THE SECRET TO HAPPINESS

Prayer before Mass: Almighty and ever-living God, I approach the sacrament of Your only-begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. I come sick to the doctor of life, unclean to the fountain of mercy, blind to the radiance of eternal light, and poor and needy to the Lord of heaven and earth. Lord, in Your great generosity, heal my sickness, wash away my defilement, enlighten my blindness, enrich my poverty, and clothe my nakedness. May I receive the Bread of Angels, the King of kings and Lord of lords, with humble reverence, with the purity and faith, the repentance and love, and the determined purpose that will help  to bring me to salvation. 

May I receive the sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood, and its reality and power. Kind God, may I receive the Body of Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, born from the womb of the Virgin Mary, and so be received into His mystical body and numbered among His members.

Loving Father, as on my earthly pilgrimage I now receive Your beloved Son under the veil of a  sacrament, may I one day see Him face to face in glory, who lives and reigns with You forever. Amen. By Knights of the Holy Eucharist. Readings Lectures  Reflection 

First Reading           Isaiah 58:9-14

You will be like a spring whose

water never run dry

If you do away with the yoke, the clenched fist, the wicked word, if you give your bread to  the hungry, and relief to the oppressed, your light will rise in the darkness, and your shadows become like noon. The Lord will always guide you, giving you relief in desert places. He will give strength to your bones and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water whose waters never run dry. You will rebuild the ancient ruins, build up on the old foundations.

You will be called ‘Breach-mender’, ‘Restorer of ruined houses.’ If you refrain from trampling the sabbath, and doing business on the holy day, if you call the Sabbath ‘Delightful’, and the day sacred to the Lord ‘Honourable’, if you honour it by abstaining from travel, from doing business and from gossip, then shall you find your happiness in the Lord and I will lead you triumphant over the heights of the land. I will feed you on the heritage of Jacob your father. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Responsorial Psalm 

Show me Lord, your way so that I may walk in your truth

Gospel       Luke 5:27-32

Jesus comes not to call the virtuous, but sinners to repentance

Jesus noticed a tax collector, Levi by name, sitting by the customs house, and said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And leaving everything he got up and followed him.

In his honour Levi held a great reception in his house, and with them at table was a large gathering of tax collectors and others. The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples and said, ‘Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?’ Jesus said to them in reply, ‘It is not those who are well who need the doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the virtuous, but sinners to repentance.

My Father in heaven, show me your way so that I may walk in your truth. Father take away every yoke of clenched fist, wicked word from my lips, help me to be generous towards those I consider poor among your creatures, that I may be a voice for the oppressed in our society. Father with your guidance,  my light will shine in the darkness, I my shadows will be like noon, Father you will give me relief in my trials.  

For you Father will give strength to my bones, for I shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water that shall never run dry. I will be a builder having a strong foundation.  I will be a Breach-mender, a restorer of ruined houses.

Father that I will honor your sacred day, that I be delight in serving you. In keeping your day holy Father I will abstain from fowl words but sing your praises. That my participation during Holy Mass will be undivided. For it is day of the Lord, it is sacred. May I find my delight in serving you.

Father I know I am unworthy to stand in your presence, the assurance is that Christ Jesus your Son came to save sinners like me. It is comforting to know that you love me Father, unworthy sinner. This is my secret to happiness. Thank you Lord Jesus Christ for loving me.

TRANSFORMATION THROUGH FASTING

Prayer before Mass: Almighty and ever-living God, I approach the sacrament of Your only-begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. I come sick to the doctor of life, unclean to the fountain of mercy, blind to the radiance of eternal light, and poor and needy to the Lord of heaven and earth. Lord, in Your great generosity, heal my sickness, wash away my defilement, enlighten my blindness, enrich my poverty, and clothe my nakedness. May I receive the Bread of Angels, the King of kings and Lord of lords, with humble reverence, with the purity and faith, the repentance and love, and the determined purpose that will help  to bring me to salvation. 

May I receive the sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood, and its reality and power. Kind God, may I receive the Body of Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, born from the womb of the Virgin Mary, and so be received into His mystical body and numbered among His members.

