To Jesus Through Mary

I recently visited the Our Lady of Piat Bascilica in Cagayan Valley.  Thousands of devotees flock the Shrine, especially on July 2, it's feast day. It's one of the most venerated Marian images in the Philippines

Many miracles have been reported to happen through the Intercession of Our Lady of Piat.  To mention some are ending a persistent drought in 1624, boy recovering from insanity, a native from Piat freed from the grip of a crocodile, a child cured from leprosy, rescuing of drowning people in Pamplona, and other testimonies throughout time.

Yes, miracles happen. It's not old-fashioned belief. The same God Whose stories of miracles upon miracles are highlighted in the Bible is still performing miracles and very much alive today. Prayers made through the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary makes our faith stronger.  There is much power in intercession.

"This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation . . . . Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 969)

When we tell someone, "Please pray for me", we are are asking him/her to intercede for us.  If we ask others for their intercession, how much more powerful it would be if we ask the angels, saints, and especially Mama Mary to pray for us. 

Not only do those in heaven pray with us, they also pray for us. In the book of Revelation, John sees that "the twenty-four elders [the leaders of the people of God in heaven] fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints" (Rev. 5:8). Thus the saints in heaven offer to God the prayers of the saints on earth. (Source: Catholic.com)

To Jesus through Mary, may our faith increase and may the miracles we pray for be granted according to His will.
 

Smell Like Your Sheep

A brother in community shared something to me he read from a news column. He said "If you truly want to be a good shepherd, you must smell like your sheep."
As we mature in a Christian community, we are entrusted with a flock. How involved are we in the life of the sheep given us to care for?

He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” [Jesus] said to him, “Feed my sheep. John 21:17

As we spend more time with our sheep, we will start to smell like them. We come to know how they live, their worries, their hopes and dreams, and their prayers. And by this immersion, we will learn how to feed them.

Christ the Good Shepherd, though in the heavens, came down on earth to be with us... to smell like us. Let us follow His example. As He feeds us, we are asked to feed others with His amazing love that we receive daily.
 

Remember Your Destination

Being on a 13-hour trip to the northen tip of the Philippines, Cagayan Valley, it allowed me some time for myself. Travel situates thinking time and more so, a super extended personal prayer time. This is I believe is one of the great blessings of mission. As we journey to our destination, we are led to also journey internally, to the depths of our minds and hearts.

Life is one big journey. Often, many are swayed by the evil one to forget that heaven is our final destination. Everyday, in this journey of life we are to take time for ourselves and be in God's presence. We are to search from within and continually ask Jesus, "Lord am I still on track?" If we feel the peace that we are still on a ride towards heaven, then praise God! But if we are detoured, side tracked, or have made a u-turn to the opposite direction (hell bound), then prayer and God's mercy will open our eyes to heaven's road signs.

By God's grace, we shall reach heaven. May we fix our eyes on Him!
 

Hunger for Learning

The hunger for knowledge and wisdom is a sign of humility. It expresses our admission that there is yet much to be learned. When one resigns from trying to gain wisdom from prayer or from others, he is a person lost in his purpose. Our brains are created by God to accommodate more than what we can learn in a lifetime. Scientists say that we are only using 10% of our brain cells.
The fastest way to learn is to be an apprentice to a master. To have a student-teacher kind of relationship makes us learn with more speed and better imagery than reading books alone. Because life is short, the more mentors we have in our lives, the more knowledge we gain.
Books are an attempt to fully transmit one's learning to another person. Yet written words have limitations, for it cannot capture the full emotions and the body language of the author.
May our lives be blessed with mentors that guide us and books that allow us access into the minds of people who are far and long gone.

Why History Is Important

The way to move forward is to have an understanding of the past.  History tells us,"we have done this, learn from it, build on it." An appreciation of history helps one become a visionary leader.  The farther we see the past, the farther we see the future. Often, one does not know his way forward because he doesn't know where he's been. 

If we take time at night to evaluate our day, tomorrow will surely be better. Each day is an opportunity to improve one's self. I heard from one of my leaders say, "The path to holiness is to become the best version of yourself." I also heard from a song, "I love you more today, than yesterday." Have we become more loving to others today, as compared to yesterday? Are we the best version of ourselves today?

If one knows much about the past, he should take time to write it and teach the new generation, especially of it's lessons. If one wishes to contribute to the future, he should seek out the pioneers and derive wisdom from their stories. This is how ideals survive and thrive. Let not what you start die with you and let not what you inherit be partial.

Stop Living in a Bubble

We bought this special bubble formula from the bazaar and had loads of fun when we got home. The kids couldn't wait to pop the bubbles.  The bigger they were, the more fun it would be to burst them. I imagined that if the formula were stronger, I could make a bubble big enough to "live in it."

At times, we hear the expression, "living in a bubble."  It means isolating yourself from the world, to protect yourself from possible dangers. There was even a movie in 2001, Bubble Boy, that literally depicted this idiom. Bubble boy was under the impression that he had to live in the bubble because he might get infected by the outside world.  But as it turned out, it was safe. It was because of the overly protective mother's idea that led to this predicament.

What is that risk that you should take to make life better?  Have you risked anything for God? Faith requires risk. St. Paul said in Hebrews 11:1, "Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen."  Often when we hope for something, but before taking action, we wish to see it first before we believe it. Faith is evidence of things not seen.

God does not want us to live in a bubble. He wants us to go and live an exciting life. Not to play it too safe, but venture with the blessings God has given us. In the parable of the talents, Jesus pointed out how the master reprimanded the person who hid the one talent given to him. ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter? Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return? Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. (Matthew 25: 26-29)

Besides, the bubble decieves you to thinking that it will protect you. No bubble is infinitely stable. Sooner than expected, it will burst. What are the bubbles that we live in? What are we overprotecting ourselves from?

1. Overprotecting ourselves from the possibility of failure.

Still, the best way to learn is to actually fail at something.  I'm not talking about failing because of laziness or a lack of diligence, but failing despite giving our all.  Tom Peters would refer this as excellent failures.  Life is full of challenges and the fear of failure is something that traps us in a bubble. This makes us afraid of making bold decisions.  The fear of failure can paralyze our lives.

2. Overprotection from getting hurt

When somebody hurts us, specially a loved one, we tend to deflect from the possibility of getting hurt again. This makes our hearts closed to loving again. A betrayal is especially traumatic. We grieve over this hurt.  Often we make this hurt like a bubble to protect us from future hurts. I'd like to quoute a cartoon movie that I viewed with my kids, Tale of Desperaux. It says in the movie, "There is something greater than grief...forgiveness."  Once we forgive others, and especially ourselves, we can move forward in life and learn to love again. Yes, there is a possibility of getting hurt again, but one cannot experience the fullness of love unless the heart is open and vulnerable.  A good image of this is are the hearts of Jesus and Mary, crowned with thorns and pierced by a sword.

3.  Overprotecting the people, things, and the work we love

I love my kids and I'll die if I have to in order to protect them. But one day, when they are all grown up and capable to make decisions on their own, It'll be the time wherein I have to trust them in making the right choices and trust God that they be led to the right path.  We have to let go and let God. It is in empowering others that dignity is raised.  We cannot do everything for the people we love, especially when they have to really do it themselves like choosing the right course in college or answering to a vocation. 
Sometimes in work, because of our obsession for perfection, we hog all the work and end up tired while leaving others disempowered.
When we grow an attachment to things we love, like money or possessions, we can't bear to lose them.  We'll do anything to keep it, even by hook or by crook.  We cannot overprotect to the point of compromising our integrity and our faith.

Let us live freely! With full trust in the Lord, Peter, James and John left their nets and followed Jesus.  They let go of the very thing they knew and loved to do which is to be fishermen. Many of the apostles were persecuted, even martyred for the sake of Christ.  They even witnessed Jesus being nailed to the cross, and thought that all they did failed, until the Holy Spirit revived and empowered them to preach to the ends of the earth.

Let us go through life, full of faith in the Lord, willing to risk what we hold dear for the sake of His Name. Let us open our hearts, vulnerable to hurt, but entered with the grace of God to love others beyond our capacity. 

Filled, Changed, and Empowered Through Worship

http://www.cfcyfcilc.com/out-loud/

Giving honor, praise, and worship to our God. That's what I did together with 9,000 other young adults during the Liveloud Concert of CFC Youth For Christ.  It was awesome!

Here are some things I'd like to share about worship.

1. There is a hunger in us that only God can satisfy.

We are made for worship. When one does not discover God in his life, he tends to worship other things.  Things that are temporary and finite.  Money does not satisfy.  Man can never get enough of fame and recognition. People will fail us.  But God is perfect and infinite, and only in Him can we find our peace and contentment. Only in the worship of the One True God can our hunger be filled.  God is enough. Our hearts are restelss untily they rest in You (St. Augustine).

2. Worship is transformative. Sincere and reverent worship can change us.

Worship is a declaration that we do not lord over our own lives..  In worship, we are saying that only Jesus is Lord.  Being fully convicted about this, changes our whole outlook in life.  Every decision will be made with the thought, "Is this what the Lord wants?" Everytime we raise our hands to worship in full surrender, we are saying, "It's up to You Lord, take over."  Through genuine worship, our relationship with Christ deepens.  We come to trust in His plan, even though painful at times, because we know that Christ never fails. Our lives change because it has become a life of worship in the Lord.

3. Through Worship, the Holy Spirit empowers us to do the impossible.

We must remember that it is God whom we are addressing our worship. God, who parted the Red Sea. God, who created the Universe. God, who loves us immensely.  Worship is not just about getting excited or having that wonderful feeling, it's about giving honor to an ALL POWERFUL God.  If God wills to do the impossible through us, and if we desire it, then He will use us even beyond the capacity of our own abilities.

The ultimate worship experience is the Holy Eucharist.  Together with the invisible hosts of angels and Saints, we are one in worship with them everytime we attend Mass.

As we sing and dance in community prasie and worship-- be filled, be changed, and be empowered to do great things for our God! 

Being Christ to Others and Seeing Christ in Others

They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?" (Luke 24:32)

I come to ponder on the thought about being Christ to others and seeing Christ in others.

Being Christ to Others. No longer I but Christ in me (Galatians 2:20). Knowing that Christ resides in us, gives us supernatural strength. For us to do His mission on earth, it requires His power. Pentecost made it known to us that the Gospel spread precisely because of the Power of the Holy Spirit.

When we recieve Christ's body and blood in Holy Communion, we are one with Him and strengthened by His grace.

In the Mass, after the sacrifice itself is completed, we have the unspeakable privilege of receiving the flesh and blood of the Divine Victim, who is not dead, but living, and comes to give life in abundance to our souls. This Holy Communion, if we are rightly disposed, produces an increase in sanctifying grace - the ability to take in the vision of God in the life to come - plus a special claim to actual graces as needed, forgiveness of venial sin for which one is repentant, help to keep from mortal sin, and an increase in the virtue of love.
--from Fr. William G. Most (http://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/euchb2.htm)


Seeing Christ in Others. The walk to Emmaus allows us to reflect about Christ who is often with us, but whom we often fail to recognize. The idea of Christ in others is what Mother Teresa carries when serving others, specially the poor.

" I believe that we are not really social workers. We may be doing social work in the eyes of people. But we are really contemplatives in the heart of the world. For we are touching the body of Christ twenty-four hours. We have twenty-four hours in His presence" -- from Mother Teresa's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, 1979

Having Christ in us and experiencing Christ through others leads us to a life of fullness in Christ.    For everywhere we look, whether inward or outward, we see the presence of Christ.  It is a life filled with passion, purpose, and missionary adventure.  In this way, man is fully alive and God's glory is revealed.  As St Irenaeus said, "The glory of God is man fully alive."

In my recent prayer time, I sensed the Lord saying, "Be faithful to Me, and I will show you how it is to truly live by My Spirit." Being Christ to others and Seeing Christ in others comes down to being consistently attuned to Him.  Being full of faith is what God requires as seen throughout the Bible and reflected in Hebrews 11. 

May we live our lives in the grace of the Lord, with hearts burning, knowing that He is in us and in the people around us.