*God's Humility

        Communion experience. When the consecrated bread and wine became the flesh and blood of the Lord for us to consume, it was humility at its best. Unlike anything else, I sensed the great beauty and the transformative power of this humility.

*Never "Judge" God

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 20, Jesus told the parable of the workers in the vineyard to his disciples. A landowner hired laborers to work in his vineyard at various times of the day and gave all of them the same pay in the evening. Those who had worked longer hours were not happy. The owner replied to one of them, "My friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my money? Are you envious because I am generous?" Jesus again made the point that many "who are first will be last, and the last will be first."  

          Here are my thoughts. God is ready to give all of us eternal life at the end. Are we to grumble that he is not being fair? Once you are in heaven, are you still going to complain to God that some others you see up there had not worked as hard as you did in serving him on earth? There is no place in heaven for anyone who still harbors envy. So, be content with whatever you receive from the Lord and mind your own business. If God cannot please you, you won't ever be happy anywhere.

**With Christ

        Communion experience. With Christ, all else is forgotten and all is forgiven. With him, heaven is brought down to us. Later, it simply gets lifted back with us in it.

***Our Dream Existence

        God can do so many things for us. He can forgive our sins. He can save us and lead us to heaven. He can guide us and teach us. And he can ultimately become our most intimate friend and one with us. All these things we can desire and they are ours. In the parable of the lost son, the father said to the son who was always with him, "Everything I have is yours." Let us wake up to the reality that we are so blessed and in such a dream position to gain everything from God our most loving Father.

When Being Self-Centered Is OK

        The only time we are not considered self-centered is when we are concerned about our own soul, for our soul is God's biggest concern.

More Awesome Than Eclipse

        Today has been a big day for many Americans, for they got to see a total eclipse. I have seen an eclipse at least twice before, so I am not that excited. Besides, where I live, we only got to see a partial one. Now that we know astronomy, eclipse is a totally natural phenomenon. I am more amazed by the fact that we alway see the same side of the moon and that after so many years (millions and millions?) the moon still goes around our earth and our earth around the sun regularly. It seems that this would be impossible if the universe did start out with a big bang with its parts flying violently in all directions. Also, how did all those parts get to be so round? (I am going to ask God when I see him later.) Anyway, to see a supernatural miracle of the sun, read about the one that appeared at Fatima where Mary appeared to three children. It was truly awesome and showed the mighty power of God. 

No Escape for the Christian

        People go to a bar to drink, take a luxury cruise, seek any kind of fun, or just sleep or walk aimlessly to forget their problems, but such escapes from reality are only temporary. The advantage the Christian has is that because he already knows the reality of God, he doesn't need to escape from anything anymore. He is a secure person, knowing exactly where he is heading. With faith, he takes facing all his problems in stride. Wouldn't you rather be a Christian too?    

*Soul's Glorious Moment

        Communion experience. Partaking of the most holy Body and Blood of the Lord was a monumental moment for the human soul. I was at a loss for words when I realized how incredibly glorious it was for God and the soul to merge and become one.

Obstacle to Perfection

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 19, from the advice Jesus gave to a rich young man, we see that observing all the commandments may make you holy, but if you wish to be perfect, Jesus advised the young man to sell what he had and give to the poor, and then go follow him. The young man went away sad, for he had many possessions. Attachment to material goods is the greatest, common obstacle that blocks us from following Christ with all our heart. We are not free as long as we cannot let them go. It may not be practical to get rid of all your material stuff, but at least if you are called by God to do so, you should be willing to comply. 

Worshipping the right God

        We all seek God. People worship the sun, nature, animals, mythical gods, self-proclaimed deities, or various idols they have created for themselves. Even atheists have their own god – they simply make themselves into gods to proclaim that God does not exist. What is important is that we worship the true God, our creator and beloved Father.

What Is Good

        Everything that makes us turn to God is good, including the fear of going to hell.

*Smart Use of Our Lifetime

        Whether you believe in God or not, every single one of us will have to appear before Christ sooner or later. Therefore, I see our lifetime as the crucial time to get to know and love Christ the Lord as much as possible.

***Christ Our Safety Net

        Life hangs by a thread. When that thread breaks, Christ is the only one who can catch you to save you. Get that protection now before that fall happens.

*Surrendering to God Is . . .

no more than being open to God, letting him enter your heart freely with you out of the way.

**On Loving God*

        Today the Lord made me see that in heaven, loving him would require no effort on our part, but on earth, we would need help in loving him. Therefore, surrendering to him on earth is necessary.

Be Truthful Always

        We must mean everything we say at all times. Otherwise, we simply try to fool God who hates untruth.

Our Greatest Challenge

        God is always present, so we face the challenge either to accept him or to reject him completely. Ignoring the challenge does not make it go away.       

