Perfect Union

        Union with God only increases our longing for God as the union is not yet perfect. We shall be be completely content only after we reach heaven when our union with God becomes perfect.

Attractive to God

        Sin gets God's attention, but to make yourself attractive to God, you don't need to dress up nicely, appear pleasant, or make insincere compliments ~ all you need to do is to keep your heart pure.

Ever Present Urgency

        Recently, a relative visited me, but his mind had deteriorated since I last saw him a couple of years ago. Today he is much quieter and forgets what he has just heard. I had told him about Christ on various occasions in the past, since he was a nonbeliever. He listened politely, but always expressed doubts. He made me realize the critical importance of accepting Christ while the mind is still clear. In fact, the urgency of considering Jesus the Lord is ever present. It is urgent because our eternity is at stake and everything in life is passing.

Good Sign

        If you sincerely pray for a happy death and anticipate the Lord's Second Coming, you are not far from God.

What Abandonment Teaches

          You might think that by abandoning ourselves totally to God, we can become super strong in every way with his backing. The reality is that the more we enter God, the more we realize our smallness and finiteness and thus our need to depend upon him. It's humbling to see that we shouldn't ever attempt to play God, as we just don't measure up. Yes, we are stronger in facing the problems of life, but before the Lord God, we are as weak as ever. One best thing learned from abandonment to God is the realization that we absolutely need God in all things, including our very existence.

Complete Fulfillment

        Communion experience. I felt that I was being initiated into the circle of God's chosen.

Formula for Freedom

        Today's Communion antiphon (Matthew 16.24): Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me, says the Lord. The three steps are (1) self-denial, (2) taking up the cross, and (3) following the Lord. The invitation does not sound inviting, but once you accept it, Christ will lead you to self-abandonment and spiritual freedom.   

Secret of Learning From God

        In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 21, the chief priests and the elders of the people questioned the authority of Jesus. Jesus countered by asking them a question. They did not know how to answer, so Jesus also did not respond to their question. What's clear is that if we want to learn from the Lord, we must be childlike, realizing that he is higher and greater than us. Then he will reveal what he knows to us freely.

Going the Wrong Way

        Today is Memorial of St. John of the Cross. The saint says, "What does it profit you to give God one thing if he asks of you another? Consider what it is God wants, and then do it." The world is in disorder because we've learned to consider what we want and go for it, making us even more self-centered.

Still a Sin

        If a member of your family loves you, and you take it for granted and do not make any effort to love him or her back, you commit a sin of omission.

Most Urgent Pain

        We must deal with in this life the torture of the soul. The is the pain we experience after we realize that we have offended God. We must wake up, repent, and have our sin(s) removed by God or undergo tortures of the soul for all eternity.

How to Get Fired Up

        In today's Gospel reading from Luke 3 at Mass, John the Baptist said to the crowds about the Christ who was coming, "I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." If you do not have much zeal for God, ask Christ to baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire and he will invariably comply!

God Means a Lot

        God means much to me, but today I feel in particular that he is my center, my anchor, my rock, and my home and Father.

Only Trustworthy One

        I read in the news that a British doctor and his wife has been convicted for having kept a Nigerian teenage boy as a slave in their house. The couple brought the 14 year old to England as a "house boy" in exchange for payment and schooling, but instead he was forced to do house and garden work up to 17 hours a day for 24 years! I myself have encountered people who change completely after they decide to take advantage of me. In today's world, many news reporters, business owners, government officials, and commercials are also dishonest. While deception is Satan's favorite tactics, I rejoice that we have the Lord God in whom we can place our full trust.

To Do What You Want to Do

        Without God, you are free to do what you want to do on your own, and your happiness hinges upon whether you succeed or fail. With God, what you want to do is his will, so the Lord accomplishes all through you, and you are content always.

Dumbfounded

        Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Mary appeared to St. Juan Diego on Tepeyac Hill in central Mexico in 1531, and because of Juan Diego's faithfulness, millions of native Aztecs were brought to the faith. My Communion experience: The beauty and perfection of God rendered me speechless; I simply longed for him, knowing that this desire will be fulfilled only after I get to heaven. 

Second Coming

        The sense of urgency to ready ourselves for the Second Coming is ever present, irrespective of when it will happen, because it shall happen. Whether this is something you anticipate, dismiss, or rather not think about, it would definitely be the most exciting and unforgettable event for all of us.

God's Invitation

        Communion thoughts. The submitting of one to God is the freeing of oneself ~ a key breakthrough for the Christian. This is the invitation from the Lord when he enters the person through receiving the Holy Eucharist.