A Most Private Moment

        Today's Communion experience. After receiving Christ in the Holy Eucharist, I felt that I was having the most private moment of my life. If I were all by myself, that would only be a most lonely moment, not a private one. But being totally with the Lord alone ~ that is private.

Impure Motivation & False Humility

        I've been advocating letting God enter us to take away our struggle in making spiritual progress. Of course, this does not mean that we don't do anything besides opening ourselves up to God. A couple of things I've recently sensed and would like to share: (1) Pure motivation is something we have to work on. It's easy to respond and say to others the way we normally do, but they are times I still detect that my response is motivated by some self-centeredness. (2) False humility is sometimes more difficult to discern. If God has a message for us to share, we should do it for his glory. If we are concerned that we might draw attention to ourselves, that could be false humility. Basically, we do what the Lord wants us to do and not be concerned about whether people are going to praise or criticize us.   

Thinking About Jesus Alone

        People think about the past, not because they enjoy doing it, but because unhappy events and experiences haunt them, keeping them unhappy. People also think about the future with worry or hope. Since the future is never certain, always an unknown, they feel unsettled. So what should we think about? Jesus, of course, for the Lord is an eternal joy! Dwell on or in him and we'll have interior peace.

Living for God Alone

        People do not know us as God knows us. If we are concerned about what people think of us, we can't help being dishonest or hypocritical at times. Therefore, we should be concerned about what God thinks of us only, he who knows everything about us already. By living for him alone, we remain honest and genuine at all times. 

Rejoicing in Being Called

        Today's Gospel reading from Matthew 9 records how Jesus called Matthew to follow him. Of course, Matthew didn't know what's really in store for him yet, but we now know that when God calls us, it's because he loves us, the Father has chosen us, and he is ready to bestow upon us the greatest honor of our life. It is a time appropriate for great rejoicing ~ jumping up and down and shouting for joy are not out of place.

God Can Make Us Holy

        Continuing reading St. Teresa's Life has convinced me further that when God grants us a favor, it's impossible for us to resist. Without his help, we'd be struggling all our lives trying to be holy; but when God lends a hand, it's done for us! In today's first reading at Mass from Ephesians, Paul urged all to be humble and gentle with patience, to bear with one another through love, and to strive to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. His advice is good, but to be able to follow it is another matter. Of course, there has to be the faith in Christ to start out with. Then help from the Lord is absolutely necessary to guarantee success. Again, seeking union with God will satisfy all requirements.

Yearning for God

        Today is the Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle. Before Mass started, I felt that the Lord was asking me, "What do you want of me?" (I felt like asking him the exact, same question?) What I want of God is all of him to satisfy my yearning for him. A little bit of him is just not enough because he is just too beautiful! If you call that greed, then it is a holy greed, a good greed. God is someone you can never get tired of having more and more of. 

Serving God Big

        Most of us don't get the opportunity to do anything big for the Lord ~ that's OK. What we can do is to do every little thing perfectly with humility and joy for the love of God, then he would be greatly pleased. This is a sure way of building up our treasure in heaven. In fact, this is a sure way to sainthood for anyone (read about the little way of St. Therese, the Little Flower).  

Peter, the First Pope

        Paul referred to Peter as Cephas (see last post). Cephas is the name given to Peter by Jesus (John 1:42) ~ it is a Syriac name meaning "rock." Later, Jesus said to Peter, "I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church." To me, it is clear that Peter was made the head of the Church by Jesus. 

Evidence for Resurrection

        Today's first reading at Mass came from 1 Corinthians 15. Paul told that Jesus, after he was raised, appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve, and then to more than five hundred at once, most of whom still living at the time Paul wrote his letter. Next, Jesus appeared to James, then to all the Apostles again. Last, he appeared to Paul. All these appearances point irrefutably to the Resurrection of the Lord. 