***Most Amazing Relationship!

        God is our creator, Lord, Savior, Father, brother, friend, guardian, spiritual guide, confidant,  and even servant. We worship, praise, and adore him, beg for his mercy, and at times argue, bargain, or laugh with him, even retorting to him, and he doesn't mind. This absolutely special, beautiful, and delightful relationship is only possible with our God, the God of Christ. And I most treasure and enjoy it.           

What We Must Do Urgently

        Sin hurts God. Every time we sin, we betray the Father and sadden him greatly by being unappreciative of his greatest love for us. Then sin hurts us, the sinners. It becomes a burden on our heart, robbing us of inner peace and impairing our health. More importantly, sin can weigh us down to the point that we lose God for all eternity. To get our sins removed by God is absolutely the thing we most urgently need to do in this life.

**"Whoopee!" Time

        Do you realize that when we surrender to God, we experience no enslavement, only freedom? Not only that, we are also raised to the level of being one with him! 

A Special Peace

        At the end, Jesus will put all his enemies under his feet, destroying the last enemy, death. Everything will be subjected to him. (1 Corinthians 15.) John wrote about Jesus: "He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be." (John 1.3). Jesus himself said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14.6). This is our great and awesome Lord. This morning he made me see that when we subject ourselves to him, we shall experience a special peace, the peace of being in perfect harmony with God. 

*Christianity's Unique Feature

        Communion time thoughts. One popular bumper sticker reads: Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven. No matter how bad we are, the God of Christ is always ready to forgive us. That is, as long as we are still living on earth, God will always give us a second chance, which means that the hope for our salvation will always be there. This is what God's infinite mercy is all about. And this is what makes Christianity unique and wonderful.

Forgive We Must

        The lesson from today's Gospel from Matthew 18 is very clear. We must be merciful to others as our heavenly Father is merciful to us, and always forgive those who have sinned against us. This is following the example of Christ the Lord and is what must distinguish his followers. Whatever we do to others, we must let love reign, overriding all other negative feelings. If we want God to be forgiving to us always, then we must likewise be forgiving always.

**What Is Honor?

        We bestow all kinds of honors on people in this world. Does it really matter? Do you even care? We erect statues to honor past heroes who might be suffering in hell now. In the case the honor bestowed results in boosting the ego of the honoree, then it acts more like a curse than a blessing. The Church also honors saints by canonizing them. This serves to inspire others to love God more by following their examples. As far as the saints are concerned, who only wish to follow God's will, being officially declared saints is not going to thrill them in anyway. 

         Conclusions. The world bestows honors mostly for vainglory. In the presence of God, no one deserves to be honored. When we honor someone, we must do it for the sake of glorifying God. Not to forget, if God has called you to serve him, you have already received the highest possible honor, an honor that humbles you to boot.   

**Doing Things Without God

        John 15.5: At the Last Supper, Jesus said to his disciples, "I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing." What Jesus meant was that without him we cannot be fruitful for God's sake. We can perform good deeds, but without him we are still stuck with our sins. In fact, to be good is not good enough, for Jesus wants us to be perfect as the heavenly Father – definitely we need his help here.

Pray for Fire

        Today's Response to verses read from Psalm 66 at Mass: Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire. Normally, we ask God to fill us with peace and joy, but asking for fire is entirely appropriate. His fire can consume all our sins, purify our souls, and ignite our zeal to go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature as Christ had commissioned his disciples before he ascended into heaven.     

Joy of Banishing Ego

        If you can crush your ego the moment it rears its ugly head, you would experience a new freedom in God because you have now triumphed over a personal destructive enemy. 

**Deal With Sin!

        Christians do not confess sins to God for the following reasons: (1) They have not sinned (which is impossible). (2) They have not sinned seriously (most likely due to a dull conscience). (3) They are afraid and put off facing God (which is being most foolish). Realities: (1) We all sin, so we are unclean. (2) As long as we remain unclean, we are not with God. (3) Away from God, we cannot enter heaven. Therefore, deal with sin, our greatest destructive enemy, before anything else. 

**Big Realization

        As I am now living on earth, I am free to choose whatever I want to do. You don't even need to think about this, for you know it and take it for granted. Then I suddenly realize that after this life is over, where I end up will be completely determined by God – I won't have any say at all! But, should I be chosen by God to live forever with him, I shall have my new and even greater freedom in him.

Hint on Reading the Gospels

        If you doubt that Christ is God, you will have many questions when you read about him in the Gospels. But if you assume that he is God, then you'll see that the Gospels support your assumption and make perfect sense to you. 

Are You Smart?

        If you are truly smart, you would see that to win God, you must be humble and obedient to him.

Serious Talk About Serious Talk

        Today is the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the 2nd reading from 1 Corinthians 15, Paul writes that at the end, Jesus must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet, including the destruction of death. This is serious talk we must not casually brush aside. Either Paul knows what he is talking about or it's all baloney. The same goes for all of what Jesus has said. To not pay attention to him is to dismiss God who has created you and now wants to save you. We must listen up and give him the most serious consideration.

