**How God Relates to Us

          I am not able to attend Mass, so I looked up the Gospel reading. Today is the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene. The reading comes from John 20. Mary Magdalene saw that the tomb in which Jesus was buried was empty. She thought someone had taken him from the tomb, and started to weep. Then Jesus appeared to her and conversed with her. She first thought he was the gardener, then she recognized him. Jesus' last words to her were "Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, 'I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Mary went to the disciples and reported everything to them.

        So Jesus regarded his disciples as his brothers. The fact that his Father is also our Father makes it clear that we are all brothers and sisters to him. It amazes me that we have a God who considers us to be equal to him. Knowing this, we can go to him with great confidence. Always remember that we have the same Father!

*Waiting on the Lord

        I've learned so much from writing this blog. Here's just one lesson. If I try hard to think up what to post, then what comes out would be mostly me and not the Lord. And I don't think I would have much to say either. So I just let the Lord tell my heart what to post and the process becomes natural and easy. For us who are anxious to serve the Lord, we run the risk of coming up with ideas not originated from God, at least not yet. My advice is that we always pray and wait until the Lord clearly shows what we should do next. We need to follow God's schedule. Patience is needed in order not to waste time. 

*How the Lord Treats Us

        Today's alternative Communion antiphon, Revelation 3.20: Behold, I stand at the door and knock, says the Lord. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me. This is how the Lord treats us. He stands at the door and knock, gently. If you ignore him, he continues to knock, never trying to break the door down. if you open the door to let him in, he's going to enter and dine with you! This is as nice a Lord as you can get! How unconscionable of us to continue offending him!  

**All for Jesus

        Today's Gospel reading from Luke 10 was about Martha and Mary, the sisters. While Mary chose to sit beside Jesus at his feet listening to him speak, Martha was burdened with serving. Martha came to Jesus and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me." The Lord replied to her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her." I'd like to focus on how Martha felt. I am sure we've all invited friends and/or relatives to our home for a meal, a party, or just a get-together. It doesn't take long to find out that there are always some who never lift a finger to help in any way and others who gladly volunteer to help. If no one offers any help, the host can feel not being appreciated and that it's unfair that he or she should do all the work with others reaping the benefits. Here is the solution I see. Do everything for the sake of serving (pleasing) Christ alone, not ourselves. Whether others help or not, it's between them and God.

*Questioning Ourselves

        Why do we reject God the Father who loves us with all his heart? Why do we reject Jesus the Son who died for us to save us from eternal damnation? Why do we reject the Holy Spirit who can guide and teach us to live a holy life, readying us for heaven? How can we be so blind, deaf, and dumb?

God and We, the Perfect Match

        I just see so clearly that God and we make a perfect match. We are made for each other! The Lord loves us and wants to save us and we surely need salvation. God is ever ready to welcome us back and we can be back in grace in no time. God and we can certainly make each other very happy. If we do not cooperate, then we are the big losers.

Getting Back to God

        Do you feel being lost, not knowing what the purpose of life is? Do sins rob you of inner peace? Do you feel that you are just not free, overwhelmed by the problems of life? If your answers are all yes, then here's the breakthrough for you: submit yourself to Christ to be back in harmony with your creator. We lose our way and become slaves to ourselves simply because we have strayed away from God. 

Fools Don't Want to Die

        To hold onto this life is like holding onto a sinking ship. It's only a matter of time that you are going to sink and hopefully not drown. I can talk like this because I am old enough to know that I can go anytime. The wise one does not cling to his own life, for he has made arrangement with the Lord already and is ready to move on whenever he calls. How foolish it is to attach yourself to anything that perishes in time! Let Christ free you from all bondage now. 

*Prayer for the Mass

        After witnessing the lack of reverence at many church Masses, I pray that:  

1. We would see that attending Mass is comparable to going to join Jesus at the Last Supper.  
2. We know that the sole purpose of attending Mass is to worship, adore, and praise God, and to receive the Lord present in the Holy Eucharist (so anything that distracts us from that focus would be improper). 
3. All attendees at Mass – priests, servers, ministers, musicians, ushers, the congregation – will show utter reverence in what they say and do. 
4. Silence would be observed inside the nave before and after the Mass.

