PREDESTINY

It will soon be goodbye to the year 2016 and hello 2017. Today's 1st reading made me think about predestiny. We may have heard about this from people of our faith but it remains a mystery for us. Since I have encountered an argument about this saying that if we have been predestined to be saved then what's the use of striving to do what's good since we are already saved so nothing that we do can change that. We can come up with a lot of debatable issues regarding predestiny and even twist it in accordance to our own personal convictions, beliefs and sad to say for our own conveniences and justification. I believe that what matters most is what truly lies in the unseen and deepest recesses of our hearts where only God can see. Mother Angelica in her EWTN program said to a lady who called that no one has the right to stop her from her devotion like kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament. For it is written in Rom. 14:11, "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bend before me, and every tongue shall give praise to God." and Philippians 2:10, "that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,..." We are called to stand firm in our faith. Let us not give in to any kind of pressure or oppression that hinders us from proclaiming the truth. I am suddenly reminded of a friend who has a habit of saying, "It's ok." There was a time when her name on the certificate given to her was grossly misspelled, it made me really laugh. I couldn't stop myself from laughing all the more when she started to say "It's ok." again. That was when I took the initiative to ask the organizers of the conference to correct her name and issue another certificate. People have become accustomed to saying, "It's ok." when the truth, most of the time, is it's really not ok. How many times have you heard others say that "God will understand, it's just a white lie." Of course God always understand but the problem here is the consequence of the lie since God is truth and He can not be otherwise. When we lie then we sin and we are opposed to God. We exclude ourselves from God thereby rejecting that we belong to Him. If we give up our citizenship in God then we lose all the benefits that go with it. What a waste, so we better think twice before we sin. Amen. Hallelujah!

1 John 2:18-21

18 Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that the antichrist was coming, so now many antichrists have appeared. Thus we know this is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not really of our number; if they had been, they would have remained with us. Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number. ...every lie is alien to the truth.

When we have an appointment or a schedule it requires us to make necessary preparation for it before the date itself. There are times when we have to go through stressful activities in order to meet some requirements that go with it. This should make us think all the more of the greatest appointment we have to face on that final day and act in accordance to the demand of the inevitability and reality of this day. How much more are we supposed to prepare for that unknown day if indeed we believe that we have to be there and get to our destiny, where we are supposed to be in God's kingdom. We should always be prepared for the day when we will come face to face with God. Every single day should be lived as if it's our last. How easy it is to put ourselves in the center of the universe. We are not the center of the universe, God is. We are just here on earth for a few fleeting years. 70 if we are strong in which to serve God. St. Theresa of Avila said to never waste a moment in time because she knows that every moment in time can secure heaven. When all is over and the battle has been won as in Revelation, God's name will be written in our foreheads and it will never be night again nor will we still need lamp or sunlight again because the Lord is our Light. There are so many things in life that worry us every day. We encounter people and circumstances that disturb our peace. We can't help but be stirred up and sometimes lose our focus. The truth is there is nothing that should bother us at all. We've got to hold on to the truth always that God is on top of everything. We have to be perfectly aware of the fact that the Lord has the whole world in the palm of His hand and will surely rule it with justice and constancy. It is always worth our all when we stand by the principles of God. No matter what it is that we are going through right now we can always draw strength and inspiration in this truth and not be moved. We look at our own lives and see that it is dark in many ways in the form of bad stories that we hear about. We are not perfect but we can do something to bring the glowing radiance of Christ to the world. We must be able to calm ourselves and silence our mind over a lot of worries and anxiety. In doing so we could immediately feel the peace and assurance that God never ever leaves us every step of the way. It helps to do the 3Rs: Reflecting, Remembering, Renewing. It is really important that we constantly reflect on the word of God, wherein the scriptures become fully alive in our life. We should always remember how God helped us in a certain experience. In doing so, hope starts to rise again. It is equally important that we live a balanced life by renewing so that we don't get worn out by the daily turmoil of our life. Those who toil will reap and will be able to reflect God's glory through the fruits of their harvest. We have 101 reasons to always rejoice and be glad. Jesus came and entered humanity in the most humble way. He loved us as we are and was willing to be born in a manger. He doesn't wait for us to transform ourselves but take us for who we are. It is very consoling to know that we have a God who was willing to be born into the messiness of our lives. We may not have received all the things we have been asking for specifically but we continue to believe that God in His goodness and mercy did answer all our prayers in the way that He deemed is best. It doesn't change the fact that He is God, always in control and every single thing works according to His master plan and divine purpose. We can be assured that He will carry out the plan He has for us, as in Jeremiah 29:11, For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare, not for woe, plans to give you a future full of hope. God is over, above, around, about and all over the world. It is only right and fitting that we give glory to God who is above all. Let us always be grounded on this truth and make it clear for us so as not to fall into the trap and deception of the gods of the nations which are things of naught. Let us truly be faithful to the one and true God who made the heavens. We should listen, learn and be part of the task of spreading God's word to every person if we are really one with Him. No one is excluded from God's call of love. We often hear people saying that life is unfair but it is always a consolation to know that we have a God who is consistently good and just all the time. We can surely rely on Him all the time. God is sending all of us a friendship despite our coldness towards Him. He gives us all that we need. He is as good as He is great. He is very lavish with His promises and faithful in keeping them.  Whatever situation we are in we should always take the opportunity of showing forth God's glory at its best in our own lives. Nowadays, people tend to make decisions based on money. We must not discount the fact that money is important but it should not be the sole and major deciding factor when we come up with a decision. If we know exactly why we are here and what we are here for then there's no reason to doubt that God is always at our side to love, support and make things work for good. But we need to believe that God's power knows no limit. This world of ours is amazingly designed by God. DNA a double helical structure,   which is found in every living creature, which includes us, humans, is also existent in the solar system. Scientists found out that the pattern in which the planets rotate around the sun is also in a double helical conformation. It is undeniable evidence by the signature of God scattered all over the planet and extends to the entire universe that not even the most intelligent and brilliant astrologers could explain. We are indeed blessed and endowed with a wealth of endless benefits and cures just lying around us and within our reach. He is Great and Mighty and to Him alone do we put our trust. We must not be discouraged and continue to hope in His power. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 96:1-2, 11-12, 13

