Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Wonderful, Beautiful, Glorious, Matchless In Every Way
I get post 444 lol. And yes, I'm listening to Here in Your Presence right now!
Just had to get a few of my thoughts out after coming back from sec 2 camp, despite me being at a loss of words for the wonders and graces God has poured out over the past 3 days. I am extremely humbled and blessed to see God working through the service team and for the ways in which he has touched the participants :') Seriously words don't do Him justice, and I'll just leave it as that - a reminder of His everlasting faithfulness and immense love for each and every one of us.
Remember my sharing on Friday about purification of intentions and wanting to serve in camp out of love and not out of a feeling of responsibility? I praise God for allowing me to do so, and quite easily in fact! I believe that it was because we IMMERSED oursevles in prayer (spiritual prep at 6.45am in the morning zomg. random but annointed coming together in the middle of the day to intercede etc.), and it was from this simple act that God's graces flowed and continued to do so till they were overflowing. This was a reminder to me of the power of prayer, something that I neglect to do so very often when I'm tired, and I've learnt that prayer >>> everything else. I used to complain that even if we pray a lot it is no use when we are tired, and sleep/rest >>> prayer. I assure you that is nonsense, because God was able to take away all my tiredness this morning (and I believe for others in the service team as well) to allow us to serve Him effectively.
Which brings me to my main point, which is for us to immerse ourselves in prayer in preparation for the upcoming core elections. I know it may seem arbitrary at times and like God doesn't actually give us a clear answer on who to vote for, but simply being UNITED in prayer as a community is enough for the Holy Spirit to lead and guide this Sunday. And with all things I have to make a reference to GE 2011 and say that this upcoming core elections is a watershed one (harhar.), with the young ones (potentially) stepping up in core and old guards (Mark Tang, for one) stepping down for some rest. It is really exciting to be on the crux of a revival in LOG's journey, and I ask each one of you to spend time to intercede and lift LOG up in prayer (and don't give the excuse that you don't have time/too tired - been there and done that, and I can tell you that it's rubbish. Haha.)
Last but not least, for those feeling dry and discouraged in their walk with God - remember your own faith journey. Another thing that sec 2 camp has taught me is to look back on OUR own journey, and see how much we have grown. From the litte teeny irritating kiddies with God being nowhere near on our minds to adults who are a little bigger and are hopefully less irritating, allowing God to direct our steps each and every day. Remember the people you have journeyed with during camps and retreats, and marvel at how God has used you as His instrument to allow them to experience Him and to grow in love. We are after all the greatest testaments of His wonder, beauty, glory, and matchlessness.
Keeping y'all in my prayers,
Soo
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Hi friends!
Saturday, May 28, 2011
von says hello!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
SO stop thinking them as only ex-loggers but as people that shared something with you. Maybe that will lossen tongue-tying fears.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
smth tt rly struck me during parish recollection was how fr william kept going on abt e idea tt a group cannot be inward looking - "if u're inward looking, u will die!" the group must look outwards. there must be evangelism. evangelism not in the sense of increasing numbers and bringing more ppl to the faith (altho these are usually side effects). rather, evangelism in the sense of sharing our gifts, our knowledge, and above all, sharing God's word with others. a sharing not simply for the sake of sharing, but a sharing because we hv experienced smth so good and we want other ppl (esp our loved ones) to be part of tt experience.
Monday, May 09, 2011
Hi guys! I know I haven't been around much (and it seems like I've not met LOG in a long while :/), so I'm sorry for not being around and keeping in touch as much as I would like to even though exams are over :(
Anyway loads of people have been asking me how Vocation Discernment Retreat was for me (all expecting I'm gonna become a priest, hah.) so here's a post for me to jot down my reflections and so that I won't have to keep repeating myself!
My reason for going for the retreat was a decision made after a very confusing night of ado at CSC, due to the restlessness and questions in my heart. Prior to that I did consider going but reasons such as it being just after the exams and the fact that I just got into a relationship made me swing the other way. I guess God does have a plan for each one of us and I'm really really glad that I made the choice to take that leap of faith, despite all the fear I had within me.
