Happiness Is . . . .

Posted on June 25, 2015 by Spirit Moments

A life with meaning is a happy life and it is something everyone longs for. Some seek meaning in money and wealth and they look happy from the outside. But desire for money and wealth often become insatiable greed it becomes an affliction. Others try to find meaning in fame and glory. And they bask in the limelight of acclaim. But fame and glory is so fleeting it is gone even before the person has had a full season in the sun. Still others think power is the source of all meaning and quest for it with might and main. They may seem happy exercising power over people, things and event; but positions of power are usually very lonely places.

Happiness is putting my life in the hands of the Lord. I imagine myself a piece of wood, in His sculptor’s hands. The older the wood and the more weather-beaten it is, the more beautiful the statue that will come out.

I imagine myself a lump of clay in His potter’s hands. The more supple and pliant the clay, the more delicate and exquisite the pottery that comes out of the kiln.

I imagine myself to be threads in His weaver’s hands. The longer the threads and the more colorful they are, the more elegant and elaborate the tapestry that is woven.

I imagine myself to be colors in his painter’s hands. The more varied and different the colors are, the more heartwarming and inspiring is the painting that emerges.

I pray that I fully entrust my life into God’s hands, knowing He is good. And happiness will just be a prayer away.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
~ Psalm 106

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” 
Matthew 7:21

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Birthdays

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Spirit Moments

Every birth is an occasion for wonder and amazement, just like the birth of John the Baptist or of Jesus the Christ. It is like the heavens open up for one moment and one of the angels escapes to earth to take on flesh and be born as a baby. It is the reason why we see and call every baby an angel. Every birth breaches the portal and the threshold that separates heaven and earth and for one brief moment the two are one. Every child is a blessing from God for he holds the promise that God is continuing His work of creation. the great Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore once wrote, “Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged by humanity.”

It is sad how today many young lives are being trivialized. It is scandalous how some people can consider some lives as one life too many so as to be disposable. There are more babies aborted in the US than there are US citizens killed by terrorists. There are more children abused and even abandoned than there are combatants killed in armed conflicts. And many children are today deprived of their childhood and education; some are even recruited to be boy soldiers or child prostitutes.

I pray for the unborn who are killed in the womb. I pray for deprived and abused children. I pray that the world begin to see the sanctity of each and every life. I pray in Thanksgiving for every birthday that is celebrated.

Yesterday was my birthday. I made the effort to respond to all the greetings I got in Facebook and emails. There were those I see everyday on Facebook, those whom I encounter there regularly and those who I see or hear from only very sparingly. Some greetings were short and simple wishes. Others were simply emoticons, emojis, or stickers. There were some standard greeting cards. But there were those who wrote and sent in wishes and greetings that were from the heart. I loved, enjoyed and appreciated them all. For in the online hustle and bustle that is Facebook, we often dwell on the mundane and the superficial. But by making the effort, I felt that, in the exchanges I had with friends and family, we have somehow touched each others lives uniquely and purposefully even for just a moment. And that one moment in time now lives on forever in our hearts and memory. Yes even perhaps in heaven and in eternity.

I am grateful for a blessed and joyful birthday yesterday.

R. I praise you for I am wonderfully made.
~ Psalm 139

When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child
she gave birth to a son.
Her neighbors and relatives heard
that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her,
and they rejoiced with her.
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child,
they were going to call him Zechariah after his father,
but his mother said in reply,
“No. He will be called John.”
But they answered her,
“There is no one among your relatives who has this name.”
So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.
He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,”
and all were amazed.
Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed,
and he spoke blessing God.
Then fear came upon all their neighbors,
and all these matters were discussed
throughout the hill country of Judea.
All who heard these things took them to heart, saying,
“What, then, will this child be?”
For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.
The child grew and became strong in spirit,
and he was in the desert until the day
of his manifestation to Israel.
Luke 1:57-66, 80

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It’s A Birthday Moment!

Posted on June 23, 2015 by Spirit Moments

Today is my birthday – a day that represents a whole year that was. And what a year it was: full of love, joys and blessings. For these, I am grateful and humbled. It is also a day that promises another full year of living. I may or may not complete it to make it to my next birthday. But it definitely holds the promise of yet more loving, more living and more laughing. For these prospects, I am hopeful and excited.

For today, Jesus reminds me through the Gospel reading of three deep life lessons I have learned and strived to live by.

