Be Jealous and Proud

        We must jealously guard our sanctity for love of God. It is even more important than guarding our life, for it affects God directly. In today's Gospel reading from Luke 8 at morning Mass, Jesus said, "No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light." Therefore, we must also be proud of our faith, be proud of having been chosen and called by the Lord. For anyone who's ashamed of Christ, it's better not to follow him.

Short Efficacious Prayers

        A short prayer said from your own heart would mean so much more to God than reading perfunctorily some long, wordy prayer composed by someone else. Here are a number of examples that can be said at anytime when you are awake: "Lord, I trust in you"; "I love you, Jesus"; "I need you now"; "I am with you"; "I am all yours"; "Thy will be done"; "Have mercy on me."

Measuring Love for God

         How much you love God is measured by how strong your desire is to save souls.

In Heaven on Earth

        Communion experience. In heaven I shall be dwelling in God forever. While on earth, I am in heaven when God enters me to dwell in me as I receive the Holy Eucharist.  

On Getting into Heaven

        Getting into heaven or is not determined by whether your good deeds outbalance your bad ones. The wonderful thing about God's mercy is that no matter how sinful you are, turning to him in genuine repentance will get you back in God's grace. Otherwise, heaven would be quite empty of souls. When you end up in heaven or in hell, you may be surprised by the presence of souls you had not expected to see and the absence of souls you had expected to see there. As Jesus has said, the last will be first, and the first will be last. Regardless, we must pray hard for the salvation of all the souls, for nothing is impossible with God.

Union Supreme

        Studying the Bible, reading a lot of good books, listening to tapes, watching religious programs, attending church missions, going on retreats ~ all these aids can inspire you to holiness, but nothing can beat surrender to God, for in union God becomes your personal help, guide, and teacher.

Easy and Simple

        Communion experience. Again, the Lord showed me that to enter him; I only needed to be passive, relaxed, and open ~ no struggle, no striving, no resolution to make. God makes it easy and simple. Right after receiving the Holy Eucharist, it's the perfect time to abandon ourselves to God, resting in heavenly peace. 

Like the Sun

        I looked out the kitchen window in the early morning and saw the red sun rising in the east, appearing not much larger than the moon. The sun is so much larger than our earth that if the earth stayed a solid ball, you could fit about 960,000 earths into a ball the size of the sun. And of course, the sun is so hot (with temperature estimated to exceed 27 million degrees F at its core) that if it were any closer, we wouldn't be able to survive on earth. The sun reminded me of God because, in a similar way, we do not realize the immensity and infinite warmth of God when we are not close to him. 

Simple, Happy Living

        Never compare yourself with others. Never envy others. Do everything to please God and not care if you succeed or not. Be holy by keeping a pure heart. It's just you and God, alone-together-always.

All Burdens Self-Imposed

        Burdens in life are real. An earthquake can destroy your house. A friend may turn against you. You want to a new car and worry about where the money is going to come from. In the last example, we clearly have a case of self-imposed burden. But once you know and trust in God, the loss of a house would no longer stress you out. If a friend turns against you, you would feel sorry and pray for him, still remaining peaceful. We now see that all burdens are really self-imposed and God can lighten them or lift them from you completely. 

Mixed Emotions

        Communion experience. Joy filled my heart, but God's sorrows in me remained.

Putting Off God

       It seems that many Christians are not looking at God squarely to figure out how they should deal with him. In the back of their mind they know that they should love him with all their heart, all their soul, all their mind, and all their strength, but their heart hasn't learned that yet. So they put off coming to any resolution. This is hiding from God. On the other hand, seeking union with God is going straight to the Lord to ask him to let us live in him. 

Expect Disconnect

        The Lord challenges us to become holy and perfect. If you accept the challenge, be prepared for this reality: you will face the disconnect between you and the world which in general does not know Christ. Even those who know him but not well may distance themselves from you. Nevertheless, the gain of intimacy with the Lord far offsets all losses.     

On Becoming a Saint

        To want to be a saint has nothing to do with pride. In fact, it has all to do with humility, for without humility one can never become a saint. So feel free to ask the Lord to make you a saint ~ he would be greatly pleased.

Fantastic Invitations

        Communion time realization. Receiving the Holy Eucharist is accepting God's invitation to let him love me, invitation for me to love him and to be united with him, and invitation to receive the gift of eternal life from him. A heavenly banquet only God can give! 

God's Extra Dimension

        God is great for being omnipotent, omniscient, and more, but the fact that he is also love make him totally personable and personal. This is cause for great rejoicing!

The Space of God

        God is an infinite space which you can enter when you wish and are ready. This space is absolutely beautiful because God is holy and perfect. It is also most sweet because he is love. How do you get ready to enter? Believe that Christ has died for you sins, be sorry for your sins, desire to be holy for God's sake, and you are ready. A total surrender at this point would earn you an instant entry pass. Otherwise, the Father will guide your every step of the way. Once you are inside the space, you'll feel like being a fish that has been released back into the water, enjoying total freedom. (I now realize I am describing the state of union with God again.) 