Renewal of my Commitment to Jesus
This was my first take away from the retreat, which was a call for me to realign myself to living a full and meaningful Christian life. School has definitely taken its toll on my spiritual life and I found myself giving excuse after excuse for not maintaining a proper prayer life and for slacking off in many ways. I'm blessed to have been immersed in prayer (divine office, praise and worship, adoration, meditation, mass) during the retreat and that really reminded me of my first call to love Him, and to immerse myself in His presence.
Another important reminder was that of the need to steep oneself in SCRIPTURE (which ironically we call the Word of God but choose to ignore). This was a message that was constantly being emphasised by Fr. Alex, Fr. William and even the Archbishop himself. It is the Word of God that forms us, guides us, challenges us, and encourages us, through the action of the Holy Spirit who uses these words to prompt our hearts. My "back to holiness" regimen consists of meditating on the day's reading and Gospel, and I urge each of you (especially those on holidays) to join me in this journey (:
Reconciliation
Ahh, I had a pretty good confession this time round, and witnessed the power of being really sincere in confessing my sins. I was struggling a lot with fear that I might be called to be His priest, and how that might impact my current relationship with Gwen, and came to a realisation that I may have been suprressing and ignoring God's voice out of this fear. It was through the Sacrament of Reconciliation that I was able to ask for the grace to let go of my own perspective of what I thought was the best for me , and instead embrace what God knows is the best for me
The phrase that describes this experience would be a "liberation to love". It was a liberation to love God, and to avail myself to be open to whatever call He has in store for me. At the same time, it was a liberation to love Gwen more fully, by allowing myself to be honest with her since the question of my vocation is not a question to be answered by myself alone, but by the both of us. I felt so free after confession and I was able to adore the blessed sacrament so much more. If we have been struggling with hearing God's voice and wondering where He is, look no further - an HONEST confession is the key to returning to His heart.
Is there a call?
So that brings me back to the question (which I bet all of you are dying to ask): Am I called to priesthood? Honestly, I do not know. It feels as if this is a proper start of my discernment journey, after the realisation that I have to be honest with myself (and others) if I want to avail myself to God completely. One thing is for sure, and that is that I'm not closing the door towards a priestly vocation anytime soon, till God shows me otherwise. There is much to do now - sorting out the various emotions and feelings within my heart and discerning the source of them, but I am glad that I am able to do this with an open heart and willingness to embrace His plan for me.
One important thing that I realised is that the discernment of our individual vocation should not be our focus and sole concern. What should be preoccupying our minds 24/7 should be the deepening of our intimacy of the Lord. I remember someone asking Fr. William "how do you know if you love God?". His answer struck me as something so simple yet true, "you know you love someone when you desire intimacy". The discovery and acceptance of our vocation is the result of the love we have for the Lord, and should not be the end point or ultimate goal.
Of course, this does not mean we do not think about what God is calling us to be at all, for that would be an avoidance of something so integral to our lives. Br. Sam shared with me that the reason why so many marriages are failing is possibly due to the fact that marriage is not their vocation! Vocation is a way of living, and that way of living corresponds to how best (based on our gifts, charisms etc) we can love God. It is with this that I end this note, and encourage ALL guys to keep an open mind about priesthood as a vocation, and to take that leap of faith and answer His call when you do feel prompted to find out more.
The next Vocation Discernment Retreat is in the first week of August, I won't be able to go since I'll be flying off to Madrid for WYD 2011, but I recommend all you guys to go for it (: And for those attached, please ask for the blessings of your other half before going! :D
Love,
Soo
Friday, May 06, 2011
hey log,
just want to share something with yall today that i've been feeling for a while now. guess it started with my fb note on TOB that ruffled feathers of BASIC.
i feel misunderstood. i feel a little victimized. and i'm tired of feeling like im fighting a lonely battle. somehow i feel that i'm seem as a person who likes to argue and will argue until i win the argument. seen as a person who has strong opinions. even seen as a person who is really serious, fierce, absolute and unable to negotiate with. i don't know where that impression comes from, which i think does exist to a certain extent. i get the vibe that people are wary of me judging them to say what is wrong or right sometimes. im not just talking about within the community, but within the ym.
