"Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48)

Saturday, April 30, 2011

To Have Jesus Is to Have Everything

        Since I won't be able to attend Mass tomorrow morning, I went to today's Vigil Mass.  This was a thought I had during Mass, which is fitting on this last day of April: "There is nothing I can claim to be mine except Jesus.  Once I have him, then I have everything as well." 

God Is Dependable

      In these last couple of days, I've been especially sensing that God knows exactly what he is doing and that he is a perfect guide to us.  Therefore, I can totally depend upon him and let myself go in following him.

Friday, April 29, 2011

Jesus Offers Himself

        Thought during Communion.  When Jesus offered himself to me during the  Eucharistic Prayer, he was literally saying, "I am yours."  

Be Detached from the World Now

        Had these thoughts this morning.  If you're already in heaven and look back on your life on earth, I am positive that you will see that all the things to which you were attached on earth were burdens and will not ever want them again.  So the time to be detached from them is now, on earth, just to lighten the baggage on your way to heaven.   

Thursday, April 28, 2011

It's All About Love

        At Holy Communion time at Mass, I realized that it's all about love.  God enters me because he loves me; I receive him because I love him.  When you live for love and live in love, sin cannot exist.  Where God shines, darkness cannot be.  Bask in God's love and enjoy it to the fullest.

Only One Extraordinary God

        Since I am already a believer, all things about Jesus ~ the early prophecies, the coming of the Lord, his life, the fulfillment of the prophecies, how he transforms others... ~ fit together perfectly.  If you are not a believer yet, I dare say that if you remain objective and open, you will find that Jesus is the true God.  If you think that some of the things about him are incredible, that's because he is an incredible God!  Would you rather look for an ordinary God? 

What We Are to Fulfill

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 24, Jesus showed up in the midst of his disciples after his Resurrection, showed them his hands and feet and pointed out that everything written about him in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.  He had pointed out earlier again and again that he came to fulfill what is written.  While our mission may not be as specific as the Lord's, it is totally clear that we should do God's will always.  Let us remember that this is what we are here to fulfill.

The Eucharist Refreshes the Soul

        I took a shower before going to Mass, so I felt clean and freshened, still feeling the tingle from the shower water at Mass.  Then I knew that now the Holy Spirit was going to cleanse and refresh my soul as well. 

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Surrender, a Good Word

         The word "surrender" can have unpleasant connotations.  You think of surrendering to your enemy, loosing your freedom, etc.  But this is being unfair to the word.  Think of surrendering to God.  Now you have reconciled to your maker, you are home, you experience true freedom, you have secured eternal life, and much more.  Here, surrendering leads to all the good things. 

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Humility for Finding God

        To be able to "see" or understand God, humility is absolutely necessary.  It's like having the right password when you want to get on a website.  Otherwise, you can have eyes but still do not see; a mind but still do not comprehend.  That's why many who possess knowledge of the world and/or want to be masters on their own do not let themselves go; instead they keep doubting, questioning... and never get to know or come closer to God.  They make it hard for themselves.   

Receiving Jesus Again

        At Mass today, the thought that Jesus was going to enter me again overwhelmed me.  He had already filled me to the brim and showered me with graces.  His love had been crushing and I remained unworthy.  It all seemed so lopsided.  Nevertheless, how could I possibly turn  him away?  I had gone beyond the point of no-return, with great joy. 

Monday, April 25, 2011

The Bottom Line

        Watched part of a TV program on Bible study.  The thought that came to me was that studying the Scriptures can help one understand and appreciate his faith, but if all that knowledge does not make him love Christ, then it's all wasted effort.  As Paul makes it clear in 1 Corinthians 13: "If I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge... but don't have love, I am nothing."  The bottom line is that loving the Lord must come before all else.

How to Stop Complaining

        Again, know God.  (Obviously, God is the answer to all our problems.) 

How to Refresh the Soul

        Know God.       

Feelings of Contentment

        Before receiving Holy Communion, I saw that God's love alone is sufficient for us.  In desiring anything beyond that, we become greedy.  After receiving Holy Communion, I felt so content that my soul was free to leave my body. 

Transcendental Living

        No, this has nothing to do with the cult Transcendental Meditation.  The thought came to me after the last post, in which I pointed out that God is transcendental.  That is, he is not limited by time nor space.  God is "I AM," the Alpha and Omega.  He is eternal, infinite, and the same forever.  With such a view, then we should not see the coming of Christ into the world 2,000 years ago as just an event in the past, for he is just as present with us today.  And we can follow him just as the Apostles did and enjoy the same intimacy and joys the saint had in their lives.  Our experience with the Lord can be live!  So, believe and live as if Jesus is right now with you in the world, because he is!  This is what I mean by transcendental living ~ it is real living.  The reward is great.

The Joy of Resurrection

        In today's Gospel from Matthew 28, after Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were told by an angel at the tomb that Jesus had been raised from the dead, they were overjoyed.  This is the joy of Resurrection!  If we love Jesus as both Marys did, we should be overjoyed too.  Since Jesus transcends both time and space, so do all his gifts.  We can feel today exactly how his early followers felt.  What a great blessing!  

Know Our Place Before God

        Today's Communion verse at Mass, Romans 6.9: "We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him."  The fact is that nothing, nothing ever had or can have power over God, since he is the source of all power.  This means that we'd better be aware of our own place before him.  Some may think that they have a lot of power in this world, but the truth is that they have only temporary, limited power over those in the lower echelons, while their own destinies lie completely in God's hands.
        Do you realize that we are the only creatures in this world who have rebelled against God and gone astray?  It has happened precisely because we've forgotten our proper place before God.  We are the problem, not God.  May this realization make us relinquish our "power" and submit ourselves to the all-powerful (but most loving) Father.