How to Impress God

        In all my years of attending Mass, I have heard innumerable homilies preached from the pulpit. They range from the instantly forgettable to those that set your heart afire for God. In between, you have memorable ones, but the focus upon God is often diluted by the speaker's desire to be entertaining. Obviously, to impress God, all focus should be on him alone. To achieve this, we need to let God impress us first. It again comes down to letting God do all the work for us.

Living for God Alone

        Two people could do exactly the same thing, yet because their motives are different, one is storing up treasures in heaven while the other one, not. Life invisible to us is all visible to God. Therefore, live for God alone, not for any other fellow humans to see.

Triumphant Moment

        Communion experience. Receiving the Holy Eucharist is to reach the high point of life once again. It's with the Lord, possessing all one needs! There's the feeling of triumph without pride.

Most Stunning Event

        The most stunning, remarkable, incredible, earthshaking, and memorable event of all time has to be that God died for us on the cross so that we might be saved. To ignore its significance is to risk being the biggest fool of all time!

Our Vocation

        We who profess to follow Christ must make every effort to be fishers of men, as this is his command and wish. It is not how many people you can catch, but how diligently you attempt the task that counts. Let this lovingly motivate every thought, word, and deed of yours.

Union in Spirit

        Communion experience. God enters us to unite with us physically for the purpose of uniting with us in spirit.

Getting Backed Up

        Let God back you up in everything in this life and he'll back you up all the way to heaven.

Two Important Facts

        Today's Communion verse, John 12.24: Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit, alleluia. Fact #1: Life is endless, since the soul lives on. Fact #2: We must die in Christ while we are alive in order to live on in happiness. So it's live to die to live forever.

Sticking With the True God

        I have believed in Christ for decades, who has never forced me to believe in him. Even now, I am completely free to leave him if I choose to do so. Any god who binds us to him by force can not be the true God. God makes faith meaningful by letting us decide to accept him or not. With such a sensible, understanding Lord, why should I ever consider leaving him? So we are now stuck with each other and more joyful than ever!

Transforming Power of God's Love

        Today's Communion verse John 17.24 reads: Father, I wish that, where I am, those you gave me may also be with me, that they may see the glory that you gave me, alleluia. We who love Jesus also wish that everyone else would love him. Unlike anything else, Jesus' love affects us uniquely ~ it makes us selfless. Even though we know that he loves everyone, our enemies included, we are not jealous. Even though we have received so many good things from him, we are eager to share them with others. The urge to spread the good news truly comes from the heart, for the ego is absent. Only God's love has the power to make us genuine.

God Is Different

        Jesus has died for us for love of us. We would have difficulty even in dying for someone who loves us very much. We may run away, hesitate, or bravely volunteer with trepidation. By contrast, Jesus volunteered without hesitation in fulfilling the Father's plan. You could say he welcomed the opportunity, for his love for us overcame all fear. As you know, God loves us so much that there is great rejoicing even over one sinner who repents. This is the difference between God and us.

Changing People

        It's difficult to change others, for we all have pride. Fundamental changes can only be brought about by God! As Christians, the ones we should change first are ourselves, then we can change others by our example. This is the only effective way.

Union Explained

        Union involves the interior. As God enters our heart and soul, we enter his interior. This fusion of God and us brings about our transformation. 

How to Be Fearless

        In this morning's Gospel reading from John 3 at Mass, John stated that Jesus came into the world as the light, and people who does wicked things are afraid of the light because it would expose their works, but whoever lives the truth welcomes the light. Observation: if we are not afraid to let God expose us and see our works, then we will not be afraid of anything.

God Neglected

        Attention to God needs to come from our innermost self, yet we easily immerse ourselves fully in distractions of the world. And it usually takes some crisis to jolt us into turning to God. If you still consider yourself loving God, then it's certainly "loving him with not a lot of your heart, not a lot of your soul, not a lot of your strength, and not a lot of your mind."

Attitude Towards Death

        The Lord has helped me form the best attitude towards death. As physical problems for older folks begin to show, he is preparing me for meeting him. Death no longer offers any fear, since I know exactly where I'll be going. It's facing the unknown that causes uneasiness, if not fear, in us. God removes all uncertainties. 

Side Benefit

        The more you pray for others, the more God makes you holy.

Transformation Time

        Communion experience. After receiving the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, it's the perfect time to ask him to make us holy.