**Big Deals

           For some, being admitted into a prestigious university is a big deal. To others, getting a job at a great company is a big deal. When I was a student at UC Berkeley, I knew of one person who tried to get a job in Berkeley, for he loved the all-year-round weather there. After trying for over ten years, he finally succeeded. That must've been a wonderful deal to him. It's also a big deal for our government to be able to make a fair trade deal with some other countries. For us followers of Christ, to succeed in banning abortion nationwide would definitely be a big deal, but fundamentally an even bigger deal for us is to submit ourselves to the Lord so that we might become holy and spotless! For this would be a big deal to the Lord too.

*The wise and the Most Foolish*

         The most foolish live and behave as if God does not exist, whereas the wise live and behave knowing that God knows everything. The division between the two camps couldn't be greater, but Christ can turn the most foolish into wise ones if they will only turn to him. 

**God Knows It All!

        In today's Gospel  reading from Matthew 14, Jesus made the disciples get into a boat and precede him to the other side of the sea, while he dismissed the crowds. After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening, the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it. During the 4th watch of the night, he came toward them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw him they were terrified. "It is a ghost," they cried out. At once Jesus spoke to them, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid." Peter said to him in reply, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." He said, "Come." Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" After they got into the boat, the wind died down.
       It is clear to me that the Lord had all this planned out from the beginning and knew exactly what's going to happen and what he's going to do. And that is the way with each of us who follow him. It is so good that we can trust in him fully to have him teach us, take complete care of us, and save us! 

***Go with God

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 22, Jesus told the parable of the wedding feast, explaining again what the Kingdom of heaven was like. His conclusion at the end was that "Many are invited, but few are chosen." We should take this message seriously. If we ever feel that the Lord is inviting us to go to him, we'd better go. In fact, we should leave everything behind and go without hesitation, as the apostles did when they heard his call.

*Knowledge vs. Faith

         Which one would you rather have? To see the correct answer, ask yourself which one will get you to heaven.

**God Is Always Fair

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 20, Jesus explained what the Kingdom of heaven was like to his disciples by telling them the parable of the workers in the vineyard. A landowner hired various laborers for his vineyard throughout the day. In the evening, the owner started to pay all the laborers. When they all received the same wage, those who were hired early grumbled against the owner that those who were hired late and worked less hours received the same pay. He said to one of them in reply, "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 own money? Are you envious because I am generous? Thus the last will be first, and the first will be last."
              To see the point more clearly, imagine that you work hard for the the Lord all your life and get to heaven. Then you meet someone there who had been bad all his life, but was saved because he repented just before he died. Would you feel upset? I don't think so, for all is fair and square. In fact, you'll probably feel good that you have served the Lord well. Besides, when you are so happy and content in heaven, you wouldn't know how to grumble against God anymore.

***Letting God Have Your Heart

        Today's Gospel acclamation, Hebrews 4.12: The word of God is living and effective, able to discern the reflection and thoughts of the hearts. All the more we need to give our heart to God. When the Lord has our heart, he will reveal all we need to know to us, setting us free! Yes, offer your heart up to him to become one with him! 

**Bypassing Our Shepherds

         In today's first reading from Ezekiel 34, Ezekiel prophesied against the shepherds of Israel that since they no longer looked after the Lord's sheep, the Lord was going to save his sheep by claiming them from their shepherds and pasturing them himself. This is how I feel about our Church divided today: we are no longer being pastured by our shepherds. All the more we need to go to the Lord directly to seek union with and guidance from him.

*Clear-Thinking Catholic*

          Many of you probably have heard about the controversial Fr. James Martin. Here's an older video that shows the response to him from an articulate, clear-thinking convert Catholic. 

**Most Profitable Possible Investment

          In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 19, Jesus said to his disciples, "Everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life." From the business point of view, this has to be the investment with the best possible returns. Anything that will give you eternal life is definitely to be grabbed. Put the Lord first for a brief time on earth and he'll make you blissful for all eternity! For any amount of effort we put in to honor him, he'll always reward us to the max.

