***Most Comforting Words

         In today's second reading from 1 Thessalonians 4, Paul, in expressing hope for the dead, wrote, "We shall always be with the Lord."         

***One Thing We Must Not Forget

          No matter what we undergo, we must always yearn for the Lord and praise him!

Comforting Prayer

        Today we need to fight evil and do good at the same time. The prayer before the first reading at Mass was what I needed to hear: Almighty and merciful God, graciously keep from us all adversity, so that, unhindered in mind and body alike, we may pursue in freedom of heart the things that are yours. Pray that the Lord will ward off evil so that we may spend more time doing good.

***Choosing Heave or Hell*

        This post ties in with the post "Avoiding the Worst Oppression" I wrote yesterday. If you know you are heaven bound, you would become detached to all the things in the world. You enjoy the good things, but you know that things in heaven will be so much more enjoyable. You wouldn't mind the bad things that happen to you much anymore, as they will pass and be all forgotten after you get to heaven. Now, let's suppose that you know you are on the way to hell. You should realize that all things, good or bad, that happen to you on earth will no longer mean anything, as you'll be suffering terribly in hell for all eternity. Since you are not in heaven or hell yet, I hope these thoughts will help you see clearly which way you should choose to go.  

***How to Know God

         You can let ten thousand people tell you how to know God or you can go directly to the Lord on your own, open up to him and tell him that you desire to know him.

*Clarifying Faith

        People who do not know Christ tend to think that we who love the Lord have gotten brainwashed somehow. This couldn't be further from the truth. Brainwashing is always forced on you externally by someone, whereas coming to believe in God happens internally voluntarily. Faith is now born, the mark of the Christian belief. There is no one more gentle than the Holy Spirit. Your brain gets illuminated, not washed. We are always free to change our mind at any time. The Lord loves us, but we can either accept or reject him. 

**Suffering with Joy

        The possibility that this country may be taken over by a party that would suppress religious freedom and cause more godlessness has placed a heavy burden on many of us. The battle between good and evil has never been so intense and clear. I am compelled to pray unceasingly to the Lord with a heavy heart. Then I realize that I am suffering along with Christ and decide to offer all my sufferings up to him. I remain hopeful in my Lord, as nothing is impossible with him. The joy is that I am now united with him more than ever. 

***Only Rule We Need to Follow*

         I went into deep prayer in solitude and the Lord, the God of Christ, made me see clearly that he is the only one we need to reconcile with, trust in, and obey. There is nothing more and we'll have eternal life. It's so simple and beautiful.  

**Clear Lesson from the Lord

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 16, Jesus said to the Pharisees, "You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God." The fact that God knows our hearts shows that he is God and our creator. "Abomination" is a severe word. Here, regarding yourself to be more important than God is an abomination to God. Think of it, it's pretty much spiritual common sense. Obviously, remaining humble before the Lord will be most pleasing to him.

**Empowered by the Lord

         I like what Paul wrote in Philippians 4, today's first reading: "I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself, to be self-sufficient. I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need. I have the strength for everything through the Lord who empowers me." Paul has learned to reply solely upon God. Empowered by our Lord, we should be able to live triumphantly in every circumstance too. 

*****Avoiding the Worst Oppression*****

         If we were spiritually oppressed or politically suppressed we would feel so bad that all other problems don't matter much anymore and lose joy in all the things we normally enjoy doing. All you need to do is to talk to someone who lives or has lived in a country that doesn't allow you to worship God or speak freely. But my point goes further. If we were in hell, the spiritual suffering would be infinitely worse, knowing that we've been cut off eternally from God! You don't want to wait until you are there to find out, for you cannot get back out of hell—the truly horrible part of it. The great news is that you can prevent that from ever happening to you. The central message of Christ is loud and clear, if only you'll listen to him. I am here to awaken everyone once more that Christ is our Savior. He is here to save us from going to hell by leading us to heaven. How can you possibly let your stupid pride get in the way and not follow him?

***Pray Boldly

          In Matthew 7, Jesus said to his disciples, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." We didn't even ask for our salvation and he came and died for us. What he said to his disciples makes total sense. Of course, he will answer our good prayers when he loves us this much. So be bold when you ask for favors from him, especially now when we need to pray for our country as evil has already corrupted so many human hearts.

**Happiness Beyond This Life

        Again, I'd like go over something that should be obvious, but not taken seriously. Try all you want, you'll never find true happiness in this life. All lives end in time, so any happiness you find on earth is short-lived. And we cannot be truly happy if our happiness is only temporary. We desire permanency, as we sense that we have a soul that's everlasting. So we should look beyond this life. Lo, there is Christ who can promise you eternal joy, and those who have chosen to follow him are filled with real joy in their heart, spirit, and soul. Heaven is what we need to fulfill our desire for happiness, and Christ fulfills that desire perfectly.

Loneliness, Begone!

         Once you possess the Lord, you and he become one. You will rejoice and suffer along with him on earth, but you'll never be lonely again from now on. 

**Successful Praying

        We can pray halfheartedly or with all our heart. To pray effectively, we must go all out and pray from the bottom of our heart, with a strong will and voice and a deep faith, to connect with the Lord to move his heart. Let the Lord know that we mean business. Also, always pray with great hope.          

**Happy is the One Who . . .

keeps God's word, for the Father will love him and both the Father and the Son will come to him and make their dwelling with him. (John 14:23)

****Deep Prayer Experience

        Three posts back, I posted "To Be Drawn Deep into God." I just took a short break and went to my bedroom to pray for a few minutes. This time I truly prayed with all my soul, with all my heart, and with all my strength. I could not have been more honest. I even questioned the Lord. After I finished, I was absolutely exhausted. This is a new experience for me. I used the present tense "is," as I still haven't fully recovered yet. This "spiritual exhaustion" is felt all around and within the heart, different from any physical exhaustion. I now feel closer to the Lord more than ever. It's as if I have felt his suffering. Jesus had said to his disciples, "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Of course, Jesus didn't mean for us to move mountains, but I now understand fully that if we really have the faith to change things, we have that power. To pray with great faith puts us in union with the Lord.

**The Good of Knowing Christ

        Quoting Paul from today's first reading from Philippians 3, "I consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Can you relate to that? This is so true. When you know Christ, everything else becomes insignificant, as God is infinitely great. Whoever knows Christ knows that he's been chosen and that his name is now in the book of life.