***Divine Mercy Prayer

         In these times when God desires that we pray, pray, and pray, besides praying the Rosary, I suggest you pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy too if you haven't done so yet. In the main part, you begin each decade by saying, "Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of your Dearly Beloved Son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world." Then you recite ten times the prayer "For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world." Last night the Lord made me see that this short prayer is neat, clear, and to the point. Of course, we can make other specific requests, but mercy is what we generally need the most for now. We can pray for that and let the Lord administer it as he sees fit. Click here to learn how to pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. God bless you all.

***Secret Blessings*

         As times goes on, many things continue happening and we don't even realize it until some time later. I used to live in a different city and heard that the neighbor across the street just had a new baby boy. I saw him once in a while in the following years when he played outside his house. Then one day the mother told me that her son was getting ready to go to college—I couldn't believe it! How could time have gone by so fast? Things have a way of sneaking up on us. I've mentioned that Christ is more real to me than any other living person I know and see. Apparently, I've been aware of his holy presence at all times for quite a while, so this feeling isn't new. Today, it dawned on me that before 2009, the year I started this blog, I never exactly felt this way. I now know that God's blessings can also sneak up on us without our being aware of it. When we live a secret life in the Lord, we receive his blessings in secret too. 

***Only One Savior

          In today's reading from Acts 4, Peter declared to the leaders of the people and elders that other than Jesus Christ, there is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved. We know that only God can save us, so Christ must be God. And there can be only one God, so Christ has to be our only Savior. Seeking salvation through anyone else is doomed to failure.

***All or Nothing with God

        We pray to God for many things, why not pray to him about everything? Would the Lord who loves you so much be happy if you are not with him completely? I don't think so. He has given all of himself to you so that you might live, shouldn't you give all of yourself to him too?  As I've said, with God it has to be all or nothing! We won't feel totally satisfied until we possess all of him. He has made us so that only complete abandonment to him can make us completely happy and content.   

*Cost of Rejecting the Best

        Again, I look at extreme cases to make me see things clearly. Suppose God has made salvation extremely difficult for us. Say we must go through many loops and meet all kinds of stringent requirements. Then even if we don't make it, the consequence understandably probably wouldn't be so bad. Now that the Lord has made salvation so simple and direct for us: basically, all we need to do is believe, I intuitively see that the consequence of not appreciating his great offer would be a lot more severe too.

*Jesus Tests Our Heart

        Jesus came to die for us so that we might have eternal life. Our proper response should be gratitude and joy, yet many ignore or outright reject him. I see that our hearts are being tested by the Lord. To a good extent, how we respond to him reveals how hard our heart is.  

***The Sad and the Beautiful

       Two things from today's first reading from Acts 9 stirred my heart. First, verse 31: "The Church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria was at peace. She was being built up and walked in the fear of the Lord, and with the consolation of the Holy Spirit she grew in numbers." The Church today is in trouble precisely because so many of her hierarchy no longer walk in the fear of the Lord. They spew heresies and their own opinions, no longer following the teachings of the Lord, and as a result, have lost the consolation of the Holy Spirit.
        Next, verses 36-41 tell the raising of Tabitha to life by Peter. Tabitha had fallen ill and died. After Peter got to her bedside, he sent everyone out and knelt down and prayed. Then he turned to her body and said, "Tabitha, rise up." She opened her eyes, saw Peter, and sat up. There's something very beautiful here. Peter knew that he could raise her by the power of the Lord, but he still turned to him and prayed first. I see the oneness of Peter and the Lord. Being in union with the Lord and turning to him—this was the beauty I saw.

***Demons Exist

        On most days I walk outside the house, the weather has been quite nice since spring began. When the sky is blue and clear, you see fresh leaves sprouting from all the branches and hear the birds singing all around you, and the temperature is perfect, you can't help feeling good and happy. But this morning was different. The sky was cloudy and grey, the wind rather chilly, and I heard strange sounds made by various animals. Since I am not a wildlife expert, I can't tell you what I heard. One sounded like an owl, but do owls show up in the morning? Anyway, I realized that things around us in life could change unexpectedly. I recalled how people lost their lives when a natural disaster suddenly struck. Worst yet, evil had caused many to lose their soul. Demons do exist! You may enjoy eating, drinking, partying, and doing all the fun things in life, but if you are not aware that evil, demons, and hell also exist, you are living in great danger, for things can change quickly and unexpectedly. There is only one in whom you can find security for all eternity and that's Christ our Lord and our God. [I posted the above 4 days ago and had found out that one strange sound I heard was actually the cooing of wild doves communicating with each other.]