***Following the Lord of All Things

        In today's Gospel's reading from Matthew 12, Jesus lets the Pharisees know that he is even Lord of the sabbath. In fact, Jesus is the Lord of all things! He is the Lord of my blog. There are days when he gives me many ideas or nothing at all. When I receive nothing, I know that all ideas did come from him. And I could hit post #10,000 in 2020 or stop having anything to say beginning tomorrow. Jesus is Lord when he responds to our prayer instantly or eventually, exactly the way we'd hoped or in a surprising way. The Lord gives and takes away as he wishes. We simply trust, obey, and follow him through thick and thin. This way of life may sound boring to most people; but on the contrary, it is living the most exciting and satisfying life on earth! Better yet, the very best is to come after you leave this earth.

**Surprises Death Brings*

        After we die, we'll either be surprised to find how beautiful heaven is or be so shocked to see how horrible hell is. It is my most ardent prayer that everyone will receive the delightful surprise and no one, no one, will experience the terrible shock after death.

**Where Is Your Home?

        From today's Communion antiphon from Psalm 84: As the sparrow finds a home and the swallow a nest to settle her young, My home is by your altars, LORD of hosts, my king and my God! Where is your true home? Surely, you don't want it to be the one you are in now on earth. Lost souls are lost because they do not have a true home. To be lost forever is to never have a place you can call your home – a terrible situation. Settle no less for a home in heaven where your Father lives, for with God, we can confidently aim heaven-high!

***Bold Approach to God

        Our relationship with God is revealed by how we interact with him. If you only think of him once in a while, then obviously, you hardly know him. On the other hand, if you know that he is your loving Father who will always help you and that nothing is impossible with him, and are always aware of his presence, are open to him, share everything in your heart with him, and ask boldly for what you need in serving him, then you are most likely in union with him already. The point I want to make is that God is not to be approached timidly, but boldly with full confidence and no hesitation. Being infinite, omnipotent, and most loving, he surely can handle everything you "throw" at him. An intimate relationship is developed when you open up to God and share everything with him. 

**Finding Rest in God

        Here is today's very short Gospel reading from Matthew 11. Jesus said; "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light." I think we all labor and are burdened living in this imperfect world. How should we exactly respond to the Lord? I believe we need to begin by being meek and humble of heart to acknowledge that we need his help and that he can help us. Then we let the Lord help us carry our burden to make it light. Instead of struggling on our own, we can now rest in him. It's this going to him, this trust, that makes all the difference. 

**Most Carefree Existence!

        God knows everything and he loves you, so let him into every aspect and every nook and cranny of your life. Become one with him, achieving complete harmony and submission. So you can say that you are thoroughly God's. Now you lead your happiest, most carefree existence. By the way, I am talking reality!

***Most Important Message***

        Following God is easy or hard, depending upon you. You can easily dismiss God or believe in God like a child. So it's making the easy decision to make following God impossible or making the hard decision to make following God easy. Know that the most important and urgent call from God now and always is to surrender ourselves to him. It is the call to salvation, a call to eternal happiness. All you need to get started is to open up your heart to God. Your decision. This is my most important message to you, as it could impact your eternal existence.

**True Flesh and Blood of Our Lord

        John 6.56 is one of today's Communion antiphons: Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him, says the Lord. If the consecrated bread and wine were merely symbolic representations of Jesus' flesh and blood, he would have simply said "Whoever eats this bread and drinks this cup . . . ." It's just common sense. 

          Here are the three verses preceding 56. Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not hav life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. How can you eat the ordinary bread and drink the ordinary wine and have eternal life? Of course, you must believe that the bread and drink once consecrated do become the flesh and blood of the Lord. Anyway, the Apostles, the early Church, and the Catholic Church to this day have all believed in the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist.

*Bringing Up Teenage Children

     Parent often have problems with their teenage children because that's when they start to assert their independence before adulthood. Here are some of the lessons I have learned. 

1. First, remember this part of the Peace Prayer of St. Francis: O Master, grant that I may never seek so much to be understood as to understand. Therefore, listen to your children so that you may understand them. 
2. Do not rush to conclusions or get emotional, for you must remain calm to be able to think clearly.
3. Be gentle always, but firm at the same time if you know that you are right.
4. If they are wrong, do not scold them but calmly point it out.
5. Don't play the blame game. Tell them how you feel about it, rather than pointing the finger at them.
6. If you are in the wrong, admit that, so they'll see that you are also human and have enough humility.
7. It's best that both parents agree on how to teach and discipline their children.
8. Treat all your children fair and equally; never show any favoritism.
9. Your own example is the best way to teach your children.
10. Realize that all of them are souls that belong to God, not you. Each of them will have to respond to God individually. You are here to do your best to love them and to guide them; then you let them go. (Consecrate them to the Lord as early as possible.)