Small steps in faith

A few weeks ago at mass, Father shared with us one of the lessons he learned during a gathering of priests. They were asked 2 questions.

First, would they still choose the path of the priesthood had they known the challenges they were going to face? All of them answered a resounding No.

The second was did they regret choosing the path of the priesthood? They all replied without hesitation No.

Father explained that we all shy away when faced with huge and immense tasks, but when we tackle them in small steps, they become manageable. It is precisely these small steps of faith that allows us to conquer the giant task of being Christians. Let us not be overwhelmed by the task at hand but to take those small steps in faith, knowing that down the road, we will be able to accomplish great things.

Desperate for Christ

I recently attended the Closer retreat conducted by the Catholic Guy ministry, and it was very refreshing indeed. The message from one of the talks spoke very strongly to me.

"We need to be desperate for Christ". The speaker shared the stories about the woman with a hemorrhage, the paralytic and his four friends, and Zacchaeus the tax collector. They were all desperate for Jesus, and Jesus repaid their faith through healing and conversion. Both the woman and the paralytic were healed, and Zacchaeus was converted.

I seem to be cruising through life without a thought of wanting Jesus to really come and rock the boat. I have never been in similar situations like those mentioned above to warrant desperation for Christ, though I must admit I have come close... Nevertheless, I came away convinced that in order to receive healing and conversion, I need to be desperate for Christ in all situations.

I pray and offer up my present situation to Jesus and that I may be desperate for Him always. I believe that God will change the aspects of my life which needs His intervention. May you also be desperate for Christ in your own unique situation, and experience His healing and conversion.

The Cross always leads to the Resurrection

"The Cross always leads to the Resurrection" These words of Father at mass recently struck me. All of us at any moment in our lives are carrying some form of crosses. Let us not focus on these crosses but on the Resurrection that will come.

Father shared with us that in life, we will always have our crosses to carry. God does not want us to suffer but allows us to experience pain, so we can come out stronger and better. Christ is the perfect example for us. God allowed His Son to die on the cross so we can be saved through the resurrection.

Let us embrace our cross and focus on the resurrection that comes through it. Remember that God will not allow us to bear a cross that we cannot handle. Let us take heart in that and look towards Christ for strength to endure the journey and emerge victorious with Him!

What are your pursuits?

It has been a very busy past few weeks. We had my family visiting and we had such an amazing time. So much has happened since. I received an email from work informing of new changes to how things are done. I was very excited about the prospect of this, but alas it was really about changing the people involved in doing the work.

I knew that the workplace is changing and people can very easily lose their jobs. This time around, such an event has happened to me. I remembered Father's homily recently. He spoke about our pursuits. What are your pursuits? Do we forget to pursue Christ in our daily lives? It got me thinking. Is Christ the main pursuit in my life? If so, would He not care about what happens to me? If I pursue Christ in all that I do, He would ensure that I am well taken care of. This loss would only be temporary as I am confident that Christ has a new plan for me.

On hindsight, Christ has blessed the people on the other side of this world with jobs. He knows that they need it more than me. Help me to trust in your great plan for me and for everyone else. As I step forth into the unknown, I pray Lord, take my hand every step of the way. Thank you Lord.

Share whatever talents that we have

I went for a talk recently and was reminded again on the need to share what we have been given. Most notably, the talents which God has given us.

Father gave an analogy of the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Both receive water from the River Jordan. While the Sea of Galilee is flourishing, the Dead Sea is, as the name implies, dead. There is an abundance of marine life in the Sea of Galilee but nothing survives in the Dead Sea.

The reason for this is that the Sea of Galilee shares the water it receives to the surrounding land while the Dead Sea does not. We too need to share our talents within the community so that we can thrive and flourish like the Sea of Galilee. Else, we would be like the Dead Sea, keeping everything to ourselves and not being able to grow.

So let us open ourselves to others and share what we have been given, that we might grow and flourish into the person that God created us to be.

Treasure what we have

It was the feast of Corpus Christi and Father shared the story of a group of monks, who had with them the original writings of the Holy Bible, but failed to treasure them.

We too have a treasure in the form of the Holy Eucharist, which is present to us every time we go for mass. We should not take it for granted and always be thankful that we have the opportunity to receive Christ daily if we wanted to.

There are people in other parts of the world who do not have this privilege. Let us treasure what we have and never take the Holy Eucharist for granted. May we remember this the next time we are at mass, and every time we go for mass. Thank you Lord for giving us your body and blood, for your ever abiding presence in our lives.

