**Falling Away from God

        If you think you know more than God and do not need him anymore, you become as foolish as you can be. Blind to the light of Christ, the world has become completely disordered and lost its way. It is pride again that has made us go astray.

*Anxiety and Sins of Impurity + Schism*

        Always a joy to hear Fr. Mark Goring speaking in the Holy Spirit.

***Seek Union with God Now!

        People do not even consider seeking union with God, not realizing that this is what the Lord desires most ardently. The time for us to start seeking it is right now! You do not become a saint first to be ready for union; you seek union first in order to become a saint. Rejecting seeking union with God is going against his will, for he loves and desires all of you!  

*Those Who've Cast God Aside

        We all know that we'll die one day, yet so many of us in this world are intent on gaining wealth, power, and fame by whatever means necessary; they have cast God aside and turned evil. We can only feel sorry for them for not realizing that if they reject God, they will be rejected by him in the end.

**Pleasing Offering to God

        Today's Gospel reading, Luke 21.1-4: When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, "I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood. The Lord looks at the heart and values the intention. For most of us who are not free to offer more than we like, consider offering ourselves to God. There is no external restraint here and the Lord will surely be most pleased with this intention.

**To Be Happy with Self

        One is happy with himself when he realizes that God truly loves him; he accepts this love and finally is at peace with himself. Now he is ready to let the Lord make him holy. If you do not like yourself, you still have your ego and are not truly free yet. 

*God Most Amazing*

        The sun is so familiar to us and we don't think much about it unless you are an astronomer or scientist. I watched History Channel's documentary The Secrets of the Sun and was amazed by its power and its uniqueness in the universe. I learned that it's been burning for billions of years and probably still has billions of more years to go. The distance between the sun and the earth is just right so that we get the right temperature for life to survive. The moon is just smaller and closer to the earth enough for a total eclipse to happen. In the past, solar storms had amazingly reached the earth in about 16 hours, covering 93 millions miles. In one Marian apparition, it was revealed that fire would fall from the sky one day–could it be a severe solar storm hitting the earth? The sun is amazing and powerful, but the Lord is its creator. At Fatima, he made the sun spin and fall from in the sky. Everything in the universe obeys the Lord except us. Let us be amazed by him and become obedient too.

Forgiving the Evildoers

        There are many evil people today who are easy for us to hate. Then I remember that Jesus even prayed for those who put him to death: "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do" (Luke 23.34). So I truly feel sorry for all the evildoers too, for they know not what they do and what they would face if they do not change their ways. We must be merciful as our Lord is merciful.

To Be Prepared Always

        Jesus wants us to be prepared always, for he will come at an hour we do not expect. Just in case he does not appear in our lifetime, we must also be ready for our own death. And since many today suffer dementia as they age, we ought be watchful for that too. If all this is too much, just trust and follow the Lord faithfully and he shall take care of you. 

***Food for Immortality

        Communion experience. Yesterday, as I received the Holy Eucharist, I realized that this was the true food that would make me immortal, for Jesus promised in John 6 that "whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood will live forever."

***Most Important Statement

        Christ is our Savior because he is the only one who can free us from ourselves and everything else! (That is why I want to belong to him alone.)

New Freedom in Heaven

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 20, Jesus made it clear to the Sadducees that once we are in heaven, the family relationships we had on earth will no longer exist. We all become God's children, and like the angels we cannot die. It indicates to me that in heaven we'll experience a new freedom, becoming attached to God the Father alone. I surely look forward to that day.

How God Settle Things

        Hearing the phrase "forever and ever" can bring great joy to those who will be with the Lord or cause great fear in those who will be separated from him after they die. In today's reading from Psalm 9, verse 6 reads: You rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked; their name you blotted out forever and ever. With God, everything will be settled once and all for good. 

Smart Living

        Most people seek happiness in this life first and fail to find true peace and joy in the end. The smart ones secure their eternity through Christ first and experience freedom, peace, and joy in this life as well. The contrarian wins here. I am one who can testify to you that this is true.

***Requisites for Receiving the Eucharist

        To get the most out of receiving the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, we must (1) be in a state of grace, (2) be open to him, and (3) desire union with him. This is the way to holiness. Missing (1), you would be offending the Lord. Missing (2), you would receive no benefit, wasting your and God's time. Missing (3), you would not become a saint. 

