Holy Ground

"Yahweh said to him, 'Do not come near; take off your sandals because the place where you are standing is holy ground.' And God continued, 'I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.' Moses hid his face lest his eyes look on God." - Exodus 3:5-6

Respect is something we all want people to have for us. It is said that we have to give it in order to earn it. Unfortunately, we don't see much of it anymore. People cross so many lines and hardly anything is sacred nowadays. Imagine a neighbor you hardly know just barges into your house one day. They demand to be invited for dinner but give you very little courtesy while in your presence. After dinner, they leave and show no gratitude for your attention with them. This is how many of us are with the Lord and how we act when we enter His house, the church.

Some people walk in late. They talk to the people next to them during the homily, or gaze off at something, not paying attention. Many come in chewing gum or not properly dressed. Many of these are also the first to leave before the blessing is even given. Do you not know that the house of the Lord is a sacred place? A holy place? We have lost the meaning of what is sacred and holy. Before the presence of God, the Creator of the Universe, Moses had to take off his shoes because he was in the presence of the Most High! Open your eyes and see how what we experience during the Mass is the mystery of God the Almighty! What you see going on before you is what Jesus Christ Himself taught the apostles to do before the faithful. The priest who gives the Mass has taken the place of Peter, John, James, Andrew and the rest, and is breaking bread with you, just as Jesus did! And God has invited you to the feast! Pay attention! Involve yourself in the works of God!

And besides having respect for holy and sacred ground, have you fully removed your shoes? Moses was a shepherd, his shoes must have been so dirty. There's no way he could have entered holy ground with them on. Are you bringing filth into God's presence? Are you approaching Him with things you know are separating you from Him? He is holy and pure and deserves at least our respect before Him. When God identified Himself to Moses and Moses recognized he was before God, he hid his face from the Lord because immediately Moses knew how small he was and how infinite and holy God is. In the same way, all of us, since we are all sinners, should bow down before the presence of God out of respect for His Name with the reverence He deserves, especially when we enter His sacred house.

Today's Prayer:
My God, in my ignorance I follow my own will and neglect the fact that You are God, my Creator and rob You of the reverence and respect You deserve. Please give me the humility You gave to Moses before You so that I can honor Your Name. In Jesus' Name we pray, amen.

Bringing You Up From The Pain

"Yahweh said, 'I have seen the humiliation of my people in Egypt and I hear their cry when they are cruelly treated by their taskmasters. I know their suffering. I have come down to free them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them up from that land to a beautiful spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.'" -
Exodus 3:7-8

It does not matter if you think nobody cares about you and nobody cares if you're suffering. You are not alone in your pain. Although God was speaking to Moses about the slavery of the Jews in Egypt, right now, He does see your tears and hears your cry. These cries reach the Lord and He knows your suffering - not has heard of your suffering, but actually knows your suffering. And He doesn't want you to feel hurt, despair, alone, He is a loving Father that longs to take you into His arms and help you if you let Him.

While in Egypt, the Jews faced an oppressive Pharaoh that was not going to free them, but God worked wonders sending plagues, turning walking sticks into snakes, the Nile into blood and even parting the sea, so there is no way that He can't help remove a couple of road blocks in the way of your happiness. He told Moses He wanted to, "bring them up from" their troubles. So this tells us that God won't only remove our trouble, but bring us UP FROM them, taking us to a whole new way of life, way of feeling. He took the Jews to the promised land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will also bring you to your promised land - the relationship you need, the health you need, the job you need, or the faith you need. You see, when God hears your cry and you sincerely seek His help, He goes above and beyond what you ask, so never, ever take His love, mercy and care for granted, especially in despair and sorrow.

Today's Prayer:
My God, You are so merciful. Thank You for hearing my cries. Help me open my eyes of faith so that I can help You help me through my sorrows and my pain. In Your Name we pray, Amen.

I Am Nothing Before Him

Moses answered God, "If I go to the Israelites and say to them: 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' they will ask me: 'What is His name?' What shall I answer them?". God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." - Exodus 3:13-14

To me, this is hands down one of the most powerful verses in the bible. I've tried so many times to tell you about God and the ways of God but only a God as omnipotent as ours can tell you who He is so clearly. By answering "I AM WHO I AM," it's saying that He IS all things. He encompasses ALL things. All things, in the past, present and future He carries in the palm of His hands with the utmost caution, love, and perfection. Nothing exists outside of Him, but all things exist through Him. Nothing even moves without His knowledge or consent in our lives, in this world or in the Universe! He has breathed life into all things out of love. HE IS!

Please take a moment to meditate on this and all the power manifested in these words. Recognize the sheer grandeur of your God! It is enough to make you want to bow down on the floor before Him for we are way too small and insignificant to deserve such benevolence and attention from this supreme being!!

Today's Prayer:
God, give me the wisdom to perceive Your greatness and power, but most of all, please give me the humility to recognize that before You, I am nothing and that without You, I am nothing. In Your Name we pray, Amen.