God amid the Self-Destructive World

        Yesterday, I saw that judging or not forgiving others is destructive. We not only hurt our own health, but also go against the will of God. Today I see that the whole world is heading for self-destruction. Without knowing the love of Christ, it has gone mad or insane beyond mere foolishness. Scanning the news any day and you'll see how sad the state we are in. One bright item today on BBC News is worth a look because these astronomy photographs show how small we are and how stunning and great God is. They also tell us that our earth cannot last forever. Here is the link ~ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19637073. 

Enjoying the Lord

        Today's Communion experience: I simply let my heart, spirit, and soul enjoy their union with the Lord through the Holy Eucharist.

Letting Jesus Raise Us

         In today's Gospel reading from Luke 7, outside the gate of the city Nain Jesus saw that a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, a widow. The Lord was moved with pity for her and said to her, "Do not weep." He then stepped forward and touched the coffin; at this the bearers halted, and he said, "Young man, I tell you, arise!" The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.  

       If Jesus can raise the dead like that, then we can also "play dead" by setting our own will aside and letting him raise us to a new life. In John 11:25-26, Jesus aid, "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die." So, to believe is to be raised, and we shall live.

Our Rightful Position Before God

        This morning before Mass, I knelt before the Lord and begged for his mercy on my soul. I felt so comfortable because I sensed that this was the most natural, rightful position for me as a creature to be in before my creator ~ we were just made that way! The most comfortable zone for us is to be submissive and obedient to God ~ in perfect harmony with his will.  

Jesus Is the Draw

        People do not want to go to hell after they realize what a horrible place it is. On the other hand, they will want to go to heaven if they realize what a blissful place it is. After receiving Holy Communion this morning, I experienced the beauty and loveliness of Jesus so much that it would be impossible for me to not want to be with him forever. I know that everyone else would feel the same when he or she gets to know him. There is absolutely no point in looking elsewhere.     

A Simple Relationship

        Before Mass started this morning, I realized that I cannot do anything without God. Even though the world is in a horrible mess, all he requires of me is to serve him faithfully, nothing more. So I'll do just that and ask for nothing more from him either. I do my little part and he takes care of the rest, including the world. What I love about God is how he keeps everything simple for us to understand and to perform. This simple relationship with him is based upon our trust, our obedience,  and his love, no more. The Lord is the easiest person to deal with.

Much Ado About Nothing

        I am using the title of Shakespeare's comedy to describe what the people of the world are doing much of the time. I caught a snippet of a TV documentary film on a past famous opera singer. Either her father or someone was remembered to have been painted as a character in a painting by a famous artist. Another person was remembered because his tomb was designed by another famous artist. My question is: what good is it to be remembered this way? Most people, especially those in more affluent societies, waste so much of their time doing things of no benefit to them spiritually whatsoever. Doing these things keeps them even further away from God. It is certainly a tragedy that people are not aware of their own spiritual status, resulting in much ado about nothing or worse. 

Union with God Necessary

        Today's Gospel reading came from Mark 8. Jesus began to teach his disciples that he must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed... Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples, rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do." So, how can we think as God does? The only way is to get to know him fully, and union with him provides the exact answer.

       Later Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." To deny oneself is one of the hardest thing to do, yet it is the way to freedom, to save one's own life. God cannot enter us if we are still in our way. Again, union with God provides the solution.

Letting God Fill Us Fully

        Since we are nothing, it is necessary and perfect for us to give all of ourselves ~ heart, life, and soul ~ to God in order to receive his love, grace, and mercy to the fullest. Then we shall be more like him.

God High Above the World

        Once you have tasted the Lord, all things of the world become downright boring and all the world loves to talk about becomes gibberish. Hence, if you are still having a great time enjoying the world, it is an indication that you have not truly known the Lord yet. All the pleasures of the world pale into nothing compared to the joy of knowing God. May all glory and all honor go to him, for he alone is to be worshiped.

Getting Close to God

        Sometimes we think we are being a pretty good person and feel like giving ourselves a pat on the back, but we must realize that no matter how saintly we become, before God we are full of imperfections and sinfulness ~ we are much worse than what we think, for God's standards are indeed lofty. It just shows that we need God more than we think we need him. Then if we truly are humble and acknowledge our wretchedness before God, he lifts us up close to him as if we are already perfect. This is another beautiful paradox with God.  

