Vigil Mass The Nativity of the Lord 2020

Vigil Mass—The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas)
Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 89:4-5, 16-17, 27, 29; Acts 13:16-17, 22-25; Matthew 1:18-25

Totally Keeping Christ Within

Christmas EVE!
How magical it is!
Lights – Candles – Christmas songs/Melodies – Gifts – Families Gathering – Real Happiness! Passion!

Do you aware of the simplest meaning of Christmas!

It is to keep Christ in your heart!
It is to make your heart merciful and merry Christ-mas!

How sad we are if we only see the candles, the lights, hear the music, the songs from the carols, all the prayers and celebrations we have, if we cannot bring Christ into our hearts! If we cannot experience the story of salvation as the reality to change, to transform our lives!

I believe you are not part of people who are “taking “Christ” out of Christmas!”

Christmas is a time to refresh our minds and heart to re-experience God’s intervention into the history of mankind, the history of ours; to restore to the consciousness of life that we have true peace and joy in the forgiveness of sin and freedom from its bondage; to renew in the mind and memory, that Christ as our Savior, is always BE WITH us. Emmanuel. He will never abandon us, especially the ones who welcome HIS LORDSHIP in our lives.

Keep your Christ in your heart, totally!

The message of the angel: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary, your wife, into your home” is a free invitation to bravely open the heart’s door to cooperate with God’s plan. Joseph here became a key to letting human history be reversed by the only One who can reverse it. He did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary and the unborn baby into his home.

Remember, the Gospel has described Joseph as: “He was a just man.”
He was an ordinary person. He was just like Mary. Ordinary!

He was the one who was thinking to spare Mary; he betroths, and yet, was anxious about his reputation of hers. He was looking for the meaning of love and of justice. He was a man who had lots of compassion, forgiveness, and mercy in his heart, a real, genuine, and true gentleman who did not wish to embarrass or punish Mary when he discovered that she was pregnant. He was not hasty to judge or to react with hurt and anger. He totally expressed his love for Mary.

Joseph is an ordinary person. He is just like Mary. Ordinary, who kept his God in his heart totally! Which enabled him to let God penetrate his heart through his dream.

Now, the ordinary person received extraordinary messages!

Only by his total faith was he able to respond to it totally!

Remember: He was a just man! Like Mary, Joseph is a model of faith for us.

Today is Christmas EVE!
How magical it is!

Some of you have come alone tonight; others are with large families. Some of you made plans to be here, and some decided to come on a last-minute impulse. Some of you have had arguments with other family members about something. Some of you have been dragged here against your will. Some of you are mourning the loss of loved ones in the past… many, many of whom you and I remember well and miss very, very much tonight.

For those of you young, tonight is full of hope and anticipation; most of your Christmases are still in front of you. Older people are filled with memories of the Christmases past that will never come again. Some of you look forward to going home to heart, presents, and tree; others dread going home.

Remember, this is a magical night for whoever and whatever condition you are in.
This is learning to keep your re-born Christ in your heart totally! Don’t ever lose him again! Keep him in the most depth of your heart. Let your Christ incarnate tonight in your lives totally! Even when you are in a deep sleep this night.

Let us all celebrate this Christmas, not in a sentimental way. We are visiting Joseph and Mary and their newborn and becoming a part of their family. We do not sing a song or two but join the choir. We do not say a prayer or two but become persons of prayer. We do not exchange gifts, we more than share the gifts with the poor, but we advocate for the poor. We courageously enter the messy, painful, and dangerous, totally absorbing.

Today is Christmas EVE!
How magical it is!

Yeah, when our God enters human history, “in the flesh.”
And we keep our Christ totally in our hearts.

Merry Christ-mas!

Amen

DR. Kusnadi

The Protective Mind: Anxiety

Our mind is amazing! The mind is a demanding worry machine. It always wants to protect itself no matter what. Its perfectionist characteristic makes it do a superb job of being a perfect reminder of so many things.