R: Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!

1 Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all you lands. 2 Sing to the Lord; bless his name; announce his salvation, day after day. (R) 11 Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice; let the sea and what fills it resound; 12 let the plains be joyful and all that is in them! Then shall all the trees of the forest exult 13 before the Lord. (R) The Lord comes; for he comes to rule the earth. He shall rule the world with justice and the peoples with his constancy. (R)

The idea of angels has always appealed to me most especially now that I myself have a personal experience and testimony about them. I have regarded them with so much awe and wonder after having been exposed to them for several instances when I definitely can not doubt their presence. As I have often read in my prayer book, they are considered as Thrones, Dominations, Principalities, Powers, Virtues of Heaven and all the other great and powerful names you can ever think of. It is usually that kind of thing which bewilders us whenever we are confronted by something astonishing and extraordinary. Upon reading today's gospel it just hit me that we are placed by God on a pedestal and ranked no less than an angel. As we celebrate the season of the birth of His son it reminds us that it is indeed a time to be jolly. The host of angels say, "Glory to God in the highest... Peace to men of good will" The speech of God and angels is different from man. To truly understand the angel's song, we are called to a free response of love. A response to God's love without which, we could not love. It is both grace and freedom. It can not be divided. It is an inter play between grace and freedom or call and response. God calls and waits for a response. He does not abandon a lost sheep nor does He allow us to be confounded by sin. He waits for us to join Him and sing with His angels. We are invited to sing with joy with faith that we are all bound by God. This we can joyfully claim on this very special day and all the days to come. When we are sometimes led astray from the truth by the cunning deceptions and camouflaged lies of this world, we should always realize that nothing is worth more than the privilege of being a faithful and loyal child of God. Let us not be duped by the enemy and firmly hold on to our rights as a legitimate citizen of God's Kingdom. When we encounter disappointments and tend to succumb to hopelessness and despair because we have a feeling that God is so far away from us then we need to realize that there is nothing and no one that is beyond the reach of God. This idea and notion is coming from the pits of hell. We clearly have no reason to despair because each one of us is touched by God. God is with us. This is the truth, He is not distant and no stranger. He has a face in Jesus. God has a desire to redeem each soul He has created. This message is ever new, ever surprising and surpasses even our hope. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said that the Incarnation is the culmination of Creation. It has reached its highest point when God entered into that communion of love to be one with the beloved. The Word is made flesh because of love in order to be with the beloved. Only those who love are involved in the mystery of Christmas. It occurred in history and is transcending history. This is the greatest love story of all.  We are invited to enter into that mystery of love to have faith in God who loves and loves us. Amen. Hallelujah!

John 1,1-18.

...the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him. But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man's decision but of God...From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace.