**The Only Trustworthy One**

        We have from today's First reading, Jeremiah 17: A curse on those who trust in mortals; a blessing on those who trust in the Lord God.  It is true that we can never trust in any mortal fully, but we can trust in the Lord God unreservedly, for he takes care of us for all eternity.

**Resurrection Experience**

        Communion experience. The definition of resurrection is the act of rising from the dead. Without Christ, I was spiritually dead. When I received the Lord I believe in, I was saved and granted eternal life—a spiritual resurrection now, prior to my final resurrection.

***Recipe for Peace**

        If you want to have peace, don't look for it outside of you. Instead, let go of your ego so that you may trust in God fully.

**"Jesus Is Our Lord and Savior" Made Clear**

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 20, Jesus predicted his own Passion and Resurrection to his disciples. Then he said to them, "The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many." His purpose was also made clear; all has come to pass. This leaves no doubt that he is our Lord and Savior.

**Manifestation of God's Love**

         Communion experience: When we love God, his love for us turns into mercy.

**Proper Behavior in God's Presence*

         Since the Lord is ever-present, we must always remain humble.

**Not Practicing What You Preach**

        In today's Gospel reading rom Matthew 23, Jesus denounced the scribes and the Pharisees for not practicing what they preach. As long as our ego still exists, we are not as good as we sound. Sometimes it's better for us to listen than to preach. Anyway, preaching should be motivated by the Holy Spirit, not your ego. 

**How We Need God*

        If you feel good after repenting of your sins to God, it clearly shows that you did sin and God can take away your sins. For this reason alone, we need God.

**Bang-Up Job**

        Communion experience—the Lord entered and banished all my sins forever!

****Sinners' Concern****

        We are all born with a conscience, meaning it is impossible for us to ignore that we are sinners. When we do things that steal our peace of mind and cause us to hide, it shows we have sinned. If we don't address this, we are sure to face eternal death. The good news is that if we confess our sins to God and ask him to take them away, we are saved forever.

**Cause for Great Joy**

        Today I realize that no matter how imperfect I am, Christ will always be with me. Being abandoned or lost is impossible now; I am all set for eternity!

**Everlasting Faith!

        Today's Entrance Antiphon, Psalm  27:8-9, reads: Of you my heart has spoken: Seek his face. It is your face, O Lord, that I seek; hide not your face from me. There are many other verses in Psalms that earnestly seek and express a longing for the Lord. It is amazing! Since now we have Christ, the Son of God, who descended into the world to be with us for 33 years, we should feel closer to God more than ever!

**Consummate Power of God's Love**

        We can all be different from each other in our backgrounds, upbringings, personalities interests, and talents, yet become one through union with Christ the Lord. 

**A Mutual Relationship**

         How well you know God depends entirely on how open you are to letting him know you.

**The Right Focus**

        Focus upon ourselves, we can never be free. When we forget ourselves and focus only upon the Lord, we are set free. Even when we look deep inside ourselves, it is the Lord we seek.

**Teaching Us to Be Perfect**

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 5, Jesus said to his disciples: "I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven." Then he started teaching them by saying, "You have heard that it was said to your ancestors..." and followed with "But I say to you..." thereby elevating the standard. In other words, we must not think that we are good enough, for the Lord wants us to be perfect! (And he deserves it.)

**No-Brainer**

        In today's reading from Ezekiel 18, the Lord GOD says, "Do I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? Do I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way that he may live?" Clearly, if we want to cause the Lord pain, just be wicked. But if you want to make him happy so that you may live, then turn away from your evil. It's plain and simple.

**Ego Our Most Dogged Enemy**

        The ego incredibly difficult to eradicate. Anytime you feel bad because you think that you've done something that made you look bad, it's your ego acting up. In fact, most of the time we lose our peace, we can trace it back to the ego. To be truly ego-free, you have to be like Christ the Lord, who was able to turn the other cheek every time. Let's imitate him so that we may become ego-free one day.