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 Thursday, March 30, 2023 Weekday of Lent (A) First Reading. Genesis 17: 3-9 Psalm. 105: 4-9 (R. 8a) Gospel. John 8: 51-59 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION JESUS SAID: BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS, I AM The above statement was made by Jesus in today's Gospel. Similarly, from the first reading, God made His covenant with Abraham. God told Abraham "I  will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come forth from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you." From the immediate quote above, " THE EVERLASTING COVENANT TO BE GOD TO YOU AND YOUR DESCENDANTS AFTER YOU. My dear, the Jews only argue with Jesus blindly because they never understood what they have read. God said the everlasting covenant shall be God to Abraham and us, his descendants. It's very clear, and as we all know that Jesus i...

 Wednesday, March 29, 2023 Weekday of Lent (5) First Reading. Daniel 3: 14-20, 24-25, 28 Psalm. Daniel 3: 29-34 (R. 29b) Gospel. John 8: 31-42 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION. CAN TRUTH BE WRONG? Truth is the truth: God is God God is truth, and the truth is God. False is false: who is not God is not God God is not false, and false is not God. Life is life because God gives life God is life, and life is God. For more reason, only God gives life. God is light, and light is God Good deeds are shining light: God Evil deeds are thick darkness: Devil I guess you remember part of the Apostles' creed,  God from God Light from light  True God from true God Begotten not made One in substance with the Father Through Him, all things were made. For us men and our salvation He came down from Heaven  Was incarnate of the Virgin Mary By the power of the Holy Spirit and was made Man. The part of the creed enumerated above was what Jesus was trying to explain to the Jews. In the Gospel, Jesus sa...

 ​Tuesday, March 28, 2023 Weekday of Lent (5) First Reading. Numbers 21: 4-9 Psalm. 102: 1 -2, 15-20 (R. 1) Gospel. John 8: 21-30 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION SHOULD WE BLAME GOD? When we were young, we pray and wish we become old; after becoming old, we would now wish we are young.  Invariably, the young wish to get old, while the old wish to get young.  Huh!!! What an irony of life! Should we blame God for allowing us to get old? If we are poor, we cry, lament, and sometimes blame God for being poor. At this point, HUMILITY IS OUR FRIEND. However, if God decides to make us rich, He (God) will be the least to be remembered to partake in our joy, rather most of us would first declare with our friends and others before going to God. On the contrary, some will become arrogant, and everybody including God will become nobody. At this point, PRIDE BECOMES OUR FRIEND  Should we blame God for giving us wealth? When we are in difficult situations, the Church becomes our home and wil...

 Sunday, March 26, 2023. Fifth Sunday of Lent A  First Reading.  Ezekiel 37: 12-14 Psalm. 130: 1-8 (R. 7b) Second Reading.  Romans 8: 8-11 Gospel. John 11: 1-45 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  FROM THE GRAVE TO NEW LIFE  The symbol of a grave means the bottomless pit of sin  The symbol of New Life means Freedom from sin.  In truth, mortal sins are deadly sins, hence the Church defines it thus:  "Grave sins can be classed as sins against God, neighbor, and self, and can further be divided into carnal and spiritual sins" (CCC 1853). The Catholic Church technically uses the word "Grave" as a mortal sin, which means deadly. The word Grave does not only mean the tomb but spiritually means deadly sin. To commit a grave sin means to commit a deadly sin.  Anyone who commits, lives, and dwells in grave sins means he is dead.  The three readings presented to us the symbolic message of raising from the grave of sin to new life.  In the first readin...

Saturday, March 25, 2023. THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD (SOLEMNITY) First Reading. Isaiah 7: 10-14; 8: 10 Psalm. 40:7-11 (R. cf. 8a.9a) Second Residing. Hebrews 10: 4- 10 Gospel. Luke 1: 26-38 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION GOD CAN CHOOSE TO USE YOU LIKE MARY 1. The Lord sent Arc-Angel Gabriel to Mary that she will give birth to the Saviour of the world. ***The Lord can send you a message to become the liberator of someone, your families, your friends, or a nation. Never think that you are too small or not important to be used by God to pass His message, all of us are precious and importantly equal before the Lord. After all, Mary never expected the message as she lived in the remote village of Nazareth, yet God searched, preserved and used her for His glory. Remember that God's standard of judgment is different from the world. Man looks at appearance, but God looks at the heart. Don't look down on yourself, remember that David was the least among the seven sons of Jesse, and God chose hi...

