Let God Be God

            “LET GOD BE GOD IN YOUR LIFE.”  This is the answer to the query on how God can truly reign in me which I asked myself during my ‘quiet time’.  In my honest search for the answer, I was enlightened by a statement from the ANAWIM WAY Booklet which reads: “The crucial question is whether we will let go of our self-sufficiency and actually let God have His way with us.” 

            After a deeper reflection on the statement, it dawned on me that this means a complete surrender of myself to God and let Him do with me as He pleases.  This, I believe, is the attitude that our Lord Jesus Christ meant when He said: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls unto the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” (John 12:24)

            Many times as I played on the organ ‘LOSE YOURSELF IN ME AND YOU WILL FIND YOURSELF’.   I contemplate on the wonderful phenomenon of how a seed when buried in a ground disappears but allows a seedling to sprout in its place.  In a similar way this must be the way I should bury all the desires of my selfish nature and let God handle my life as He pleases.

            My very existence is, indeed, a Gift from God.  I believe it is a GIFT OF LIFE THAT IS EVERLASTING.  Only God knows how this LIFE should be spent in accordance with His infinite WISDOM.  With this gift of Life is also the gift of Freedom which He bestows on every person.  His plan could be thwarted by a person as he abuses his gift of freedom.  Herein lies the mystery of evil that is present in this world.  God, however, is in control of His creation, and despite all the evil in this world everything will turn out well for good for those who love God.

            A review of my past life made me realize that there were times when my selfish desires outweighed what should have been in accordance with God’s will.  These I now accept were caused by the evil of ‘concupiscence’ which, they say, afflicts everyman in this world.  By the Grace of God, however, I have come to be more and more attuned to the dictates of my conscience.  After experiencing a personal encounter with Christ, I have decided to really follow Him, considering Him truly as God, my Savior.

            During my daily visits to the Blessed Sacrament where JESUS is present whole and entire, I have been realizing more and more deeply my ‘nothingness’ and complete dependence on God for everything that I am and have.  Hence, for this wonderful Gift of God to me, I can think of no other better way to show my gratitude than to simply put myself completely at His disposal and let Him do with me as He pleases.  In this way I simply LET GOD BE GOD IN MY LIFE.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

August 31, 2013

See Christ In People

            “The real follower of Christ sees Christ in every person he meets.”  This is a statement from a Meditation for Spiritual Growth published in the Vatican II Weekday Missal. For me is the real challenge of Christianity.

              The Christian Faith tells us that Christ is the Savior of the World,  for through His Passion, Death and Resurrection He has provided the Grace of Redemption for all men, rich or poor, sinner or saint.   Hence, in every man He is present with His redeeming love.  With this presence He is extending to every man the Grace of Redemption.   Hence, when I meet a person I should see him as someone whom Christ loves and thus Christ would expect me to manifest His love for him, for He said: “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me” (Matt.25:40)

            Everyday I meet people from all walks of life.  It is, indeed, a challenge for me to act towards each one of them as Christ Himself would do.  For instance, when I ride in a tricycle, I am challenged to pay the driver in a manner that Christ would do, not based of what is just but on how  Christ’s love would be manifested.

            How to manifest Christ’s love to every person I meet is then the question that comes to me in my daily life.  At the end of the day I would review how I related to people I met and ask myself: “Have I manifested Christ’s love for them in what I have done?”

            When I participated in a PREX Seminar way back in January of 1994 the commitment I made in order to become a better Catholic was: TO SEE THE FACE OF CHRIST IN EVERY PERSON I MEET.  Since then I have been trying to put this into practice.  I must confess, however, that, indeed, it is a tall order.  Many times I have been confronted on how to manifest love to people who have hurt me.  In general, however, the big question is how to deal with persons whose acquaintance is temporary.  In most cases all I can get to know is their name.  It seems physically impossible to manifest love  to everyone who comes my way.  Hence, I believe that this challenge to love has to be applied in situations wherein one is in a position to help or serve.  

            Hence, seeing Christ in people I meet means being ready to be of service to everyone if and when needed.  As Christ has shown, love is manifested in service.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

August 25, 2013

Don't Bargain With God

            “DON’T BARGAIN WITH GOD”.   This was a piece of advise that came to me as I was reconsidering the commitment I made to spend at least one hour everyday with the Lord Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament at the Adoration Chapel of our Parish at Tuguegarao city.

            The Adoration Chapel is at the first floor of our Parish Pastoral Center to provide the parishioners an opportunity to spend some time to have one-on-one encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ Who is deemed present in the Consecrated Host.  Since the intention is to have a PERPETUAL ADORATION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT  during the day,  our Parish Priest, Rev. Fr. Gerard Ariston P. Perez, gave a standing invitation to all parishioners to avail themselves of this great opportunity to have a Quiet Time with GOD in the Blessed Sacrament.