**Harder than Keeping God's Commendments

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 19, a rich young man asked Jesus what he must do to gain eternal life. Jesus told him to keep the commandments. He asked him, "Which ones?" Jesus replied, "You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; honor your father and mother; and you shall love your neighbor as yourself." The young man said to him, "All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?" Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor. Then come, follow me." When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
         We see that giving up your material possessions is even more difficult than keeping God's commandments. But to be perfect, we must detach ourselves from what we have. In practice, we may not be free to give up all our things for whatever reason, but at least we must be willing to do so, should such need arises.

***Hypocrites Galore Today

         During this COVID-19 pandemic, churches and many business have been forced to close down and most of us to remain home as much as possible. It is ironic that many of these government officials who enforce these restrictive laws have no qualms about (1) letting unruly mobs loot and burn other people's properties and endanger other lives and (2) supporting unconscionable sins such as abortion that would cause many to lose their souls! No wonder the Lord say "woe to you" to the hypocrites!   

***Only Guide We Need*

         The second part of today's entrance antiphon from Psalm 84: One day within your courts, O God, is better than a thousand elsewhere. Living in this world on our own is like wandering in a vast wilderness. You are attracted to go here and there, but you do not know where you should go. Once you know the God of Christ, you don't need to go anywhere anymore, for you have now found the way, the truth, and the life, all in one Lord.

**Starting Out with God

        This is the typical way we lose God. We start out following the secular world like almost everyone else, not being aware that many things are sinful to the Lord. Gradually, we sink deeper and deeper in sin, falling further and further away from God. It would take a rude awakening for us to ever get back to him. On the other hand, if you start out submitting yourself to God and enter deeper and deeper into him, sin will become so distasteful to you that you will not ever want to offend the Lord again. Now you soul is safe and eternal life awaits you. Starting out with God makes all the difference!

***How to Become a Saint

         Simply let the love of Christ consume you totally. We need to submit ourselves to him more than ever at this critical time to receive power to safeguard all souls for the glory of God!

**Faith Is Persistent

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 15, a Canaanite woman called out to Jesus, begging him to heal her daughter tormented by a demon. Jesus said to his disciples, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." The women still came and did Jesus homage, saying, "Lord, help me. He said in reply, "It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters." Then Jesus said to her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." The woman's daughter was healed from that hour. Faith won the day! The Lord never gives up on us. Let's not ever give up on him.

***To Get God's Approval in All Things***

         We as Christians should do everything to please the Lord, but it's so easy to forget that and do just what we feel like doing, and worse yet, do what feeds our ego. I followed Sunday Mass on TV this morning and watched one reader reading who wore a flowery dress with her whole arms and small parts of her upper body all exposed. I understand that this is summer time and I am sure that she would blend in well at a shopping mall or a summer party. But at Mass, everyone is looking at you reading from the Scriptures and you surely do not want anyone to lose their focus upon the Lord. I know some people will say that they do nothing wrong and if others have a problem with it, then it's their problem. Let me quote Luke 17.1: Jesus said to his disciples, "Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the person through whom they occur." Be in touch with the Lord always; never mind if the whole world think you are out of touch with them. 

*How to Get Blessed the Most

         Today is the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Here is the entire Gospel reading from Luke 11.
       
        While Jesus was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, "Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed." He replied, "Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it."

        The Lord is telling us what pleases him the most. We can praise him with words, but praising him by observing the word of God is best.

***Start Living an Exalted Life

         On the physical level, to become a muscle person, you need to have been born with the right genes. If you wish to become an excellent ball player, you need to have the right coordination and good reflexes. Not everyone are so gifted. The same on the mental level: not anyone can become a top mathematician or proficient pianist. But on the spiritual level, since God can reach your heart and soul, there is no limit to how holy you can become! This is something to rejoice and be excited about. We can reach God, beyond even the stars! Open up to the Lord to let him exalt you to the highest possible level.

*Become Wiser as You Age

         Christians are in the world, but they must not be of the world. As we age and approach leaving this world for good, it should help us become more and more detached from the world. After all, what's the point of holding onto anything you'll have to leave behind forever? To be in Christ is to be out of this world, for we are now free and belong to him. Let aging help you see this truth.   

***All God Needs for Us to Do

         The illumination of conscience has been prophesied by various, saints, mystics, and seers to happen to us any time now like a mini-judgment to wake us to God's mercy. Once you realize that God knows everything about us and that his judgment is absolutely just, we only need to do his will on our own and not worry about anyone or anything else anymore. Each of us trusting and obeying him is all he asks for!

