In today's reading 2 from Romans 1, Paul calls himself a slave of Jesus Christ. For he knew that to be a slave of Jesus Christ made him the freest person on earth. I second that. (It follows that to be your own master is to be enslaved by yourself, and you are not free at all.)
Sunday, December 22, 2019
True Joy in Christ
Watching those commercials on TV, you notice the phony joy paid actors display in selling or promoting a product or service. Without Christ, even the joy we seek and experience in this life seems to be empty or shallow. Only the joy of Christ is pure joy because it originates from the Holy Spirit. When we rejoice in Christ, that joy we feel is true joy.
**Well-Balanced in Christ
Once you have Christ, you never feel inferior to anyone anymore, for you already have the Lord; and you do not look down on anyone anymore, for you are humble in the Lord. You are now a happy well-balanced person.
Saturday, December 21, 2019
*Getting Personal with Jesus*
Communion experience. I felt that that Jesus was my home, the end of my search, my answer to all my questions, my all, my everything. Perhaps "my ultimate fulfillment" is closest to what I want to say. Then I feel best when I just say "Jesus is mine."
In Tune with the Holy Spirit
In today's Gospel reading from Luke 1, we read about Mary visiting her cousin Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant (John the Baptist) leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, knew that Mary was the mother of her Lord. When we know that Jesus is our Lord and Savior, it is also the Holy Spirit who has revealed it to us.
**Our Ultimate Fulfillment
Today's entrance antiphon from Isaiah 7 & 8: The Lord and Ruler will be coming soon, and his name will be called Emmanuel, because he will be God-with-us. Jesus is indeed God-with-us. He is also God-in-us, the one to be in union with. He is our ultimate fulfillment!
Wrong Priorities
People are always thinking about acquiring wealth, how to invest their money for good returns; concerned about their health, what to eat and what supplements to take; and worried about getting old, how they can still look young or who's going to take care of them later. They do not know that if they seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness first, all these needs will be provided them besides (Matthew 6.33).
Friday, December 20, 2019
The Unworthy Exalted
Communion experience. I felt most unworthy as I approached the Lord to receive him. After he entered me, he greatly exalted me.
*Power of God's Joy
Once you finish school and land a great job, you don't care about all the hard studying you did and the tough exams you took. Once a couple find each other and fall in love, they don't mind their other problems much anymore. Once you have moved into a nice big new house, you no longer think about your small old dingy residence. It's also true that once you have become one with God, you forget all your miseries, sorrows, and sufferings. For no negative feeling can possibly pervade the joy of God.
***Simple Recipe for Returning to God*
Today's Gospel reading came from Luke 1, the announcement of the birth of Jesus by the angel Gabriel to Mary in Nazareth. Here are Gabriel's last words to Mary: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called Holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God." Mary's final response to the angel: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." As long as we know and believe that nothing will be impossible for God and abandon ourselves to God as Mary did, our journey home to the Father will be smooth and straight all the way. So let's get going!
**Greatest Glory of God
Isaiah 40.5: The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. If you pay attention, you'll the see glory of God everywhere: in nature, in everything we see and hear on earth that is beautiful, inspiring, and uplifting. But the greatest glory revealed to us is the Lord himself, in how much he loves us, how he can free us from the bondage of sin, and how we can become like him and reunite with him in heaven.
**Jesus as Close as You Can Get
Last night I dreamt that I was trapped in a dangerous situation and I called to Jesus for help. I woke up and felt his presence. After all, he dwells within me. It's just so good to know that he hears me and is with me always.
Thursday, December 19, 2019
Low Expectations of Life
If you only wish to be happy in this life, then your expectations are way low. Besides, your wish will never come true.
**Breakthroughs of Life
Accepting and believing in Christ is the first breakthrough. You realize that God loves you and he has now saved you from sin. Surrendering to God to become one with him is the second breakthrough, often more difficult to achieve than the first. Then, once you have broken through, the experience is so exalted and beautiful that you wish you'd done it a lot sooner.
*Ideal Mass
Complete focus upon the Lord with great reverence, with nothing that breaks up the solemnity of the celebration.
*Being Perfect & Being Holy
Only God is perfect. When God asks us to be perfect, he wants us to aim for perfection. But one day, he will make us perfect in heaven. We can be holy though, because a holy person needn't be perfect; he only desires to be perfect. All saints with the exception of our Holy Mother were not perfect. Let God make us holy by letting him enter us to be one with us.
Preach and Let Go
Jesus announced the good news to all and people were free to believe in him or not. Let us do the same. Spread the good news and let whoever hears it make up his or her own mind. Sometimes we worry too much about whether they heard us or not. In the final analysis, it's always between God and each of us.
Giving Our All to God
Give God your heart. Even though the mind will follow the heart, while your are at it, give your mind to him as well. Anyhow, we need to give our whole being, our spirit and soul included, to the Lord.
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