Sign of the cross for protection

We recently celebrated the feast of the Holy Trinity. The three persons of God in One. Father shared about the power of the sign of the cross. When we make the sign of the cross, we are invoking the protection of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit upon us.


This is a gentle reminder that every time we make the sign of the cross, the Holy Trinity protects us from all evil and harm. May we be mindful of this the next time we make the sign of the cross. Protect us Oh Lord today and everyday.

Allowing God to use us

We recently celebrated Mother's day on the 10th of May. Father gave a wonderful homily on this special day.


He shared with us how all the mothers have allowed God to use them to create children and more importantly how they continue to allow God to use them to nurture and bring up their children in the Christian faith. Our heavenly Mother Mary is a fine example of this, how she allowed God to use her for the salvation of the world.


I think that all of us need to be open to allow God to use us in our daily lives. We may not know whose life we might be touching at this moment, if we allow God to work through us. Let us be the hands and feet, the voice of God in this world.


Today, a Huge shout out to all mothers, especially my Mum, for allowing God to use you and for bringing us into this world. Thank you for all you do!

Stay close to me in the Eucharist

I find myself drifting further and further away from the Lord. Some days, I find myself aimlessly searching for meaning and purpose.

Father shared with us recently that we need to bear fruit in our life journey here on earth. We need to stay close to the vine in order to bear fruit, else we will be cut off from the vine. Jesus is our vine and we need to stay close to Him. The most evident and obvious way is to spend time with Him in the Eucharist.

I look forward to spending more time with Christ in the Eucharist and I pray that the Lord will grant me the grace to keep to that. May we bear much fruit for the Lord in building His Kingdom here on earth.

Let go of anger and resentment

We are now into Easter, how time flies indeed. It seemed liked yesterday when Father was giving his homily on Easter Sunday.

Father shared a very important life lesson for me on that day. He advised us to let go of anger and resentment. We need to look beyond the actions of others, and not hold on to the anger and resentment that result from their actions. Christ has set the example for us, pleading with the Father to forgive the people who brought about his Crucifixion on the cross. His words:"Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing".

I have been angry and resentful of others who have been very unkind and terrible towards me, I'm sure you would have your fair share of such incidents. I pray that the Lord will grant me the grace to forgive them, but most importantly, may the Lord help me to let go of the anger and resentment that is preventing me from living my life to the fullest. May I take the first little step to move forward this Easter season. I pray the same for you.

Treasure those around us

Time flies so quickly. We are now into Holy week, and soon we will be celebrating the passion, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we enter in Holy week, I learnt the devastating news that a friend of mine had just passed away. It was so sudden. We were all praying that he will recover but God had other plans for him. Life is really fragile. We can be here one minute and gone the very next. I treasure the many fond memories of the great friendship we shared in our younger days and pray that God will take good care of him in Heaven. More importantly, may He send His Angels to take care of the family he left behind. May they be strong and continue to live life to the fullest.

Lord, may I treasure all those around me very single day, and be thankful for the people you send my way.

Thankful for the blessings in my life

Recently, I watched a movie titled "The second most exotic Marigold Hotel". This is a sequel to the original movie. I must say it is a very heartwarming story about a group of people who are staying in the Hotel, living out their twilight years.

One thing that I learned was to reflect back on my experiences in life, and be thankful for the blessings in my life. I realised that I tend to focus on what I do not have, and forget that God is blessing me every single day, if only I lived in the present, and be thankful for all He has given me. 

The movie was a gentle reminder for me to live life to the fullest and be thankful for the blessings in my life. I pray the same for you all. 

You belong to me

Father mentioned in his homily last weekend about us belonging to God, to His Church. This statement resonated within me.

I looked back on the days when I was travelling, traversing on foreign land, not knowing what to expect, hanging on the every words of travel guides and travelers' reviews on forums. The only familiar place I find is when I enter into a church. Attending mass brings to me everything that is familiar, and gives me a sense of belonging. Every part of the liturgy is the same throughout the whole. That is why I feel so at home when participating in the celebration of the Holy Mass.

The church is also a place of refuge for me, to find peace and safety. I know that I belong to God and He has His eye on me, and watching my back.

Thank you Lord for looking out for me, and giving me this sense of belonging. I know that I am safe in your presence, in your Holy temple, the church.

Dwell in Me

Father gave a very intriguing homily over the weekend. He shared that our brain stems are constantly pointing out to us the negative signs around us. It is really our innate survival instinct. That is why when negative things happen to us, it can cause us much anxiety and stress.

