*Those Who Fear God

         It's interesting that those who fear God and those do not fear God both do not fear the Devil for different reasons. Those who fear God obey God and the Lord is with them, so they no longer fear the Devil anymore. Those who do not fear God do the work of the Devil and are in cahoots with him, so they don't fear him, at least not yet. Actually, those who fear God become friends of the Lord and lose all their fears, while those who do not fear God remain to be his enemy. 

****Our Dangerous World!

         This is a dangerous world, dangerous to your soul, that is. There are so many material sensuous things to give you pleasure, high-tech inventions to make you feel that you have super power, and opportunities to lure you into thinking that you can become rich. If you do not have a firm faith in Christ, you are easy prey. Going to hell has never been made this attractive. This explains why today there are so many people around with no principles. They do whatever that would benefits them. You see this even among Christians, Church clergy included. What Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14 rings more true than ever: "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those enter through it are many. How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few." I am ready to go the Lord myself, but I feel sorry for the young people who do not know the Lord well and are about to enter the society to make a living on their own. They start out already with a big strike against them. Please pray for them in particular.

**Christians Do Not Despair

        No matter how tough times get and how bad things go, a Christian never despairs. He always hopes in the Lord, knowing that he'll be exalted by him in the end. Even though he suffers persecution and experiences agony as the Lord did, he always rejoices in following his master. 

**Only Thing You Need to Secure

           Life has its ups and downs. Dynasties begin and end. Rulers emerge and fall. Fashions come and go. Everything in this world passes or perishes, but our soul lives on forever. So be wise and secure your soul and let everything else go. 

***Reality of Life

        Each of us will face God and be judged after we live a relatively short time on earth. No matter how powerful we become, if we are not with God, we'll lose our life forever in the end. For those who love and follow the Lord, life is an endurance test. You'll have some good times and may go through some really tough times, but it's what you gain after your brief life ends that counts. This is reality! So be patient, remain strong, and love God alone always. Time passes quickly and eternity awaits.

***Most Appropriate Gift for God***

          In today's Gospel acclamation from Ephesians 1, Paul prayed that God might enlighten the eyes of our hearts. Yes, our hearts have both ears and eyes to hear and see. This is how we connect with God. If the heart is not involved, we cannot know God. Give your heart to God, then he will revealed himself and the whole truth to you. Our hearts rightfully belong to our Father, for only he can purify and comfort them.

***Saving the Soul*

        To save your soul, you need Christ, of course. Then you must believe that he is the Savior. Others can pray for you to help you make it happen. Of these three parties, God is already on your side and others can help, but you are the main one responsible for the salvation of your own soul. These thoughts came to me because someone I know is dying right now. He is a good friend of my oldest son; a very nice person. I knew him too. [My phone just rang; it was my son informing me that he just passed away.] 
        Let me tell you a little bit about this friend. He was in the 70s. He came from an old Italian family well-known locally. He left the Church a long time ago. Some years back, I tried to get him back into the Church, but his response was that he wasn't ready yet, as there were still so many things in the world to take care of. That was a typical excuse I'd heard from many others. Then he started losing his memory, no longer recognizing everyone. His health deteriorated and entered a hospital. I hoped to go see him, but with the coronavirus lockdown, it wasn't possible. I texted his daughter a prayer for her to read to her father, basically telling God that he's sorry fo his sins and asking the Lord now to forgive him. Then he came home, for the hospital couldn't do much for him anymore. I went along with my son to see him twice. I prayed aloud, hoping that he would hear me. The second time, his eyes opened slightly and with his mouth open, his chin started to move up and down as if he were praying. That was a good sign to me. I called my parish priest about giving him extreme unction. After obtaining permission from the daughter, Fr. P went to him the day before yesterday and administered the sacrament. Today, he is gone. I pray that he's with the Lord now. Happy and wise is the one who gives his soul to God before he goes to him!

***Our Perfection

        In today's first reading from Hebrews 5, Paul wrote about Christ: Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered; and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. Our perfection too can only be made by the Lord, and obedience to him is the key to achieving that perfection.