it just so happens that rachel posts a video on my wall, tagging me and Mel. and i go on to comment that it is just common rhetoric, and the bantering goes on. perhaps its my phrasing, or the lack of it, that causes my words to be misconstrued as being really strong and mildly offensive. but i obviously never have the intention too. i just have the habit of wanting people to understand my point and in questioning their argument, i may have been too frank. yet i do not believe in leaving an argument hanging because i do not wish to cause any ill feelings (which i do not aim to do so anyway). i doubt any ill feelings happen in my writing class when we debate and discuss, and that is precisely what i treat it as! and in comes Gracemary who just really places an unfair judgement on what i was arguing about and conveniently refuse to hear my defence. i feel so victimized, so misunderstood. what is wrong with just arguing my point?
that tipped the scale today and also made me snap at Cheryl in Good Shepherd. I had a long talk with her after that and I do feel better. I also felt the prompting to share it with you guys because i also get the vibes from yall sometimes. back to the topic on TOB, i've told Mel and Soo that I'm tired of fighting for it, lest even teaching it now to core leaders. though its a group that is championing it, because of that FB note and because i was YMC chairman, i feel like im the front of the fight and i'm bearing the brunt of it. im tired, really.
i also shared with cheryl that i am really uncomfortable stepping into church with the fear that it is possible that my peers would argue against me on the teachings of the church. im not referring to the TOB per se, but its just an innate fear that people would challenge me on the notions of homosexual unions or contraception. this innate fear comes from, perhaps, previous experiences of me wanting to preach or argue for the Church's teachings but get slammed or am asked to be open to others' opinions. but the truth is that, there can't be any leeway for Church's teachings if we are to believe in the Risen Lord. i fear that even though on a surface level we reject the ways of the world, part of our perception has already been influenced by the world. and at that thought, i shudder, because i have not much energy to fight the world anymore. furthermore, i think i'm seem as a rule-by-rule person who doesn't allow leeway, who doesn't want compromise.
i'm not that kind of person, i implore yall to understand me. im tired and i do need a rest. that is also why i keep saying i won't be in core the next round because i ask of yall to grant me this rest or sabbatical. i look forward to WYD to renew my own faith and conviction and to spend a semester overseas to really be free and to pray. to be with God without worrying of doing ministry. these 2.5 years have been quite tiring to be honest. and i ask yall brothers and sisters to pray for me as I accept this cross of mine and to carry it with me.
mark
Sunday, May 01, 2011
Beatification of Pope John Paul II
Wonderful, Beautiful, Glorious, Matchless In Every Way
I get post 444 lol. And yes, I'm listening to Here in Your Presence right now!
Just had to get a few of my thoughts out after coming back from sec 2 camp, despite me being at a loss of words for the wonders and graces God has poured out over the past 3 days. I am extremely humbled and blessed to see God working through the service team and for the ways in which he has touched the participants :') Seriously words don't do Him justice, and I'll just leave it as that - a reminder of His everlasting faithfulness and immense love for each and every one of us.
Remember my sharing on Friday about purification of intentions and wanting to serve in camp out of love and not out of a feeling of responsibility? I praise God for allowing me to do so, and quite easily in fact! I believe that it was because we IMMERSED oursevles in prayer (spiritual prep at 6.45am in the morning zomg. random but annointed coming together in the middle of the day to intercede etc.), and it was from this simple act that God's graces flowed and continued to do so till they were overflowing. This was a reminder to me of the power of prayer, something that I neglect to do so very often when I'm tired, and I've learnt that prayer >>> everything else. I used to complain that even if we pray a lot it is no use when we are tired, and sleep/rest >>> prayer. I assure you that is nonsense, because God was able to take away all my tiredness this morning (and I believe for others in the service team as well) to allow us to serve Him effectively.