It is during these times that we tend to retreat to a quiet spot and contemplate our course of action. Father suggests that coming to the Eucharist would be the most appropriate. We need to allow God to dwell in us, such that He moves from being in our head to being in our heart. We will be strengthen by the positive power of God to help us tackle life's problems. We all have our individual problems and we need God to help us deal with them.

When we have experienced this encounter with God, we can then recreate this encounter in our minds whenever we are in a situation of anxiety and stress. This will help remind us that God is with us in our hearts. Father extended this to our relationship with people. When we receive negative statements from others, we need only recreate the positive encounters with that person and we can avoid giving a negative response to that person. I find that this helps me control my emotions better and I pray that God will help me to respond appropriately in such situations.

Our true colours

We attended mass at the Cathedral last weekend. It was a good time to pray and reflect after a long and tiring day out enjoying the Chinese New Year festivities in Chinatown.

Father shared about the 40 days of Lent, how we are to pray, fast and give alms. We often show our true colours when we undergo tough times. It could be voluntary or involuntary. Most times, our true colours show the bad side of us. It is during these times that we need to stay connected to God through prayer. Only God, who knows us through and through can help us get through these times, with love and kindness. Jesus was in the desert for 40 days and during that time, He was tempted by the Devil. He did not give in though He was clearly affected by the fasting. His constant connection to God through prayer kept Him going.

Help us Lord, to stay close to you and be more loving and kind to others during this Lenten season.

God never tires of forgiving us

Father mentioned at mass during the weekend, that though we might tire of asking God for forgiveness, He never tires of forgiving us.

The question beckons can we be like God who never tires of forgiving? I recalled an incident that happened recently, two young kids playing and out of the blue, one starts to cry. Daddy comforts the crying child and finds out that he was upset by what was said to him. Daddy asks his child to forgive the other when an apology was given. However, his child replies with,"Why must I, when he will do it again..."

This reminds me much of myself. You might find it very familiar as well. We seem to constantly fall back into sin, and God continually forgives us, knowing that we will turn from Him again. Help us be more like you Lord, to find it within ourselves to forgive others repeatedly. I am so thankful to have a God who never tires of forgiving us.

Oh, in the end, all was forgiven and forgotten, and the two kids were playing together again very quickly.

God recognises our efforts of love

We were all waiting in anticipation for mass to begin but Father was nowhere in sight. After about 10 minutes into the mass timing, Father came, and we all heaved a sigh of relief.

The reason for Father being late was because he was feeling under the weather. Although he was not well, he came and celebrated mass with us. He really is quite an incredible man. Though I was a little disappointed that mass was short, without the usual homily, I came to realise that it is the love that Father has for God that brought him to come celebrate mass despite being unwell.

I was reading one of the sharings from a lay missionary, who told us that God recognises our efforts of love. He went for mass with his 5 year old son, but was not able to take in anything that was said during mass. It was during his quiet prayer later that God revealed to him that God sees the love that brought him to mass with his son, Although he might have gotten nothing out of it, he was there for God, because he loves God.

Thank you for recognising the love we have for you Lord, may we continue to love you in all that we do.

Expect the unexpected

Father shared with us during the weekend mass that we should expect the unexpected. Jonah who felt unable to preach to the people of Nineveh, was unexpectedly brought to them after he was swallowed by a whale at sea and spit out onto Nineveh.

We have all had that unexpected blessing that rained upon us at certain points in our lives, and I truly believe that that blessing came at the most appropriate time. Question is are we prepared to receive it? Many a time I have been too oblivious to the blessings that God gives to me, and I fail to give thanks.

Dear Lord, prepare me to receive your blessings that will be given to me in the coming days and weeks. Help me expect the unexpected from you. May I be ever thankful and appreciative of your great workings in my life.

God's will for me

Once again, I am faced with the question of God's will for me in my life. The prophet Samuel twice mistaken the voice of God to be that of the priest Eli, until being advised by Eli that it is the Lord that is calling out to him.

"Speak Lord, your servant is listening." was what Samuel said when the Lord called out to him. Father reminded us that we very often say,"Listen Lord, your servant is speaking." How very true indeed. Many times I pray that the Lord grant me my petitions instead of asking Him to speak to me, and reveal to me His will for me in my life.

Help me Lord to always listen to what you have to say to me, and may I discern for the right things to ask of you in prayer. Teach me your ways oh Lord...