            In response to the invitation, some parishioners through their Cluster and Barangay Coordinators made a TIME SCHEDULE for their ADORATION.  The said schedule is posted at the bulletin board placed at the entrance of the Adoration Chapel.  The period covered by this Perpetual Adoration is from 6:00 A.M. to 10:00 P.M. everyday. 

            The four Clusters of our parish have posted the names of persons who have made a commitment  to spend at least one hour a week before the Blessed Sacrament.  At the start commitments were met, but I have observed that for one reason or another as time passed by more and more have not been faithful to their commitment. 

            I, for one, have often been tempted to shorten the time of my adoration.  For some time I have been considering a kind of substitute by having my own ‘Quiet Time’ at home, since God is also present in me – being  His Temple.   However, this piece of  advise  has been lingering in my mind: “DON’T BARGAIN WITH GOD”. 

            Further reflection impressed upon me that a COMMITMENT WITH GOD is SACRED and should be honored at all costs.  Visiting the Lord God in the Blessed Sacrament is like HAVING A DATE WITH GOD.  Since God is the Supreme Being in this world,  a DATE WITH HIM should be of paramount importance and should be complied with at all costs.  Hence, I should not even entertain anything that would change or lessen whatever I have committed to God.  In other words, I should NEVER BARGAIN WITH GOD, simply because HE IS GOD.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

August 18, 2013

Live For & With God

“LIVE FOR AND WITH GOD.”  This is the insight that came to me as I was pondering on the reason for my existence.

My existence is, indeed, a Gift from God.  From a state of nothingness I became a human being when God in His infinite Goodness endowed on me the Gift of Life.  This life, I believe, is everlasting;   for it is without end.  I will continue to exist even after death here on earth in a state of life which is everlasting.

Since my life is a gift from God, I continually ask myself the question: “How shall I use this gift?” 

First of all, since it is a GIFT from a Supreme Being  to whom I owe my very existence,   then it is but logical that I should use this Gift as He pleases.  Hence,   everything I do should be FOR HIM and not for myself.  In other words,   His Will should always be paramount in everything I do and should never be replaced by something that runs counter to His design, no matter how noble it may be.  This for me is a daily challenge as I go thru the various activities of life here on earth.  It demands a constant consciousness that whatever I do is really FOR GOD and not for myself.

Secondly, I have to acknowledge my powerlessness in doing anything,   since all power comes from God and without Him I can do nothing.  Hence,   in doing anything for God I have to depend on the graces He gives that enables me to do it.   I, therefore, have  to pray always for God’s help, so that WITH HIM I could do whatever pleases Him.

            For the past few days I have been striving to ‘Live For and With God’.  It dawned on me that this, I believe, is what I shall do for all eternity.  God, in His infinite Wisdom, has created me so that I could serve Him for all eternity in accordance with His DESIGN.  My joy, then, is simply to surrender myself   entirely to HIS HOLY WILL, so He can use me as He pleases for HIS GREATER GLORY.

            Everyday that I encounter the Lord JESUS CHRIST in the Blessed Sacrament at the Adoration Chapel, I pray: “Lord, here I am,   I come to do Your Will.”  I then place myself at His disposal, so that throughout the day I am enabled to LIVE FOR AND WITH GOD.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

August 11, 2013

Characteristics of Faith

            The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II)  names seven Characteristics of Faith according to Bishop Teodoro C. Bacani, Jr. in his book ‘Faith and New Evangelization’.  I would like to share these characteristics in a nutshell.

1.    Personal:  Faith must be a personal conviction based on God’s loving presence in one’s own life.

2.    Informed:  It must know something of what Christ has taught.

3.    Communitarian:   It must be united with others of the same faith.

4.    Growing:  It must strive to have a more and more deeper understanding         of the mysteries of life.

5.    Loving:   It must be manifested by love of God and love of others.

6.    Missionary:  It  must be shared with others.

7.    Inculturated:  It must be understood in one’s own way of thinking, speaking and perceiving thru signs and symbols.

According to Bishop Bacani these are the characteristics of faith that we should seek to spread and foster in the Philippines.  With  this kind of faith we shall transform the Philippines and win the rest of Asia for Christ.