First, everything there is is from God and is therefore holy and sacred. And He has given these to us as gift – unmerited and undeserved. We went to a concert last night. It was on a mountain top venue. After the concert, there was a sliver of the new moon and Jupiter and Mars seemed like talking to her. The night sky was liberally sprinkled with twinkling stars that usually faint down in the valley because of the bright city lights. It was a sacred and holy experience. It told me that I must reverence everything that is and everyone that lives; because when I stop and look close enough, I always see their Source and Creator. Respect and reverence for life and nature are so sorely lacking in our world today.

Second, all the great religions of the world have their own rendering of the golden rule. It is the karma principle. It is Christ’s command to love the neighbor as we love ourselves. Inside every human being is the seed of goodness that seeks to do good to others; for in doing so, we do good by ourselves. That seed is a spark of the Infinite Goodness planted in everyone of us. It is from the Power that brought all of us and everything around us into existence. Goodness and love seem to be so sorely lacking in our world today.

Third, for all the beauty and goodness and sacredness around and within us, life is a struggle. Life is hard. It is not at all easy. The easy answer is usually the wrong answer. The easy and well-beaten path is not the way to redemption or salvation. It is often the road that leads to damnation and perdition. A look at all the great empires of the world would show that their fall was always preceded by a time of easy living and even debauchery. But it is in the face of ruin and destruction that we eventually come to see and find the beauty around us. It is in confronting evil and violence that we eventually come to learn what authentic love truly means. It is in owning up to our frailties and limitations that we eventually come into the presence of the All-mighty and All-powerful God who created us.

God is awesome and marvelous. His ways are not our ways. But through His marvelous deeds, He has revealed and shown Himself to us, step by step, little by little. One star at a time until we see Him in the whole universe.

He who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.
~ Psalm 15

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine,
lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.

“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the Law and the Prophets.

“Enter through the narrow gate;
for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,
and those who enter through it are many.
How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.
And those who find it are few.”
Matthew 7:6, 12-14

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Judging Others

Posted on June 22, 2015 by Spirit Moments

It took me a while but I have learned that I have the tendency to judge and hate in others what I hate most in myself. I have condemned and been harsh to people I have judged as hypocrites, when I too often behaved hypocritically. I have spoken out against slackers and their mediocrity when this is one of the big issues in my own personal life. I hate the sloth and the pride I see in others when these are the very same things I am struggling with.

When I learned this lesson, I have become more accepting and forgiving of others, knowing that they are probably in the same struggle that I am in. I have learned that I need to change myself before I can even think of changing others. And as I came to know myself better, I have become less judgmental of other people.

A word spoken in anger often wounds. And the wound may take time, even years, to heal. Some wounds can be so deep, they will leave a scar forever. When I feel like judging others, I watch out for my words and make an effort to speak only words of healing and forgiveness.

Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
~ Psalm 33

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Stop judging, that you may not be judged.
For as you judge, so will you be judged,
and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.
Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye,
but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Let me remove that splinter from your eye,’
while the wooden beam is in your eye?
You hypocrite, remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye.”
Matthew 7:1-5

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“Inside Out’ – The Movie

Posted on June 21, 2015 by Spirit Moments

DSCN1783

We saw the movie Inside Out last night. It was full. Meant to be a kids’ movie, it nevertheless spoke to me of deep truths. Inside us are the many emotions and memories that shape up our personalities. The more significant ones make up our core memories which are clustered into islands of significance, like Family, Friendship, Loves, Events, etc.

Often, these emotions may break out into turbulent storms that may incite, ignite, inflame our lives. It could be euphoric joy or raging anger or paralyzing fear or seething disgust. And everything around is blown hither and yonder by the tempest. Like a storm at sea, these emotions may be like storm clouds that darken the horizon, and winds howling like mad, and waves rising up in anger, and the atmosphere cold with indifference and apathy.

And yet go beneath the surface and all the raging is gone. The waters are calm and tranquil. Go deeper, the winds and the tempest are but a whisper. Go deeper yet and all is peace and quiet. Go deeper still and there is but darkness and emptiness. In that darkness and emptiness, there shines a light and a voice that says, “Be quiet. Be still.” And the light shines on me to make me realize that joy unalloyed by sadness is to live but on the surface; that anger unalloyed by pleasure is to live in the shallows; that fear unalloyed by happiness is to allow oneself to live in the eye of the storm.

The Lord addressed Job out of the storm and said:
“Who shut within doors the sea,
when it burst forth from the womb;
when I made the clouds its garment
and thick darkness its swaddling bands?
When I set limits for it
and fastened the bar of its door,
and said: Thus far shall you come but no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be stilled!”

In the depths, I decide to be joyful while owning my sadness. I choose  to enjoy the pleasures of life while accepting my anger.I am determined to be happy while facing up to my fears.

Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting.
~ Psalm 107

On that day, as evening drew on, Jesus said to his disciples:
“Let us cross to the other side.”
Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus with them in the boat just as he was.
And other boats were with him.
A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat,
so that it was already filling up.
Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion.
They woke him and said to him,
“Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”
He woke up,
rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Quiet! Be still!”
The wind ceased and there was great calm.
Then he asked them, “Why are you terrified?
Do you not yet have faith?”
They were filled with great awe and said to one another,
“Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?”
Mark 4:35-41

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The Birds In The Sky And The Lilies Of The Field

Posted on June 20, 2015 by Spirit Moments

Ecological concerns, chiefly climate change and the massive pollution and destruction of the environment, are among the most pressing issues facing the world today. The discussions have mainly been on the scientific, social, economic and financial perspectives. Now, with Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si the spiritual and theological dimensions have been put on the table as well.

The Gospel reading today reminds me how beautiful the world is and how abundant and fruitful it is, capable for providing for all out needs. At the same time and in the light of the words of the Pope, I am aware how much we have thrashed and degraded our planet  -the only one we have.

I love seeing birds and bees flying in the air going about their apparently mindless business. One scientific hypothesis have put forward that without these bees and birds, life on earth would be gone in about a hundred years. Remove man and the earth will fully rejuvenate itself within the same period of time. Today, birds and bees are falling from the skies by the millions because man’s pollution has made the skies inhospitable for them.

I enjoy seeing the lilies of the field. This year, I and Anabelle caught the first bloom of wild flowers in springs in the hills around Coyote Lake. It was a mystical and enriching experience. Today, the lilies are gone and fields are arid and dry because of the severe drought, now on its fourth year. In many places, once verdant fields are becoming deserts; while in other places, there are massive floods and landslides.

Today the questions,  ‘What are we to eat?’  and ‘What are we to drink?’ and ‘What are we to wear?’ are very real concerns. The earth has always been bountiful, providing for all our needs. Now, for the first time in human history, we may have taxed the earth beyond its ability to provide us with a sustainable environment. Pope Francis has called for a bold cultural revolution, a change of heart, a conversion, where less is more and greed will no longer move people to hoard more than what they need, where love and charity will motivate people to share and care for the bounties of the earth. Then, as one community, we will indeed taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
~ Psalm 34

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,
what you will eat or drink,
or about your body, what you will wear.
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds in the sky;
they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns,
yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are not you more important than they?
Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?
Why are you anxious about clothes?
Learn from the way the wild flowers grow.
They do not work or spin.
But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor
was clothed like one of them.
If God so clothes the grass of the field,
which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow,
will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?
So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’
or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’
All these things the pagans seek.
Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
But seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness,
and all these things will be given you besides.
Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.
Sufficient for a day is its own evil.”
Matthew 6:24-34

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My Treasures

Posted on June 19, 2015 by Spirit Moments

When my life is finally over, I shall be a rich man for I have saved myself some treasure. It is not gold nor money; so no thief will ever be interested in stealing it. It is not physical things nor material possessions; so it will never rot nor be destroyed. It is not something that money can buy.

I have stored memories and the love of family and friends. I have saved all the experiences I have shared with them. I have put together many albums in my mind of the many episodes and stages in life that make up my journey. I have even put in the songs that have been the soundtrack of my life.

My treasure are the people in my life whom I have loved and who have loved me. They will live forever in my heart and memory and so will they in mine. Life indeed is a journey and I cannot imagine my journey any other way than with the family God has given me. There were good days and bad days, days that I was glad and days I was sad. There was laughter and there were the tears. But all in all, the good outweighed the bad; the glad often drowned out the sad. And even the tears were often tears of joy rather than of sadness. I bless the Lord everyday for this gift of family.

The journey of life is a one-way trip to the end, death. And the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. I have chosen to take many turns to make the journey longer and more exciting. I have been blessed with wonderful friends who have met me and joined me in life’s many twists and turns. There have been detours totally unexpected that have brought light and excitement to my life that I would never have imagined possible. There are some detours I should have done earlier and more often. I bless the Lord everyday for this gift of friends.

There are those who store hurts and bitterness. I’d rather store the joys and the blessings I have experienced and have received. Others would store what they have achieved for themselves. I’d rather store what I have done for and with others. There are those who hoard darkness and emptiness. I’d rather revel in the light and the fullness of life.

From all their distress God rescues the just.
~ Psalm 34

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal.
But store up treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

“The lamp of the body is the eye.
If your eye is sound, your whole body will be filled with light;
but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness.
And if the light in you is darkness, how great will the darkness be.”
Matthew 6:19-23

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The Very Words Of Jesus

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Spirit Moments

The Lord’s Prayers, for me, is the most beautiful prayer one can say. it comes from the Lord Himself. These are His very words – ipsissima verba Jesu. Since these come from Him, they provide us a glimpse into the person that He is.

Jesus had a very intimate and tender relationship with God, calling Him ‘Abba’. It was so intimate that He declared that He and the Father are one. Everything He did was in obedience to the Father’s will. Everything He said, He spoke on the authority of the Father. And frequently, often early in the morning, he would leave everything and everyone behind, to be alone in communion with the Father. I can see how He loved the Father and how present he was with Him.

Jesus looks up into the heavens and He sees the glory and grandeur of God. He blesses the Father for everything there is, for everything is an act of the creative love of the Father. Nothing exists unless the Father has willed it into existence. In the unfolding of the universe, everything eventually happens according to the Father’s will.

Because of this, Jesus knows we are totally dependent on the Father. He gives us life – one day at a time. And He gives us everything we need for the day: bread, clothing, shelter, and most of all, love and companionship. It is an awesome thought that the same God and Father who created everything, creates a new day for me every morning and gives me enough till the next one.

God created me as a person with other persons in the world. Just as He is a community of three persons, He wants me to live in community with others in this world. He gave the bread and the earth that produced it to all of us and not just a few. Jesus teaches us love and forgiveness as the way to live in this world. And He teaches us to ask the Father to save us from temptation and evil so that we do not destroy our communion with others; so that just as Jesus and the Father are one, we also remain as one in their love.

It is an amazing feeling saying the words of this prayer and thinking that Jesus spoke these very words Himself. His words are on my lips. May His love live in my heart.

Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth.
~ Psalm 111

Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This is how you are to pray:
‘Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.’”
Matthew 6:7-15

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Hypocrisy

Posted on June 17, 2015 by Spirit Moments

Hypocrisy – the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one’s own behavior does not conform; pretense.

We all wear masks. We all pretend to be somebody else we are not. We put on masks to protect our fragile self. We are afraid that if people knew the real person that we are, they might not love nor like us anymore. Sometimes, we are ashamed of who we are or we do not have the confidence that the person who we are is acceptable or good enough for others. We put on masks to protect ourselves. We may not even be aware of the masks we are wearing. An honest person knows and acknowledges the masks he wears. Knowing the masks we wear helps us to love unconditionally, to love another no matter who or what kind of person hides behind the mask.

Sometimes, we put on masks to fool or take advantage of others. When we use masks to deceive others, we get into or cause trouble. Pretending to be somebody we are not for personal advantage is not only selfish. It is a downright lie. And these are the hypocrites that Jesus rails against in His preaching. He likened them to white-washed sepulchers that look clean and beautiful on the outside but are full of rot and the bones of dead people inside.

Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
~ Psalm 112

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.”
Matthew 6:1-4

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Will Loving Be Ever Easy?

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Spirit Moments

Loving for me these days has been easier than anytime in the past. I am surrounded by people who sincerely care for me and who think the world of me. People in my life today are persons whom I have truly decided to love – no matter what. Really, how can I not be a loving person with people like these in my life?

When I was still employed and working, I would come to the office to face people whose guts I hated and people who could not stand me either. We would often just get into each other’s nerves and on good days, we treated one another with sufferance. But work with them, I must. And somehow we got things done.

Is there virtue in loving when it hardly takes any real effort on my part? Was I a better ‘lover’ when I had to deal with impossible people? Today, there are still people in my life that are my ‘enemies’ who do not seem to be worth loving. Like, dirty politicians, greedy businessmen, crazed extremists and fundamentalists, self-righteous persecutors of believers, selfish polluters of the environment, bigots, etc. I can forgive and love them safely from a distance. Does that count for virtue?

 Love is pure but it often has to be muddied and soiled, Love is beautiful but it has sometimes to confront and deal with ugliness. Love is life-giving but it has often to bear with pain and suffering and sometimes, even death. Love is truth but it has to live with lies. But in the end, love conquers all.

Praise the Lord, my soul!
~ Psalm 146

Jesus said to his disciples:
“You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you, love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your heavenly Father,
for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good,
and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?
Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers only,
what is unusual about that?
Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Matthew 5:43-48

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