Making Life Meaningful

        If you acknowledge that God did create you and then died for you to save you from sin, life instantly becomes meaningful.        

Wonderful, Amazing God

        Today's Entrance verse at Mass from Psalm 68: O God, when you went forth before your people, marching with them and living among them, the earth trembled, heavens poured down rain, alleluia. Indeed, God is awesome. He is to be worshipped, praised, and adored, yet he is also completely approachable. There is an amazing duality here. He is our God, but also our loving Father. He is our judge to be feared, yet also our most endearing, intimate friend. He is all holy, yet he yearns to unite with us sinners. John the Baptist said that he was not even worthy to untie the sandals of Jesus, yet this Lord gladly enters me daily in the Holy Eucharist. Our God is not only unique, but truly amazing. 

Only Qualified One

        Communion experience. It's abandonment time. Then I realized that the Lord is the only one to whom I can completely abandon myself ~ there was absolutely no one else around who could take his place. What a blessing and joy that I have him!

Sheep Test 2

        If you know that you've been chosen by God to follow Christ, then you are his sheep.       

Live to Live

        In today's Gospel reading from John 12, Jesus cried out and said, "If anyone hears my words and does not observe them, I do not condemn him, for I did not come to condemn the world but to save the world. Whoever rejects me and does not accept my words has something to judge him: the word that I spoke, it will condemn him on the last day." We see that even though we commit many sins, the Lord does not judge us until after we die. So, it's either observing the words of Jesus now while we are still living or waiting to be condemned.

Making Life Beautiful

        Back on June 18, 2015, I posted about the genius of Oscar Peterson which made me think of the infinite genius of our Lord. Today I thought of the great jazz pianist again, whose playing was so free and natural that he and the music became essentially one. It strikes me that expressing our love for God should also be completely free and natural. And we can achieve that when we become one with the Lord, making our life most beautiful. In case you missed Peterson's video the first time, I am posting it again.

Ceasing the Struggle

        It is either we let God be God or we play God. This is the fundamental struggle that goes on within us. If the former, then we abandon ourselves to God, the struggle ceases, and we have peace. If the latter, the struggle simply continues on. I choose to have peace, therefore I choose to submit myself to God (the God of Christ). 

Only Relevant Question

        Here are a number questions regarding sinning. (1) How did you sin? (2) What lead you to sin? (3) How often have you sinned? (4) How serious is your sin? (5) Do you sin?

        Only the last question is relevant.

Another Hurdle

        It's not difficult to refrain from speaking ill of anyone whom I do not know well, but it's another thing not to criticize someone in my own family whom I know well. In the family setting, when there is a disagreement, it's just so easy to assert that I am right and my "opponent" wrong, hoping that all others within earshot will support me. This again shows the presence of ego and that more dying with Christ is needed.

Unhazy Dream

        I had a vivid dream last night. I was in a town amidst all the traffic and pedestrians heading every which way. There was a small stadium filled with naked people occupying all the tiers of seats. I looked around and saw some of them clearly, others more difficult to make out, and still others rather hazy and looking tired and sad. Then I understood it was about how God sees us. Since we can hide nothing from God, we are naked to him. We appear clearly to him if we have nothing to hide from him. But if we are sinful, the haziness indicates that we are trying to hide ourselves from him.     

True Satisfaction

        When you are in union with Jesus, you have already tasted the very best and nothing other than the Lord himself can satisfy you anymore. That's why any message not centered upon the Lord 100% can no longer set the heart afire.  

The Sheep Test

        I attended Vigil Mass today. In the Gospel reading from John 10, Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice." How certain you hear him speak to you in your heart tells you if you truly belong to him or are still on the periphery. 

Free Will for God

        In today's Reading 1 at Mass from Acts 9, God gave Peter the power to instantly heal Aeneas, a paralytic who had been confined to bed for eight years. God can do anything, but our free will almost always gets in the way. We must will to remain open to God in order to receive whatever gift he wants to give us in serving him. That is, as channels of God's love, we must clear ourselves of all obstructions.

God's Plan for Us

        In today's Reading 1 from Acts 9 at Mass, Jesus made it clear that he had chosen Saul to be his instrument to carry his name before Gentiles, kings, and children of Israel. God's plan for us may not be that specific, but it is equally clear that he wants each of us to serve him as holy disciples wherever we are now and always.

Our Most Ardent Desire

        That we become like Christ.

Support We Need

        I had a bad dream early this morning, in which I had to escape from someone coming after me; I realized that I needed God's help. After I woke up, I saw that the dream confirmed that we absolutely need God. I know that nonbelievers would love to tell me that I invented God to have a crutch to lean on. Well, I wouldn't call God a crutch, but if you must, then he is the best possible crutch you can ever have, exactly the right kind of support we need, for without it we would certainly perish one day. 

How to Impress God

        In all my years of attending Mass, I have heard innumerable homilies preached from the pulpit. They range from the instantly forgettable to those that set your heart afire for God. In between, you have memorable ones, but the focus upon God is often diluted by the speaker's desire to be entertaining. Obviously, to impress God, all focus should be on him alone. To achieve this, we need to let God impress us first. It again comes down to letting God do all the work for us.

Living for God Alone

        Two people could do exactly the same thing, yet because their motives are different, one is storing up treasures in heaven while the other one, not. Life invisible to us is all visible to God. Therefore, live for God alone, not for any other fellow humans to see.

Triumphant Moment

        Communion experience. Receiving the Holy Eucharist is to reach the high point of life once again. It's with the Lord, possessing all one needs! There's the feeling of triumph without pride.

Most Stunning Event

        The most stunning, remarkable, incredible, earthshaking, and memorable event of all time has to be that God died for us on the cross so that we might be saved. To ignore its significance is to risk being the biggest fool of all time!

Our Vocation

        We who profess to follow Christ must make every effort to be fishers of men, as this is his command and wish. It is not how many people you can catch, but how diligently you attempt the task that counts. Let this lovingly motivate every thought, word, and deed of yours.

Union in Spirit

        Communion experience. God enters us to unite with us physically for the purpose of uniting with us in spirit.

Getting Backed Up

        Let God back you up in everything in this life and he'll back you up all the way to heaven.

Two Important Facts

        Today's Communion verse, John 12.24: Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit, alleluia. Fact #1: Life is endless, since the soul lives on. Fact #2: We must die in Christ while we are alive in order to live on in happiness. So it's live to die to live forever.

Sticking With the True God

        I have believed in Christ for decades, who has never forced me to believe in him. Even now, I am completely free to leave him if I choose to do so. Any god who binds us to him by force can not be the true God. God makes faith meaningful by letting us decide to accept him or not. With such a sensible, understanding Lord, why should I ever consider leaving him? So we are now stuck with each other and more joyful than ever!

Transforming Power of God's Love

        Today's Communion verse John 17.24 reads: Father, I wish that, where I am, those you gave me may also be with me, that they may see the glory that you gave me, alleluia. We who love Jesus also wish that everyone else would love him. Unlike anything else, Jesus' love affects us uniquely ~ it makes us selfless. Even though we know that he loves everyone, our enemies included, we are not jealous. Even though we have received so many good things from him, we are eager to share them with others. The urge to spread the good news truly comes from the heart, for the ego is absent. Only God's love has the power to make us genuine.

God Is Different

        Jesus has died for us for love of us. We would have difficulty even in dying for someone who loves us very much. We may run away, hesitate, or bravely volunteer with trepidation. By contrast, Jesus volunteered without hesitation in fulfilling the Father's plan. You could say he welcomed the opportunity, for his love for us overcame all fear. As you know, God loves us so much that there is great rejoicing even over one sinner who repents. This is the difference between God and us.

Changing People

        It's difficult to change others, for we all have pride. Fundamental changes can only be brought about by God! As Christians, the ones we should change first are ourselves, then we can change others by our example. This is the only effective way.

Union Explained

        Union involves the interior. As God enters our heart and soul, we enter his interior. This fusion of God and us brings about our transformation. 

How to Be Fearless

        In this morning's Gospel reading from John 3 at Mass, John stated that Jesus came into the world as the light, and people who does wicked things are afraid of the light because it would expose their works, but whoever lives the truth welcomes the light. Observation: if we are not afraid to let God expose us and see our works, then we will not be afraid of anything.

God Neglected

        Attention to God needs to come from our innermost self, yet we easily immerse ourselves fully in distractions of the world. And it usually takes some crisis to jolt us into turning to God. If you still consider yourself loving God, then it's certainly "loving him with not a lot of your heart, not a lot of your soul, not a lot of your strength, and not a lot of your mind."

