In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 13, Jesus did not work many mighty deeds in his native place because of the lack of faith of the local people. That's why nonbelievers do not see wonders of God, while those who believe see God working mightily in their lives and elsewhere and continue to grow in faith. You either get it all or get nothing. It seems unfair, but it is totally expected. Faith opens the door to God's wonderland.
Friday, July 31, 2020
***Living the Ultimate Christian Life***
When you let God do everything for you, everything becomes easy for you to accomplish. This is the result of abandoning yourself to God, the secret of living the ultimate Christian life. Nothing can be stronger than you and God being united as one! For he is now free to back you in all things. You have conquered enemy No. 1, yourself, and become God's friend. Whatever you want to do is what he wants to do. Who can possibly stop you now? Without the Lord, you simply fight yourself to the day you die.
**Greatest Short Prayer
When the Risen Lord first appeared to the disciples, Thomas was not there. When they told him that they had seen the Lord, Thomas said, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand unto his side, I will not believe." Then a week later Jesus came again and Thomas was there. He said to him, "Put you finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!" To me this is the greatest short prayer of all. Thomas finally realized the truth. To say these words to Jesus from the heart is to surrender yourself to him completely. Calling Jesus Lord is not to be done lightly. In Matthew 7.21, Jesus said : "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father in heaven." God is the only Lord we should have. Calling him Lord but not doing his will is being a hypocrite.
Thursday, July 30, 2020
***Plead to Treasure Eternity***
God has always existed. For him there is no beginning nor end. That is, God is eternal. After we are created, we become eternal too, for our soul lives on forever. We must now take eternity seriously, for it can give us the greatest joy or the greatest sorrow. Personally, I am most grateful and rejoice that I can get to live with God the Father in heaven for all eternity. Considering that I am sinner, this is incredible! But I pity greatly those who do not take their eternal existence seriously and might end up one day wishing that they were never born. So I plead urgently with everyone to take advantage of this once-in-an-eternity opportunity God has offered us through the shedding of his own blood to become happy forever!
Wednesday, July 29, 2020
**Faith and Hope We Need Now
In today's Gospel reading from John 11, Jesus went to see Martha and Mary whose brother Lazarus had already died. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother wold not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you." Of course, the Lord did go ahead and raise Lazarus from the dead. This is the kind of faith we need to have: even now we know that whatever we ask of God, God will give us. Believe and hope in God always and he will get us through anything.
***Urgent, Urgent Reminder
John 8.12, today's alleluia verse: I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life. What do you see life as? Do you just think that you were just born into this world to just try to stay alive for the short period of time you have on earth? Well, you are not really living until you see that you are a sinner who needs salvation, that both God and evil are real, fighting for your soul, and that you are being tested to see if you are good enough to enter heaven. At this critical time, it's more urgent than ever that we realize this reality, for our soul is at risk! As Jesus is the light of the world, only he can light you way to the whole truth. Ignore or reject him and you remain in darkness.
***Saving Ourselves Now Up to Us
We have turned our back on God. It's happening within the Church and outside the Church in this country, and worldwide. It is sad that many are not even aware that they are now serving Satan. We are going though possibly the darkest period of human history. Hear Fr. Goring's urgent message to all.
Tuesday, July 28, 2020
*Feeling Happy Not Good Enough*
We feel happy about many things. Old people feel happy that they are still alive. Then we have evildoers happy that they have succeeded in destroying other people' lives. At any rate, if you do not know Christ and feel happy about a lot of things, you can still lose your soul. But if you truly feel happy (joyful) that you know Christ, then you can be sure that you are not in any danger zone.
*To See Death Properly
Sometimes when the Lord chastises his people, the good and the bad both perish. We humans see someone very old dying peacefully as being fortunate and feel sorry for anyone young dying unexpectedly or tragically. But God sees things his way. When and how we die does not matter. It's where we go after death that matters. We are always shortsighted and show our own wishes.
**Suffering Is Necessary
Suffering is unavoidable and necessary for sinners to enter heaven. If you suffer for the sake of the Lord, that is, you offer up your sufferings to him, you become stronger each time. So suffering is a blessing. As the sun comes out after the rain stops, making everything look even more beautiful, God comes to you after your suffering is over, making your life sweeter than ever. In John 16.16, Jesus said to this disciples, "A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me." For us, it'll be "for a little while, we'll be suffering, and a little while later, we'll be in paradise forever."
**Unlimited Growth for Us
As we age, our physical condition deteriorates and there's not much we can do about it. Our mental capacity remains pretty much constant, then weakens too over time. But the potential to grow spiritually for us is practically limitless, for we can submit to God to let him make us as holy as we wish. ln fact, this is what we should concentrate upon primarily, besides going to the gym and exercising our minds. The everlasting soul is infinitely more important than the passing body. In giving it the best attention, we are getting ourselves ready for eternity!
Monday, July 27, 2020
***Warning About the Warnings***
Today's message from Fr. Goring is one to which everyone in the world should listen and pay attention. It is especially appropriate for the Catholics. If we do not let others know that the Lord is calling and warning us, then we are not totally with him yet.
***Exception to "Too Good to Be True"*
In the world, if anything sounds too good to be true, you can be sure that it is false. If you receive an email informing you that you have inherited millions of dollars, you can be sure that it is a scam. Since God is always truthful, if something coming from him sounds too good to be true, you can bet that it is true! He tells you that he loves you even if you are the worst sinner in the whole world; it is true. He tells you that he will forgive you and make you all clean if you repent, even if you have committed ten million heinous sins; it is true. He tells you to just follow him and you'll have eternal life in heaven; it's absolutely true! The Lord God, being Truth himself, is totally trustworthy and is the only guide we need for our existence!
***True Haves and Have-Nots
Here is a true case of "To anyone who has, more will be given; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away" (Matthew 13.12). The more you listen to God, the more you learn from him and grow spiritually until you attain complete union with him. On the other hand, the more you ignore God and immersed yourself in the world, the more you cut yourself off from him until you lose even your own soul.
**Cause and Effect
Last night I went to bed later than usual, working on a book project. This morning I got up much later than usual. Even though I had slept more, I did not feel so good. Deviating from the normal has produced its effect. It comes down to "you reap what you sow." This made me see that everything we do affects us. If we continue sinning, the cumulative effect on our soul can be devastating. How good it is to do everything for the sake of God and not have to be concerned about their effect anymore!
Sunday, July 26, 2020
**Realizing God Knows Best*
When the Lord calls us to go to him, it's our time to go. I start thinking. I don't mind going, but what about the people I've tried to convert who have not converted yet? What about the events I've been praying for, but still have not taken place yet? Shouldn't I remain a little longer on earth? Then I realize the following. Of course, God knows best about everything, including the best time for me to go. And in heaven, I am certain that I can be even more effective in accomplishing his will on earth. Shouldn't I put all my trust in him? I see the light. No more questions.
**Predictable Results
Reading 2 contains the well-known verse 28 from Romans 8: All things work for good for those who love God, who are called to his purpose. Of course, God has a perfect plan for each of us, and if we love him, we follow his plan and everything works for our good, that is, we get to heaven. On the other hand, I don't need to elaborate. If you don't love God, your life will end up a mess.
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