Of the above mentioned characteristics, I consider the first – PERSONAL – as the most fundamental.  Based on my own personal experience,  it was  when I had a personal experience of God’s loving presence in my life that my faith deepened and my personal conviction of the reality of God was firmly grounded.  From then on, I strove to learn more and more about the tenets of the Christian Faith. These I tried to  manifest in my love of God and neighbors according to the circumstances of my life. I shared my insights with others and continued to have a deeper understanding of the mysteries of life as propounded by the Christian Faith.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

July 14, 2013

Evangelize Like Jesus

            “EVANGELIZE LIKE JESUS”  This is the title of Chapter 22 in the book entitled “FAITH and NEW EVANGELIZATION”  by Bishop Teodoro C. Bacani, Jr.  After reading it,  I thought of making a condensed version of what he expounded  in my own way of writing.

            Evangelization is the work of Jesus and He wants the Church to continue His work.  Since  the Church embraces all who were baptized as Christians, everyone (clergy and laity) is mandated by Christ to evangelize.  How are we to evangelize?  Bishop Bacani says that Jesus Christ Himself showed us how to evangelize during His historical life here on earth.  The following are the different steps:

1. Be present.   Be one with the people and bring the Presence of God.  This is  the mystery of Incarnation – Christ becoming Man to be with us.

2. Proclaim the Kingdom of God.  What we say should be conformed with what we do.  Christ went about preaching and doing good.

3. Pray for light and strength.  Take time to commune with God.  Christ always made time  to  pray no matter how busy He was.

4. Collaborate.   Work with others, undergo and give  formation.   Christ chose to have collaborators –  the  apostles   and    many other disciples.  He taught  and  formed them.

5. Sacrifice.  Be willing and determined to face with equanimity  all kinds of difficulties or problems that may come our way, trusting in God’s overflowing graces.   Christ said: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.” (Matt. 16:24)

6. Be empowered by the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is the Principal       Evangelizer.     He  empowers the evangelizer and also  opens the hearts of hearers to accept the Good News.    Hence, evangelizers should always begin their mission  invoking the Holy Spirit.

Bishop Bacani said: “These were the steps of Jesus evangelizing work.  But it is important to remember that He took every step of the way in the spirit of humility, obedience and love.  It is in this same spirit that the evangelizer must bring the Good News to others.”

by: Buddy Cagurangan

July 7, 2013

God in Action

            “GOD IN ACTION.”    The Mystery of God’s presence in this world has long been a question that my mind has been laboring on.  Recently, what made me dwell more deeply on the question is the greeting of the priest presider at  Holy Mass: “THE LORD BE WITH YOU” and the people’s response now is: “AND WITH YOUR SPIRIT.”   This greeting emphasizes a phenomenon of God’s presence in the assembly attending the Mass.  Hence, it may be inferred that during the Eucharistic celebration GOD is PRESENT  in ACTION.

            In a Spiritual Reflection by Blessed John Paul II, published by the ANAWIM WAY booklet  he says: “The image of God is mirrored in every human being.  This is the deepest truth about man that can never be ignored or violated.”   Since God is in me, should I not develop a CONSCIOUSNESS OF HIS PRESENCE IN ME?   This question is a great challenge to me in the way I should live.

            How should I live so that I would be constantly conscious of God’s presence in me?    This is simply answered by the letter of St. Paul  in 1 Thessalonians 5:17: “PRAY WITHOUT CEASING”.  The ANAWIM WAY booklet, however, says: “PRAYER BEGINS WITH ALLOWING GOD TO BE IN CONTROL”.

            To allow God to be in control is, indeed, for me the key to a constant consciousness of His presence in me.  This requires me to be humble, acknowledging my unworthiness of God’s presence, and my sincere desire to surrender myself to whatever is God’s Holy Will.   This is an attitude which I will strive  to develop more and more with God’s grace.

            Often, specially for these past few days I have been saying a prayer in my heart: “Lord God, what is it that You want me to do NOW?”  This is  based on my belief  that ‘GOD WANTS TO DO SOMETHING NOW’, using me as His instrument.  Hence, I have to be attuned to HIS HOLY WILL by sincerely asking for enlightenment from the HOLY SPIRIT.  After listening in my heart what God wants me to do now at a particular instance, I simply have to ACT accordingly.

Thus, GOD then is IN ACTION thru me.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

June 29, 2013

The Bible is Christ

            “The WORD OF GOD is primarily JESUS CHRIST.”   This is a line from Bishop Teodoro C. Bacani, Jr. in his book ‘Faith and New Evangelization’ (Chapter 17, p. 62). This statement made me ponder more deeply for some moments what the Bible is.

            Externally the Bible is just like any other book with several printed pages bound together and covered with  hard-board or leather.  For families who enthrone the Bible in their homes, it is put in a place of honor.  As it is, it is lifeless.  It can remain lifeless unless someone takes it, reads it, reflects on it, and lives it.  Only then can it become alive. Hence, it becomes actually a Living Person – JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF  - the WORD OF GOD.   We read this in the Gospel of John Chapter 1: 1,14: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.”  

