Surrender Is the Word

        Seeking union with God is what the Lord wants from us, so surrendering to him is called for. If you haven't done it yet, you'll always find yourself struggling to be holy. Good intentions alone are not enough because you have not let the Lord in to do the work for you yet. This is the message the Lord wants me to spread, the objective of this blog. Surrendering to the Lord opens up the gate to let all his grace through so that the exhilarating journey may begin. Get on the fast track and experience his love in this life. If this sounds like a commercial, it's because this good news is true and urgent.   

Why I Feel Peaceful

        Some of the reasons I feel peaceful in my God: (1) He has called me, (2) His love for me is forever, (3) I feel secure in his hands, for nothing can take me away, (4) I belong to him forever, (5) I shall be with him in heaven forever, (6) He has made my will his will, setting me free, (7) He shields me from all evil, (8) He has healed my soul, (9) He is with me at all times. 

No Freedom Without Truth

        Jesus said in John 8 that "the truth will set you free" ~ I've found this to be true. In my opinion, any religion that does not make you feel free cannot possibly be true. Experiencing freedom in your God proves that he is love and the true One. There are also those who do not believe in God and think that they are free, but this is only pseudo-freedom felt when you think you have escaped from facing God. Such feelings are short-lived when you realize that you are a slave to the world and to your ego.

Unconditional Love for All

        Today is Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. In Reading 2 from Romans 5, Paul points out that God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. God's unconditional love teaches us to love all others in the world without discrimination, as he loves all sinners without discrimination.

God to Be Take Seriously

        This is how Jesus taught on judging others: "As you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you" (Matthew 7:2). In the Lord's Prayer, he also taught us to say, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." It follows that if we don't take God seriously, he won't take us seriously either.

Most Beautiful Things

        Anticipating the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus tomorrow, EWTN showed a film on St. Margaret Mary Alacoque who received the revelations of the Sacred Heart. In some scenes, you see the saint prostrating herself in front of the Lord on the altar ~ it is such a beautiful scene! And I saw that it's proper ~ so right ~ for us to surrender to the Lord, to abandon ourselves to him, to trust in him, to rest in him, and to serve him. It struck me that all these things are most beautiful. 

Falling in Love with God

        Meditate upon the love of Christ and you fall in love with this love. Now you have fallen in love with God.

Greatest Commandments Linked

        In today's Gospel reading taken from Mark 12, Jesus gave the first of all the commandments: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. Then the second: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. These two greatest commandments are intimately linked together. Following the second commandment faithfully fulfills the first one. Following the first commandment gives us the power and strength to fulfill the second one. 

The Lord In Me

        At morning Mass, I did feel that Jesus was sitting on the throne in my heart instead of being outside of me. I was elated that he was with me. He's still in me now.

Consider Eternal Life

        I ask the Lord to let me evangelize to as many people as possible, and the opportunities often come up, and the right moment to say something follows too. People commonly talk about their worldly problems. At the appropriate moment, I would let my listeners know outright that what I am going to say to them, most likely they won't hear from another person. I tell them that my main concern for them are not worldly problems but eternal life, which must be considered foremost. Then I present Jesus as our answer. My listeners always seem to understand my intention and that I speak it out of love. So a seed is sown and may bear fruit one day.  

The Human Plight

        Here's my simple view of the human situation. Since Adam and Eve disobeyed God, we ended up carrying the original sin and got banished as far from him as possible. Then because he loves us so much, he sent Jesus his own Son into the world to die in our place to redeem us. Now, we can believe in Christ and be adopted by God the Father as his children again, or ignore or reject Christ and remain banished. 

         A footnote. Because God has created us in his own image, he loves us and we can understand his love.  

Taking the Holy Eucharist Seriously

        Receiving the Holy Eucharist is not a casual affair. In 1 Corinthians 11:27, Paul wrote that "whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord." Before we receive the Sacrament, we should make sure that we are in as pure a state as possible spiritually. Then we ask the Lord to bestow on us whatever we need to be drawn close to him. We must become more like him, even for a tiny bit, after each reception.

