**Breakthrough for Our Salvation*

        According to Jesus, the greatest commandment for us is to love God the Lord with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind. How do we measure up? To say that we fall short miserably is not far off the mark. It shows how weak we are and how we deeply we have become entangled in the snares of the evil one. Against this, our hope rests in the infinite mercy of God. Even though we can never love God as perfectly as we should, we must try our very best. Again, I recommend seeking union with God to make everything easy. Yes, yielding ourselves to the Lord is the breakthrough we need to ensure our salvation.

Wonderful Feeling

        Communion experience. Knowing that you belong to Christ, that you are his, is a most wonderful feeling.

**Playing Smart With God

        In today's Gospel reading from John 6, the Jewish feast of Passover was near when Jesus saw that a large crowd was coming to him. He said to Philip, "Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?" He said this to test him because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, "Two hundred days' wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little." Andrew, another disciple, said to him, "There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?" Jesus had all the people recline, about five thousand in number. Then he took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. 

       The lesson here is clear. God does test us, knowing well what he is going to do. As a matter of fact, I see every problem we face as a test of our faith. Knowing well that God always knew what he is going to do, we might as well place our trust in him always.

*Heavenly Banquet

        Communion experience. The Lord fed me the bread from heaven! This is the very bread about which Jesus said, "I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." – John 6.

Reasons for Surrendering to God

(1) To know him, (2) to experience him, (3) to glorify him, (4) to please him.

*Greater Than We Think

        Being finite creatures, we cannot possibly comprehend how great God our infinite creator is. But we can realize that he is always faithful and more powerful, more loving, more merciful, and much wiser than we can possibly imagine.

**"Where Is God?"

        When things go bad, you question where God is. But did you believe in him or even seek him when things were going well? God is always there with us. To his disciples, Jesus said, "Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." You ask where God is because you were never with him! 

*Becoming Free to Go to God

        Communion experience. Receiving Christ makes you forget everything else in the world momentarily. This is a blessing, for you learn to become detached to the world and ready to return to the Lord your God. 

***Truth and Reality

        Today's Gospel reading John 3.16-21, the first part: God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God. Comment: The truth John, the Apostle, has spoken to us here should shake us to the core!

          The second part: And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God. Comment: Again, John has spoken the truth, the reality then and now. When John wrote the Gospel at an old age, he had fully understood who Jesus was and why he came into the world. We must give these sayings of his most seriously.

**Fighting Temptation

        I've posted that the best way to fight temptation is to run away from it, but it is easier said than done for these two reasons. First, temptation is enjoyable – normally, we just do not walk away when we are having fun. Secondly, temptation is not a sin. When we sin, we sense the guilt and try to stop it, while temptation comes to us and does not make us feel that it is our fault, so the urge to walk away from it is not strongly present. In any case, it takes discipline to overcome temptation. Turning our attention to the Savior should be effective in getting us out of this trap.  

*Awesome Experience

        Communion experience. The Lord entered me in the form of bread to be absorbed totally by me, and physically and spiritually he and I became one. Awesome, awesome, awesome! 

**What God Desires From Us

        During Mass, we hear the names of many great saints invoked. Do you realize that God desires to and can easily make you a saint too? Give him the go-ahead and experience his power, and he will be greatly pleased and honored.

***World in Darkness!

        Godlessness in our world has reached a pinnacle as far as I can see in my lifetime. Do not rule out an imminent World War III. When that happens, you would wish that you knew Christ all along. Do not remain idle. It is time to pray hard with all your heart that the Lord will save all souls and crush all evil. There is never a time we need to cry out for God's mercy more. 

*Ideal Position to Be In

        Most people who are religious were either raised in their religion or looked for and found one they liked. But the only valid reason for one to believe in a religion should be that it has been found to hold the whole truth, and this is how I feel about Catholicism. I watched a short travel vlog showing an American vlogger in front of a Buddhist temple in Beijing, China. Like the native worshippers, she also took some incense sticks, held them up and bowed to the big statue of Buddha in the temple. She's probably having fun or just did it for sake of the vlog. At that moment I realized how blessed I was. I knew God in person, where I was going, what actions would draw me close to God and what actions wouldn't. Life became completely clear and purposeful. This is the ideal comfortable position to be in – the very opposite of being lost.   

*Our Most Urgent Need

        We are sinners. Therefore, our most urgent need is get our sins forgiven by God! After that we can freely enjoy all the benefits, privileges, and advantages that flow from him, our Father. 

*Being Extremely Foolish

        It is plain impossible for us to avoid God and we are definitely not doing fine on our own. Therefore, ignoring the Lord who wishes to save us is being foolish to the expreme.

Getting the Most Out of God

         There is the saying, "You only get out of something what you put into it." In the case with God, the more you surrender to him, the more you are free. Moreover, since the Lord is infinitely rich, what you reap from him can be infinitely rewarding, such as being transformed by him into a new creature, holy and beautiful in his eye. Go all the way to get the most out of God.

*Most Dangerous Living

        It is never wise to live dangerously. You may get the thrill, but you can lose your life and/or everything you have. But to ignore Christ is downright living most dangerously – not only you do not get any thrill, you can lose your soul forever! 