Loving Father, as on my earthly pilgrimage I now receive Your beloved Son under the veil of a  sacrament, may I one day see Him face to face in glory, who lives and reigns with You forever. Amen. By Knights of the Holy Eucharist. Readings Lectures  Homily 

First Reading      Isaiah 58:1-9 

Thus says the Lord:  Shout for all you are worth, raise your voice like a trumpet. Proclaim their faults to my people, their sins to the House of Jacob.  They seek me day after day, they long to know my ways, like a nation that wants to act with integrity and not ignore the law of its God. They ask me for law that are just, they long for God to draw near: 'Why should we fast if you never see it, why do penance if you never notice?' Look, you do business on your fast days, you oppress all your workmen look, you quarrel and squabble when you fast and strike the poor man with your fist.

Fasting like yours today will never make your voice heard on high. Is that the sort of fast that pleases me, a truly penitential day for men?  Hanging your head like a reed, lying down on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call fasting, a day acceptable to the Lord?

Is not this sort of fast that please me, it is the Lord who speak, to break unjust fetters and undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke, to share your bread with the hungry, and shelter the homeless poor, to clothe the man you see to be naked, and not turn from your own kin? Then will your light shine like the dawn and your wound be quickly healed over.

Your integrity  will go before you and the glory of the Lord behind you. Cry, and the Lord will answer; call, and he will say, 'I am here.'

Responsorial Psalm

A humbled, contrite heart, O God, you will not spurn

Gospel         Matthew 9:14-15

When the bridegroom is taken from them, then they will fast

John’s disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not?’ Jesus replied, ‘Surely the bridegroom’s attendants would never think of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still with them? But the time will come for the bridegroom to be taken away from them, and then they will fast.’

Father transform me. Give me your Holy Spirit. Forgive me for the times I have not obey for your command.  It is true Father, that when I am fasting I lack charity. Sometimes I forget I am fasting, I will quarrel with my friends, brothers and sisters. Sometimes I am unable to control my anger, the same mouth I use in praying and praising you, I will abuse my fellow creatures.

Father thank you for giving me another opportunity during this Season of Lent.  In the book of Isaiah 58:1-9, I see my faults, forgive me Father, help me Father,  transform me, let your light shine through me that my light may shine so that my healing is complete.  Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on me. Jesus my Saviour thank you for loving me I trust in you.

 'Why 

CHOOSE LIFE OR DEATH, BLESSING OR CURSE

Prayer before Mass: Almighty and ever-living God, I approach the sacrament of Your only-begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. I come sick to the doctor of life, unclean to the fountain of mercy, blind to the radiance of eternal light, and poor and needy to the Lord of heaven and earth. Lord, in Your great generosity, heal my sickness, wash away my defilement, enlighten my blindness, enrich my poverty, and clothe my nakedness. May I receive the Bread of Angels, the King of kings and Lord of lords, with humble reverence, with the purity and faith, the repentance and love, and the determined purpose that will help  to bring me to salvation. 

May I receive the sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood, and its reality and power. Kind God, may I receive the Body of Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, born from the womb of the Virgin Mary, and so be received into His mystical body and numbered among His members.

Loving Father, as on my earthly pilgrimage I now receive Your beloved Son under the veil of a  sacrament, may I one day see Him face to face in glory, who lives and reigns with You forever. Amen. By Knights of the Holy Eucharist. Readings Lectures  Homily 

First Reading 

I  set before you today, choose life or death, blessing or curse  Deut. 30:15-20

Moses said to the people: ‘See, today I set before you life and prosperity, death and disaster. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I enjoin on you today, if you love the Lord your God and follow his ways, if you keep his commandments, his laws, his customs, you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you are entering to make your own. But if your heart strays, if you refuse to listen, if you let yourself be drawn into worshipping other gods and serving them, I tell you today, you will most certainly perish; you will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today: I set before you life or death, blessing or curse. Choose life, then, so that you and your descendants may live, in the love of the Lord your God, obeying his voice, clinging to him; for in this your life consists, and on this depends your long stay in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob he would give them.’

Responsorial Psalm

Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord

Gospel                    Luke 9:22-25

Whoever loses his life for my sake will save it

Jesus said to his disciples: 

‘The Son of Man is destined to suffer grievously, to be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and to be put to death, and to be raised up on the third day.’

Then to all he said: 

‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross every day and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, that man will save it. What gain, then, is it for a man to have won the whole world and to have lost or ruined his very self?’

