I Take off the MASK!

Glory not in riches, if you have them, nor in friends, because they are powerful; but in God, who gives all things, and desires to give himself above all things. – Thomas Kempis

Who could tell what could happen tomorrow? Those who are rich could suddenly find themselves poor. Those who are laughing could suddenly find themselves weeping. Those who are proud could find themselves humbled. Those who have many friends could find themselves all alone.

On the other hand, those who are poor could suddenly find themselves rich. Those who are weeping could find themselves able to smile and laugh. Those who are humble could find themselves lifted up by God. And those who are alone may find family and friends who will really love them.

Who could tell what the future holds? Only God can. And we trust the One who holds our future. We trust in His wisdom, in His power, and in His love.

It is very easy for the Lord to make a poor person suddenly rich. Devout people will receive the Lord’s blessing as their reward, and that blessing can be given in a moment. Don’t be concerned about what you need, or what success the future holds for you. On the other hand, don’t think that you have everything you need or that nothing can go wrong for you in the future. When things are going well, people don’t think about hard times; and when things are going badly, they forget about prosperity. The Lord can easily wait until the day of our death to reward or punish us. At that time our deeds are open for all to see… – Sirach 11:21-27, GNT

Faith, which sees the love of God revealed in the pierced heart of Jesus on the Cross, gives rise to love. Love is the light—and in the end, the only light—that can always illuminate a world grown dim and give us the courage needed to keep living and working. – Pope Benedict XVI

You’ve got to have faith. God has not failed you yet, and God never will!

When you go to Him in prayer, will He not hear you? Will He not have mercy on you? And if He gives you His mercy, will He hold back any good thing from you?

Is God so unloving that He will not provide for the needs of His children? Or is God so weak that He cannot have the power to grant us what is good for us?

Have faith for God is love. Love only desires to give good things. And if He cannot grant us exactly what we asked, we have the comfort of knowing He will give us what is even better!

Return to your rest, my soul,
for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.
For you have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,
and my feet from falling.
-Psalm 116:7-8, WEB-BE

Let me look upward into the branches of the towering oak and know that it grew great and strong because it grew slowly and well. – Wilfred Peterson

There is a love that has grown slowly yet ever so deeply. This kind of love is not one that arrives with a lot of noise, excitement and thrill. It is not a love that promises much yet fails to live up to its own promises.

Rather, this love is a love that grew little by little. It became faithful from day to day and grew stronger through time. It is a love that was able to hang on in good times and in bad, in exciting times and in seemingly boring days. It is a love that has learned to be patient. And because it has been patient, it has grown deep.

When it grew deeply, this love could not be brought down anymore by any passing storm. Its roots could no longer be torn away by fierce winds. It has become a love that can withstand what’s difficult and tough because it is firmly planted in faith, hope and true humility.

This is a love that can truly last: a deep, abiding and faithful love.

Many men claim to be men of unfailing love,
but who can find a faithful man?
-Proverbs 20:6, WEB-BE

It is not enough to be busy… The question is: What are we busy about? – Henry David Thoreau

Our busy world seems to tell us that as long as we are busy doing something, we’re already busy being good people. But is that the case? Have we thought about how well we’re spending our time daily? Have we been so caught up in the hectic schedule of our days that we easily get irritated when we’re interrupted or when somebody delays what we wanted to accomplish?

Don’t be so busy that you don’t have time anymore to be good. Don’t be too busy that you don’t have the time anymore to lend a hand. Don’t be too busy that you don’t have time anymore to smile. Don’t be too busy that you don’t have time anymore to be patient. Don’t be too busy that you don’t have time anymore to love.

But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came up to him, and said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister left me to serve alone? Ask her therefore to help me.” Jesus answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the good part, which will not be taken away from her.” – Luke 10:40-42, WEB-BE

It is useless to meet revenge with revenge: it will heal nothing. – Frodo Baggins

It’s seem so easy when we talk about forgiveness, but it’s never easy when we are the ones hurt. But we can take comfort in knowing that when God forgave us,He also took all the pain and hurt. He doesn’t offer us cheap forgiveness.

Whenever Jesus Christ extends His merciful heart to us, we know that such a heart was not a heart that remained safe in a faraway heaven, but a heart that has been pierced, a heart that is gravely wounded and that knows how it is to suffer.

Let us pray that we may know Jesus’ mercy more, that we may learn more of His passion and suffering so that we may also learn from Him how it is to forgive.

When we forgive, we stop expecting healing from the person who hurt us. We instead ask for healing from God, the only one who can bind up our wounds and make us whole again.

Confess your offences to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. – James 5:16, WEB-BE