Ready for Seeking Union with God?

        Inspired by what I read in St. Teresa's Life, these questions popped into my mind:

        (1) Do you believe that Jesus can change a soul completely?

        (2) Do you believe that Jesus can free a soul from the love of things?

        (3) Do you believe that Jesus can make a soul love him?

       If your answer to all three questions is yes, then you are ready for seeking union with God.

The Peace Formula

        The absence of peace in the world can be traced directly to the absence of peace in the human heart. Our self-importance has replaced God. The solution is clearly to humble ourselves so that we may surrender to God. The reward will be peace in our hearts and peace in the world. This is so obviously true, yet so hard to realize! (Simeon's prophecy at the Presentation of the child Jesus that the Lord would be a sign of contradiction comes to my mind.) 

Totally Yours, Lord

        After receiving Holy Communion this morning, I just knew that the secret of happiness is to be totally God's, then all things minor or major other than him no longer matter. I was ashamed that earlier I got a little emotionally perturbed over some trivial matter.

Being Crowned by the Lord

        Today is the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows. At the Presentation of the child Jesus in the temple, Simeon prophesied that a sword would pierce Mary's soul. The Gospel Acclamation reads: "Blessed are you, O Virgin; without dying you won the Martyr's Crown beneath the Cross of the Lord." So one can be a martyr without undergoing actual physical death. Anytime we endure suffering for the sake of Christ, we are martyrs and the Lord crowns us ~ what a great honor!

Embracing All of Christ

        Today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. My after-Communion thoughts were that I must embrace all of Christ, including his sufferings. But by my nature, I love to just focus upon the love of God and unreservedly place my trust in him ~ this is why St. Therese of Lisieux appeals to me so much, for her approach and ways are simple like that. 

All Gifts Are from God

        By the way, today is the Memorial of St. John Chrysostom. After receiving Holy Communion, I wanted to love God even more, but felt utterly powerless to do so. So I had no choice but to ask him to help me because I realized that all gifts come from him.

What God Wants from Us

         Today's Gospel reading from Luke 6 at Mass was all about loving your enemies and not judging others ~ these teachings of Jesus distinguish Christianity from all other religions. What the Lord said was radical and stunning. Some excerpts: "...love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you... To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well... ...for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful... Stop judging... Stop condemning... Forgive..." 

       Here's another way of seeing it. We are to realize that every single person is someone God loves to death! And he teaches us this way because he wants us to be free! He wants us to be like him so that we may live with him for all eternity! If we wish to be good children in the Father's eyes, we might as well be good all the way, and we can do that with the aid of his transforming love. The Lord wants us to know only him, to know love, for he is love.

Supernatural Gift

        Every time after I have received the Holy Eucharist, the Lord grants me some particular feelings. This morning I sensed that this Most Blessed Sacrament is indeed supernatural, a miracle, and my soul was being fed by it. The desire I had was to want to be totally his.

Knowing the Holy Spirit

        To experience the Holy Spirit, surrender to him first. Then you'll feel his gentle prompting and presence as he walks with you through all things. I did question his presence in the past and he revealed to me that he is always with us, as Jesus had promised to his disciples before his Ascension. So don't look for him, just surrender to him.

Wonderful God

        When I look at the stars and into the vast space, I am awed and humbled by the Lord God who created the universe and everything that it contains within. Compared to him, I am truly nothing. How extremely foolish or even sinful it would be for me think that I can accomplish anything on my own. Then I look at how the Lord God sent his only Son to die for me to have me saved, I instantly feel that I am the most important object to him in the entire universe. Being loved for being nothing ~ what a wonderful God!   

Interacting with the Lord

        I am a finite creature with very limited intelligence and knowledge, whereas the infinite Lord God has unlimited wisdom and knowing. It is his love that bonds us together. I most enjoy interacting with him because I learn and gain so much from him. It's impossible not to become a better and happier person under his influence. Eventually, he raises you to a new height of existence, your heart free of worldly attachments and filled with internal peace. 

9/11 Reflections

        Today is 9/11, a day we can't forget. It's a tragic day that lead to more tragedies worldwide and still continuing to happen. All I can say is that peoples have not truly known God. I doubt that there were many atheists involved in carrying out the terrorist attacks and our counter strikes ~ both sides invoked God and saw the other side as the enemy or evil, but no one really knew the true God as revealed to us through Jesus Christ correctly. They either believed in God falsely or just followed their own will, overriding the Lord's. It's been like that throughout history. Jesus was right when he said that he had come for division (Luke 12). Just be sure that you have the humility and meekness to truly follow God's will.    

Taking Care of the Soul

        The soul is the most important and the only imperishable part of us. If it does not live on forever, then all the talks about heaven, hell, and God break down and our whole life becomes totally meaningless. Anyway, I believe otherwise. Therefore, I want to place my soul in the best possible care. Therefore, I give my soul entirely over to the loving Lord who created it in the first place. As it turns out, he is the only one who takes care of souls. 

Sin & God's Mercy Warnings

          (1) Sin, if ignored, can destroy the soul.
       (2) God's mercy, though infinite, must be claimed when you are still alive before Christ's Second Coming.   

The Spiritual Journey

        The first step of the spiritual journey is the conversion, letting Jesus into your life. The final step is entering heaven to meet the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit plus all the angels and saints. The in-between part of the journey is seeking the beauty of God, celebrating his love, and enjoying union with him. If I may be so considered to be the publicity agent for this journey, then Jesus is your host, the Holy Spirit your guide, and the Father in heaven, both the trip sponsor and your insurance provider. Everyone is welcome to sign up for this once-in-a-lifetime, exciting, life-changing adventure.

Learning to Pray Appropriately

        I pray the Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy daily. Often I said these prayers first thing in the morning as if I wanted to get them over with. Before morning Mass started today, I saw that it was really a form of anxiety and seriously speaking, I wasn't listening to the Holy Spirit. By listening to him, I knew that I should acknowledge the fact that I was coming before the Lord and should prepare my heart for Mass, not trying to finish the Rosary before Mass began. Even after Mass, I should thank the Lord first before presenting any petitions. In sum, I must pray appropriately at all times ~ another good lesson from the Holy Spirit.   

Let the Lord Do It!

        I am continuing reading Life by St. Teresa of Avila. She has made amply clear that it is the Lord who does everything. The gifts she received, union, ecstasy, levitation... all came from God. Even a lesser gift such as tears we cannot possibly induce by ourselves. When we progress spiritually, it is the Lord shaping us, drawing us to him. Here the secret of attaining rapid progress is revealed. Since we cannot do anything on our own, all we need to do is to remain open and passive and when the Lord sees our desires, he will do the work for us and our progress is assured.

Ascension for Us

        As I was praying the second Glorious Mystery of the Holy Rosary, the Ascension of Jesus, this morning, he made me see that I should have my ascension too! Of course, I won't have the bodily ascension as the Lord's, but after I die, my soul will ascent to him by his power. Yes, wherever Jesus is, his sheep will be there too because his sheep always follow the master shepherd. Another exciting day for me! 

God Our Most Intimate Companion

        There are people whom I have lived with or known for all my life or all their lives, but I know that we'll never know each other 100%. With God, it's different. He already knows me thoroughly, for he is all-knowing and my creator! How do I know him? He is much easier to know than any other human creature because he is honest, trustworthy, straight forward, and completely open to us. Jesus has come and shown us what the Father is like! Once you know God, you know him all at the most personal level. 

Focusing upon the Lord Always

        Our focus should always be centered upon the Lord. Even when I sin, rather than feeling bad about myself for having offended him, it is much better to realize that the Lord has been hurt by me. In short, think more about God feeling bad and less about me feeling bad. In short, be God-centered and not self-centered. 

