***Most Powerful Move

         This is surrendering ourselves to the Lord. It is also our most proper, smartest, fulfilling-in-every-way, and absolutely life-changing move.

**Great Intimacy

        Communion experience. The Lord filled me with his peace. I felt that I could ask for anything from him, feeling this close to him. 

*****Heaven Is Our Home!*****

        When we came into the world, we brought nothing with us. As we grow up, we accumulate more and more things. Then we leave the world and have no choice but to leave everything behind. What I want you to realize is that all the things we have now, including ourselves, are not ours; they all belong to God! I hope this awareness will set you free from the world and make you humble (and wise) enough to give yourself back to your Creator. Now your journey back to your Father in heaven begins, fulfilling what has been his intention all along.

***Praying for Ourselves Top Priority

        We pray for the world, for others, for our family and friends, and for ourselves. It's easy to neglect praying for ourselves, whereas that should be top priority. I think the reason is that it's just easier to see others' faults than our own, and praying for them to change is rather effortless compared to praying for ourselves to change. It should be top priority because the world cannot be better if we don't become better ourselves. Like the proverb "charity begins at home," prayer should begin with praying for ourselves. 

***Between God & Each of Us Always*

        The whole point of today's Gospel reading from Matthew 18 is that the Lord wants us to forgive others so that he may forgive us. We heard the parable of the unforgiving servant. I was led to see that each of us is responsible for his transgressions before the Lord and cannot blame anyone else, for the Lord alone is our judge. If someone caused us to sin, that person would have to answer to the Lord, but we still sinned. Mind our own business is right.

***To Remain Free***

        In today's second reading from Romans 14, Paul wrote, "For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's." To live and die for the Lord, so easy to remember. Ironically, this is how we become free! For to belong to the Lord who can and wants to deliver us from sin is to become free. Awaken, as long as we remain in sin, we are not free!

***Unforgiveness Unforgivable

        From today's first reading from Sirach 27-28, I heard this verse read: Forgive your neighbor's injustice; then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven. In other words, forgive others and God will forgive you, super easy to remember. If you do not forgive anyone, it's a sin you need to repent and confess before moving on. Don't ever let unforgiveness stop you dead in your tracks spiritually. Look, if we always forgive everybody, we'll have peace instantly in the world.

***Pain of Not Being Understood

        We all feel the pain when people do not understand or agree with us when we know we are right. One obvious example is that people just don't see why we make such a big thing out of Christ. Well, the Lord knew that the world would be divided because of him. Now image how much pain he must feel when billions of his children do not understand or agree with him! Realizing this, we shouldn't mind my own pains much anymore and should instead try to be extra good to alleviate the Lord's pain.

***Focused Living

        I've been advising that we don't let what others say or think about us bother us and tune in only to what God thinks about us. Let me add that we shouldn't even care about what we think about ourselves. Just follow the Lord and never mind anything else. 

*****Why Submit Ourselves to God?*****

         There are many compelling reasons. I'll just mention two less obvious but equally valid ones. (1) Submitting ourselves to God is the only way for us to become perfect, for only he can fundamentally transform us. (2) It is also the only way for the external world and our inner selves to attain peace, for when we submit ourselves to God, all conflicts cease. 

***Most Fundamental Virtue***

        I blogged the other day about not caring about what others think about you. This is part of not letting anything bother you. It's basically being humble. So we should become humble first and let all other virtues follow. Humility is not only our password to holiness, it is also the key that unlocks the door to heaven! 

***Letting God Make It Effortless

        It you find what you are doing is too hard, you haven't let God do the work for you yet. The Lord makes everything effortless for those who trust in him.

***Learning Constantly from the LORD***

        Every time you lose peace, it's a great opportunity for you to learn to become more perfect (holy). Figure out why you are disturbed. Then knowing that God always wants you to have peace, put the whole matter into his hands to let him restore your peace. Submission to God always works. What a great way to improve ourselves constantly, as we get bothered by so many things easily!

**A Great Feeling

        When you take God seriously, pray hard from your heart, and do everything for his sake, he actually lets you know that he hears you and that you help him shape his plans. This is such a great feeling to know that you can influence the Lord and help him in establishing his kingdom on earth.

*****Reminding All of Our Best News

        God's love is universally available to anyone who desires it, and everyone needs it unless you don't know that you are a sinner. Christ has come and made it clear how we can be delivered from sin and gain eternal life. This has to be the best possible news we can truly rejoice about. If you don't consider Christ, there is just nothing out there that makes a good alternative—this is what I see. So there's the reality. If you don't accept Christianity, think about what your reason is. Know that the Lord does not take away your free will because he wants you make the choice so that should you choose to follow him, faith is born! This would mean everything to both you and him. He could have forced you to believe in him, but that wouldn't have meant anything to you. The Lord is all love and kindness. Be fair and consider his invitation to accept his love, which will only be good in your lifetime. There'll be everything to gain and nothing to lose!  

***What You Should Care About Only

        One big reason we lose peace is worrying about how we look to others. It all has to do with the ego. We should always care about what God thinks about us, not what anyone else thinks. This is hard to follow for anyone who still has some ego in them. Do whatever pleases the Lord will make those who love him love you, but those who hate the Lord hate you. Do you want to get to heaven or not? Would you choose being free over not being persecuted? God over the world? Anyway, to begin your journey to freedom, you need to get rid of the ego first.

**How Are We Doing?

        We can grade what we do by the motives behind our acts. I'll list these motives from the worst to the best: (1) to hurt someone, (2) to benefit ourselves only, (3) no particular motive, (4) to help someone, (5) to help someone for God's sake. Acting with the first three, you wast time on earth. Only acting with the last two, especially the last one, will you be storing up treasures in heaven. 

**Being All Settled

        When I call out "My Lord and my God" from my heart to Jesus, everything about me is settled. The past is gone, but my present and my future are being settled by him. I have completely settled down in the Lord.