***God's Intention on Marriage

           In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 19, Jesus said to the Pharisees who came to test him, "Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall became one flesh? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate. I say to you,  whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) and marries another commits adultery." His disciples, said to him, "If this is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry." He answered, "Not all can accept this word, but only those to whom that is granted. Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven." 
         It is absolutely clear that God has intended marriage to be between a man and a woman only, and that marriage is not intended for everyone. To go against God's intention is to create disorder.

*How to Start Living Right

        Today's Gospel acclamation, 1 Thessalonians 2.13: Receive the word of God not as the word of men, but, as it truly is, the word of God. It is only by the word of God that we can know the truth and not be deceived by the word of men. Otherwise, we easily become lost in this world. Start with God to know how to live right and forever.

**Betraying the Lord

        The Church hierarchy no longer hears the voice of the Shepherd.

***Praying the Rosary Explained

 

*****Most Beautiful Union

         We need to become one with Christ as he is one with the Father. Then we can pray to the Father as he prays to the Father. What a beautiful thing to know the Lord and become of one heart and one mind with him! 

***Best Way to Overcome Evil

         This morning the Lord made me see clearly the world we are in and the kingdom of God. The world is an evil place where many sinners have sided with Satan. It's in utter disorder and chaos because they have rebelled against God. Those who seek refuge in the Lord know that he has freed them from evil and that they have entered the kingdom of God. What they should do at this time is to trust in God and seek to become one with him evermore. He is our beginning and our end. It is his wish that we obey him completely and there is never a more challenging and appropriate time than now to surrender ourselves to him! This is in fact the best way to fight evil. Once we are one with the Lord, we'll know what he wants us to do and this is all that matters for mankind.

To Enter the Kingdom of Heaven

         Today is the Memorial of Saint Clare. In the Gospel reading from Matthew 18, the disciples asked Jesus, "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?" Jesus called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said, "Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven." What I see is that to become like children, we only need to imitate the Lord in every way. Since he is the most humble of all, we'll become humble too.

*Advice for the College-Bound

       My oldest grandson is getting ready to leave home for college. I have many thoughts to share with him. Actually, whatever advice I have for him is also good for everyone, myself included. Of course, if one knows Christ well, he can learn everything from the Lord directly. Anyway, here I give a short list that pretty much covers the important things. 

1. Honor your father and mother always, even if they and your relationship with them are not perfect. Don't wait until you are a parent yourself and realize that children should honor this one of the Ten Commandments of God.
2. Do not not anything to be popular. Do it only if it is right and pleases and honors God. 
3. Do not do anything no matter how much pleasure it can give you if you know that you will regret doing it afterwards. Know the consequences of your action.
4. Have the courage to say no if others are wrong. (Stand up for God.)
5. Talk to God about everything, attend Mass faithfully, and go to confession as soon as the need arises. Saving your soul comes before grades and everything else.
6. Learn everything not for yourself, but for the purpose of honoring God. 
7. Last, as you'll be reading so many new books, do not neglect reading the Gospels regularly.

        It would be most tragic to gain fours years of worldly knowledge and lose you most precious faith in God. 

**Surrender Your Life to Jesus Prayer

        Here is the text to Fr. Mark Goring's Surrender Your Life to Jesus prayer which he said in his video today. A simple, straight, basic prayer good for all Christians to say often.

       Lord Jesus Christ, today I ask you to be my Savior and my Lord. Lord Jesus, today I surrender my life to you. Lord Jesus, I beg you to please have mercy on me because I am a sinner and I have offended you in so many ways. Lord Jesus, I am sorry for all the ways that I have sinned against you. Lord Jesus, I beg you through the power of your most precious blood to please forgive me all of my sins, all the sins of my whole life. Lord Jesus, through your most precious blood wash me clean and make me new. Lord Jesus, I thank you for your redeeming love on the cross. Lord Jesus, today I give my life to you, I give you my heart, and I ask you Lord to come into my heart to be the center of my life. Lord Jesus, from now on I only want to do your will. Lord Jesus, I beg you to fill me with the Holy Spirit you promised you would clothe your disciples with power from on high. Lord Jesus, please fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit, help me Lord Jesus to love my Father in heaven, to know God the Father and to be a good child of my loving Father. Help me to walk in your ways, help me to be holy, help me to be pure, help me to love others, and help me to do your will. Lord Jesus, I will follow you all the days of my life. Thank you Lord Jesus. Amen.