My choice in life will determine my eternity my Father in heaven.  I should strive to keep God's commandments, obey His laws. I must strive to live a pure life, I must be considerate in my dealings with my fellow creatures. I must try to imitate Christ Jesus, I should accept the will of God in my life, not to say I reject it in Jesus name. In rejecting God's will is an act of disobedience to His law, because His Holy will will be my hope of eternity. I should pray to know His will while accepting my daily cross. I should be careful and pray for discernment, for there are crosses that are self-imposed. That I do not become bitter, in the choice I have made, that are not according to God's will of which I will bear the consequence of my action. This will serve as correction to mistakes and wrong choices I made for a better me.

Father I choose life, not death.  I choose blessing, not curse. The criteria for life and blessing is following your will, obeying your commands, and accepting my cross for your greater glory my God.  Father may your will be done in my life. Thank you Lord Jesus for loving me. During this Season of Lent, walk with me Lord, work in me Lord, Lord make me know your will.

ASH WEDNESDAY

Prayer before Mass: Almighty and ever-living God, I approach the sacrament of Your only-begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. I come sick to the doctor of life, unclean to the fountain of mercy, blind to the radiance of eternal light, and poor and needy to the Lord of heaven and earth. Lord, in Your great generosity, heal my sickness, wash away my defilement, enlighten my blindness, enrich my poverty, and clothe my nakedness. May I receive the Bread of Angels, the King of kings and Lord of lords, with humble reverence, with the purity and faith, the repentance and love, and the determined purpose that will help  to bring me to salvation. 

May I receive the sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood, and its reality and power. Kind God, may I receive the Body of Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, born from the womb of the Virgin Mary, and so be received into His mystical body and numbered among His members.

Loving Father, as on my earthly pilgrimage I now receive Your beloved Son under the veil of a  sacrament, may I one day see Him face to face in glory, who lives and reigns with You forever. Amen. By Knights of the Holy Eucharist.  Readings Lectures  Reflection 

First Reading              Joel 2:12-18

Let your hearts be broken, not your garments torn

‘Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks – come back to me with all your heart, fasting, weeping, mourning.’ Let your hearts be broken, not your garments torn, turn to the Lord your God again, for he is all tenderness and compassion,  slow to anger, rich in graciousness, and ready to relent. 

Who knows if he will not turn again, will not relent, will not leave a blessing as he passes,  oblation and libation  for the Lord your God? .......

                                           Responsorial Psalm

                           Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned

Second Reading    2 Cor. 5:20-6:2

Be reconciled to God  

We are ambassadors for Christ; it is as though God were appealing through us, and the appeal that we make in Christ’s name is: be reconciled to God. For our sake God made the sinless one into sin, so that  in him we might become the goodness of God. As his fellow workers, we beg you once again not to  neglect the grace of God that you have received. For he says: At the favourable time, I have listened to you; on the day of salvation I came to your help. Well, now is the favourable time; this is the day ofsalvation.

            Gospel      Mathew 6:1-6,16-18

           Your Father who sees all that is done in secret 

            will reward you

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Be careful not to parade your good deeds before men to attract their 

notice; by doing this you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give alms, do

not have it trumpeted before you; this is what the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to

win men’s admiration. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you give alms,

your left hand must not know what your right is doing; your almsgiving must be secret, and your

Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.

‘And when you pray, do not imitate the hypocrites: they love to say their prayers standingup in the synagogues and at the street corners for people to see them; I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you pray, go to your private room and, when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.

   

‘When you fast do not put on a gloomy look as the

 hypocrites do: they pull long faces to let men know  they are fasting. I tell you solemnly, they have had

 their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your  head and wash your face, so that no one will know

 you are fasting except your Father who sees all that  is done in secret; and your Father who sees all that

 is done in secret will reward you.’

My guideline to fasting during this period of Lent. The Season of Spiritual preparation. Loving Father I ask

            for your grace during this Season of Lent.  Father, abstaining from food, drinks,  etc is good. 

           Father, I must fast from bad character, bad behaviour, from being inconsiderate, from bitterness, from  selfishness, from grudges, from anger, from unkind words, from worries from every form of negativity that are harmful to my soul, to my heart, to my spiritual well being, and  to my honor as your child.  Let me not display my deeds before men. Let  my fasting not be displayed before men. Save    me from being hypocrite. Give me a broken  heart and a contrite spirit Father. May I have  personal communion with you. During this Season of Lent help me Father to be a better person. May I be drawn closer to you. May I appreciate the sacrifice and price Christ paid for my redemption. Thank you loving  Father for your mercy. Thank you Lord

 Jesus  Christ, my Lord and Saviour. Mary the Mother of  Christ,  my Mother pray for me.