Expressing Love for God

        God loves us with an infinite love, but we are only capable of loving him finitely. But there is a way to satisfy the Lord: Surrender to him. This really is the best way of expressing our love for him.

Most Important Connection

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 7 at morning Mass, Jesus raised a widow's son who had died. Life and death are really connected together ~ God can make us slip from one state into the other. The biggest disconnect has to be between heaven and hell. The separation is not only unbridgeable, but also eternal. All the more we need to connect ourselves to Jesus, the only one who can save us!  

No-Brainer Choice

        With a muddy conscience, we sin and look away to ease any discomfort we feel. But know that if you were to see yourself through the eyes of the holy God, you would be shocked at seeing what you have done! There are just two choices: (1) Keep looking away from your sins, fooling yourself to believe that you are OK, and get the big shock later. (2) Lick the problem of sin now to clear up you conscience once and for all so that you may live in peace from now on. What is your choice?    

Always Coming Through..

        If you love God and follow him faithfully, he will groom, nurture, and prepare you for meeting all the challenges of life? No matter what happens, with his help you will come through in triumph.

Sad Facts

     It's sad to see many old folks reaching the point of not knowing what's going on around them anymore. It's even sadder if they hadn't taken the time to get to know Jesus when their minds were still clear.

Ego "Revived"

        I saw someone with a Maserati parked outside his office ~ a car rather rare around here. I imagine how proud the owner must feel. What if no one gives a hoot about it? Would the owner be disappointed? I think so if he has a big ego. Ego is our attachment to the self. A big ego always demands to be fed to grow even bigger, then it becomes a prime target of Satan. If you want God to notice you, then starve your ego to death, thus removing the biggest obstacle in your path to God.

The Eternal God

        Today is the memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows. At morning Mass, the eternity of God entered my mind. Of course, God must have always existed. In Exodus 3, he told Moses that his name is I AM ~ wow! For God, there is neither beginning nor end. which explains all the mysteries around us. Who are we to argue with or even question him? How much do we really know? We have no choice but to worship him. The big bonus we get is that he happens to love us and wishes us to live for all eternity too, with him ~ imagine. I can't help wanting to leap for joy!

On Discerning God's Will

        Looking back on my past, there were many times when I wasn't sure what God wanted me to do. That was because I had not completely surrendered to him yet. As a result, my own will was always in the way, conflicting with or obscuring his will for me. After I got to know the Lord well, my will and his became the same, and discerning was rarely necessary. Now, I just wait for him to reveal to me what he wants me to do according to his time table. As a result, I experience much peace.

Praying like Jesus

        We pray often on God's behalf. For example, I pray that the whole world will come to know Christ. We pray for the Lord's will to be done. Does he really need our help? I see now that he wants us to pray thus to deepen our union with him. When our will becomes all his, all our prayers will be all his too. Then we'll be like Jesus praying to the Father.

God's Modest Request

        The Lord does not call everyone to undergo physical death to prove that we love him. For most of us, he asks us to accept our daily cross to show that we have died with him. 

All Done by God

        Today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The Gospel reading contains John 3.16: For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. God has created us, has come to save us, has called us, makes our journey home easy (see my last post), has loved us first and will love us forever. We only need to let him do what he wants with us and remain grateful.

Taking the Road to Heaven

        In Matthew 7, Jesus said, "How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few." The thing to do first is to enter that gate and get on that road. This is accomplished by finding Jesus and being willing to follow him. How constricted the road is will depend upon how well you "follow the directions" and "obey the signs" along the way. Again, seeking union with God will put you on the fast track with the road straightened and flattened out by the Lord!     

A Simple Process

        Becoming holy starts with the desire to change. The change begins when you let God take over to do the work ~ now, the sky's the limit.

"Smart" Living

        Get rid of your ego and you'll live in peace, for without an ego, no one can hurt your feelings anymore.        

Our Biggest Problem

        Of all our problems, which one is the biggest? You needn't look far ~ it's our ego, because it keeps us from knowing God.

Designed to Be Holy

        When you do something well, you feel good. For example, if you can play a piece of music on the piano beautifully, you feel good. This is normal human reaction, not pride. In the same way, when you are holy with a clear conscience, you feel peace in your heart ~ in this case, the thing you do well happens to be you. So we can say that God has so made us that we do not have peace until we are holy.  

Centering on Self First

        In today's Gospel reading at Mass from Luke 6, Jesus asked his disciples, "Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?" Our business before God is to perfect ourselves first before trying to perfect others. In fact, I should have said to perfect ourselves only, because even after we become perfect, we're not supposed to judge others. Therefore, center upon ourselves before the Lord and seek union with him ~ our only duty and business, and let our examples inspire others to perfect themselves. 

