If we submit ourselves to Christ now, acknowledging him to be the Lord, we'll have nothing to fear at judgment time. If we don't, we'll have problems for sure later. Later could be 50 years later, 20 years later, 10 years later, next year, next month, next day, or next hour. This is something we all need to realize, for we all will have to answer to the one Lord.
Sunday, March 20, 2022
**"About Jesus" or Just "Jesus"
Knowing about Jesus is not the same as knowing Jesus. Anyone can know all about Jesus and still not be a Christian. An Arab tour guide I once met in Holy Land comes to my mind. Preaching about Jesus is not the same as preaching Jesus either. How do you tell one from the other? In general, the former does not draw you any closer to Christ, while the latter does. Bible study classes are similar. I once attended a class that treated Christ like an academic subject, easily putting me to sleep; and another one lead by a wise priest focusing mainly upon the Lord, and I felt spiritually uplifted.
**Simple Journey to Heaven
In today's Gospel reading from Luke 13, Jesus calls us to repent and bear fruit in order not to perish. When you repent, you open the door to salvation. Then you bear fruit as you journey on. Now you are sure to reach heaven at the end! There's nothing complicated here at all.
***God's Awesome Holiness
In today's first reading from Exodus 3, Moses, tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, came to Mount Horeb. There an angel of the LORD appeared to Moses in fire out of a bush. Moses was surprised to see that the bush, though on fire, was not consumed. He decided to go over to look at this remarkable sight. The LORD called out to him from the bush, "Moses! Moses! Come no nearer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." My thoughts are that since God is most holy and ever present, we really should live as if we were standing on holy ground. The Lord sees us and knows exactly what we are up to at all times, so let his holiness purify us, inspire us, and renew us. There is no better influence than that.
Saturday, March 19, 2022
*****Dearer than My Own Soul*****
God created all of us—that's why we call him "Our Father." Being our creator and Father, he is closer to me than anyone else! Only he knows me and understands me perfectly. Above all, he loves all of us with an everlasting love! Without him, there would be no me. So he is dearer to me more than my own soul. If you don't know him yet, you are neglecting your own soul.
Friday, March 18, 2022
***The Way to Sainthood
Sometimes we wish that we can convert a lot of people for Christ—a nice thought, but maybe unrealistic. When Jesus saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and a poor widow putting in two small coins, he said to his disciples, "This poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood." (See Luke 21:1-4 or Mark 12:41-44.) So quality counts, not quantity. Following St. Thérèse's Little way, we can become saints if we do everything with great love for God. This should be within our reach. I may not be called to openly convert a lot of souls, but I can always do every little thing in secret to please the Lord. The little thing can be a thought, a smile, a gesture, or a simple act such as cleaning up the mess someone has created. This is the way for all of us to become great saints and we should rejoice about it.
**God's Unique Peace
The peace God gives us is unique and beyond our understanding. We experience this peace only after we have reconciled and surrendered ourselves to him, abandoned ourselves in him, or attained union with him. This is how he has made us! No one else in the world can give us this peace. If you experience it, you've been chosen for heaven.
**Possessing the Lord
Communion experience. The Lord entered me and he is all mine! I felt fulfilled, elated, and grateful.
***We Can Be Beautiful!
The sanctity, love, mercy, and glory of God are all so awesome and most beautiful. The Lord can make us beautiful too. Today he made me see that we become beautiful when we surrender ourselves completely to him.
*****Healing Power of the Holy Eucharist
This morning at Mass, the Lord made me see that the healing power of the Holy Eucharist can reach beyond the heart all the way to the soul! How good it is to let the Most Blessed Sacrament make your soul whole again! When your soul is healed, your entire being is healed. And no one can do this to you except the Lord our creator and Savior.
Thursday, March 17, 2022
***Relating to the Heavenly Father
How should we relate ourselves to the heavenly Father? Of course, we must love and obey him. Since we are finite and prone to sin, we must remain most humble before him, But we are most precious to him too! In fact, he absolutely desires that we become saints and go straight to heaven after we die. So we must not undervalue ourselves. Instead, we should focus upon his love, his wishes, his mercy and power, and not upon our weaknesses and imperfection. If he thinks we are good enough, then we are good enough. He can surely make us live up to his expectations.
***Learning from a Saint
I just finished reading the book Maryam of Bethlehem. She lived from 1846 to 1878. Her parents were half Lebanese and half Syrian. They settled in a tiny village in Galilee, not too far from Nazareth, when the little Arab was born. She entered the Carmelites and received the habit in 1867. Pope John Paul II beatified her in 1983. You can find out more about her here. I'll just share something about her humility. She was always content, finding delicious whatever share Jesus gave her. She welcomed everything that happened to her as coming from the hand of God. She said that humility doesn't get upset about anything and is content with everything. Thus she never complained and was always happy. She's a great example for us to follow.
***Most Appropriate Thing to Do
For us, it's loving Christ with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, and with all our strength. For this will restore order in God's whole universe.
Pity the Wicked
From today's reading from Psalm 1, we have "The LORD watches over the way of the just, but the way of the wicked vanishes." Yes, the wicked seem to prevail over the world right now, but if they do not change their way, they will be totally driven away by the Lord in the end. They are to be pitied.
***Sowing with the Best Return
Compared to eternity, our life on earth doesn't even last as long as the blink of an eye. But if we follow Christ the whole time on earth, our reward will be rich beyond words. Here's a case in which we sow for a short while and reap eternal life!
Wednesday, March 16, 2022
***Private Joy in God***
On earth, we face problems, whether caused by sin or not, all our lives. We get to enjoy life a bit only when we temporarily forget all the problems. So the earth can never be our paradise. But nevertheless, we can live a joyful life on earth. Get to know the God of Christ most intimately and you'll have your private joy in him at all times. This is a foretaste of heaven and you now know you are on your way to paradise.
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