Friday, March 24, 2023 Weekday of Lent (4) First Reading. Wisdom 2: 1, 12-22 Psalm. 34: 17-21 and 23 (R. 19a) Gospel. John 7: 1-2, 10, 25-30 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION THE CHALLENGES OF LIVING A GOOD LIFE  A good life attracts criticism and by extension enmity from those who are not living the same good life as you. Imagine Jesus our master, despite all His goodness, the majority still hate Him with passion and condemned Him to death. My dear, let us learn to do good and not evil, and never become part of those who commit evil, who destroy good people because their ways challenge yours. Today's both readings condemn those who are always waiting to kill Godly men. If any person is living a life that challenges our evil ways of life, instead of condemning the person, try to learn from such person and amend. God is interested in the death of the righteous and not the sinners. Why were the Jews trying to kill Jesus? Is not because Jesus was a bad person, it is because He was no...

 Wednesday, March 22, 2023 Weekday of Lent (4) First Reading. Isaiah 49: 8-15 Psalm.  145: 8-9, 13-14, 17-18  (R. 8a) Gospel. John 5: 17-30 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION THE LORD HAS NOT FORSAKEN US God who has been in existence before time began is still in existence today and will continue to be in existence till eternity. He (God) who created us will never forsake us. If He does forsake His creatures, the question that will directly go to Him will be, why did you create us when you will still abandon or forsake us? My dear friend, I am convincingly reassuring you that God has never forsaken any of us, and neither will He intend to forsake any of us. The problem we all as human beings have can not be over-exhausted, a few among many are listed below... 1. We are not patient with God, and this lack of patience made many visit places they are not expected to which has made most go into idolatry sacrifices, become ritualists, etc. One fact I will like to bring to our notice is that...

 Monday, March 20, 2023. ST JOSEPH, HUSBAND OF B.V.M (SOLEMNITY) First Reading. 2 Samuel 7: 4-5. 12—14. 16 Psalm. 89: 2-5. 27 and 29 (R. 37a) Second Reading. Romans 4: 13. 16-18. 22  Gospel. Matthew 1: 16, 18—21, 24 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION HUSBANDS: IMITATE ST. JOSEPH St. Joseph was a carpenter; the husband of Mary. He accepted the will of God, and he supported Mary and together, they brought up Jesus. He is known as the foster father of Jesus. He is the patron and protector of the Catholic Church: the patron of all workers, and husbands. His role in the Christmas story, as the husband of the Virgin Mary, as well as the foster father of Jesus, made him an outstanding patron saint of the Catholic Church. His blessed death, assisted by the Child Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary, made St. Joseph the patron of a happy death. Let us learn from this great man, who sacrificed his life for Jesus and Mary; not counting the cost.  He was a carpenter who used the profit from his work ...

Sunday, March 19, 2023. Fourth Sunday of Lent (A)  LAETARE SUNDAY First Reading . 1 Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 1 0- 13 Psalm. 23: 1-6 (R. 1) Second Reading. Ephesians 5: 8-14 Gospel. John 9: 1-41 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION. LIGHT AND TRUTH. Light and Truth are one inseparable entity because God is Light and Truth. Truth is the bright Light of the future God is Truth and Light No one can see the Light without being Truthful One needs to become the Truth in other to become the shining Light. Invariably, one needs to become God to see God That is, only a Truthful Light person can see a Truthful Light, God. Light is Truth, and Truth is Light. Light promotes, and Truth Vindicates Light paves way for Truth to excel. Where Light exists, there, Truth abounds. It is good to note that... Truth is Light, while Lie is darkness Truth reveals what Lies hide Truth rejoices in Light, while Lies are saddened in darkness Light brightens the future with hope, while darkness clouded the future ...

 Thursday, March 16, 2023 Weekday of Lent (3) First Reading. Jeremiah 7: 23-28 Psalm. 95: 1-2, 6-9 (R. 7d-8a) Gospel. Luke 11: 14-23 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION WHY DO CHRISTIANS ENJOY ATTACKING ONE ANOTHER?  In our world today, it's no more surprising seeing the following existing among Christians.  1. Pastors preaching against one another.  2. Churches condemning themselves.  3. Members of the church killing one another for the church's position  4. Wealthy Pastors and church members intimidate and suppress the poor and less privileged in the church  5. Pastors trying to outshine other pastors not in winning souls for God, but in the display of staged miracles, material wealth, a physical edifice, etc.  The question I kept asking myself is, what are we fighting for?  Salvation or personal selfish satisfaction?  Jesus said that every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste, and the house will fall against itself. And if Satan is divi...

 Wednesday, March 15, 2023 Weekday of Lent (3) First Reading. Deuteronomy 4: 1, 5-9 Psalm. 147: 12-13, 15-16, 19-20 (R/. 12a) Gospel. Matthew 5: 17-19 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION RESPECT THE LAW  If you keep the law, the law will keep you. So, in life, if there is no law, we would have been in a chaotic state. The reason is simple, the law is to restrict our excesses. Naturally, every person would like to act as he or she wants, but thanks to the law which restricts one. Let us remember that the spirit of the law should be followed and not its dogmatic nature to the latter. The only laws that should not be tolerated are as follows:  1. Laws that cause conflict 2. That has no human face 3. That does not promote the peace and stability of a society. 4. Laws that have no exceptions  5. Laws that are self-centered by nature 6. Laws that are not inclusive because nobody is above the law. etc. The list above only presents to us many of the human laws that are faulty, while the on...

 Monday, March 13, 2023 Weekday of Lent 3 First Reading. 2 Kings 5: 1-15 Psalm. 42: 2, 3; 43: 3, 4 (R. 42:3) Gospel. Luke 4: 24-30 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION DO NOT TAKE FAMILIARITY FOR GRANTED  My dear friend, please do not take familiarity for granted. If you are familiar with someone, do not lose your sense of respect for such a person. It is very good to give respect to whom respect is due to.  It is good to show others the respect we will want them to give to us. Naturally, each one of us wants people to accord us respect, but why do we find it difficult to accord others the respect they deserve? More so, if you become great today, you will want people to accord you the respect you desire, deserve, and especially the respect due to the office you occupy. But why do you feel jealous of your friends, mate, family, siblings, etc, if they achieved in life? The simple reason people take familiarities for granted is that they feel all attention should be given to them alone, and...

 Sunday, March 12, 2023 THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT  First Reading.  Ex 17: 3-7  Psalm. 95: 1-2, 6-9 (R. cf. 7d, 8a)  Second Reading. Romans 5: 1-2, 5-8 Gospel. John 4: 5-42 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  WATER IS LIFE AND LOVE: NO WATER; NO LIFE, NO LOVE.  By nature...  With rain, you become cold but with the sun, you feel the heat Low temperature is a result of cold weather, while high temperature is a result of hot weather.  Coolness is derived from Water, just as heat is derived from fire.  Coolness brings calmness and comfort, while hotness brings discomfort.  With Humanity...  When you are hungry, once you eat, the hunger disappears.  When you are thirsty, once you drink water, the thirst is quenched.  When you long to acquire what you do not have, once you acquire it, your longing disappears.  Connecting with the Divine God...  Without God is troubled mind, but with God is mind calmness  Longing for God is searc...

 Friday, March 10, 2023. Weekday of Lent (2) First Reading. Gen. 37: 3-4.12-13a.17b-28 Psalm. 105: 15-21 (R. 5a) Gospel. Matthew 21: 33-43, 45-46 TOPIC FO R REFLECTI ON IF YOU ATTACK ANYBODY, YOU ATTACK GOD. I encourage you to RISE FROM YOUR SLUMBER. The first reading is about Joseph the dreamer, God gave him the great gift of seeing the future which he innocently shared with his beloved biological brothers, yet they betrayed his trust and loyalty to them. My dear, please do not be jealous or envy anybody, if you do; pain, sorrow, and regret await one. As we shall see that the Joseph they sold into slavery today shall become their "king" and not even in their land, but in a strange land. The dream he had shall come to pass and all his brothers shall bow before him. My dear, I will beg you again never to look down on anybody or out of jealousy to witch-hunt anybody. It must bounce back at you, and be content with who and what you are. In the Gospel, Jesus made it clear how the...

 Thursday, March 9, 2023 ST FRANCES OF ROME, REL (Opt Commem) First Reading . Jeremiah 17: 5-10 Psalm. 1: 1-4 and 6 (Psalm 40:5ab) Gospel.  Luke 16: 19-31 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION TRUSTING GOD WITH CHARITY IS HEAVEN  Have you heard where God destroys God? No But, countless times, we have seen man destroying man. This simply means that, if God can not destroy itself, then this same God can not destroy man whom He created. Similarly, the manufacturer of a computer, for instance, will always know the functions of each component that makes up the computer: So, once the computer is faulty, he will know the faulty components and will replace them with new ones. Therefore, God who created humans, knows the functions of every human part, and He knows what is good for man; but, man finds it difficult to trust this same God who created him. On the contrary, man trusts his fellow man who does not know how he was created. Then how will a man not disappoint man, when the God...

 Wednesday, March 8, 2023 ST JOHN OF GOD, REL (Opt. Commem.) First Reading.  Jeremiah 18: 18-20 Psalm. 31: 5-6, 14-16 (R. see 17b) Gospel. Matthew 20: 17-28 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION TO STAND WITH JESUS, BE PREPARED FOR PERSECUTION. If you are doing good or making effort to do good, be ready to be castigated. Do you not know that being good is a terrible threat to those who are bad? Please,  do not be discouraged if no one values your good deeds, were Jesus' good deeds appreciated? Whatever treatment Jesus received from the people of His time, multiple of it shall we who follow Him receive. This was the situation of Jeremiah in today's first reading when he cried out that his people have set a trap for him to fall into it. So, always remember that if the prophets of the old could experience rejection, abandonment, hardship for no reason, etc, then non of us should be surprised when we face similar difficulties or hardship in the form of persecution. We should only...

 Monday, March 6, 2023 Office- Psalter Week 2 First Reading.  Daniel 9: 4-10 Psalm.  79: 8-9, 11, 13 (R. see Ps103: 10a) Gospel. Luke 6: 36-38 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  SHOULD GOD TREAT US THE WAY WE TREAT OTHERS?  In today's Gospel, Jesus teaches us some reciprocating equilibrium teachings which are embedded in fairness, justice, consideration, charity, and Love.  These teachings are reciprocating in the sense that, you should give or treat others as you would like to be treated. The golden rule. Cf. Matt. 7: 12 Hence, the reciprocating equilibrium teachings will allow Love to continue flowing and co-exist among the children of God.  Now, let's examine the teachings one after another.  Jesus said:  ***Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.            We are encouraged to act like God.            To be merciful to one another as      God is merciful to us.  ...

 Sunday, March 5, 2023 SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT (A) First Reading. Genesis 12: 1-4 Psalm. 33: 4-5, 18-20 and 22 (R. 22) Second Reading.  2 Timothy 1: 8-10 Gospel. Matthew 17: 1-9 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  FROM TRANSFORMATION TO TRANSFIGURATION  CAN WE BE TRANSFIGURED WITH THE LORD? YES, WE CAN. What affects the head, affects the whole body.  In a family where the father of the house is sick, automatically, the entire family is sick, because a loving father who is sick will become the concern of the whole family.  In a family where the father as the head of the house is not responsible, corrupts, and promotes injustice among his wife(s) and children, such a family can not and will never be upright.  Therefore, we are blessed today because our father in faith, Abram was blessed by the Lord, and he became a channel of blessings to us all.  Now, coming to society...  It seems the only voices the people in our society listened to are as follows...  ...

 Friday, March 3, 2023 Weekday of Lent (1) First Reading.  Ezekiel 18: 21-28 Psalm. 130: 1-8 (R. 3) Gospel. Matthew 5: 20-26 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  THINK ABOUT THESE... Before you judge, ask yourself...  1. Have I repented from my evil act before I condemn others?  2. The Lord said if a sinner repents,  he will save him,  am I ready to be saved, if yes, I should repent of my evil ways.  3. The Lord said any good man who turns to commit evil shall die. I say to myself this day that I will not change from being good to committing evil, rather I will continue to do good because I don't want God to punish me.  From the Gospel...  How can my spirituality become higher than those who do not know God?  Ask yourself...  4. Do not kill, but do I kill with my words and actions? Gossiping, backbiting, slanderer, false witnesses, planning the downfall of others, etc. These are the modern ways of killing today.  5. Since you have been g...