Attitude Towards Death

        The Lord has helped me form the best attitude towards death. As physical problems for older folks begin to show, he is preparing me for meeting him. Death no longer offers any fear, since I know exactly where I'll be going. It's facing the unknown that causes uneasiness, if not fear, in us. God removes all uncertainties. 

Side Benefit

        The more you pray for others, the more God makes you holy.

Transformation Time

        Communion experience. After receiving the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, it's the perfect time to ask him to make us holy.

Always the Giver

        On the cross, Jesus gave himself for our salvation. At Communion time, Jesus gives himself again for our edification. 

To Be Aware Of

        It is through the death of Jesus that we can be reconciled to God and be lifted up to his level.

Our Perfect Model

        Jesus lived a completely selfless life. Not only do we need to believe him as our Savior, God also wants us to imitate him, for he is the perfect model. Get to know him and be inspired.

Trust in God's Mercy

        To believe that God cannot save you is a grave sin. If follows that trusting in his great mercy always is the way to salvation.

Different Views

        Communion thoughts. When you receive the Holy Eucharist, you simply feel that you are fulfilling the obligation of attending Mass or that the true body of Christ is entering you, calling for your submission to him for spiritual union.

Comforting Knowledge

        Today is Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. God sent the angel Gabriel to Virgin Mary to announce of her conception of Christ. The angel last added that nothing would be impossible for God. The fact that God can accomplish anything combined with the fact that he loves us is most comforting, since we now know that he would always take good care of us!

Our Call

        God has personally come into the world as one of us to suffer and die in our place in order to save us ~ this is going all the way! It's now completely up to us whether we appreciate or cooperate with him. 

Most Trusted Friend

        Do you turn to God only when you are in trouble? Some do not even do that unless they are in a desperate situation. God is not just an emergency doctor. In fact, we need him every moment for our survival! Therefore, make him your most trusted friend. Tell him and consult him about everything and always ask for his opinion or help. You will never tire him, for he loves you. Let him complete your life.

Humble Invitation

        Today's Gospel reading on this Divine Mercy Sunday from John 20 is about Thomas who told the other disciples who had seen the Lord that he would not believe unless he sees the mark of the nails in his hands and put his finger into the nailmarks and put his hand into his side. A week later when Thomas was present with the others, Jesus came and stood in their midst. He said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Here is the Lord's invitation for all of us to believe. How can we possibly resist?

Indwelling Holy Spirit

        How do you know that your are the temple of the Holy Spirit? Do not expect to feel anything physically, for the Holy Spirit, being Spirit, works on the heart. Feeling great love for God and your brothers and sisters is evidence that he dwells within you.  

Our Enemy

        Many people do not like Christians, so are they our enemies? No, since Jesus commands us to love everyone. So our only possible enemy is ourselves. It is the self that keeps us from loving others. It is our ego that keeps us from surrendering ourselves to God. Once we become one with God, we have no more enemy, since we have conquered ourselves. 

Different Animal

        We are different from all other animals. God has intended that we look for him.

Perfect Journey

        Communion experience. I came from God since he created me. Now he made me whole before returning to him. What a satisfying perfect journey!

A Shortcoming

        In today's Gospel reading, Jesus' final words to the Eleven were "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature." It occurred to me that I don't even see Catholics on their own do the sign of the cross and say grace before eating meals in any public place. Prayer is strictly between God and us, no one else's business. Therefore, we should do the cross and say grace, whether others are present or not. If we cannot do that, how are we expected to proclaim the Gospel to any creature?

Reason to Believe

        In today's Gospel reading from Mark 16, the risen Lord appeared to the Eleven and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart because they had not believed those who saw him. What if we were in their place, would we have believed? Perhaps our hearts are not even as hard as theirs. The fact that they finally believed after seeing Jesus themselves is reason enough for us to believe likewise.

Superior Way

        After I woke up this morning all refreshed from a good night's rest, I was ready to engage in another day's activities and chores. And there will be another night and another day. This is similar to how after we confess and repent our sins to God, we are ready to serve him again all refreshed. This process also repeats itself. Then I thought of the superior way of attaining union with God and having he Lord take away all our tendencies to sin, thus breaking the cycle.