**Wondrous God

        Communion thoughts. Let us see that God accomplishes everything effortlessly and miraculously. During the liturgy of the Eucharist, the Lord so transformed the bread and wine into his own body and blood. Our God is a wondrous God.

Great Stumbling Block

        Many people do no believe in Jesus, but there is really no good reason for that. I believe they do not accept him because their pride is too great, for to accept him is to make him their Lord! This is the stumbling block. 

**God Always with Us

        As I age, I realize many things I never thought about before. I can say that I am now much wiser, thanks to God. When we were young, we dreamed about our future on earth. Since we were in good shape physically, we pretty much thought that we could try anything we wanted. As we age, we start to see things differently. Of course, there are always some who die young unexpectedly, but most of us live to an older age. Then one day we realize that we are getting weaker physically. Our joints are now stiffer and even getting out of bed becomes hard. Any bruise mark we get doesn't go away for weeks or months and recovering from a serious injury seems to take forever. When an old person suffers a bad fall, it could end his or her life. Recently, a number of my old (age-wise) friends lost their driver's license. In this country, if you can't drive, you have to depend much on others. And we know that no one on earth can help our deteriorating condition and all of us will be left with God alone. This has been the reality ever since our birth, but we are only now aware of it. Yes, only God is always with us.  

Moment of Exaltation

        Communion experience. This was the moment God exalted us for yielding ourselves to him.

*Day of Chastisement

        Today is Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In today's Gospel reading from Luke 19, Jesus drew near Jerusalem, saw the city and wept, for he foresaw the coming onslaught on and destruction of the city. We do not take God seriously enough to realize that if we do not turn to God, our day of chastisement will surely arrive. Any cause will produce its effect. May we wake up to this fact before it's too late. 

**Most Profound Celebration

        Communion experience. It's the Lord completing my joy. Mass is the most profound celebration of all celebrations. We celebrate the Lord coming to us, giving us himself to consume in the Holy Eucharist so that we might have eternal life.

Controlling the Ego

          Serving the Lord without an ego is not easy. There are times we have an amusing thought and want to share it. It's OK if the motive is not to want others to notice you. But sharing it while serving Mass is usually never appropriate. It boils down to whatever you do, it must not be centered on yourself. And believe me, it's easily said than done. 

Saluting Fellow Brothers and Sisters

        At my church, I see many of my brothers and sisters in Christ who serve the Lord faithfully. They form the core of the parish, for they perform many duties faithfully, including cleaning the church every Friday, despite facing severe family and/or health problems in some cases. I praise our Lord for them and know that he will reward them greatly.  

**How to Receive More from God

        Today's Gospel reading came from Luke 19.11-28. Jesus told the parable of the ten gold coins. Two things we can learn here. (1) The Lord rewards those who are faithful in small matters. We may never be called to do anything big, but we are to remain faithful in every matter we are called to take care of. I might add that we must not neglect to do anything that glorifies the Lord either. If there is an opportunity to draw someone close to him, seize it! (2) The Lord is merciful, but he is also demanding. We cannot afford to be lazy in serving him. The bottom line was given in verse 26: I tell you, to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. Amen.

**Joy of Hearing God Speak

       I often have difficulty understanding others. At Mass, the lector is often not well-prepared or speaking too softly or enunciating poorly – that's understandable. Sometimes I also have difficulty in following those who speak using a lot of big words or nonstop – that could be my problem. That is why I feel great joy in hearing the Lord speaking to my heart because he always is clear and goes straight to the point.  

*Calling on Pope Francis

        Archbishop Vigano calls on Pope Francis to repent.

**Call for Action*

        Doug Barry's urgent message for all Catholics:

*Always Between You and God

        Nowadays, there is a great lack of reverence in many parishes. While waiting for Mass to begin, you could hear the congregation chattering and chuckling incessantly. You would have no idea that they are there to receive the flesh and blood of our Lord in person. Basically, we can listen to the most inspiring messages, read all about saints, or even witness miracles, if we do not open our hearts to God, we remain the same. But if we go to the Lord directly and open ourselves up completely, he can transform us in an instant! As Mother Teresa's poem "Do It Anyway" states, in the final analysis, it's between you and God.

*Holy Eucharist and Going to Heaven*

        These two Fr. Mark Goring's latest videos are worth watching. The first one came out 3 days ago and the 2nd one just over a week old.