Which brings me to my main point, which is for us to immerse ourselves in prayer in preparation for the upcoming core elections. I know it may seem arbitrary at times and like God doesn't actually give us a clear answer on who to vote for, but simply being UNITED in prayer as a community is enough for the Holy Spirit to lead and guide this Sunday. And with all things I have to make a reference to GE 2011 and say that this upcoming core elections is a watershed one (harhar.), with the young ones (potentially) stepping up in core and old guards (Mark Tang, for one) stepping down for some rest. It is really exciting to be on the crux of a revival in LOG's journey, and I ask each one of you to spend time to intercede and lift LOG up in prayer (and don't give the excuse that you don't have time/too tired - been there and done that, and I can tell you that it's rubbish. Haha.)
Last but not least, for those feeling dry and discouraged in their walk with God - remember your own faith journey. Another thing that sec 2 camp has taught me is to look back on OUR own journey, and see how much we have grown. From the litte teeny irritating kiddies with God being nowhere near on our minds to adults who are a little bigger and are hopefully less irritating, allowing God to direct our steps each and every day. Remember the people you have journeyed with during camps and retreats, and marvel at how God has used you as His instrument to allow them to experience Him and to grow in love. We are after all the greatest testaments of His wonder, beauty, glory, and matchlessness.
Keeping y'all in my prayers,
Soo
1 Comments:
you sure your post is 444? got a lot of unposted ones. got some duplicates in there
______________________________________________Sunday, May 29, 2011
Hi friends!
Alex here! Feeling kinda burdened by the many many many things happening this hols. Doesn't really seem like I'll have time to catch my breath (even with the less-than-two-weeks buffer period before US). Dk why, been really really annoyed recently. That's probably why I didn't share on friday (sorry :/) - didn't want to launch into a mass of angsty rants. But at the same time, I keep asking God like why he puts me in certain situations. Like now, I'm actually most annoyed that I'm going for pre u sem tomorrow. It was a horrid choice, or at least it seems that way, cuz I'm missing sec two camp and like, I don't know ANYTHING about current affairs, at all. Kinda have this feeling that I'll be bored out of my wits. To put the icing on the cake, we were told that due to safety reasons, we can't attend ascension mass. And maybe it's just me and my little-girl, micro view but I'm pretty upset la (see what i mean, ANGST). Anyway, guess what I wanted to say was, pray for me please! Cuz everything is moving too fast and too differently from the way I expected. And visit Mars and I at PGPR (I think that's what it's called) if you guys are in school! I promise I'll put on my happy face!
Hope y'all are having fun at sec two camp, have a great week!
Love, Alex.
2 Comments:
hey alex, I can understand how you feel. I get this feeling when I want too much things and when my plate becomes full, I wonder why I had to stack it up so high. However, there's no point angsting over it now but take this opportunity to pray about choices and to discern about a purpose that God is urging you towards. you'll know what i mean soon enough =)
By 
mark.tang,
May 29, 2011 10:00 PM
totallyyyyyy understands. i have a preoccupation with making my calendar multi-colored~ so when i'm bored i see where it looks too empty so tt i can color it more ._. and end up rushing from place to place and complaining tt i hv not enough rest and tt i'm busier than i am during school period. sighs.
By 
,
May 31, 2011 8:11 PM
Saturday, May 28, 2011
von says hello!
thought i better blog this while it is still fresh in my mind. what i said in response to kong's sharing, i meant it. to let yourself be taken advantage of, is easier to get to heaven. (sentence is a bit cui but you get the idea) we learn in 'love and responsibility' that the opposite of loving is not hating, the opposite of loving is using a person. and for me the reverse is true: loving the person is letting the person use you.
i struggle a lot with letting someone take advantage of me, only with one person, and that is my mum. it isn't easy at all to practice what i preach, in fact i am still struggling everyday. similarly, it must be very extremely challenging for each person in their own situation. sometimes, i tell myself to stand up for myself is to love myself. but then i rmb, others before self. its okay to love myself i guess, but if i put myself before others, then i am not living the christian way, the way god meant us to live.
"Lord, teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I do your will."
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I do your will."
-Prayer of Generosity by St. Ignatius of Loyola-
1 Comments:
hur. the font size changed by itself! lol. god says, here, this needs a bit more emphasis! :p
By ,
May 28, 2011 2:36 AM
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Hullo good morning,
Why the fixation on those who left? Maybe it is because we feel a loss as individuals & friends. Maybe they were friends. Maybe they were just hi bye people to us. Maybe they once were close then you fell apart due to whatever it is. We also find it awkward to speak to someone once so close.
