Everything cooked in the oven turned out just right!
Yesterday I was just wondering about the neighborhood pizza place, what they served there, what their hours were, etc., because I had never been there before. Today, I went to get the mail and guess what was there?! 2 flyers and coupons from the neighborhood pizza place!
God supplying all of our needs and giving us our daily bread in abundance!
So many wise older adults at church for me to learn from and they are such great examples by the self-denying, pious way they live. I am so blessed to be able to learn from them!
Recently while planning the Summer Fair Ministry Booth, disagreements rose among members of the planning team. Someone with whom I was good friends suddenly became unkind and offensive toward me. I prayed that Jesus would help us all to live in peace, love, and harmony and restore our fellowship with one another, since we are One Body in Christ. Today, we had a planning meeting at church and I felt the Holy Spirit acting through me. The way that God restores and heals relationships is by making us die unto ourselves (our ego, our pride, our selfishness, our ways, our opinions), treating them not the way they treat us but by loving them unconditionally, finding things to agree on, helping us to focus on providing for the other person’s needs (not our own), and by giving to them. If we recall our early childhood, many friends are formed because one child gave or shared something with another. As soon as I had the opportunity to talk to her, I offered her oranges, which she accepted. She gave me an odd look at first, but I continued to smile and be friendly. Then for the meeting, I motioned my hand for her join us. During the meeting, I enthusiastically agreed with several points she made and listened to her speak when everyone else wasn’t. Very quickly, she started to smile at me again and we were talking like the friends we were before. She even made a positive remark toward the work I did so far. After the meeting, I continued to look out for her interests and noticed that there were no vegetarian options available at the lunch provided at church. I apologized to her and told her that we should’ve been more considerate to everyone’s nutritional diets. Afterwards, I went to pick up donations for the Ministry Booth and when I returned to church a few hours later, I saw her again. I greeted her joyfully and enthusiastically. Finally, when I was leaving to go home, I specifically acknowledged her and bid her farewell. She responded well and everything between us was OK again. This was such a relief and a tremendous blessing! Thank you God! “If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing. Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but also everyone for those of others” (Philippians 2:1-4).
On my walk to church this morning, I encountered a homeless man sleeping under a bridge. I happened to be carrying a large bag of oranges and cereal that I was going to donate to church. When I first passed by this man, I had a strong desire to give him something. Then I thought, “If I talk to him or give him something, he might follow me” and the road that I was on was very quiet and empty with no one in sight. But then I quickly realized that this thought was a focus on the self instead of on others. I felt moved by the Holy Spirit to give him something and I knew that God would protect me from harm, as He always does. God lets me take care of others and God takes care of me. So I turned around and offered him an orange, but he said “No, thank you.” What touched me was how grateful he was. He was lying down under layers of blankets and he may have just woken up. He was so gracious and immediately got up just because I was talking to him, like he didn’t want to be an inconvenience to people. He surprised me by how polite and courteous he was! He was such a gentleman and I was able to see Jesus through him. What a blessing this man was to me and I would not have received this blessing had I decided not to turn around and talk to him! After he refused the orange, I thought about how thirsty I am every morning when I wake up and how everyone needs water. Maybe this man needs water. So I offered him water and he said yes! I also got the opportunity to wish him a good day! Very grateful for every opportunity that God gives me to perform the corporal works of mercy and to encounter Jesus in everyone.
Got the opportunity to visit the home of my friend, who happens to be a religious nun, and enjoy wonderful spiritual conversations with her!
We continue to receive many generous and useful donations of books, CDs, DVDs, and pamphlets for our Ministry Booth!
The way that God always keeps us in peace and how when the Holy Spirit inspires us to action, it is always when we’re in a state of peace
That God gave us the Sabbath, giving us ample time to rest and be replenished!
Fresh organic produce from the grocery store: zucchinis, cucumbers, tomatoes, eggs, portobello mushrooms, green bell peppers, red leaf lettuce, carrots, and yellow squash!
I won a gift card!
How appliances like the toaster oven makes cooking so much easier and fun!
My niece behaving so well when her mother’s not around
The cleansing sensation of the rain
Tried a new lemongrass basil sauce for dinner and it was delicious!
The opportunity to read the bible to my niece and my sister! This was the first time I’ve ever gotten the chance to do this and it is such a blessing! My 1-year old niece literally grabbed a bible and handed it to her mom. Her mom couldn’t read it because she was preparing food and the bible app on her phone couldn’t play because her phone’s speaker doesn’t work. I happened to be on the computer and was able to quick go to http://www.usccb.org/bible/books-of-the-bible/index.cfm to read one of my favorite chapters in the bible (1 Corinthians 13) to my niece. While I don’t know how much of it she and her mom listened to me as I read to her or how much of it she understood or whether I was reading at the right pace/volume, it occurred to me that this very moment was why God placed me here (on earth, in this house, with this family) at this time. This event happened today, and just yesterday God gave me a revelation about the bible. It is so important to me to read the bible and to be able to read it to my family is an incredible and very rare blessing!
More book donations for our church’s ministry booth! It looks like we might be able to give away a book to every visitor!