One Great Catholic Joy

        I was watching online part of the replay of Pope Francis' visit last month to Korea. He was meeting the youths that came from all over Asia in Daejean. The tremendous enthusiasm shown by the young people and the joy of the Holy Father in greeting them moved me to tears. I realized that one of the great joys of being a faithful Catholic is the sense of belonging, knowing that you are in communion with the Lord God and all other Catholics, in heaven or on earth. Belonging to the Church is belonging to the body of Christ, with all the faithful sharing the body and blood of the Lord.  

How to Love Someone

        While praying the last decade of the sorrowful mysteries of the Holy Rosary on the Crucifixion of the Lord, I could hear the pounding of the nails into his hands. I heard the Lord say: To love someone, you must be willing to suffer for that person.

What Do You Want to Be?

        When I was a little kid, I was often asked by adults, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I didn't really know, but my various answers revealed my ambitions and dreams. Now that I have grown up, I just want to be what God wants me to be. I may sound resigned or submissive; but in a way, more ambitious than ever. And this is one "dream" that will become reality too.  

Attachment & Detachment

        Being attached to someone is not loving that someone. On the other hand, being detached to someone is not unloving that person. In other words, attachment and love are not the same thing. Detachment may seem cold, but it's so much more beautiful than attachment because it's letting go in God. I'll always remember the time my wife and I took her mother to a company celebration ~ that was the company where my wife worked many years ago. Helium-filled balloons were passed out to everyone. And everyone held onto their balloon, intending to take it home afterwards (and watch it shrink under the bedroom ceiling daily). Then my mother-in-law decided to let hers go. My wife and I watched her balloon soaring quickly into the blue sky and finally disappearing ~ a beautiful sight, but we also marveled at Mother's equally beautiful detachment.   

Difficult Loving

        Today's Gospel reading at Mass continued from Luke 6. Verses 27-38 are all about "love your enemies," "turn the other cheek," "stop judging," and "forgive." According to Jesus, this is showing your love. From the practical point of view, it makes sense too because if you are not bothered by others in any way, you have inner peace. Furthermore, if everyone followed Jesus' advice, the world would definitely be peaceful ~ proof that he was right. Then what if you are now in Iraq or Syria where Christians are getting slaughtered? All I can say is that if you believe and love the Lord, he will never put you in a situation where you will not pass the test.

A More Serious Sin

        In the 1st reading from 1 Corinthians 8 at morning Mass, Paul wrote: "If food causes my brother to sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I may not cause my brother to sin." Paul is saying that even what you do is not a sin per se, it becomes sinful if it wounds others' consciences when they copy you. In most cases, what we do is sinful, and if that causes others to sin also, we have committed a much more serious sin. A common example would be parents who behave badly causing their children to behave in a similar way. It is basically keeping others away from God! 

Shaking Off the World

        We can be attached to the world so much that it becomes like a piece of chewed gum stuck in our hair. The most effective way to shake the world off you is to be in union with God because only his holiness can overcome the world that has succumbed to a great extent to the evil one. Yes, be a saint to become detached from the world. 

Beatitude Living

        Today the Gospel read at Mass was the Sermon on the Mount from Luke 6. Jesus gave us the Beatitudes in which he (1) blessed those who are poor, hungry, weeping, and hated, excluded, insulted, and denounced as evil on account of him, and (2) grieved for those who are rich, filled, laughing, and spoken well of by all. In sum, the Lord wants us to live for him and not for the world, and our reward, as he promised those he blessed, will be great in heaven.    

To Hope in God Is...

to trust in God.

To Die in Christ Is...

to live in Christ forever.

God Our Healer

        God is a great healer. Listening to his word is healing. Saying the Lord's Prayer is healing. Being called to union is healing. Receiving Holy Communion is most healing. God's wants to heals us to make us whole and wholesome.  

Thought of the Day

        If some of horrible things happening around us look so evil to us already, image how much more so they would to God who loves us and is holy! 

God Comes to Us!

        Today is the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Through her, God came into the world. What better position could we possibly be in? We were sick and God came to us in person to heal us. Now, daily he comes to me again in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. When I was ill in a hospital, meals and medication were all given to me to make me well. We should realize and appreciate that God is serving us what we need in exactly the same way.

Mutual Dissolving

        Communion experience. As the consecrated host dissolves in my mouth, I feel myself being dissolved by Christ in his love. This mutual dissolving brings me into oneness with the Lord. I am now aware of him as much as I am aware of myself.

A Heavy Cross

        I have a number of Catholic friends whose spouses are strongly anti-Catholic. One would not even allow the wife to attend Mass. For each believing spouse, this is a heavy cross to carry. Why does such hostility or even hatred exist toward the Church Christ has established? It has to do with misunderstanding, for Satan is a master liar. Whoever spreads false information about the Church must bear the greater responsibility for causing such suffering.

Holy Eucharist Power

        Communion time thought. If you only realize how holy the Lord is, whom you are about to receive, it is impossible that you would not be changed for the holier after he has entered you.