*To Be Beautiful Forever

        The world looks for the most attractive contestant in a beauty pageant or the most impressive physique in a bodybuilding contest. But the Lord God looks at our heart. What is beautiful to him is a heart that's pure, clean, and obedient to his every will. Aim for inner beauty that will shine forever, not for superficial beauty that fades away rapidly.

Jesus As Lord

        The Lord Jesus is not dictatorial nor bossy. On the contrary, he is compelling only because he is meek and humble out of love for us.  

Most Exhilarating Freedom

        There are all kinds of freedoms out there. The best, most precious, and most exhilarating freedom has to be the freedom given by God only: freedom from sin. 

My All

      Communion experience. God is my all because he is all my soul needs.

***Do Not Stifle God's Spirit!***

        You cannot be an good swimming teacher if you are not a proficient swimmer. And you cannot be an good driving instructor if you are not an experienced driver. Similarly, you won't be an effective evangelizer if you do not know the Lord well yourself. To know the Lord thoroughly is to surrender yourself to himself completely so that you may feel the zeal and inner fire and speak with passion and conviction. Otherwise, your message will only sound academic, dry, not-coming-from-the-heart, and lack power. To uplift others, let the Lord uplift you first. To inspire others, let him inspire you first. We should not spend so much time feeling sorry about how we fall short of loving God and trying to figure out how you should love him more. Instead, we should spend a lot more time focusing upon God's love and mercy, such great hope he has given us, and that he can actually help us overcome our sins and transform us into saints! The Holy Spirit does not like us to remain lukewarm; he wants to set our hearts on fire! Not letting ourselves go in God is stifling his Spirit.

***My Ardent Wish

       In today's Gospel reading from John 21, the Risen Christ revealed himself to seven of his disciples yet one more time at the Sea of Tiberias. Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James and John the Zebedee's sons, and two others went fishing and caught nothing throughout the night. When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore; but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He said to them, "Children, have you caught anything to eat?" They answered him, "No." So he said to them, "Cast the net over the right side of the boat and you will find something." So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in because of the number of fish. Then John said to Peter, "It is the Lord." When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad, and jumped into the sea. 

        First, John had that great it-is-the-Lord moment, followed by Peter so eager to get to his Lord. Would that everyone of us will recognize the Lord and run toward him with all his heart, casting everything else aside!

The Negative Can Be Positive

        You may not pay much attention to the good news of salvation brought to you by Christ, but realize the dire consequences of rejecting it and you might just want to take it most seriously. It's like realizing the horror of hell makes one want to seek heaven. The negative can surely make the positive look attractive.

*See Jesus in 3D

      When you look at a scene with your eyes, you see depth and everything else in 3D. But when you look at a photo of the scene, you see it in 2D only, even though you can perceive the 3rd dimension hidden in the image. If we look at Jesus merely as a historical figure, it would be like looking at him in 2D. But he is the same yesterday, today, and forever! Now see him in 3D to watch him come alive with depth. 

*God's Unsurpassable Gifts

        Communion experience. These are the three unsurpassable, most personal gifts of Christ: freedom, peace, and joy. They are beautiful and precious beyond words.

*It-Is-the-Lord Moment

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 24, the Risen Lord appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, a village seven miles from Jerusalem. He walked with them and conversed with them, even interpreting the Scriptures to them. Arriving at Emmaus, he agreed to stay with them. The whole time the two were prevented from recognizing him. Then when he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him. Every time we witness the breaking of the Bread at Mass, we have this it's-the-Lord moment. The apostle John recognized that it was the Lord about a hundred yards away from him at the Sea of Tiberias (John 21). It certainly is a blessed, joyous moment every Christian should experience. 

*In the Name of Jesus*

        In today's first reading from Acts 3, Peter cured a crippled beggar in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean. I believe that if we consciously do everything in the name of Jesus, we'll be walking with the Lord and make great spiritual progress.  

***Following Your Heart to Home

        Why some Christians do not feel anything about God, while others have their hearts set on fire by the Holy Spirit? It all has to do with how much you let God have your heart. When you give your heart completely to the Father, you belong to him and you are home!

Life After Death?

        Do we have life after death? If there were no God, it would be impossible for us to know. In fact, we might not even come up with this question, if God hadn't created us in his image. It is through spiritual experiences that we come to realize that there must be life after death, that life is worth living, and that God has made us this way. Witness the Resurrection of Christ! The atheists would disagree with me because they simply block out anything spiritual. Those who remain open to God can confirm without a doubt that there is life after death because God has made them see.   

Most Sweet Feeling

        Communion experience. That the Lord pities me and is merciful to me was a most sweet feeling. He forgives my sins and makes me clean – how can you possibly not love him or live without him?

Rejoicing in Order!

        In today's Gospel reading from John 20, the Risen Christ appeared to Mary of Magdala. After she recognized that it was the Lord, he said to her, "Go to my brothers and tell them, 'I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." These words reveal that Christ is our brother, and he and we share the same Father and the same God – awesome news that should make our hearts leap for joy!