Perhaps it is time to examine why God gave us this attachment or regret. recall last friday's bible sharing there was a thing about how heaven is. What my heaven includes is that i would once again meet, not just meet, but share lives with people that crossed my path in life & possibly including others.
Simply, right now in this lives, if we choose not to include others, especially people who had been near & perhaps dear to us, what makes us think we would enter heaven in which we are able to love as god loves?
Not that we should go all out to bring people back. We are rather finite. But we should really try to love them by keeping them in our hearts & prayers, in hope that in god we will have lives together. & also, treasure the people we have with us now. Smile at a memory or 2 of those who were dear to us. Reconcile if you have to.
Night
SO stop thinking them as only ex-loggers but as people that shared something with you. Maybe that will lossen tongue-tying fears.
0 Comments:
______________________________________________Thursday, May 19, 2011
smth tt rly struck me during parish recollection was how fr william kept going on abt e idea tt a group cannot be inward looking - "if u're inward looking, u will die!" the group must look outwards. there must be evangelism. evangelism not in the sense of increasing numbers and bringing more ppl to the faith (altho these are usually side effects). rather, evangelism in the sense of sharing our gifts, our knowledge, and above all, sharing God's word with others. a sharing not simply for the sake of sharing, but a sharing because we hv experienced smth so good and we want other ppl (esp our loved ones) to be part of tt experience.
fr william also said, "don't tell me about your vision; tell me about your mission." i think for most of e youth communities, our vision is community itself - a grp of brothers and sisters who love each other and are willing to give ourselves for one another. but what then is our mission?
it made me question the vision and mission of log. it made me question e entire concept of a community, in fact. if we as communities exist simply for being community, are we rly on e right path?
we floated an idea ard before: tt to reach out to others, we first hv to form ourselves. but i don't think tt's a wholly accurate structure. maybe in reaching outwards, we ourselves get formed internally. in giving, we receive. in doing, we grow.
my own ideas on these issues are not v coherent yet. i'm just bouncing them off here, because i think it's a gd time to think abt them since we're gonna discuss such matters on sunday.
mel
0 Comments:
______________________________________________Monday, May 09, 2011
Hi guys! I know I haven't been around much (and it seems like I've not met LOG in a long while :/), so I'm sorry for not being around and keeping in touch as much as I would like to even though exams are over :(
Anyway loads of people have been asking me how Vocation Discernment Retreat was for me (all expecting I'm gonna become a priest, hah.) so here's a post for me to jot down my reflections and so that I won't have to keep repeating myself!
My reason for going for the retreat was a decision made after a very confusing night of ado at CSC, due to the restlessness and questions in my heart. Prior to that I did consider going but reasons such as it being just after the exams and the fact that I just got into a relationship made me swing the other way. I guess God does have a plan for each one of us and I'm really really glad that I made the choice to take that leap of faith, despite all the fear I had within me.
Renewal of my Commitment to Jesus
This was my first take away from the retreat, which was a call for me to realign myself to living a full and meaningful Christian life. School has definitely taken its toll on my spiritual life and I found myself giving excuse after excuse for not maintaining a proper prayer life and for slacking off in many ways. I'm blessed to have been immersed in prayer (divine office, praise and worship, adoration, meditation, mass) during the retreat and that really reminded me of my first call to love Him, and to immerse myself in His presence.
