Monday, December 7, 2009

We Sow and We Reap

Sow a thought, reap an act.
Sow an act, reap a habit.
Sow a habit, reap a character.
Sow a character, reap a destiny.

--Taken from Peter Kreeft’s “Fundamentals of the Faith”

This hit me hard when I read it, because it is true. It is so easy for fallen human beings to go from a single thought to a destiny, without even realizing it.

It reminds me of an F. Scott Fitzgerald quote: “Have a drink. The drink has a drink. And the drink has you.”

All it takes is the seed of evil to be planted within us, and an entire garden of bad fruit can grow, and ultimately devour our paths toward God.

Jesus said, “Love thy neighbor,” for a reason. He also taught us to pray to the Father by saying “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us,” for a reason. We cannot enter the gates of Heaven with any hate in us, just as we are turned down at the stadium if we are carrying a firearm. There are no exceptions—leave the gun behind, and you shall enter the stadium, leave the hate behind, we shall enter into God’s Stadium.

Therefore, human relationships are the most important possessions we have on earth, because it is a direct connection between one of God’s creations with another. God’s LOVE connected with God’s LOVE.

Just as it is hard for an alcoholic to acknowledge his addiction when surrounded by other alcoholics in a bar, it is hard for two people to acknowledge that they are in a sinful union until they are apart. That is why so many people stay within the “comfort zone” of an abusive relationship, because by leaving it, they will have to acknowledge it is truly abusive.

The difference is that two human beings make up a marriage (union with God), whereas a human and a material item (alcohol, products of shopping, pornography, etc) make up no relationship at all, but rather, a sinful disillusion.

Human beings can find God’s LIGHT, the path of righteousness, and follow it, but a material object will forever be a material object, and a material object will NEVER bring you happiness, because happiness is God.

The drunk must eliminate the booze to get better. Human beings, to get better, need each other. Even the most holy of saints needed other people, because if there were no other people, there would have been no one to pray for.

We all sow thoughts into actions, actions into habits, habits into characters, and characters into destinies. We do not have a choice, because we all have a destiny. And we cannot control our every thought, therefore, bad seeds will exist in the garden. But a good farmer tends to his fields. A good farmer does not allow the bad seeds to overcome the good seeds, otherwise he ends up with a harvest full of bad crops.

Just as the good farmer possesses the necessary tools of discovering the bad seeds before they grow into plants, God provides us the necessary tools of discovering the bad thoughts we sow into actions, and so on, and so on.

Because of free will, it is up to us to tend our fields. That is, if we would like a profitable harvest.

Love and GOD Forever!
Anthony Paul

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Why We Look to the Sky

“If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is void of content and your faith is empty too…If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless. You are still in your sins…If our hopes in Christ are limited to this life only, we are the most pitiable of all men.”
--1 Corinthians 15:14, 17, 19

To paraphrase Bishop Fulton Sheen ‘Christ is the only person ever born to die.’ The reason for this is the Resurrection. If Christ would not have suffered and died on Calvary, He would not have resurrected from the dead, and ascended into Heaven, thus raising us from the death of our sins, and making us, not worthy (for we can never be worthy), but made possible to reach salvation.

It can be said that the Resurrection is the cornerstone, the absolute foundation of Christianity—His Church. If we deny the Resurrection we deny our own salvation, which is what our hearts most fervently desire. We are put on this earth as preparation for the homeland—Heaven. And we can only reach the homeland if we are invited by the homeland’s resident landlord—God.

If you or I were to greatly offend and hurt another person, as far as brutally murdering the person’s only son with no remorse, would we expect that person to welcome us into their home with open arms? We wouldn’t even ask.

Yet, we feel as if we can do it to God? The Creator? He who made us with and through His LOVE, and continues to forgive us our trespasses time after time?

Sounds pretty naïve and foolish to me.

“If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless, you are still in your sins…”

What is the point of believing anything if we do not believe in the Resurrection? We can believe every other facet of Christ’s life, however large or minute, but what would it matter? We have to believe ALL of it! Just as a car needs an ignition (the Annunciation) to start the engine, it needs a gas pedal (the Resurrection) to allow the car to propel forward to its destination (Heaven).

Lastly, “If our hopes in Christ are limited to this life only, we are the most pitiable of all men.”

Christ came down to this earth, professed the Father’s Word, and endured His Passion, so the gates of Heaven would swing open, making it possible for us to enter our REAL lives—a life with God. If there is no Heaven, no life after this world, we are already living in hell!

Love and GOD Forever!
Anthony Paul

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Live Right Now; Not for Yourself but Others

“Now is no time to think of what you do not have. Think of what you you can do with what there is.”
--The Old Man and the Sea

I was struggling today while saying my mid-day prayers. I was feeling helpless, and fighting as hard as I could to keep from feeling hopeless. Aside from the physical discomfort of doubt and anxiety, I feel great spiritual emptiness when I allow doubt and anxiety to overcome me—I feel it is a great offense to God, a lack of faith and trust in Him.

Why should I expect to have anything more than what I have at the moment?

Why should I feel as if what I have—from Him—at the moment, is not good enough?

Often I see people sitting with others, looking down at the i-Phone or Blackberry in their hands, rather than appreciating the person right in front of them. And not just a person but a creation made from, by, and for God’s LOVE.

How often do we sit down with others for a meal in front of the television? Or not with each other at all, but in separate rooms?

How often do we kneel down alongside one another and pray together?

How often do we thank God for the present moment? How often do we look towards the sky, or bow our heads in reverence, and thank Him for providing such a beautiful day? And not just the sunny and warm days, without a cloud in the sky, but the cold, dreary, rainy days, as well? Every day is beautiful, and should be accepted as a blessing and gift from God!

I have tried my best to offer such short prayers to God, during all moments of my day, and I feel at peace, knowing that He is happy, and He will continue to bless me.

Very recently, I have been more mindful of these things, but I still have my shortfalls. I feel more and more homesick than ever, and I keep telling myself that I only have one month until I am near many dearly beloved family members and friends. But then, I try to remind myself that I am ALWAYS near dearly beloved family and friends—no matter where I am—because, not only is God ALWAYS with me, but every person I pass is a family member—brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus.

“Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”
--Luke 10:20

I hope and pray that my name is written in heaven, but I have been trying to pray more and more each day, that as many names as possible, will be written next to mine.

Love and GOD FOREVER,
Anthony Paul