RECEIVE GOD’S GIFT

When I was in Downtown LA, I had the chance of spending time with my relatives. We were passing through the commercial area, entering the stores, walking through the familiar streets there, and choosing a place where to dine in with family made me realize this experience to indeed be a total sensory experience, an experience of sight, of sound, of taste, touch and smell which brought back and also stored up good memories to last. It was quite an experience because it was an extension of the party that I never intended to go to that day because the schedule did not fit my itinerary for the day. It was just like being led to it by the circumstances that followed unexpectedly and was able to fit them all together despite my even suggesting a different place earlier. I felt like everything about it was all arranged and planned by the Lord who knew what was going to be. It was such an enjoyable and fun filled experience. All I knew was that it held a special and deep meaning that touched my heart in an unexplainable way owing to the occasions and incidences that were connected and related to it. But I believe God in His awesome and almighty wisdom, intelligence and knowledge reveals things in stages for the benefit of our limited capacities and understanding. The series of events and daily readings became an eye opener and has given me a better understanding of all the things that had happened since. Lent is over and it is time to celebrate and rejoice. When we are faced with a troublesome situation we should always remember the reason for the season this Easter. It is time to be joyous and rejoice. Lent is only 40 days while Pentecost is 50 days which means it should be celebrated longer. We should allow the Holy Spirit to guide and empower us with His gifts and fruits. In today's 1st reading there are 3 things we have to do to receive God's gift. 1. Imitate the pierced heart of Mary 2. Seek the help of fellow brothers and sisters in Christ 3. Repentance. It's time for us to make a stand. There is indeed a tug of war of good and bad. On which side are you? Let us be fully aware of which side we are pulling.  We should come to a point when we also ask ourselves the same question that was asked by the 1st christians in the 1st reading today during the time of Jesus.  I realized it is always good to look back, recall and never forget those times in our lives. One thing is sure, Jesus is calling us to a relationship with Him. In such situations we just need to always be attuned to Him so we can always choose to follow and obey. We can always be confident and full of hope that whatever is the outcome of our actions for as long as we know that we have consulted it to God in prayer and have acted with our best ability then we are always safe and secure. Amen. Hallelujah! 

Acts of the Apostles 2,36-41.

36 On the day of Pentecost, Peter said to the Jewish people, “Let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Messiah,..Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and they asked Peter and the other apostles, "What are we to do, my brothers?" Peter (said) to them, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit. For the promise is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call."...

Nothing is hidden from God and everything is known to Him. It pays to always consult our plans to God in prayers and everything we intend to do we should lay before Him and seek His approval. He will never deprive us nor withhold from us the answers that we seek. If we sometimes forget these and tend to stray away from the right path then we should always be aware that everything that we say, think and do must always have reference to God our Creator. It may have happened to most of us when we get disappointed at how we still miss something so quickly despite our close watch. We sometimes end up confused and discouraged when things don’t happen the way we expect it despite our accurate and strict monitoring. We even ask ourselves how it could have happened. We may have heard and seen some terrible and frightening things in our life but we should always hold on to the truth that no matter how horrible the things that are happening around us they don't change the fact that our Lord is God and always in charge and in control. It doesn't matter that much how we think and feel but what matters most is how to feel and think just like God. For we can always rely and depend on it, 100%, fail proof and success guaranteed. We should place our trust not in men or in things but in God alone. The Lord did not promise us to be totally problem free but He gave His assurance that He will always be our Savior and Redeemer. God's power is beyond our full comprehension. He is Holy, Mighty, Immortal and Infinitely Great. Did it ever occur to you how all these things that surround us, from the skies, to the mountains, plains, the seas, the wind, all the heavenly bodies above, the things down below, all the creatures of the earth especially us, human beings came to be. Not a single theory about creation could suffice and would ever satisfy the wonders and marvelous things that God has done. Just thinking about all these things should make us always put our hope in Him, feel confident and assured that we are safe under His care, to help us from all our problems and shield us from all harm. It is a consolation to know that we are constantly assured by God especially in today's psalm to never doubt His power and goodness. His loving eyes is always upon us not leaving us for a single moment nor removing his stare even with a wink of an eye. It feels good to know that someone's eyes are upon us and looking after us. When we come to a point of despair and feel like things are not getting better, we ought to remember always that we are God's people and we are His own. We have to realize this one most important truth that we should all subscribe to, which is to constantly align ourselves and conform to the will and plan of God in our lives. Let us ask the Lord to lead us to the right path and decisions that we may work toward the building of God’s kingdom here on earth. We should not give room to any doubt, fear, anxiety, impatience, irritability, hatred, sadness, iniquity, unfaithfulness, disloyalty, pride and loss of self control. Let us not choose to give in to these. They are all characteristics that should not be found in a people the Lord has chosen to be His own. Our present situation may not be a perfect picture yet but we should all rejoice and be glad knowing that God was the one who chose us first and He will carry us through. All we have to do is just trust that the Lord will carry out with perfection all His plans for us no matter what situations or circumstances may arise in our midst. When God created this world and everything in it including us, He did not ask permission from anybody. It means that He has chosen us to be His own and not the other way around. This is the reason why the fallen angels/demons are so jealous of men. We are indeed special in the eyes of God for it is written in Gen 1:26, "Then God said: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion..." We are not just chosen by God to be His own even before everything came to be but we are on top of His creation. Let us never lose sight of this wonderful plan that God has for all of us. We may not be seeing it right now, having doubts about it, not paying attention to it or unable to commit to it. Whatever it may be, these are all hindrances that prevent us from gaining access to the goodness of the Lord. Never allow ourselves to miss out on this privilege that is accorded to all of us as the children of God. God chose us first and it is only right and fitting that we choose Him too. If we always focus on the Lord and put His words in our presence at all times then we can be assured that we have a lamp unto our feet that is lighting our path. We have to entrust all our cares and worries to the Lord for He can do better things for our lives than all our works combined. No matter how hard we try to succeed in what we do if it's not in accordance to God's plan then nothing will ever come out of it. We may succeed in one aspect but we will never be totally at peace for in the end it will always be the will and plan of God that will prevail. We just have to acknowledge that we are sparing ourselves of all the trouble and heartaches if we will just be obedient and completely trust in the Lord's plan. Let us truly be wise in the real sense of the word rather than of the world and not forfeit all our benefits from the Lord. We all have our personal plans and designs and we may not be able to fully understand what is going on at the present time. It is not easy for the wisdom in the eyes of God is foolishness to the world but what's most important is that we should always consult everything to God first, just believe and surrender everything to Him for He knows best. We have to realize this one most important truth that we should all subscribe to, which is to constantly align ourselves and conform to the will and plan of God in our lives. The power of God knows no limits and we can always rely on Him for anything that we are in need. Let us rely on God's power and completely trust Him to bring to fulfillment everything that He has promised. Just like the Blessed Mother Mary, who is Queen of heaven and earth, we too are destined for victory and royalty. If only we live out the example of her obedient life and carry Jesus in our hearts. Let us not lose hope and have faith in the Master Plan and Grand Design that God has for all of us. Amen. Hallelujah! 