Do not Neglect Loving

         Do not forget to visit your loved ones or any needy folks as often as possible ~ this is loving your neighbor. To follow the commandment of honoring your father and your mother, don't forget to keep in touch with them if they live away from you. If there is any animosity between you and your parents or any other family members, seek reconciliation, ask for forgiveness, before you face God ~ this is absolutely urgent, first-priority business. You must cast aside all pride and let humility rule!
       I've been visiting the homebound for quite some time and I am so happy that I'd made special visits to some of them and regret that I didn't go see some others more often before they passed away. One I saw a month ago was a laughing, talking person; two weeks ago, he lost all his energy, stopped eating, and had trouble breathing. Last week, he's gone. Let your loved ones know that you love them and you care for them before they or you leave the world. Show that you truly love God.   

Most Common Addiction

        Attachment to material goods is the most common addiction in the world. This spiritual failing makes you forget God, thus pleasing Satan greatly. The only remedy for it is to attach yourself to God.  

Living Our Only Day

        You've heard that we should live every day like it's our last. To add urgency to it, I'd suggest that we live every day like it's our only day. This should motivate us to pack as much loving God into one day as possible.

The World Is Our Stage

        It came to my mind this morning that "the world is like a stage." Then an online search showed that "All the world's a stage" is the phrase that begins a monologue in William Shakespeare's play "As You Like It." The speech compares the world to a stage and life to a play. Here's the beginning of that monologue: 

           All the world's a stage;

           And all the men and women merely players:

           They have their exits and their entrances;

           And one man in his time plays many parts .... 

This was exactly what I had in mind. In addition, each of us is free to play any character of our choice in our role on stage. And if God is chosen to be our director, he works mainly behind the scenes. After we exit at the end, our performance will be judged and that judge is God. I suggest that you ask God to direct you in the play. Get to know him well and he'll most likely judge you more leniently.

No Better Feeling!

        Communion experience today. By receiving the Lord with great reverence, love, and firm belief that he is the bread of life from heaven, my place in heaven is assured. There is no better feeling than knowing that we are in union with the Lord and heaven bound!

Same Division Today

       Today is the Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs. The Gospel comes from Mark 12. Jesus addressed a parable to the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders. In speaking he quoted this Scripture passage: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes. He was speaking of himself whom his listeners were seeking to arrest.

          It's same today. Those who have accepted the Lord know that it is wonderful in the Lord's eyes and those who have rejected him out of pride don't know what they're doing.

The Holy Eucharist Fulfills Us

        Communion experience. It's extra special to receive the Holy Eucharist on this Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. With Psalm 23:1 in mind, I could sum up my feeling by saying that "the Lord is in me; there is nothing I lack."

Power of the Holy Eucharist

        Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. The message I picked up during the homily: By receiving this Most Blessed Sacrament, which is Christ, we can become like him. Of course, if we receive it every Sunday at Mass just out of obligation, we shall remain the same. I've seen some who regularly receive the sacrament, yet still feel miserable most of the time. The power is there and will enter only those in a state of grace, open, and desirous of becoming holy.

Ultimate Freedom

        In John 8:32, Jesus said, "The truth will set you free." Since Jesus is the truth, I have come to realize that when I am completely filled with Christ, I attain ultimate freedom. 

A Wow Awakening

        "God loved us so much that he died for us so that we might have eternal life" ~ we've heard it so many times that we hardly pay any attention anymore. Indeed, familiarity breeds contempt. Today at Mass I paid attention to it and the Lord made me see that the saying reveals the ultimate expression of love, an act as momentous as the creation, a powerful display of God's perfection, and the greatest favor he could have bestowed upon us. It definitely was a wow awakening moment for me!        

A Fundamental, Good Feeling

        I've been posting about how God has made us. Here's one more observation. People are good at being in denial about their sinfulness and they lose inner peace. When you do something wrong, no matter how hard you try to deny it, you'll always get that uneasiness ~ this is how God has made us.  I've said in the past that there's no better feeling than knowing you and God are on good terms. Today I am seeing it from a specific point of view: When your heart is clean, it's a most wonderful feeling because you know you have nothing to hide and you welcome the Lord to dwell within you. Once you've experienced this, you'll never want or need to be in denial about anything anymore.

Awesome God

        I was attending a special Mass tonight for the Feast of St. Joseph Marello. When I let the Lord know that I was going to trust in him, he let me know that he's going to trust in me. It's pretty awesome to hear that and it's something I'd better remember always.