*Prayers God Will Answer at Once

1. "I am sorry that I have sinned against you. Pleases forgive me and take away my sins."
2. "Please help me become holy to serve you." 

      The Lord will answer these two prayers exactly the way you wanted without delay.

Shaping Our Own Destiny

           In Matthew 24 (and Luke 21), Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." You can be sure that what he had said would come to pass. What he had not said could change, depending upon how we behave toward him. We are free to choose to obey or rebel against God. We get to shape our own destiny.

**Reflections at Mass

          Went to the outdoor Sunday morning 10:30 Mass again. Another beautiful day; couldn't believe that the temperature was above 60 F in the middle of the winter. I felt good that we could enjoy such peace in the Lord, then I immediately saw the most horrible evil we were capable of doing to God. All you need to do is look at history and what has happened in this country now. We can be holy as the Lord or evil like the Devil. It all comes down to this. 
           The sky was light blue and cloudless with the low bright winter sun shining right in my eyes. Then I remembered I had seen such a bright sun with absolutely no glare three time before. The sun just looked like a pure white consecrated host, pulsating as if it had a living heart. I saw this miracle in Texas, Medjugorje, and Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, a group of us pilgrims were together, yet some of us saw the miracle and others couldn't because of the intense glare of the sun. This itself was a miracle. Anyway, it became clear to me that God was real! 

*One Who Knows Everything

        Did you ever notice in the Gospels that when Jesus talked to someone or a group of people, he already knew what's on their mind? Sometimes he asked them a pinpoint question, knowing what they were thinking. And he knew of his own coming Crucifixion and Resurrection. He is so far ahead of us that I feel absolutely safe and secure to put my whole future in his hands. The omniscient Lord is the one to keep and treasure for all eternity!

***Know Whom You Belong To

        Today's second reading comes from 1 Corinthians 6. Paul writes, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body." If you already follow Christ, know that you now belong to him. Therefore, treat yourself as God's most precious belonging, and keep yourself clean and blameless!

****Secret to Union with God

           Excerpts from Psalm 40 at Mass today: Sacrifice or offering you wished not, but ears open to obedience you gave me. Holocausts or sin-offering you sought hot; then said I, "Behold I come. In the written scroll it is prescribed for me, to do your will, O my God, is my delight." We see that obeying the Lord, doing his will, is what he desires the most. Let that "dictate" everything else we do, sacrifice, offering, etc., all included. This is the secret to union with God.

**God be with You

        In today's first reading from 1 Samuel 3, the Lord repeated called Samuel. When he finally realized that it's the Lord, he answered, "Speak, for your servant is listening. Samuel grew up, and the Lord was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect. It is so good to have the Lord being with you. This way you can't go wrong in what you do and will be his effective servant. He is with you when you belong to him totally. Attain union with God through the Holy Eucharist and you'll know that he is with you and in you.

***Sinners Being Called!

        The Gospel reading at Mass comes from Mark 2. When some scribes saw that Jesus was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, "Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?" Jesus heard this and said to them, "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners." All you sinners, raise your hand. Jesus is calling you right now.

**God's Living Sword

        Today's first reading comes from Hebrews 4. Here is the first verse: The word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joint and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. If you truly know the Lord and have been baptized in the Holy Spirit, you would feel the word of God cutting you heart and penetrating your soul, illuminating your conscience and guiding your thoughts. Definitely an exhilarating experience! You also know that the Lord dwells within you and whatever you experience can only come from him. You can bear witness to it, but not prove it. It is faith that enables us to know and become one with the Lord.

**Happy Living in This World?

        Whether something is good or bad for us becomes clear when we ask what if everyone does it. For example, casting one false ballot may not look too bad, but if every citizen of the nation does it, we won't have a republic anymore. Again, not believing in God may not seem to be a big deal, but if everyone on earth is an atheist, the whole world would surely go to hell (pun not intended). Similarly, whether you can be truly happy living in this world becomes clear when you ask what if you don't die and get to live in this world forever. As long as the world remains, sinful, godless, and chaotic as it is, I don't believe you'd be happy spending eternity here. I'd much prefer spend my brief time on earth and return to my Father to spend eternity with him in heaven.