**In God We Find Full Freedom

        In today's first reading from 2 Corinthians 9, Paul wrote: God loves a cheerful giver. I realize that in God, we become free, and one of the freedoms is giving cheerfully to others in need. Essentially, after attaching ourselves to the Lord, we are able to let all other things go, for they are now nothing compared to him. If you still want more than God, you never really had him. When Jesus gave us the greatest and the first commandment: "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind," he wanted us to experience the full freedom in God. 

***Three Big Evils of Our Time

1. Hypocrisy, the sin that makes Jesus say "Woe to You." Playing phony before God the truth is the dumbest thing you can possibly do. We see hypocrites in politics and within the Church. I pity them for being hypocritical and not even good at it.
2. Abortion, opposite to Jesus' greatest love which is the laying down of your own life for others. Abortion goes directly against the Lord who creates all of us in his own image. Self-proclaimed Catholics who promote abortion are the worst kind of hypocrites. As long as there is no sanctity of the human life, there will be no peace in this world.
3. Child sex trafficking. This is no ordinary sin. It involves exploiting defenseless children for your own profit and causing pedophiles to sin even more. It's sin upon sin. Both abortion and child sex trafficking are grave sins against humanity and God.

     To sin opens the door for Satan to snatch your soul. When you commit any of the above three sins, you practically hand your soul over the devil.

*To Become Spiritual Fools

        Evil spirits are known to shy away from even holy water. So if you are in a pure, blessed state in union with the Lord, they cannot possibly touch you. On the other hand, if you reject the Lord, then you leave your door wide open for evil spirits to enter, leaving your soul defenseless—you are now a big spiritual fool.

**How God Speaks to Us

          In today's first reading from 1 Kings 19, Elijah was taking shelter in a cave on Mount Horeb and the Lord told him to go outside before the Lord, for he would be passing by. A strong and heavy wind came, but the Lord was not in it. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When Elijah heard this, he hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave. I have learned that the Lord does speak to us in a tiny whispering sound. He communicates with us through our heart. If you hear his voice audibly, you cannot be sure that it's his. But if he implants a message in your innermost heart, you know that it has to be from him, for no one else can do that. I personally believe that Satan can put a thought in our mind, but not in our heart. So it is important for us to spend time with ourselves to listen for the Lord's intimate voice.  

*How to Increase Our Faith

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew, Jesus cured a possessed boy whom his disciples had faile to cure. They approached Jesus in private and asked him why they could not drive the demon out. Jesus said to them, "Because of your little faith. Amen, I say to you, if you have the faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." The faith I see here is not the faith believing that we can accomplish what we want to accomplish, but our faith in the Lord. After all, all power comes from him; we are merely channels of his power. So, to have great faith, we need to trust in him. To trust in him, we need to know and become one with him.

*****Knowing Who Christ Is!

         I know Jesus. In fact, I know him more than anyone else on earth. That's because he remains absolutely trustworthy forever! Besides, when he reveals himself to you, you know that he is the Lord. This morning it dawned on me that this Jesus I know is no ordinary person; he is in fact Almighty God, creator of the universe and me! And nothing is impossible for him! Everything that exists depends upon him. Most amazingly, he loves me to death. I can't believed that I am this blessed and privileged! This is the One who is one with me! I am feeling so elated that I forget all my problems, since I am completely in his care now! 

**Simple Formula for Finding Life

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 16, Jesus said to his disciples "Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." In one sentence, Jesus tells us how to gain eternal life. Essentially, he wants us not to be concerned about saving our own life, but to follow only him; then we'll live forever. The truth is always simple and logical. We are all concerned about ourselves most. But the Lord is so much greater than us and can take complete care of us. The breakthrough for us is to see this and accept it. Faith is needed here and it is only faith in the true God that can save us. Not trusting in God is equivalent to shutting him out and we'll end up losing our life altogether.