*Following Christ Has been . . .

a journey that's continuously exciting and satisfying, with absolutely the very best yet to come at the end! 

*Bonus Benefit

        On top of having revealed the good news of salvation to us, the Lord God also sets the mind of anyone who truly believes in him at ease amidst this tumultuous, sinful world of unrest and disorder we live in. 

***Spiritual Foot-dragging*

        Do you realize that not wishing to face Christ, not wanting to consider surrendering to him, and not being interested in seeking union with him are all forms of keeping the Lord at a distance? Do you also realize that the Father is patiently waiting for you to run toward him to be embraced by him!

Conquerors of Death

        Romans 6.9: today's Communion antiphon: We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him. Following Christ, we Christians also die just once and live on forever. Hallelujah! 

Fools Abound

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 28, we heard read that after the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothing was white as snow. The guards were shaken with fear of him and became like dead men. Then the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.'" Some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had happened. The chief priests assembled with the elders and took counsel; then they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, telling them, "You are to say, 'His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.' And if this gets to the ears of the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you our of trouble." 

           Instead of showing any interest in finding out exactly what had happened to Jesus, the chief priests and the elders were solely concerned about saving their own neck. They are being extremely foolish. Today news media spread fake news instead of reporting truth, and liars propagate falsehood on social media. As long as we have sinners, fools will abound.   

***God Working for Us!

        I've mentioned numerous times that when you are in union with God, he does all the hard work for you, and this is a huge advantage that makes your life exciting. Specifically, let him love all others through you for you. Essentially, if you obey the Lord, he honors your wishes. Thus, union is the greatest possible relationship with God our Father.

*Praising the Resurrected Christ*

        Christ is risen! Happy Easter to all! Without the Resurrection, we wouldn't be here today to pay much attention to him, let alone eagerly want to tell others about him. Honestly, Christ has absolutely made my life exciting and worth living. Without him, I'd rather die and become nothing. But this is not possible anymore, for I now belong to him forever! He is our Savior, the Savior for every one of us if you'll just let him. A simply yes from your heart will start your journey to heaven. Choose to trust and follow Christ; let him lead you every step of the way and you don't ever need to use your free will again. The more you abandon yourself to him, the smoother your journey becomes. He is our freedom, our peace, and our joy! 

The Entire Human History

        Here are the various stages. (1) God created Adam and Eve. (2) Adam and Eve disobeyed God, committing the original sin. (3) We inherited the original sin. (4) God the Father out of love sent his only Son Jesus into the world to let all know how they can have eternal life. (5) Some believe in this good news and others don't, with many in-between believing to various degrees. (6) Jesus alone who knows the heart will come again to judge and take us to heaven or leave us behind. 

          We are at stage 5 now.         

**Greatest Truth*

        Today is Good Friday. It was on this day that Jesus completed his mission on earth, to save us from sin. And the Resurrection that followed sealed our joy! This is the greatest truth relevant to our eternal existence, but how many of us realize it and take it seriously? This is the perfect day to meditate upon the Passion of Christ and thank the Lord for his love and mercy from our soul, and eternal salvation is assured.

**Of Critical Importance*

        God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do not neglect to read and meditate upon the four Gospels. Examine the Lord closely and be amazed by everything about him. Dismissing him as merely someone who were on our earth briefly some 2,000 years ago would be a huge mistake! Assume that he is God and Savior and you'll see everything about him fitting beautifully together. This posting is prompted by my personal experience after participating in a small group discussion at my church. We look ahead at the readings for the Mass of the following Sunday. Believe me, knowing Christ truly makes the life-and-death difference to our life!

*Holiness Through Obedience

        It is easy to do what you feel like doing, especially when you see that there will be no harm done to anyone. But the Lord made me see that this is not good enough, that we need to do what he wants us to do. To follow our own is like giving in to temptation, while following the Lord is to be obedient. The fruit of obedience is holiness. Witness Jesus who was obedient even to death on a cross, and God the Father greatly exalted him. Last, being obedient becomes easy and joyous when you are one with the Lord, for now he empowers you in all that you do.

Double Standard?

        Communion thoughts. If someone dies for you in this life so that you might continue living the rest of your life, you would be most grateful to that person. Now, Jesus has died for you so that you might live on happily forever – how do you feel about it? 

*Powered by God

        John F. Kennedy at his presidential inauguration in 1961 is remembered for saying "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for you country." With God, we must shift the focus away from ourselves and onto God, for he is to be our empowerment. Therefore, we are not to tell ourselves we should do this or that for God, but to ask God what he wishes us to do and empower us to do it. This is abandonment in God!

Sharpened Conscience

        When you are in perfect union with God, committing the most minute sin makes you lose peace and following every will of God is a delight. This is just fine, for now deep down in your heart, you always have peace.

*Face of Jesus*

Selfless Act

        Serving God is different from any other act. When you serve God, you don't count the cost.

**Choosing the Right Fire*

        Let the fire of the Holy Spirit set your heart ablaze when you are still alive to avoid ever getting burned by the fire of hell after you die. (Never die with sins unforgiven!)