On Mass, Love & Service... Sury's Thoughts

Dear blessed ppl of God

some things i'd like to share wif all of u..

Reflection on Mass
"Take of Me"

i was at holy trin 4 mass last sunday. came in early to guarantee a seat since i've heard tt tis church can b so packed tt ppl hang frm e rafters. Was in silent thought when my eyes rested on the altar. a thought came to me tt in the Old Testament times, the altar is a place 4 ppl to lay down their sacrificial offerings as atonement for sins. suddenly i heard Jesus whisper tt during mass, He is the sacrificial offering, 4 He has given His life as atonement for our sins.

later on, when fr. johnson lifted up the host during eucharistic prayer, i saw Jesus stand above the altar.. His eyes closed, head tilted toward the heavens, arms open wide, and He said "I have given Myself for you. Come, take of me... Come and take of me."

it was a veri powerful moment, where i was reminded in a real way of the love of Jesus, tt He loved us so much tt He died for us, and He continues to give Himself to us every time we celebrate the eucharist. truly it is the highest form of worship...

after i received communion and returned to the pew, i heard God say smtg i've never heard Him say to me before. He said simply "My son..."

in awe, i can only respond "Yes Dad, i am here..."

truly wat a treasure it is to have the sacraments in our Church.

it is truly a grace of God, a priceless gift to all of us.

so the nxt time we go for mass, let us truly seek God and listen to wat He has to say.


Reflection on Love
"How much is forgiven us..."

u know, i hav ever asked myself how come im so crazy for God, tt i wld run for Him no matter how tired i am, no matter how much time i hav to give for ministry. The answer came to me during a Gospel reading some time back, a passage frm Luke 7

36Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. 37When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

39When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner."

40Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you."

"Tell me, teacher," he said.

41"Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[ d] and the other fifty. 42Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?"

43Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled."
"You have judged correctly," Jesus said.

44Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."

48Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

then it struck me... the reason i love Jesus so much is because i realise how much is forgiven me. i look in the mirror and i see this sinful person, yet the Lord still calls me to serve Him. poured out His anointing oil upon me and raised me to leadership.. . why? why wld you bother wif me, Lord?

i dont deserve such a God.. i cld never deserve such a God. yet the fact remains, He has called me by name. I did not choose Him, He chose me... therefore i love Him much, for i know tt much have been forgiven me.

brothers & sisters, how much is forgiven you?

do we ever pause & reflect on our journey wif the Lord, and ponder juz how much He has forgiven us, tt He has taken us out of darkness and into His marvelous light?
how much are we then willing to love Him and run for HIm in the face of such overwhelming love?


Refection on Service
"The girl 'least likely to succeed' "

Below is a testimony by Darlene Zschech, frm her book "Extravagant Worship".. a woman madly in love with Jesus, and one of the greatest worshipers of our time.

From 1 Corinthians

26Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast before him. 30It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."[ d]

That's my testimony; i was the girl "least likely to succeed". The first ministry trip my husband and i went on with our senior pastor, Brian Houston, was to England. I sang a song with a backup soundtrack before Pastor Brian preached. I found tt one of the pastors in he church we ministered to said to Brian, "You were fantastic. But she doesn't have what it takes."
But God has given me opportunities beyond my hopes or imaginations.

My future has never relied on anyone else's opinion of my ability. I'm a testimony of God's grace. God uses people who say, "Well Lord, this is all I have to offer You; so if I'm going to be used in the Kingdom, You will have to work through me."

The very least we can do is give God our lives and let Him show us the great things He can do through our yielded hearts and hands.

May we continue to give of ourselves, esp in the coming 10 wks as we welcome our Con 3 students. Let's surrender ourselves to the will of the Spirit and move with expectant faith as our journey unfolds before us.



Sury
"my God, i'll only ever give my all..."