**Most Rewarding First Step

         To take that first step in anything can be hard. One example is getting up from your comfortable bed in the morning. Once you are up, you enjoy the morning and get a few things done, and you start feeling pretty good. Joining a gym to start exercising is another instance. You dread the physical exertion, but then you get going and feel better physically, and you are glad that you made the move. Surrendering yourself to Christ can be a most difficult step to take. But once you take it, you come to realize that you've made the best commitment of your life, for your reward now is nothing short of eternal life. It is a natural law that the greater the commitment you make, the greater the reward you receive.

***Globalists Without God

        A video exposing evil in disguise. If you are with God, you should watch it. 

***Pro-Life Message for Catholics

           Hear today's pro-life message from Fr. Mark Goring. Viva Christo Rey!

*God Our Liberator

        We live on the earth. The gravitational pull keeps us close to its surface, so I do feel chained to it. But knowing the Lord changed everything. My heart and my spirit are already his. In a short time, I'll be totally free from the confinement of this earth and be with him in person. The Lord is truly my liberator.

***Jesus' Glorious Transfiguration***

        Today is the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. In the reading from 2 Peter 1, Peter wrote that at the Transfiguration he personally heard the voice of God the Father come from heaven, declaring "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased." Then I read the whole account from Matthew 17, today's Gospel. As I read, the Lord gave me copious amounts of tears of joy, which made me tremble—I just knew that this is the Lord I know! As I've said, when God lets you know something, you just know that it is true. 

**Importance of knowing God

       Once you know the Lord God, you know the ultimate truth. You now see the his holiness and come to understand the human soul. With a sharpened conscience, you see good from evil clearly. And most important of all, you see things as God sees them. This can cause others to misunderstand you, but the joy or being one with the Lord far outweighs everything else. Just know that to be with God can make you an outcast in this world.

*What Your Heart Desires Most

        I checked Fr. Mark Goring's video today and found his message to tie in nicely with the post I just did. 

**Our Infinite Reservoir of Riches

        God is our infinite reservoir, able to supply us with whatever we need. If you trust in him, nothing is impossible for him. Never hesitate to go to him to ask for what your heart desires. If you do not receive what you ask for, it's only because it's not best for you, at least for now. How good it is to know that we have an infinite Father who loves you and supports you always and from whom you can receive eternal life plus everything else you need to enrich your present life!

***Our Ultimate Joy!***

        If God is love, then it's equally true that God is joy. It is God's love that drew me to him and his joy that made me want to be one with him. We all seek happiness in life, but true joy can only be found in the God of Christ, for only he can free us from our sins, the cause of our misery! The joy we receive from him on earth can already be so overwhelming as to touch the soul and intoxicate the spirit. Imagine how much more so our joy will be in heaven!

**Heaven for the Humble Only

        Early this morning, in a dream I saw people starting to admit on social media that they had been foolish in not believing in God and now want to let all know that they now believe. If this were true, how great that would be! We believers should at least let all know how happy we are with the Lord. If only takes admitting that we are sinners and need God to start our journey to heaven. If you are too proud to do that, then you remain being foolish.

**Taking Care of Our Judgment

         In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 15, the Lord said to his disciples, "Any plant my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots." I see that the judgement of God at the end will be completely thorough. This is the time to let the Farther plant us solidly in his Son. Yes, to attain union with him! How good it is to take care our judgment now once and for all!

**Know that You Know Nothing

        In Matthew 11.25, Jesus said, "I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for though you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike." When the Blessed Mother appeared on earth, she chose to appear to the uneducated and often children. Today, many who are wise and learned in the world think that they know so much that they don't need to listen to God anymore. For us to hear the Lord to learn from him, we must be childlike, realizing that we truly know nothing before him. It is humility that will get you God's attention.

*Need to Follow the Only God

        There are many teachers, gurus, belief systems you can follow in this world. You can even choose to follow yourself. But to me, following anything except the true God is a waste of time. It'd be a case of the blind leading the blind. Satan wants you to believe that there is no hell or everyone goes to heaven, and that all religions are the same. The truth is that there can be only one true God and he does not confuse you with his teaching. In John 14.6, Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." There is no ambiguity here, and he is the only one who claimed that and has his Resurrection to back him. Follow Christ the Lord and you are no longer lost and know exactly where you are heading.