Psalms 33(32),4-5.18-19.20.22.

...For the LORD'S word is true; all his works are trustworthy.

The LORD loves justice and right and fills the earth with goodness.

But the LORD'S eyes are upon the reverent, upon those who hope for his gracious help,

Delivering them from death, keeping them alive in times of famine...

We should focus and hold on to things that are from heaven above rather than the things of this world. We cling to temporary and material things without realizing that what matters most is the permanent or the gift of eternal life. Mary of Magdala was a woman of the world but she was restless until she found Jesus. The same way with us, we could be experiencing some unexplainable emotions that make us anxious but if we continue to see and experience God in our lives then we are always assured that we are never alone and He will always be with us. All we have to do is follow the example of Mary Magdalene by making a complete turn (180 degrees) from our old ways and decide for Jesus. Let us get this straight, apart from God we are nothing.  We must be able to connect, completely trust and surrender to God every single aspect about us especially those that we are strongly holding on to and consider very important and vital in our lives. We may be clinging on to something for the wrong reasons. Our motivation and underlying reasons whether evident or not should always have something to do with God. Whether it is a minor or major thing it is always wise to align it to God. Our wills should no longer be our own but of God our Father. Let us keep in mind that no matter how imperfect and unlimited our capacities and capabilities are for as long as we put God first in everything we say, think or do in the midst of trials and difficulties then we can surely experience God's resurrection. We have dreams, desires and longings that drive us to action. We sometimes get stuck with the idea that life here on earth is all there is to it. We must look on and move forward to the one ultimate goal that can make all things perfect and beautiful. It is important that we all come to the realization that the fullness of all things is in heaven. Mary Magdalene was in deep grief. She is one of the witnesses that stood by the cross, watched and observed Jesus died and laid in the tomb. Mary was not focused on the resurrection and did not recognize Jesus. Her mind was focused on her assumption that someone has taken Jesus’ body. Whenever we are gripped by grief, anxiety or any strong emotion it has a way of obscuring our vision of God and blinds us from seeing His blessing or presence. When we encounter moments when we are on the verge of weeping and depression we can always remind ourselves that it doesn’t help at all rather we have to stay calm. She did not expect the resurrection, only in the calling of her name that she recognized Jesus. She was warned by Jesus not to cling or hold on because she is being sent to spread the word as Greeks refer to her as the female apostle to the Apostles. She did as she was told, went and announced to the disciples that they too believed and came to faith. Thinking about these things is like we are being given a picture and scenario to broaden our perspective and understanding of the things that are happening in our life. Learn from the experience, be imaginative and creative for better appreciation of the Word of God as we reflect on it. Amen. Hallelujah!

John 20: 11-18

...“Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there,  but did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” She thought it was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,”...Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and what he told her.