Amazing God

        I am still amazed that my God loves me so much that he died for me and that he and I can become one! I defy you to find a more amazing god.

Ave Maria by Bach/Gounod

Kimi Skota of South Africa sings beautifully.

Showing Love in All Things

        This morning I heard this story about St. Joseph Marello. When his barber was no longer able to give good haircuts because of the loss of eyesight, the saint, already a bishop, continued to go to him just to support him ~ showing love is more important than looking good in a new haircut. Like St. Therese, St. Joseph Marello advised all to do ordinary things in an extraordinary way. Every day we have numerous ordinary opportunities to be charitable. Let's make them extraordinary before they vanish.

On Yearning for God

        I believe that since union with God will not be perfected until we are in heaven, yearning for Christ remains with us on earth.

God Uplifts Us

        I must describe my journey with God as an uplifting experience. Again, here's my simple view. God dwells high above us in all respects. We have no way of reaching him on our own. Since we know that he loves us (a great deal as a matter of fact), we ask for help and he readily complies. Actually, he is elated, for all this time he's been waiting for us to ask. He then lifts us up. Carrying us, he walks with us. With him, we can only go higher. Hence, the journey is an uplifting experience all the way.    

God's Drawing of Us

        One of the most rewarding, satisfying experiences in seeking union with God is his drawing of you close to him. The Holy Spirit does not shove or push; he gently lets you experience greater intimacy with the Lord and sense the peace that comes from knowing that your will and God's are in harmony. 

Love Is the Answer

        Here's a riddle not that difficult to answer: What is mankind's ultimate fulfillment? The answer clear to me is love. If everyone loves as Jesus had commanded, there would be peace in the world. Since God is love, then God is our ultimate fulfillment. Perhaps one reason people hesitate to love is the realization that they could lose their lives if they practice it in this evil world ~ look at how Jesus lost his on earth. But we are going to die anyway, so it'd be far better to lose our lives on earth than to risk losing eternal life later.     

God Has Made Us!

        This morning I became aware that I can see, hear, and smell; that I have all kinds of emotions and feelings; that I can sense beauty and ugliness; that I know good from evil; that I can conceive God; that I can blog with a purpose ~ that's because God has made me! He has precisely designed all of us this way. He has also given me the sense to realize that mankind couldn't have come into being by accident. If it were so, then it had to be a fantastic miracle and only God can produce miracles.

Soak Up the Lord While We Can

        Earlier today I visited two old homebound folks who were terminally ill. They can no longer eat solid food, need oxygen support for breathing, and have hardly any physical strength left. Their conditions have deteriorated rapidly in just one week. The made me realize that we are all going to reach that helpless point. What we should do now is to help ourselves with God as much as possible ~ not unlike the bears fattening themselves before hibernation. Soak up the Lord, live him, immerse in him, grab hold of him tight, while we still can. 

Essential of Spiritual Life

        Communion experience. I felt that Christ in the Holy Eucharist was perfect for my soul. The Most Holy Sacrament completes my spiritual life. 

Unloading Ourselves

        Since we are always our own burden, we give ourselves (surrender) to God and we are free. A simple common-sense truth.       

Get the Truth from God

        Here are some common examples of negative thinking: "I am unattractive"; "I am inferior"; "I don't like myself"; "Nobody likes me"; "God does not care about me"; "God cannot help me." First of all, these thoughts represent only one's own feeling at a time. Anyone who has truly known God would have felt just the opposite in each case. To think that God does not love or cannot help us is even sinful! The fact is that God loves us; he delights in us; we are precious and dear to him; and he can and will help us! ~ plenty of us can testify to that. Don't let your feeling dictate your thinking or form your opinion ~ find the truth from God always. 

Our Business

       We see God granting special favors, supernatural or otherwise, to others ~`what do we think and how do we feel?

       First of all, how God grants favors is none of our business.
      Secondly, know that whatever the Lord does is always for the good of all and for his own glory.

      Last, remember the older son in the prodigal son parable? When he got jealous after seeing how the father favored the return of his younger brother, destitute but repentant, with a great celebration, the father said to him, "My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours." So, if we don't seem to receive any special favors from the Lord, it could be that he has already given us everything!

       Anyhow, our business is to concentrate on serving the Lord and rejoice in him. 

Requisite for Following Jesus

        The Gospel reading came from Mark 10. A man asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus mentioned the commandments and the man said that he had observed them from his youth. Then Jesus said, "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." At that statement, his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. The Lord could be testing the man. Nevertheless, he showed that detachment from all material possessions goes beyond obeying all the commandments; without it, you won't be able to follow the Lord freely.

Life's Narrow Window

        Reading 1 at Mass was from Sirach 17. What I learned was that we must glorify and praise God in this life. If we don't, we'll end up in the nether world where no one can glorify and praise God. Our life is a very narrow window which can close at any time. Therefore, glorify and praise the Lord while you still can. 

How God Has Made Us

        Yesterday the Lord showed me that humans, knowing that they are mortal, wish to be immortal. So they search for things that endure and ways of living a longer life. Only to avoid facing the problem, they immerse themselves in the world. Those who have found God are happy because God is everlasting and through Christ they'll inherit eternal life in heaven, so much better than living forever in this world. Again, God has so made us that we won't be satisfied until we find him.

Tasting the Lord

        After receiving Holy Communion, I saw myself still on earth, but had just tasted the Lord in heaven. Not a bad start!

Freedom in Union Explained

        In union with God, his will is your will and your will, his. So, in union with God, you have the union of the two wills. With only one will left, you experience great freedom. 

All or Nothing

        Can you possibly imagine that God is finite in some way ~ not all-knowing, not being able to create something, only loving us to a certain degree? I can't. With God, it has to be all or nothing. Since he is not nothing, he must be infinite, perfect, and all-embracing. 

Most Beautiful Name

        Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity ~ what a glorious day! At Mass I felt that God was in me, part of me, and all around me. During the singing of Gloria, I heard Jesus addressed as "Lamb of God" ~ what a beautiful, appropriate, unforgettable, endearing name! It speaks of the greatest love, mercy, sacrifice, and total obedience to the Father. 

Whom to Admire?

        People admire anyone who seems to have a lot of friends. Should we count drinking buddies, fellow sports fans who watch games with you, and those you shoot the bull with as friends? To Jesus, whoever does the will of his heavenly Father is his brother, his sister, and his mother (Matthew 12:50) ~ may I just add "his friend" to the lineup? For the Christian, the Lord is all the friends you need, and all those who does his will are your true friends. So, admire God and the saints, not anyone popular with a lot of friends in the world.

On Being Possessed & Best News

        If you let the Devil possess you, you are a goner. If you let the world possess you, you may get passing pleasures out of it, but you will never experience true freedom nor peace ~ most likely you've already figured this. What you may not know is that if you let the Lord God "possess" you, you'll experience complete freedom with deep inner peace. You see, it's impossible for God to be oppressive or enslaving, for he is Love. His sole wish is to save and free us so that we may be where he is after this life ~ Jesus has made it all clear. If you agree that this has to be the best possible new for us, you would rejoice right now! Turn away from Christ and you'll never experience the freedom, peace, and joy that are meant to be yours.

Why I Believe in Jesus

        (1) The Gospel convinced me that Jesus is God.

        (2) The lives of the great saints testify to this truth.  

       (3) This last reason may be the most convincing of all. Through seeking union with the Lord, he let me know without a doubt that he is real, the truth.

The Living Bread

       Communion experience. I was called to the supper of the Lamb! What an honor! What a treat! I was to receive the bread of life, the food essential for my soul. This gives me the nutrition that keeps me as a living branch of the vine that's Jesus. 

Body of Christ to Remain Intact

        In the news today: A Roman Catholic parish priest at an elite French ski resort has been stripped of his Church functions for refusing to renounce Freemasonry. The body of Christ must remain as one. Therefore, on the part of any Catholic, there must never be any disobedience that would fracture the body of Christ in any way. All other considerations cannot be from the Lord. Seeking union with Christ ensures our obedience.   

Dust Turning Immortal

        Psalm 103 read at Mass reminds us that we are dust and that our days are like those of grass. We bloom like flowers of the field and the wind sweeps over us and we are gone, our place knowing us no more. These thoughts, like the realization of how vast our universe is, similarly humble me. I am mortal, and I depend entirely upon my God to make me immortal.