**Made to Enjoy the Lord*

         Communion experience. Receiving the Lord was receiving his most profound peace. And heavenly joy followed. This is how the Lord has made us.

**When Shall We Ever Wise Up?**

         In the Gospel reading from Mark 3, a crowd seated around Jesus told him, "Your mother and your brothers and your sisters are outside asking for you." But he said to them in reply, "Who are my mother and my brothers?" And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother." So all we need to do is the will of God and we immediately belong to his family! It's straight and simple. But we love to play hart-to-get and inevitably end up making everything complicated for ourselves.

**Giving the Lord His Due*

         Today's Psalm Response from Psalm 24 read "Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!" All the Lord wants from us is that we acknowledge that he is the Lord, the king of glory, who deserves our reverence and obedience. Is that asking too much? Don't  we wish that our children honor and listen to 7s as their fathers or mothers? 

***How to Be Free from Sin***

         If you're deeply mired in sin, only Christ can set you free, for his love is more powerful than any evil there is. So you must turn to him first, and this could be really difficult for you to initiate in your weak state. But once you get going, it gets easier. In fact, the more you abandon yourself to the Lord, the faster your progress becomes. Eventually, through receiving the Hoy Eucharist and prayers, you reach the point that the beauty and the sanctity of God you experience make all sins loathsome and repulsive to you. Now you are free from sin and spiritually stronger than ever, dwelling in the house of the Lord.

***Don't Be a Loser**

        Satan is one big loser, for it's a foregone conclusion that he'll be totally crushed in the end by the Lord God. So if you follow him now, you are already a dumb loser. no matter how powerful, famous, rich, or smart in the eyes of the world you are.

***Feeling Happy and Blessed**

        I feel so happy and blessed today when I realize that I am loved by a Lord who knows all about me and for whom nothing is impossible.

***Christians' Unique Focus****

         In today's Second Reading from 1 Corinthians 1, Paul wrote, "I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose." In other words, Christians are to be united as one in Christ, focusing solely on the Lord. Should following some saints, Church leaders, or any prominent speakers or authors shifts your attention away from Christ, then stop doing it! Christ the Lord is to be the only one to follow, to  obey, and to imitate, not anyone else! 

***Our Best News***

        Life is all about freeing ourselves from the clutch of sin. Not believing in the God of Christ, we'd most likely die in sin and remain dead forever. With faith in Jesus, we can completely overcome death and gain eternal life! This is truly good news!

**It's Up to Us**

         God is most personal. It's impossible to know what knowing him is really like—you must experience it yourself! We are all finite beings and only the infinite God can make us experience him fully—you just have to be open to him. 

***Communicating with God Is Crucial***

         You cannot know the Lord if you don't spend any time with him. It's essential that you pray to him and share your feelings and thoughts with him. Set some time aside for this if you are not used to doing that. Ideally, you should be aware of his his holy presence at all times. Again, I recommend seeking union with him through the Holy Eucharist to make that possible. The more you let go in him, the faster your progress. For the Christian, not trying to know the Lord at all is no better than being dead. 

****Being a Faithful Servant****

        Sometimes we feel helpless in fighting evil. That's not from the Lord. Everyone has a role to play. Sure, there are those who seem to bear much fruit, but fruit can be great and unseen. If you don't seem as talented as others, don't let that bother you. You serve the Lord with all your heart in secret. We can always pray and be fruitful, and total submission to the Lord really makes it powerful. What's internal matters more than what's external. True servants of the Lord never compare themselves to others; their focus entirely on serving the Lord in humility.

***A Wake-Up Call***

         Before we face God, we must face and deal with our sinfulness. Otherwise, it'll be a disaster when we face him! So wake up when you still have time. Deal with your sins before you face God. To ignore or try to hide them is being as foolish as you can be!

**Rejoice if You've Been Chosen**

         Today's Communion Antiphon, John 15:16—It was not you who chose me, says the Lord, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last. It seems that we can make the Lord choose us—we only need to love him and be willing to bear fruit for him. Then I suppose I think this way because he has already chosen me in the first place. Anyway, if you know you've been chosen, rejoice!

**Humility's Double-Barreled Advantage*

         When you are humble, God exalts you and demons are afraid to attack you. 

***Pray-for-Life Time***

         Yesterday Washington, D.C., held the annual National March for Life. Today we have Walk for life West Coast held in San Francisco. A busload of parishioners from my church left right after morning Mass to join that walk. Even though Roe vs. Wade has been overturned and made abortion illegal, the liberal states continue to provide abortions and California is the worst offender. Abortion is one great evil, the very antithesis of God's love. Anyone who believes that abortion is OK serves the Evil One. Once you experience God's love, the horror of abortion becomes absolutely clear. One thing about doing God's will is that you always feel peace and joy afterwards. The pro-abortionists think that they have to right to abort any unborn child, yet they experience only pain, turmoil, depression, regret and/or sorrow afterwards—that tells you they have gone against the Lord!  If you type "abortion" in the Search box, you can pull up my past posts on this subject. Please pray for the end of abortion and the conversion of those who do not know God's love yet. God bless you.

**Ranking the Lord**

         In Matthew 22, Jesus gave us the greatest and the first commandment: "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." Who is No.1 in your life? If you rank the Lord above yourself, then you are A-OK. But if he's not even on your list, that would be terrible and you'll reap what you sow. Best yet, have only the Lord on your list and he'll exalt you beyond your highest expectations!

*****God's Mercy Is Infinite*****

         I love praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Praying it from the heart can truly change you into a forgiving person to others and yourself! Listen to this amazing story to learn about God's infinite merdy and thank him for that. 

***Confidence in the Lord***

        Communion time thought: If Christ can get me into heaven, he surely can and would make me holy and blameless.