Satan is tricky. He is the master of deception. What he presents always looks or sounds good outwardly, but is always defective in some way. He can even produce false miracles and apparitions to fool you. That I can tell you from my own experience. Only God is perfect in every way. I really appreciate the advice of St. John of the Cross. He counsels that if you are seriously interested in seeking union with God, then focus upon the Lord alone and do not let anything else distract you, no matter how attractive, alluring, wonderful, or even miraculous it seems. Of course, these are not his exactly his words, only what he essentially stated. I'll always remember that.
Monday, September 30, 2019
Our Pressing Issue
We are rightly concerned about our environment, our living space, our air, our water, etc. But our inner peace, our soul, our eternal existence are so much more important. Common sense tells me that the earth is not to be mankind's permanent abode. First of all, the earth is a finite body, so it's surface area and its resources are limited. If the human population keeps growing, one day we'll run out of space as well as resources. God would not have put us on such a planet if we are not going to come to some kind of an end one day. That end could be his Second Coming, I don't know. So the #1 issue should be our own eternal survival, as each of us will only live a short time on earth and be gone.
*Beyond Expectations*
Communion experience. Today's Communion antiphon, Jeremiah 15.16: Lord God, when I found your words, I devoured them; your words were my joy, the happiness of my heart. When we yearn for the Lord, hearing his words is a joy, gladdening our heart. But we do not see him, nor can we touch him. Then the Lord gave us his own flesh and blood to consume to satisfy our yearning for him, exceeding all our expectations.
***Evil amid Us
Luke 17.1: Jesus said to his disciples, "Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the person through whom they occur." When you cause others to sin, it is indeed a grave sin. It saddens my heart to see that the hierarchy of our own Church is promoting globalism and a new humanism and is much concerned about "global warming" instead of condemning the continuous global murdering of the unborn, addressing the issue of general disbelief in the Real Presence of the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, questioning why so many Catholics are leaving the Church, etc. When evil has infiltrated the Church hierarchy, it's a sign that something momentous is happening. It's time to take complete refuge in the Lord.
*Our Power to Know God
If we ignore God, we'll never know him. If we let God be our God, then we can get to know him most intimately. To know God is impossible or easy—it's all up to us. The truth: we are not free until we relinquish our control of ourselves to God.
Sunday, September 29, 2019
**A Spiritual Warning
The evil forces of our godless world are so deceptive and prevalent that we must be deeply grounded in the Lord and remain vigilant in order not to be influenced by them. Seeking to achieve union with God is absolutely the best way to keep your soul pure and safe. Be one with the One who one day will completely trounce evil.
**Our Ultimate Voice
In today's Gospel reading from Luke 16, we heard the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. Both the rich man and poor Lazarus died. The rich man, suffering in the netherworld, saw Abraham far off with Lazarus. He said to Abraham, "I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house to warn my five brothers, lest they too come to this place of torment." But Abraham replied, "They have Moses and the prophets. If they will not listen to them, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead." I see Jesus as our ultimate voice, for he is far more than Moses or the prophets—he is God and will be our judge too. Therefore, we must listen to him! After him, there will be no one more worthy to listen to.
***Key to Spiritual Success***
Do you know that you do not have to try hard to hold onto Jesus? As a matter of fact, he is always waiting for you to abandon yourself to him for him to become one with you. You accomplish great things when you remain passive to let him be your Lord. You want to love him, let him love you. You want to be strong, let him make you strong. You want the Church purified and restored, trust in him to make it happen. In total union with the Lord, whatever you will is whatever he wills. You let him and he'll have it done, since you are no longer in his way.
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Prayer Obedience
True we can ask God for anything that comes to our mind, but let's obey him in prayer too by asking the Holy Spirit at the start to guide us in our prayer. This way, we remain in tune with the Lord throughout.
***Perfect Relationship
I've been married to my wife for over 57 years and you can say that she is the person I know best in this life, but not that we thoroughly know each other. After we die, that relationship will be gone. Our relationship with the Lord God is on an entire different level. This relationship can be perfect for these reasons: we can reach a complete mutual understanding with the Lord, we can become one with him through obedience, and the relationship can last forever! Therefore, establish this heavenly relationship with God to live on an exalted level.
Friday, September 27, 2019
*Priorities Out of Order
In the news just now, Pope Francis calls for an ethical use of technology. Good idea, but personally I don't think it'll do much good when so many people do not even know or love Christ yet. Without God, doing anything for the good of others doesn't always happen.
***Two Timely Urgent Messages
Watch the first 2 minutes 46 seconds of the first video for the main message.
Catholics, unite!
Catholics, unite!
*Lack of Reverence at Mass
This lack of reverence brings to my mind the picture of the disciples of Jesus falling asleep when he was praying. Instead of trying to amuse the congregation in some way, why can't we focus our entire attention upon the Lord? Instead of talking aloud and laughing the moment Mass has ended, why can't we wait at least until we have entered the vestibule of the church?
*Christ the Only Truth
Today is the memorial of St. Vincent de Paul. The Gospel reading came from Luke 9. Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do the crowds say that I am?" They replied, "John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, 'One of the ancient prophets has arisen.'" Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter said in reply, "The Christ of God." It is important for us to realize who Jesus truly is. Then we'll know that not all religions are the same and that Christ is the sole truth.
Thursday, September 26, 2019
***Key to Getting Close to God***
Some people are used to read prayers written by others; they have trouble saying their own. Some don't consider themselves to be contemplatives and have to rely upon words. And there are numerous books out there teaching you how to pray. Of course, the goal is to be drawn close to God. Let me say that if this is your goal, all you need to do is to open yourself up to God, surrendering to him, and he will draw you to him in no time. As long as you do not abandon yourself completely to him, you can read a thousand of these books and pray all you want, it won't draw you any closer to him. As Jesus said in Matthew 26.41: The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Here the flesh is your own pride. Only God can draw you to him, but you have to let him do it.
*Focusing upon the Holy Eucharist
With so many Catholics no longer believing in the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, Fr. Mark Goring makes a great point in this short video:
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