            To me the Bible could  be compared to a computer with an internet.  Left to itself the computer would be just like any other material object that is inanimate.  But when one opens it and uses it’s keyboard, then it provides a multitude of information or accomplishes a lot of activities that has been programmed into.   One, however, has to be computer-literate in order to use a computer.  So it is that there is a need to learn how to make the Bible the LIVING WORD OF GOD – JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF.

            First of all, one has to have FAITH that God is, indeed, speaking to mankind through the Bible. 

            Secondly, one has to study and reflect on what the Words mean to him.  Although they are Words of God, they were written by men in their own language and according to their own circumstances.  Hence, there is a need to uncover the meaning of these words as they apply to one’s own situation. 

            Thirdly, one has to sincerely desire and live his life in accordance with whatever he understands to be  God’s Holy Will.

            To consider the Bible as CHRIST HIMSELF speaking to us, one has to take time to read it, reflect on it, and live it.   This requires a firm commitment to spare some period of time everyday to dwell on some Words of God in a quiet atmosphere where listening to God would be undisturbed.  Then, and only then can CHRIST be truly present in the Bible as the WORD OF GOD.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

June 24, 2013

I Am Nothing

            “I AM NOTHING.”  This is the thought which occupied my mind in the past two days and was further reinforced in the Concluding Prayer  in the Liturgy of the Hours this morning  which reads: “Our very existence is a gift from you, oh Lord; to you we offer all that we have and are.”

            This made me realize more fully my “NOTHINGNESS” … that without God I would simply be nothing.  This, I believe, must be the basic reason for the virtue of humility.  This also should be the basic reason to enflesh the virtue of forgiveness.

            If I am nothing; how can I be hurt?  The one who really gets hurt is God Himself, because He is my Creator, the Source of my existence.  Hence, forgiveness rests on God.

            What then should I do if and when someone hurts me?  I believe that I simply have to lift up to God whoever hurts me and pray that God would extend to him the grace of forgiveness.

            This full realization of my nothingness makes me acknowledge further my complete dependence on God.  Since I owe everything to Him, my life should be a constant act of thanksgiving, praising and glorifying God.            Everything I do must be according to God’s Holy Will and for His glory.  In other words, I should always be GOD-ORIENTED and not SELF-ORIENTED.

            This is an attitude which I should strive to develop by the grace of God, so that together with St. Paul I could say: “It is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me.” (Gal. 2:20)

by: Buddy Cagurangan

June 15, 2013

God's Image In Man

            “RECOGNIZE AND HONOR GOD’S IMAGE IN EVERY HUMAN BEING!”  This is the concluding statement of Blessed John Paul II, in his Spiritual Reflection on the Mystery of the Blessed Trinity whose Feast is celebrated today, May 26, 2013.  As many spiritual writers state, the Blessed Trinity is the most central faith mystery of all, because the Holy Trinity is the Mystery of God Himself. 

            God is, indeed, the greatest of all mysteries which no one can ever fathom.    One aspect of God’s Mystery which poses a very great challenge to me is His PRESENCE  everywhere.  His presence is manifested in all of creation.  In a very special way, however, it is manifested in man, for it is said in Genesis 1:27 “God created man in His own image.” Blessed John Paul II says: “This is the true greatness of man, this is the root of his indestructible dignity.  The image of God is mirrored in every human being.  This is the deepest truth about man that can never be ignored or violated.  In short, every violation by man turns out to be a violation against his Creator, who loves him with the love of a Father.”

            The challenge for me thus, is: “ How am I to recognize God’s image in every human being?” 

            First of all, I am used to categorize people into those who are good and lovable and those who are not good and unlovable.  For the former I would have no difficulty in recognizing God’s presence in them, but for the latter, this is where I have to buckle down and strive to seek for a reason to love.

            Reflecting on the statement of Blessed John Paul II I find an answer to my query, namely, that the root of man’s indestructible dignity is his being ‘created in the image of God’.  Hence, whether a sinner or a saint, every man bears within him the Image of God.  In other words, God is truly present in a very special way in every man, regardless of how he relates with God. 

            For me, therefore, what matters most is not the goodness that I may see in a man but in the wisdom of God in creating him in His own  image, which is indestructible.  This wisdom of God is beyond man’s comprehension.  Hence, I have to bow down and accept God’s wisdom and recognize the dignity of every man, saint or sinner, and strive to love every one according to God’s Holy Will.

            This, indeed, is a great challenge, but trusting in God’s grace I believe I can overcome all difficulties and see God’s special presence in every man He has created.

by: Buddy Cagurangan

May 26, 2013