Another important reminder was that of the need to steep oneself in SCRIPTURE (which ironically we call the Word of God but choose to ignore). This was a message that was constantly being emphasised by Fr. Alex, Fr. William and even the Archbishop himself. It is the Word of God that forms us, guides us, challenges us, and encourages us, through the action of the Holy Spirit who uses these words to prompt our hearts. My "back to holiness" regimen consists of meditating on the day's reading and Gospel, and I urge each of you (especially those on holidays) to join me in this journey (:
Reconciliation
Ahh, I had a pretty good confession this time round, and witnessed the power of being really sincere in confessing my sins. I was struggling a lot with fear that I might be called to be His priest, and how that might impact my current relationship with Gwen, and came to a realisation that I may have been suprressing and ignoring God's voice out of this fear. It was through the Sacrament of Reconciliation that I was able to ask for the grace to let go of my own perspective of what I thought was the best for me , and instead embrace what God knows is the best for me
The phrase that describes this experience would be a "liberation to love". It was a liberation to love God, and to avail myself to be open to whatever call He has in store for me. At the same time, it was a liberation to love Gwen more fully, by allowing myself to be honest with her since the question of my vocation is not a question to be answered by myself alone, but by the both of us. I felt so free after confession and I was able to adore the blessed sacrament so much more. If we have been struggling with hearing God's voice and wondering where He is, look no further - an HONEST confession is the key to returning to His heart.
Is there a call?
So that brings me back to the question (which I bet all of you are dying to ask): Am I called to priesthood? Honestly, I do not know. It feels as if this is a proper start of my discernment journey, after the realisation that I have to be honest with myself (and others) if I want to avail myself to God completely. One thing is for sure, and that is that I'm not closing the door towards a priestly vocation anytime soon, till God shows me otherwise. There is much to do now - sorting out the various emotions and feelings within my heart and discerning the source of them, but I am glad that I am able to do this with an open heart and willingness to embrace His plan for me.
One important thing that I realised is that the discernment of our individual vocation should not be our focus and sole concern. What should be preoccupying our minds 24/7 should be the deepening of our intimacy of the Lord. I remember someone asking Fr. William "how do you know if you love God?". His answer struck me as something so simple yet true, "you know you love someone when you desire intimacy". The discovery and acceptance of our vocation is the result of the love we have for the Lord, and should not be the end point or ultimate goal.
Of course, this does not mean we do not think about what God is calling us to be at all, for that would be an avoidance of something so integral to our lives. Br. Sam shared with me that the reason why so many marriages are failing is possibly due to the fact that marriage is not their vocation! Vocation is a way of living, and that way of living corresponds to how best (based on our gifts, charisms etc) we can love God. It is with this that I end this note, and encourage ALL guys to keep an open mind about priesthood as a vocation, and to take that leap of faith and answer His call when you do feel prompted to find out more.
The next Vocation Discernment Retreat is in the first week of August, I won't be able to go since I'll be flying off to Madrid for WYD 2011, but I recommend all you guys to go for it (: And for those attached, please ask for the blessings of your other half before going! :D
Love,
Soo
0 Comments:
______________________________________________Friday, May 06, 2011
hey log,
just want to share something with yall today that i've been feeling for a while now. guess it started with my fb note on TOB that ruffled feathers of BASIC.
i feel misunderstood. i feel a little victimized. and i'm tired of feeling like im fighting a lonely battle. somehow i feel that i'm seem as a person who likes to argue and will argue until i win the argument. seen as a person who has strong opinions. even seen as a person who is really serious, fierce, absolute and unable to negotiate with. i don't know where that impression comes from, which i think does exist to a certain extent. i get the vibe that people are wary of me judging them to say what is wrong or right sometimes. im not just talking about within the community, but within the ym.
it just so happens that rachel posts a video on my wall, tagging me and Mel. and i go on to comment that it is just common rhetoric, and the bantering goes on. perhaps its my phrasing, or the lack of it, that causes my words to be misconstrued as being really strong and mildly offensive. but i obviously never have the intention too. i just have the habit of wanting people to understand my point and in questioning their argument, i may have been too frank. yet i do not believe in leaving an argument hanging because i do not wish to cause any ill feelings (which i do not aim to do so anyway). i doubt any ill feelings happen in my writing class when we debate and discuss, and that is precisely what i treat it as! and in comes Gracemary who just really places an unfair judgement on what i was arguing about and conveniently refuse to hear my defence. i feel so victimized, so misunderstood. what is wrong with just arguing my point?
that tipped the scale today and also made me snap at Cheryl in Good Shepherd. I had a long talk with her after that and I do feel better. I also felt the prompting to share it with you guys because i also get the vibes from yall sometimes. back to the topic on TOB, i've told Mel and Soo that I'm tired of fighting for it, lest even teaching it now to core leaders. though its a group that is championing it, because of that FB note and because i was YMC chairman, i feel like im the front of the fight and i'm bearing the brunt of it. im tired, really.