I woke up this morning with a revelation about love, i.e. God speaking to me and helping me understand what love is. As soon as I woke up, He said to me “Love is caring.” It’s caring about other people’s health in mind, body, and spirit. It’s being just as excited as they are when they have good news and celebrating with them. Love is not responding with a careless “Oh” and walking away. Love is not responding coldly. Love is genuinely and selflessly caring about other people–our fellow creations of God, in the same way that we care about ourselves.
I try to read a portion of the bible before going to bed every night. Today I was being led by the Holy Spirit to read Jude chapter 1. I read the part about “praying in the Holy Spirit” and wondered how I can do that and what the difference is between that and just simply praying. I did some research online and found “That is, He is the one who motivates and enables and energizes your prayer. And when you pray in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God is ‘guiding’ how you pray and what you pray for. So, to pray in the Holy Spirit is to be moved and guided by the Holy Spirit in prayer. We pray by his power and according to his direction.” It turns out I already pray in the Holy Spirit and this is a gift too. Thank you God for allowing us to speak to you and for speaking to us and through us!
My beloved purple umbrella has been lost for 4 days now. It’s my only umbrella and I’ve been using it for over 10 years. I asked St. Anthony to pray for me to help me find it, as I do with all lost items. Today, just when I was browsing umbrellas online to buy a new one, the Holy Spirit told me to go look upstairs first. I did so and I immediately found it!!! Hurray! Thank you God!
The generosity of donors donating books for our upcoming church ministry booth at the local summer fair!
A fully-stocked fridge of organic produce!
Realizing I have more money left over for groceries than I thought I had!
The generosity of God! I received an overwhelming response of donations from the organizations, church supply stores, and book publishers I emailed yesterday! Glory be to God!
Productive day working for the Kingdom of God!
The white butterfly that’s been visiting our house regularly lately
The beautiful singing of the birds outside
Email and how much more convenient it has made our lives
I’m planning a ministry booth at a summer fair where our parish is giving away resources to help people grow deeper in their relationship with God and help them grow further along in their faith journey. I have been asking people across the country to donate books, religious items, rosaries, prayer cards, etc. so that we can give them away to the visitors at our booth. Within half an hour, I received my first reply back and they are happy to be donating to our booth! God sure delivers!
I was able to make a huge pot of 5-hour slow-cooked pork bone porridge for my parents and it was just right and ready to eat when they came home
Our heavenly Father, all fathers, and all fathers-to-be!
My sister went to church with her daughter
The generous lunch provided at church for all parishioners after Mass to celebrate Father’s Day and it included my dad’s favorite food!
Seeing that very personable, humorous, and “everybodyness” quality that both of my parents have
My sister has been more patient and kind lately
Jesus was praying with me today! I was praying my post-Mass conversation with God when suddenly the words that came out were not my own. I heard it first, and then no longer than one second later I was saying it to God. It was as if Jesus was praying through my mouth and with me, which has happened multiple times before. Today He said, “Help us to carry your love to all.”
When I woke up this morning, I was thinking of how love naturally makes us want to give. Then I started to think about all the things that we can give. We can give time, prayers, our listening ear, our full attention, acknowledgement to someone that we are listening to them and that we care about them, words of reassurance and peace, comfort, encouragement, positive words of strength, hugs and warm affectionate resting of our hand on someone’s shoulder or back, holding someone’s hand, our friendship, forgiveness, we can play with them, we can make someone laugh and tell jokes, we can provide help for them, give necessities such as water/food/shelter/clothes/shoes/linen/toiletries/money/books/etc., give them a ride somewhere, help them carry things, fix something for them, help them find something, cook for or feed someone who can’t feed themselves, hold someone’s arm while they’re walking with a walker on the other hand, visit someone when they’re sick and see what we can do for them, giving directions to someone who is lost, healing, gifts, handmade things, etc. After that, I went to Mass and during the homily, God responded to my giving list and told me that the most important thing we can give to others is ourselves, and that is precisely what God gives to all of us. God gives us His very self through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and now every day through the Eucharist. Then I thought about Luke 10:38-42 and that if I ever have my own home and have guests over, I should not be concerned about making sure that they are dining with the finest plates, bowls, forks, knives, cups, etc. or sitting in the finest furniture or eating the most upscale foods or drinking the best wine there is. These are all worldly things and none of it matters. We don’t want to help others focus on the material things in life, but to focus on what is lasting, what is permanent, i.e. God, our relationship with God, our spiritual purity and holiness, the state of our soul, love, kindness, joy, peace, forgiveness, etc. The best thing I can give them is myself.
Receiving good advice from a real estate agent
My mother took us out to celebrate Father’s Day and I got to see my uncle!
So much food in the fridge! Thank you God for your abundant providence!
My next door neighbors have relatives visiting them and I got to meet and talk with them! They are wonderful! :)
Seeing children love one another, get along with one another, give to each other, play with each other, share, make each other feel loved and welcomed, how they appreciate and deeply value and take care of the gifts they receive from other children, and how they learn to give because they first received someone else’s giving. I learn so much from watching children love each other. We learn to love because we first received love from God directly and indirectly when God loves us through our parents, friends, relatives, teachers, mentors, neighbors, priests, nuns, coworkers, cashiers, and even strangers.