In John 6.51, today's Communion antiphon, Jesus said: I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. If the bread the Lord offered us at the Last Supper and at every Mass today were merely ordinary bread symbolizing his flesh, what he had said would have made no sense.
Friday, January 4, 2019
***Dealing With Hell Now
In the battle against Satan, it is a foregone conclusion that God will crush all evil in the end. For us, there will be either heaven or hell awaiting us. If we are smart, we shall ally with God right this moment. Fr. Mark Goring posted this relevant video today:
Thursday, January 3, 2019
A Spiritual Certainty
Communion experience. Let the Lord God enter to be one with you and great things will happen to your soul!
*Know Where We Are Going
There are people who do not wish to know or understand Christ and tell me that they are happy and feel peaceful the way they are. These are good people and I don't doubt them, but they do not know what the true joy and the deep peace one experiences after being saved by God are like yet. Wait until the moment they are dying and heading into the unknown. Would they still feel the same? I doubt it.
Wednesday, January 2, 2019
***The Eucharist Difference
For me, it is the Real Presence of the Lord in the Holy Eucharist that make you experience his dwelling within you. If ordinary bread and wine (or grape juice as used in some churches) are used to symbolize the body and blood of the Lord, you may still be moved or get uplifted, but I do not believe you can ever experience that great intimacy of union with God, as the Eucharist realizes and seals that union.
**Living the Exciting Life*
It is not good enough not to do anything evil. Often, with a dull or lethargic conscience, we become inactive in serving the Lord. Being lukewarm is most displeasing to God (Revelation 3.16). To wake up on your own is not always easy. This is why I advocate seeking union with God from the very beginning, for the Lord will keep you awake by turning your ordinary spiritual life into exuberant and exiting living.
***Grave Transgression
Satan wants you to believe that Jesus is merely a good teacher, a good man, but not divine. Therefore, it is a grave transgression to believe and claim that Jesus is not God. (Applying this criterion, you can easily spot those religions, denominations, or sects that are false.)
**Know Your Calling and Role
In today's Gospel reading from John 1, John the Baptist testified to himself. He admitted that he was not the Christ, denied that he was a prophet, and said, "I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as Isaiah the prophet said." We who follow Christ must also know who we are, what our role or calling is. It does not have to be specific, but we should at least know clearly that we are to serve God. In my own case, since 2010 the Lord has made it clear to me that he desires union with us through receiving him in the Holy Eucharist. I will devote myself to spreading this message as best I can for the remainder of my life.
*God Most Understanding and Just*
God is both strict and lenient. He is strict because his words are truth and we must believe and obey them. He is lenient because he is love and will consider our circumstances and intention in each case and modify the rules, you might say, to be fair to us.
Tuesday, January 1, 2019
Alone With God
Communion experience. Only God and I were present. In a church filled with priests and parishioners, there was no one between the Lord and me. It was the most beautiful, private, exclusive moment of union with God.
Three New Realizations
(1) That the Lord knows the future is reason enough for us to trust in him.
(2) To trust in God is to trust in the power of God.
(3) To know God well, be aware that he is most holy first!
Blessed Art Thou Among Women
Today January 1 is the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. We all need a perfect mother and that mother is the mother of our Lord whom he has give us to be our mother. When you feel drawn to this Mother, the Lord is drawing you to him. Being most holy and close to the her Son, sometimes I feel that Mary is the only intercessor I need. I love the mother of my Lord, our Mother.
Rejoicing in the Lord Always
Happy 2019 to all! Nowadays you can easily watch the New Year's celebrations around the world online. I sampled a few of them and would guess that Dubai had the most beautiful fireworks display. I wonder why people are so happy to welcome each New Year. Is it because they hope or believe that things will get better for them in the new year? Or is it because they see themselves getting a new start in life? Perhaps they are happy simply because New Year is new? The reason could be a mixture of all three or more. I can't help shifting my thoughts to Jesus, who is forever new to us. What I mean is that he can continuously teach us something new, make us anew, and give us fresh hope at all times. Besides, the happiness he gives is not anticipatory – we actually receive deep, sweet, refreshing joy in our heart that's soul-cleansing. That explains why once you've tasted the Lord, New Year is just not very exciting anymore.
Monday, December 31, 2018
***Yearend Insight
Because we are at the complete mercy of God, the most sensible, intelligent, and logical thing for us to do is to abandon ourselves completely to God. The proof is in the peace and freedom you receive.
Most Fundamental Resolution
Reviewing what I lack spiritually, I see that I need to see Christ in everyone more. Of course, making any resolution on my own will not amount to anything if I do not let the Lord help me adhere to it. Looking at it this way, the most fundamental resolution is clearly to surrender ourselves to God in all things.
***Astounding Truth
The first 18 verses of the Gospel John were read at today's morning Mass on this last day of the year 2018 of our Lord. The words are earthshaking, soul-shaking. I shall reproduce verses 1-5 and most of verses 10-14 below.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him. But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God . . . . And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father's only-begotten Son, full of grace and truth.
As the year ends, it is fitting to review how it all happened at the beginning.
Sunday, December 30, 2018
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