i also shared with cheryl that i am really uncomfortable stepping into church with the fear that it is possible that my peers would argue against me on the teachings of the church. im not referring to the TOB per se, but its just an innate fear that people would challenge me on the notions of homosexual unions or contraception. this innate fear comes from, perhaps, previous experiences of me wanting to preach or argue for the Church's teachings but get slammed or am asked to be open to others' opinions. but the truth is that, there can't be any leeway for Church's teachings if we are to believe in the Risen Lord. i fear that even though on a surface level we reject the ways of the world, part of our perception has already been influenced by the world. and at that thought, i shudder, because i have not much energy to fight the world anymore. furthermore, i think i'm seem as a rule-by-rule person who doesn't allow leeway, who doesn't want compromise.
i'm not that kind of person, i implore yall to understand me. im tired and i do need a rest. that is also why i keep saying i won't be in core the next round because i ask of yall to grant me this rest or sabbatical. i look forward to WYD to renew my own faith and conviction and to spend a semester overseas to really be free and to pray. to be with God without worrying of doing ministry. these 2.5 years have been quite tiring to be honest. and i ask yall brothers and sisters to pray for me as I accept this cross of mine and to carry it with me.
mark
1 Comments:
Thanks mark for sharing :) I honestly find no qualms with this, perhaps it's just my nature but yeah... I always felt that just as we are to be refined into pure silver through the heat of the flame by our God, our faith has to be tempered through some form of challenge; logical debate and arguement is one such form. The church would always need people to question, ask and further temper our faith for the coming of the Kingdom of God. Take heart.
Love,
Andrew
Sunday, May 01, 2011
Beatification of Pope John Paul II
I spent 3 hours watching the live streaming of Blessed Pope John Paul II’s beatification mass. It was a completely spirit-filled experience and I’ll try to capture as much of my thoughts and emotions in words.
Mass began with the incensing of the altar, the Kyrie and then the beatification rite. The Vicar-General of Rome came up and presented his request for the Pope to beatify John Paul II and he read out his life story – his background, his rise to becoming Pope and his many contributions to the Church. As I listened to the life story of this man, I broke down and really really cried.
I guess I came to a complete realization of how much he has moulded my spiritual life, even though we have never even met before. Love and responsibility and Theology of the Body heightens my understanding of God’s bigger purpose in creation, the dignity of a human person, marriage, relationships.. The Second Vatican Council, the chance to celebrate Mass in English. Lumen Gentium, the universal call to holiness. World Youth Day. Divine Mercy. Eucharistic Adoration. I was really touched by how a man was so open to God, and through that openness, goodness flowed through him and manifested itself in theology, worship and events.
I broke down again during Pope Benedict’s homily. Blessed Pope John Paul II’s whole life was a prayer to God, a willing yes to all of God’s plans and an expression of God’s love. A life based on faith. Hearing about it truly reminded me of my own daily call to holiness and sainthood. His life showed me that it’s possible. I can’t fully explain in words how I felt in those moments.. It was as though I heard the truth for the very first time – the truth of God’s amazing love for me, the truth of salvation and redemption. That truth moves you from the deepest recesses of your soul and it brings so much hope with it. I’m probably still riding on the emotions of those few hours (and the high will die down), but I believe it is God’s universal call to each and every one of us for holiness and for our lives to be an expression of love and obedience to his will. In so doing, may our lives be fruitful.
So to end off.. A quote which Pope Benedict shared in his homily really stuck with me. It’s the words of Blessed Pope John Paul II in his first mass as Pope, “Do not be afraid, Open, open wide the doors to Christ”. I think this powerful message is for all of us to hear. “Do not be afraid, Open, open wide the doors to Christ”.
Pope Benedict’s homily can be found here: http://communio.stblogs.org/2011/05/pope-benedict-xvi-homily-for-j.html
Have a good week ahead.
Love, Jess
1 Comments:
JP2 somehow holds a special place in my heart.
By T.SwEE,
May 04, 2011 7:40 PM