**Spinning the Truth

        in today's Gospel reading from Matthew 11, Jesus said to the crowds: "To what shall I compare this generation? . . . For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said, 'He is possessed by a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said, 'Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.'" Guess of whom does Jesus' description of his generation remind me? Ans. Today's leftist politicians and the fake new media—they are "experts" at spinning the truth.

***On Consecience

        God has given each of us a conscience. As a result, we all know what's good or righteous and what's bad or evil. When a person sins, it's only because his conscience has gotten dull or muddy from excluding God to a certain degree; deep down he still knows and loses his peace. So it's critical important to develop a super sharp conscience for us to remain holy. In reality, conscience and holiness are intertwined. When you seek union with God through the Holy Eucharist, these two improve hand in hand.    

***Understanding God***

        God is our Father in heaven who loves us and wants us to have peace now and joy for all eternity later—a simple truth. If you are still an unbeliever, cast your pride aside temporarily and look into it. Should you find that Christ and his teachings are all baloney, you can always go on your own and do whatever you want with yourself. But be honest with yourself always.

***Super Food***

       Communion experience. This is the only food capable of melting my heart and my soul to merge my spirit with the Lord's.

***Wondrous Life*****

        When you are amazed by the Lord's wondrousness, you are excited about him. This is the way it should be. Pay attention to all the things around you and you can see marvels everywhere, not just when you look at the majestic mountains or the night sky filled with infinite stars. Most of all, there's the wondrous Lord dwelling within you when you are in union with him! A Christian shouldn't have a single dull moment in life. 

***Attitude of a Servant***

        In Luke 17, Jesus taught the apostles about this. He said to them, “Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’? Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and drink when I am finished’? Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’” We are to serve the Lord single-mindedly and not expect to be rewarded. This is an excellent way to practice being humble and selfless. (Psst! Our reward will be great in heaven!)

**On Giving to Charities

        This is not so simple nowadays. Giving smaller amounts to individuals who need help is not much of a problem. But giving larger amounts to an organization is altogether different. First of all, you want to make sure that the charity is an honest one. Secondly, you want to know the percentage of your contribution that will reach those you want to help. 15%? 90%? It could make a big difference. Then there are charities which actually promote causes that go against the teachings of the Church in some way—this is not always obvious. Last, is the charity truly short of funds at this time? To learn about all these things takes time and effort. How to give is another consideration. Depending upon your financial status, doing it the wrong way could result in paying a lot more taxes to the government. Of course, giving is a duty of each Christian, as we know that all we have comes from the Lord and we are to help others. So we need to pray and seek much guidance and discernment in fulfilling this duty.

**Repaying the Lord*

        Today is the Memorial of Saint John of the Cross, one of my favorite Carmelite saints. Christ got himself crucified so that we might become anew, free from sin. It is entirely proper and logical that we get our old selves crucified so that we do become anew and sinless.   

*****Most Fulfilling Personal Experience

        I have always loved receiving the Holy Eucharist. But in the early years, it's more like fulfilling your duty as a Catholic. Fast forward to the present. Now it's a true encounter daily with my Lord, my God, and my most beloved.  

***Sign of Hope

        Do you know that there has been public worship held on the streets in various European cities this year? This is a beautiful thing. Here's a recent one from Amsterdam. Praise Jesus, for he is our Savior and hope!

**Greatest Fulfillment and Achievement

        Communion experience. Receiving the Lord is being fulfilled to the max. It can also be considered our greatest life achievement by the grace of God.

**Becoming Strong when You're Weak

      As we age, we increasingly sense our physical weakness. Why not take advantage of that? Anytime we feel weak physically, mentally, or in any other aspect, see it as an opportunity for us to rely on the Lord even more so as to become strong spiritually. What could be better than growing holier and older at the same time?

*****A Serious Warning!*****

        The Church is the body of Christ. Breaking up the Church is a most grave sin, and that's happening right now. The Magisterium has so far caused much confusion and sown discord among the faithful. Satan has infiltrated the Church for some time and is now working harder than ever to destroy her. But the Lord is not going to let that happen. Still, things could worsen before that get better. We are in some sort of end times for sure. We need to pray harder than ever with so many souls at stake. It's commitment time!

***No Limit to What We Can Accomplish!*

         The Lord God is infinitely powerful and we have instant access to him. So do not limit him nor ourselves. There is so much we can accomplish in glorifying him in this life! Start out by letting him make you holy.

***Happy with Myself

         Communion experience. I was happy that the Lord could perfect me. This made me happy with myself. 

***Call to Conscience***

        Do you realize that God has already done his utmost for us? He has sacrificed his only divine Son so that we may have eternal life, revealing that he loves us as much as he loves his own Son. This news is so incredibly good as to be shocking! The ball is now in our court—are we just going to play dead and not reciprocate at all? 

***How God Converts Us

        God respects our free will. He wants to converts us, but he never strong-arms us in any way. When Paul was persecuting Christians, the Lord simply called him to ask him why in a quite gentle way, and Paul was converted. So he does convert us by creating circumstances or events to make us willingly consent to what he asks of us. Just don't harden your hearts.

***The Reality Not All See*

        Looking at both the good and horribly bad things that are happening in our homes, schools, churches, cities, companies, industries, our government . . . and around the world, it is clear that what we witness results from the spiritual warfare between God and the Evil One. Not everyone sees this, just as not everyone believes in Christ. Blessed are those who see the reality, for they've been chosen by God to inherit his kingdom.