every word I say, and every deed I do, the Lord knows. I feel totally secure!

How to Leave the World

        Thank God we have things we enjoy doing in this life, but let's not get attached to any of them so that when it's time for us to go, we'll be free and have an easy time. When you experience joy in heaven, everything you ever enjoyed doing on earth will fade into oblivion. Becoming attached to the world will only make your departure more painful. And I for one want to return to my God in my greatest possible joy!

Our Own Obstacle

        I've said that we are always our own biggest obstacle in journeying toward God. If you tell yourself that becoming a saint is not for you, my point is proven.

Sign God Is Love

        After receiving the Holy Eucharist today, Jesus became so "perfect" to me that I wished everyone to know him! He is already mine, yet I want to share him with everyone ~ it's precisely his selflessness that has made me selfless in this respect. All other good things tempt me to keep for myself to enjoy first, but only the truly good Lord wants me to give the very best to everyone else. What I want to keep the most for myself is also what I want to give to others the most. Yes, sign that God is love.  

God Our Refuge

        A Christian never takes his frustration or anger out on anyone. Instead he goes deep into God to seek consolation and guidance, and the Lord restores his peace. 

Misinterpretation

        The Church upholds the sanctity of life from the moment of conception and pro-abortionists misinterpret the teaching as disregard for women's rights. The Church upholds the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman and was misinterpreted to be hatred for gays and lesbians. On BBC News today is this story making headlines: http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-28113228. I don't know the singer Lovato, but I must point out her "misinterpretation" of Jesus when she said at a gay pride event in California as reported: "You don't have to hate because my Jesus loves all." It's true that Jesus loves all, but you must also remember what he said to the woman caught in adultery before dismissing her, "Neither do I condemn you. Go and from now on do not sin any more" (John 8:11).