*****We Are God's Powerhouses!***

        In today's Second Reading from Romans 8, Paul starts out by saying, "Brothers and sisters: You are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you." To all my brothers and sisters in Christ: "If you believe that the Spirit of God dwells in you, know that this is the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead! If he could raise Jesus from the dead, imagine what he can do for you!" 

**Don't We Ever Get Serious?**

        Today, at leisure in our spare time, we all talk about mundane things, and rarely anything serious. The Gospels show that Christ is always serious, giving momentous messages and revealing crucial truths. People were attracted to him more by his miraculous deeds and less by his authentic teachings. Today, he is not getting any better reception from us. All the things that attract this world are mostly secular. The spiritual warfare continues. If we don't wake up soon enough, it may be too late for us. It comes down to choosing earthly fun for the time being or heavenly joy forever.

**Believing in Your Own Prayers**

        In Mark 11:24, Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours." Therefore, if you believe in the Lord, believe in your prayers. "Every prayer we say from the heart helps the Lord to shape this world for the better."

**Easier than Getting a College Degree**

        To get into heaven is somewhat like trying to get a college degree. You have work to do and certain requirements to fulfill. However, to achieve the former, you basically only need to follow Christ. Also, not everyone can graduate from college, but everyone can get into heaven if they put their trust in the Lord.

**Following Christ in a Secular World**

        We can never love God enough. We are saved by his infinite mercy, not our own holiness. In this secular world, most Christians follow culture more than they follow Christ. It is a sad situation, but not tragic, because God's grace is vast. When it comes to our souls, wisdom means admitting we are flawed sinners who completely depend on the Lord for salvation.

***Happy About Our God***

        Today is the Feast of Saint Thomas, Apostle. I think we are all familiar with the story of doubting Thomas as recorded in John 20. He was not with the other disciples when Jesus came, so they said to him,"We have seen the Lord." But Thomas said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, put my finger into the nailmarks, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe." Now, a week later his disciples were again inside, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your 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!" What we often overlook is that the Lord knew exactly what Thomas said, even when he was not there. As God, he knows every single thing about every one of us. The fact that there are billions of us now on Earth doesn't make any difference. I am so happy that we have an omnipotent God like that, who can oversee and take total care of us!  

**To Be Rooted in God**

        Not only am I a branch connected to the vine that is Jesus, but I also want to be deeply rooted in the soil that is the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—who, like a tripod, provides the most stable and balanced support for us.

**Future Joy Overwhelms Present Struggles**

        I woke up early this morning to another beautiful day. I felt happy and uplifted, even though I had not fully recovered from the fall I took over eleven weeks ago. Thinking about my future happiness with the Lord in heaven—where there is only spiritual joy and no more physical suffering—made all our earthly struggles seem immaterial.

**Following God with Feeling**

        Do you feel the Lord? Is your love for him passionate to some degree? If not, you are not emotionally involved yet, which shows you haven't been following him with your heart. The living Lord is to be followed with all your heart, not just your mind!

***Specifically Created by God***

        Whenever we sin against God, we lose our peace—that is how he has made us! The fact that when we stop sinning we enjoy the most beautiful and profound peace shows that God specifically made us for himself.

**We Hurt God the Most**

        When we sin against someone, rather than feeling sorrow for the person we hurt, we often lose our peace and feel guilty about what we've done. Let us realize that because God loves us infinitely more than we love ourselves, he now must feel infinitely worse about our sins than we do.

*****Church in Crisis*****

        Currently, evil has infiltrated the Catholic Church, causing great division and the loss of reverence for the Lord. This is what I and many others see. The message "cardinals opposing cardinals, bishops against bishops" explicitly prophesied at Akita, echoed at Garabandal, and implied at Fatima by Our Lady is being fulfilled right now. Within the Church, we have traditionalists against liberals or progressives. My personal feeling are that the Church must never let the changing world influence its traditional teachings. The loss of reverence for God and the Eucharist is obvious in what is seen at most Masses—the homily, the music, and how the congregation behaves throughout the liturgy. We are in end times, but God will triumph. Nevertheless, we need to pray harder than ever.

***Our Next Big Transition**

        No doubt the next big transition in our lives is death. Since it is imminent, how close we are to it is irrelevant. To those who already belong to Christ, death has lost its sting and even to be welcomed. It's the lost souls we need to pray hard for. To ignore death is to ignore life!

**Before Praying for Others**

        My son just got a call from his friend asking for prayers for his son, who just suffered a severe heart attack. I thought of all the people in all kinds of trouble who need our prayers. For instance, as many as 40,000 people may have died in the recent earthquakes in Venezuela. This got me thinking about our relationship with God. First, it seems that we should be in good standing with God before praying for others. We are in no position to pray for others if we don't trust in God ourselves. Next, when praying for someone, always pray for that person's salvation first, for the soul is infinitely more precious than the body. Saving anyone from their troubles in this life but not their soul for eternity is missing the point altogether.

**Passion and Zest on an Exalted Level**

        Sixteen US cities are hosting the FIFA World Cup right now, and I can see the frenzy of football fans rooting for their countries. This is understandable because when I was attending the University of Michigan, I was an ardent fan of the varsity football team (American football, not soccer). This kind of passion or zest stirred by an external event can be quite overwhelming or even get out of control. Now, I am all fired up and excited by Christ, which is on an entirely different level. First of all, it is caused by my personal encounter with the Lord already dwelling deep within my innermost being. At no time do I ever lose self-control. In fact, I experience more freedom and peace than ever!

**God takes Care of All Who Are His**

        From today's First Reading from Acts 12:1-11, we read that King Herod imprisoned Peter under heavy guard. An angel suddenly appeared in the cell, woke Peter, and his chains fell off. The angel led Peter past the guards and through a self-opening iron gate. Once on the street, the angel vanished, and Peter realized God had rescued him. I was moved to tears when I realized that God would always take care of those who are his. This does not mean that we will not have any crosses to carry, but you can be sure that in the end, we will enjoy eternal freedom and peace! Only a fool will live for this life only. 

**I Love Jesus**

        A short by Mother Miriam

**The Lord We Must Have**

        Today is the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles. The Entrance Antiphon reads: "These are the ones who, living in the flesh, planted the church with their blood; they drank the chalice of the Lord and became the friends of God." This is a beautiful description of the two Apostles and anyone who loves the Lord. It makes me proud to be a humble follower of Christ. He is the only one who can fulfill us, completing our joy. I love Jesus!