**Way to Know God

       The fact I seem to know God well had made someone think that I must have worked hard at wanting to know him. True or false? It is true that when we want to find out about something, we often need to do a lot of searching and digging. To know about Jesus is the same; you need to do a lot reading or asking others about him. But to know Jesus is different. No searching, digging, or any labor-intensive work is required: you simply remain open to him to let him draw you to or into him. It couldn't be simpler. This also shows that learning by the heart is a lot more efficient than learning by the mind.

**Know the Truths

         Just saw Fr. Corapi's short video uploaded today. It's a joy to listen to him because he doesn't waste words and goes directly to the point. You can't possibly not know what's he's trying to tell you. This is refreshing. Let me give you the direct link to this video on YouTube so that you can see the four sites he lists under the video that can help you stay faithful to the teachings of Jesus Christ and his Holy Catholic Church: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCrU7WLf7O4

***Be Masters of the World

        Many things such as our upbringing, the neighborhood we live in, the kind of family we were born into, economic conditions, government policies, social norms—in fact, all our life experiences—influence and shape us. My point is we must let the God of Christ alone influence and shape us so that we may in turn influence and shape everything around us. We must be masters of and not slaves to the world! Start with Christ, ground yourselves deep in him, and do his will always to be free of the influences of the world. Let the Lord be your master first, then you'll become masters of the world. 

***Ready to Go to God?

        Simeon, after seeing Baby Jesus at his presentation to the Lord at the temple, was ready to die in peace. For the Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. Am I ready to go in peace too? Yes, because although I have not seen Jesus, I have gotten to know him so well that seeing him is not going to help me believe in him more. Besides, there's nothing left in the world worthy pursuing anymore. If Jesus is not ready for me to go because his work for me is not yet complete, that would be fine too. The important thing is that we be ready for him. 

***Abandonment to God Only Choice*

         Some people such as St. Thérèse of Lisieux fell in love with God when they were still children, while many others can't bring themselves to believe in God at a ripe old age. Were we born differently? We have Judas Iscariot who was with Jesus like the other Apostles, yet he became a traitor, while the others went on to become martyrs and/or saints. This is a mystery I honestly do not understand. As I pray for some of my loved ones, I face the same dilemma. So what am I to do? The only conclusion I can come to is that I must hand all the ones I pray for completely over to God. I do my part, but they are completely under his care now. The general conclusion is that I must abandon myself to the Lord in all things. I know that the Lord desires that we do not worry or be anxious about anything; this is to show that we have faith in him. Let us abandon ourselves to the Lord to become free in him.

***God's Most Momentous, Definitive Saying

        In today's Gospel reading from John 6, Jesus says that everyone who believes in him has eternal life. This has to be the most momentous, definitive statement of all time. It could've only come from the Lord. It's a statement every human being must perk up their ears to give it their utmost attention.

**Evangelization Tips

         To evangelize effectively, we must appeal to the hearts of others, not their minds. Telling others to love God never works; you need to show why he deserves to be loved. The focus should always be on the Lord. Sharing your personal experience always beats presenting any impersonal knowledge.

**Living for Christ Alone (New Freedom)*

        Life is most fulfilling when you live for Christ alone. You sense that you are fulfilling his wishes now and know that you'll be with him forever a little later. People normally try to fulfill themselves by doing what they like to do for themselves. And in many cases, they do accomplish something quite beautiful and satisfying. But without God, any fulfillment will be experienced only in this life. To live for Christ, you only need to do all things, whether big or little, for him. For example, when you take the garbage out, just humbly tell the Lord that you're doing it for him. Since you no longer do anything for your own sake, you'll feel a new freedom!

***In Tune with God

         The Lord God loves us and wants us to have eternal life. Can you think of anything better for us than that? I don't think so. Therefore, if we go along with him, we receive the best. Because we have the true God, the God of Christ, we can confidently submit ourselves to him, trust in him, and follow his every word without question. Then we'll be in tune with God completely, living in freedom and peace. This is the way it should be. Again, it is easily attained when you let him be your Lord.  

**No Longer Hungry or Thirsty

        In today's Gospel from John 6, Jesus said to the crowd, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst." I can testify to you that what Jesus had said is true. Of course, there is still the physical hunger for food and thirst for water, but all the other deeper needs have all been fulfilled. Once you have the Lord, nothing else can possibly satisfy you anymore.