**Reverence Lacking

        Various things at Mass can be disturbing. Some examples: Scriptures read too fast and matter-of-factly; no pause given between readings; homily drawing more attention to the deliverer than to God, music sounding more like a performance, lay people assisting at Mass not dressed properly, people allowed to talk freely right after Mass in church, etc. They are all due to the lack of reverence. To worship God properly, we must not have anything take our attention away from him. Worshipping God is serious business.

**We Are Apostles Too

        Today is the Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles. They faithfully followed the Lord. We are apostles too, only being called to follow him at a later time. We have the same Lord, and we can know him today as well as the Apostles did then, for time is of no barrier for the Lord. So let's be the best possible apostles we can be today.

**Impressed by God

        The glories of God are most attractive, but his great sorrows also draw me to him. Our God is most holy, full of love, and humble. He is just awesome!

**Dealing with Infinity*

        Infinity is a concept, not a regular number; so our finite minds, especially those of scientists and mathematicians, have trouble dealing with it. But to those of us who know God well, it's no problem. Our God is infinite in every way. He has always existed, so beginning and end do not apply here. If the universe turns out to be infinitely vast, it doesn't bother me a bit—I can totally accept that. If I can be with my God happy for all eternity after I die, that's totally acceptable to me! An infinite God deserves our infinite trust. Onto infinity! 

***Lopsided Love*****

        Communion experience. The Lord has loved me first and continues to love me without cease. What can I say when this love is so lopsided? I have no choice but to submit myself totally to his love.

***Don't Undervalue Yourself!

        Christ has redeemed us with his own most precious blood, so we are most precious to him. Therefore, even though we are sinners, we should treasure ourselves as he treasures us, and let him perfect us. We are no junk for sure. See ourselves as he sees us and we can't help but feel grateful and love him. Know that the Lord has made us in his image for himself and we can become like him if we follow him.

***Marveling at God's Doing*****

        While driving home after Mass, I marveled at the immensity of the universe with billions of galaxies each containing billions of stars. As far as I am concerned, the universe might as well be infinite. Here I was. Relatively speaking, I am not even as big as a dust particle, yet I was able to marvel at this marvelous universe! I turned to God and marveled at him most of all. I realized that I knew this God most intimately, and marveled at the whole thing. 

****Appreciating and Praising the Eucharist*

        The Holy Eucharist links us most intimately to the Lord who loves us. There's no better way of satisfying our longing for him than receiving it regularly. This is also indispensable in helping us attain union with God. It is indeed the bread from heaven, the Lord himself. Receiving it with great reverence can change lives and save souls. It has the power to make us perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect. I cannot thank the Lord enough or such a great gift. It's to be praised and embraced with all our love.

***Sure Way of Salvation

        Early during the liturgy of the Eucharist, the priest says "Lift up your hearts," and we all say "We lift them up to the Lord." The thought came to me that giving our hearts to Lord would be a most beautiful offering, for the heart is most precious to us and we always follow our heart. So if we let the Lord have our hearts, we'll be saved for sure. (This is also loving God with all our heart.)

***Is God Your Lord?

        When you pray "Lord, have mercy on me," do you realize that you must surrender yourself to him first? For you cannot pray that and also tell him that you are not always going to obey him. As a matter of fact, addressing God as Lord alone implies that you are obedient to him. If not, then strictly speaking, you are a hypocrite. Salvation is all about whether you accept God as your Lord or not.

**Sticking with Jesus*

        I am sticking with Christ Jesus not only because he can get me into heaven, but also because he will perfect me one day. To me, the fact that he can transform each of us anew is a huge drawing power.

**God's Joy vs. World's Pleasure

        In the world, we seek pleasure externally thru physical senses. But the happiness we experience never lasts long. By contrast, the joy we receive from God comes from within, for God works thru our hearts. That's why the happiness of the world can never truly satisfy us, while the joy of the Lord refreshes our soul, transforming us fundamentally.

***Letting God Work Wonders

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 13, Jesus tells us what the Kingdom of God is like. He said, "It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden. When it was fully grown, it became a large bush and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches." Again he said, "It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch of dough was leavened." In both instances, the force of nature, which is the power of God, worked wonders. We can absolutely let the Lord work wonders on us too, provided that we rid ourselves of the pride that makes us rebellious first. And this can be accomplished by submitting ourselves to the Lord, discovering how good and beautiful he is, and finally falling in love with him. (When God takes over, we are set free!)

***Appreciating Earth

        Of the eight planets of the solar system we know, Earth is unique. It is the only one fit for us to live on, with its right atmosphere and amount of gravitational pull, the perfect temperature range and soils for growing plants, and all the other things necessary for our sustenance and recreation. I really believe that the Lord God has specially created Earth for our temporary habitation before entering eternity. We should appreciate this fact and spend our time wisely while we are here.

***Managing Your Thoughts

         We are always thinking about something. A lot of thoughts go thru our mind daily. We just think whatever comes to the mind. Such thoughts are not always pure or do us any good. If you pay attention, you'll realize that. You can pretty much tell if a thought is ego-oriented or not, pure or impure, judgmental or kind, being nosy or indifferent, etc. If we can dismiss outright any thought that we discern not to be from God, we'll experience a lot more peace. Start seeking union with the Lord and over time, all your thoughts will be coming from the Lord. 

***How to Humble Ourselves

        After telling the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in today's Gospel reading from Luke 18, Jesus said, "Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted." Know that the Lord always wants to exalt us. So if we just cast off ourselves, we become free for him to exalt us. This is how we humble ourselves. 

**One Sure Great Reward*

        What kind of reward in heaven do we seek from God the Father? Actually, everything he has will be ours. But one thing alone is plenty good enough for us, namely, that we'll be in his presence forever.

**Justification for Purgatory

        Being saved and getting into heaven are two separate things. If we are saved, it doesn't mean that we are fit to go straight to heaven, for only the holy ones can enter heaven. Take two people A & B, both saved. Say A is 90% pure and B, only 10%. They both die—do they both go straight to heaven? Even if all their sins have already been forgiven, there is still a price to pay. This is where purgatory comes in. A will go thru some purification there before entering heaven, while B will suffer a lot more there. (As many do not believe in the existence of purgatory, I am just sharing my own belief here. If you have doubts, I recommend reading the book "Get Us Out of Here!!" on Maria Simma by Nicky Eltz.)