On Using Our Time

        A good question. There is so much to seek, explore, wonder, and enjoy in the infinite beauty and everlasting love of God, then why do we waste so much of our precious lifetime bothering with all the ugly, unedifying, even trifling things of the world?   

Peace God Grants

        I believe that one reason why anyone with little faith in God does not have peace in his heart is because he is affected by everything that happens to him. Whereas one who has been drawn close to God is occupied by thoughts of love for the Father, feels the Son in him like a anchor holding him securely in divine love, and has the Holy Spirit screening all incoming thoughts so that nothing disturbing can get through. A blessed state indeed!

Made to Belong to God

      We are not made by God to own anything he has created in this world, since we ourselves are his creatures. It follows that we are made by God to belong to (be owned by) him.  

Only a Two-Way Relationship

        There are really only three possible players in our lives ~ God, us, and all other humans beings. (As for Satan, as long as we are aware of his existence and know God, he may be safely ignored since he just becomes a distraction, a small annoyance at times. He is dangerous only to those who do not believe that he exists.) We must respond to God alone and ignore all other fellow human beings, no matter what they do to us. What I mean is that we still take action following God's will, but we won't let their wrong doings in any way affect our love for God. If someone offends you, it's no different from a tree branch falling accidentally on top of you car ~ he will have to answer to God on his own in the end. You may picture that we are all linked to God upward individually, with no horizontal links between any two fellow human beings ~ a clean and simple image to remember.

Lost Souls Abound

        There are so many lost souls nowadays constituting a huge portion of the population of any big city in both the United States and other Western countries. Let's just say that he is male for convenience' sake and I'll provide a description. He does not know the meaning of life and has no one to guide him. He drifts from one day to the next. If he is working, he is not happy in his job. His family does not support or care much about him. Most likely he has financial as well as marriage or girl friend problems. He has no qualms about trying drugs or engaging in sex with others ~ to him it's no different from going to a bar to have a few drinks. And abortion does not bother him either. He thinks like his friends, not knowing that they are as lost as he is. The whole aim is to get out of or forget his own misery with no concern about morals. In a big cosmopolitan city, if there is any opportunity to have some quiet time appropriate for reflection, he mopes in gloom instead of thinking calmly to figure out how he could change and improve his life. Such souls are not inherently wicked ~ they simply are overcome by secular forces and become helpless. Since there are so many millions of them out there, we need to pray hard that they will discover the love of God one day. 

The Power of Mass

        Today during Mass, drawn by the love of Christ, I yearned to go deeper into him. The Holy Eucharist inspired great reverence ~ I knew that I touched the Most Holy and would not the same anymore!

Abandonment to Freedom

       In today's first reading from 1 Corinthians 4 at morning Mass, St. Paul said that when the Lord comes, he will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will manifest the motives of our hearts, and then everyone will receive praise from God. 

         Anyone who truly trusts in God is not concerned about what is going to happen to him because he has left all in his hands. He is willing to accept whatever God sends his way ~ no questions, no complaints; only total acceptance. He welcomes God to expose all that's hidden in darkness and manifest the motives of his heart, for he knows that whatever he receives will be for the glory of God. When one abandons himself to God, all fears and worries are tossed out as well.

Jesus Is with Us!

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 5, the scribes and Pharisees noticed that the disciples of Jesus did not fast or offer prayers like those of John the Baptist and theirs, but ate and drank. Jesus responded by saying, "Can you make the wedding quests fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the day will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days." 

        Today, I see that the Lord has completed his work of salvation, left us with the great gift of himself, the Holy Eucharist, which can lead us to union with him, and he has sent the Holy Spirit to us, to be with us always; the gospel is still being spread around us. Yes, the bridegroom is with us, more intimately than ever! As his disciple, I too feel upbeat and joyful. 

Surrendering to Love

       After receiving Holy Communion this morning, I felt that I was surrendering to the most beautiful love ~ there was nothing more I could ask.