Faith in Christ Most Beautiful

        Yesterday I could have attended morning Mass after returning home the day before, but I was too tired physically. So I attended Saturday morning Mass today. I experienced the beauty of remaining faithful to Christ. There is beauty in remaining faithful to anything that's good, but this was remaining faithful to the most holy, perfect, and loving Lord! You can't get more beautiful than that.     

*Living for God Only

        If people say good things about you, you do not become a better person. If they say bad things about you, you do not become a worse person. Ignore what people say about you and respond to the Lord God alone. Live to please only him and you'll have peace.

Body, Mind, and Heart

        Our body is good for doing physical work and labor; our mind, for learning new things and coming up with ideas. As for our heart, it's best to be used for searching for God and getting to know him.

**Serious Consideration

        Not accepting Christ as Lord and Savior is writing him off as one who has come and died for nothing. Do you honestly believe that there will be no consequences for that?

Christ Faithful and Trustworthy

        Communion experience. Jesus let me see that he is forever faithful and trustworthy.

God Our Renewer

        Attending Sunday Mass at a church away from home, the Lord let me know that we could start anew with him anytime we wish. In fact, he's going to make me new, whole, and as perfect as possible that day.

Guided Wisdom

        Since the infinite God is all-knowing and we are not, we are truly wise only if we let him guide us. Wisdom unguided easily becomes foolishness.

***Tragic Living

        You live as if this is the only life you have to live, and you end up wasting your whole lifetime living for yourself.

A Great Feeling Is . . .

knowing that you are ready to meet your Lord and God at anytime.

*Learn How to Exist

         Attain union with Christ and you'll know how to live, how to love, and how to die.

God Alone Trustworthy

        The people elect our political leaders and officials based much upon the misinformation, propaganda, and dishonest media reporting they have received, so none of those elected can be totally trustworthy. But you can surely trust in God fully, who alone is the eternal truth.

**Perfect Compatibility*

        Do you know that you cannot achieve perfect compatibility with another human being, but you can with God! For God can transform you.

To Complete Trust in God

       At my age, my injured left shoulder just does not seem to heal on its own anymore, but I know that the Lord can heal me instantly if he so wishes. This has made me place my complete trust in him. That night I saw St. Thérèse in a dream. This seemed to confirm my decision, for she always abandoned herself totally in Jesus.

Christ Our Best Guide

        Since we were born into this world and do not know the spiritual world on the other side, all the more we need to follow Christ as our guide and believe in the Gospels.

***Most Wonderful Blessing!

       It's truly wonderful that the Lord God can enter our innermost to cleanse our heart and heal our soul. This is the same Lord who can let us experience joy, peace, and freedom in him. I consider it an unbelievable blessing that we can even become soulmates to this our loving Lord and creator!

Perfectionists, Good and Bad

        A perfectionist with a big ego is a bad perfectionist. He wants to be perfect in and by himself; he tends to judge both others and himself harshly and is never happy. A good perfectionist, on the other hand, is one who remains humble in God. He asks God to make him perfect and does not judge himself nor the outcome. Before God, he acknowledges and accepts his own imperfections.

**Ending Self-Importance

        It is normal for us to want to fit in, to be noticed, or to be somebody. Knowing Christ wipes out all these desires, for the peace and contentment of knowing him you experience makes you realize that God is infinitely more important to you than yourself are. You are already valuable and important to him, so feeling self-important is no longer necessary nor appropriate. 

The Thrust We Need

        I was on a flight and saw how the plane, by casting off its burnt fuel, produced the needed thrust to propel it toward its destination. The Lord made me see that we, by casting off our repented sins, would produce the needed thrust to propel us toward heaven, our destination.

**To Soar with God*

        If you have to struggle to be holy, you have not given yourself entirely to the Lord God yet. Let him truly be your Lord and he shall make everything easy for you. Be one with him to let him carry you always.

To Be Truly Better Off

         I am back to blogging again. I shall post each message by the date of its reception.

        Last month, I received my flu shot and also accidentally slipped and fell. Physically, we are all vulnerable to getting sick or injured. To stay healthy and sound is only somewhat better off temporarily. Now, having the Lord God is truly much better off for all eternity!

**Unstoppable God*

        Just one more post. It came to me that the power of God is unstoppable. As I was praying the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary, I saw that the Lord wanted to sacrifice his own Son to save us, and that act was unstoppable, so awesome! Let's remember that his final judgment of us will also be unstoppable. Whatever has to be carried out will be carried out. We should also never stop loving a Lord who never stops loving us!