Only Way to Freedom

        How happy and free we are in life depends upon how we handle ourselves. If you play God, you won't be happy because you are not him. Those who are happy let God be their Lord and follow his will and see all problems as his problems. Abandon yourself to God is the only way to freedom. When you taste this freedom, you'll know that you have the truth.         

*God's Companionship

        God is always there for us. It is when we stray away from him that we lose his companionship. Of course, you need to get to know him first. Anytime I miss my intimacy with him ever so slightly, I know that I have strayed away, usually in thoughts. This is good for me, for it makes me want to go right back to be in full union with him. It is this intimate companionship that makes life sweet, satisfying, and worth living.

*Heaven and Hell

        Heaven exists because God is love. Hell exists because sin is real. Our free will exists because God wants to give us the chance to choose him.

*Do You Hear Yourself?

        It is easy for us to hear others talk and then criticize them, but hard to be aware of exactly what and how we speak to others. It is hard because when we speak, the intention to listen to ourselves is not there. So if someone criticizes what we have said, that person may have a point. If we do not hear ourselves, mostly likely we are not as perfect as we think we are. In sum, be sensitive to what you say and know that other speakers do not hear themselves well either. This can help us avoid unnecessary arguments.  

Entrusting Your Soul

        Communion thoughts. You can fully entrust your soul to Jesus, for he is the soul healer. Now, there are those who sell their soul to the devil for riches on earth. With Jesus, not only you gain eternal life, you also inherit all that the Father has in heaven.

Division and Unity

        Jesus said that he had come not to establish peace on earth, but rather division ~ you see that this has been happening to this very day. But let's not forget that he has also brought unity among all the faithful disciples, the communion of saints, and for many of us union with God. (Note that there is no unity on the other side.) 

*Revelation Amplified

        Revelation from God needn't be some new knowledge we learn for the first time; it could also be a confirmation that something already revealed to us is absolutely true.

A Creation Secret

        The more we give ourselves to God, the more we experience freedom. How so? Answer: God has created us this way.

*In God's Light

        Today is the Epiphany of the Lord. In reading 1, Isaiah speaks of God as the light that shines upon us. Today, if you are not in the light of Christ, you are still in darkness, for only in him is your path to eternity made crystal clear! 

*Sorrow Lined With Joy

        Is the death of Jesus a tragedy? No, because the love of God triumphed. Of course, I feel sorry for the suffering Christ underwent, then I am even moved more by God's love for me. So it's great sorrow lined with greater joy.

*A Plea to Turn to God*

         What hurts me the most is to see so many of us continue to ignore God and go their own way, sinning as if there would be no consequences. To them I address the following questions and remarks. 

       Don't you know that you are hurting the very Lord, your creator and Father, deeply? What has he done to deserve all this? All he wants to do is to love you and give you eternal life! He has already died for you on the cross, so why do you continue to wound him mercilessly and unceasingly? Don't you realize that you are returning love with ingratitude, thus cutting off the only hope of your life? How cold and hard can your heart possibly get? Instead of offering it to the Father as you should, you have killed it. He is weeping for you, while you should be weeping for yourself. His mercy is infinite, but it's useless if you reject it all. Know that if you choose not to turn to him, you choose to be lost forever. Creating a tragedy with yourself being its protagonist is tragic indeed! 

*Have Jesus, Have Your Way

        Communion thoughts. Once you have Jesus, what you want is always what he wants, and you'll have all you want.     

Need to Involve God

        There are many human teachings out there advising you on how to think positively, to fulfill your personal goals, to live without stress, to make friends, etc., but without the involvement of God, they are basically self-centered and all efforts must still come from you alone – think of trying to pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Only by doing whatever with God's help and for his sake will you have the best chance to succeed and have joy too.

Blessed During Consecration

        During the consecration of the bread and wine when the Lord transformed them into his own body and blood at Mass today, I felt blessed to be present at this great miraculous happening.

*What to Associate with Jesus

        This morning at Mass when I heard announced that the opening hymn would be #110 in the song book, Beethoven's great Op. 110 piano sonata popped into my mind, as it was one of my favorite piano compositions. So I wondered what we would quickly associated with the name "Jesus" when we hear it. I dare guess that many would say "love" or "forgiveness of sins." But there is one more perhaps less abstract thing we should always remember to associate with Jesus, and that is "eternal life." Jesus came into the world precisely so that everyone who believes in him might not perish and have eternal life! (John 3.16.)

*Exciting Spiritual Life

        Is the spiritual life a tranquil life? An exciting life? I would say both. Tranquil, because you enjoy the peace of God. Exciting, because God speaks to your heart, teaching and guiding you. What spices up the spiritual life are the surprises the Lord springs upon you at various times, showing that he is with you and capable of doing wondrous deeds. This adds extra joy to the spiritual life. 

Changed Outlook on Life

        As we age and our physical health deteriorates, we can see that life overall is not as happy a thing as we thought it could be when we were young. But those who have Christ would see that he is the bright light in their lives and knowing him far outweighs all the other sad parts of life. In addition, they know that their yearning for the Lord will soon be fulfilled ~ a joy that no sadness on earth can touch. 

God's Forgiving Mercy

        There is no question that only God can take away our sins. It follows that only God can make us totally forgive someone we find it most difficult to forgive on our own. Since God's mercy knows no bounds, let that mercy infiltrate our hearts first so that we may be merciful to all others, friends and enemies.