On Changing Ourselves

        Let's face it – changing ourselves fundamentally is one of the most difficult things we face. It's kind of like trying to find our eyeglasses without them. God is the only one who can get the job done, for he is our creator and a higher power. But we need to cast aside our pride to make it happen, and this is a hurdle for many of us.  

Two Great Paradoxes

        (1) The more you hide yourself in God, the more he notices you.

        (2) The more you let God own you, the more you experience freedom.      

*Safety of Soul First

        It's in the news that the suspect in the killing or a woman near a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, VA, just two days ago, has been arrested and charged. People do not realize that when they sin against society or mankind, they sin against God first of all. Getting punished for your sins by going to prison or even being sentenced to death is one thing; while being cast into hell is quite another, being infinitely more serious. Jesus said to his disciples, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna." (Matthew 10:28.) You are safe only when your soul is safe!

**Knowing Jesus

        What is interesting but not surprising is that even though I have not visually seen nor audibly heard Jesus, yet in my heart I know him better than anyone else. As a matter of fact, I know him intimately, since I receive him into me every day at Mass. Again, this is all his doing, the doing of the Holy Spirit, for the Lord is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-loving. 

God Preparing Me

        Communion experience. The Lord filled me to overflowing, making me whole and preparing me for going home to him.

Our Unique Existence

        While worshipping the Lord in church this morning, I was aware of my own unique existence that I am I and not anyone else. I instinctively knew that I was created by God.

Our "Impossible" God

        I pray for what seems to be impossible to happen, precisely because nothing is impossible with God.

***We Are Our Heart

        When you look for God, do not expect to find him externally in any fashion, but feel for him in your heart. At today's Mass, I heard the 1st reading from 1 Kings 19. The Lord told Elijah to go outside of his cave and stand on the mountain, for he would be passing by. A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire, again the Lord was not in it. Finally, there came a tiny whispering sound and Elijah knew it was the Lord passing by. So when you look for God, listen for his whispering to you in your heart. It is the heart that God wants to speak to, to win, to purify, and to transform, for he knows that we always follow our hearts. Give your heart to God and you'll never ever go wrong.

God Not Taken Seriously

        The world just doesn't take the loving God, our creator and Father, seriously. It is most tragic that people do not realize how that would affect their eternal destiny. I'll always remember poignantly Jesus' saying in Matthew 26: 24. With Judas in his mind, he said, "Woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born." We are already born, so let's take God seriously by heeding the word of Christ.

*On Temptation

        Every time we pray the Our Father, we ask the Lord not to lead us into temptation. Do you realize that sometimes when there is no temptation around, we actually look for or create temptation for ourselves? For example, fantasizing for our own entertainment. Succumbing to temptation is straying from God and always makes us lose our inner peace. We can reconcile with God again, but why leave him in the first place? 

Not Our Business

        We may not gossip, but the same nature prompts us to peek at what others are doing. This may not do anyone harm, but it could affect your own soul, for to be overcurious about others is to divert your attention on God. Essentially, we should learn to mind our own business only.    

Reverse Effect

        Communion experience. The more we place ourselves at the mercy of God, the higher he lifts us up.

First Things First

        Sometimes we do things just for self-improvement, fun, or recreation, and wonder if we are serving God. The important thing is that whenever it becomes clear that you need to do something to serve God, you must put aside whatever you are doing or enjoying and respond to God's prompting or calling without delay.

**Ultimate Freedom

        The ardent wish of God the Father is that we abandon ourselves in him, and this makes it the exclusive goal of our life. Once we are totally in the Father, all power flows from him through us to accomplish his will. This is ultimate freedom! 

***Having the Utmost

        If you have Christ, you have everything you'll ever need, for God is now yours forever!

Enjoying God

        Communion experience. The Lord and I already dwell in each other. Continuing receiving him in the Holy Eucharist merely enhances my enjoyment of him.

Ready for Heaven

        Communion time thought. When you truly desire to receive the Lord, you are ready to be taken into heaven.

Reality of What We Face

        Picture that we face myriad roads for us to choose to travel on. All the roads except one look alluring, for they are wide, flat, nicely paved and lined with all kinds of attractions along both sides, and you see big crowds already going down each. It seems that any of these roads will lead you to more fun, although you are not sure what you'll find at the end. The road that is different intrigues you, for it's the only one that seems narrow, steep, barren, and somewhat deserted. Although you hardly see anyone traveling on it, you do suspect that you might be pleasantly surprised by what you find at the end. 

        Well, the attractive roads are the roads that lead you straight into the world, while the unattractive one is the one to God. The reasons that you do not see many people on the road to God are that not many chose to take it and that those who had gone ahead had already been picked up and transported fast and comfortably to God.    

        Reality. Seeing is deceiving and the world lures us and blinds us from seeing God.