The downside is that the mind never stops looking for problems to protect and cannot be turned off often. It always looks out for you, even when it seems to work against you. Sometimes you can portray the mind as an overbearing, overprotective, and anxious parent who is forever monitoring and meddling but means well (i.e., your safety).

Often, the mind possesses you with worry and fear and then calls to action, which frequently triggers maladaptive thoughts and self-defeating actions. Truly, the mind wants to help you achieve things, but precisely the opposite of what you desire. That is also why the mind floods you with the never-ending stream of thoughts, feelings, and impulse behaviors.

It would be best to remember that the mind acts like a magnet with its poles reversed. It attracts what you hope to avoid and repels what you desire. Hence the mind must follow certain rules, like putting your safety and survival above all else, avoiding danger, and ensuring that your needs are met for “the moment.” Remember, what the mind does is always from the standpoint of safety and survival.

Therefore, being “in the moment” is essential here. If you want to tame your own mind, you need to give the mind a concrete assurance that you are safe and secure now. The ability to be in the present becomes powerful here. Action at the moment is more powerful than many promises.

Now, let this all sink in for a moment. Just for this moment, come back to harmony. Just fill yourself breathing in and fill yourself breathing out. With each breath you inhale and exhale, you feel more and more comfortable, safe, and secure. You are accepted, forgiven, and loved.

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Psychotherapy & Mindfulness-Based Intervention

Psychotherapy and Mindfulness-Based Intervention will help us grow surprisingly. Throughout this process, we learn to understand the pattern of our tendencies to be transformed.

We learn what we are now and what we will do. We choose decisions based on which one is likely the same or/or different in our life (i.e., family, work, and close personal relationships). With this knowledge of ourselves, we will move toward the principle of non-resisting — not resisting ourselves to grow effectively and to embrace the future gratefully.

This means that we know when ‘to act” and when “not to act.” It is because we understand the flow within and around us. We know the best timing for our actions and the consequences. We know and understand that it is unlikely to choose the frame of our “destiny” but what we put it in is ours.

We work with what we have been given. What potential we are given is what we are starting to journey in our lives. This journey is to be the best version of ours.
DR. Kusnadi

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Meeting with the “Self” within

Close your eyes. Relax deeply. Visualize that you are going to go to your inner sanctuary. Imagine that you are standing on a path that envisions the future. You may now step into a sacred place within the center of your soul. Start to walk up the path. Be mindful that you are here with a special purpose. Picture yourself and how you enjoy using all senses. Note what you see, hear, smell, feel, and taste.

Now, as you continue to experience all the amazing things, you see your vision of the Higher Self coming toward you in the distance. Radiating clear, bright light. As you approach this vision, see how he/she looks and is dressed, whether male or female. Greet and ask what his/her name is. Take whatever name comes. Spend some time together. Pay attention to how you feel, what is said, or what is exchanged between you. Ask if there is anything he or she would like to say to you. You may ask specific questions.

When the experience together feels complete, thank your Higher Self, your inner guide. When the time right comes, you can express your appreciation and ask him or her to meet you again whenever you desire. Closing this inward journey with your personal prayer.

Now, you come back to harmony and bring all the wisdom from the depth of your soul that tells:

You are safe.
You are accepted.
You are forgiven.
You are loved.

You are a magnificent child of God.

DR. Kusnadi

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The process of becoming

Pay attention to the process of growth. Through it, one will learn true wisdom that “to live” is a constant relating process. The authentic calling is to come out of a shell of isolation and conclusion. The mind must embrace the reality of growing as willing to relate directly yet holding dear values.

The process of becoming then is to seek neither approval nor influence from or to. One needs to be mindful in the path of becoming. The mind and the heart need to learn to surrender the thoughts and feelings of “this is this” or “that is that.” The process then helps both the mind and heart do more reflective questions.

By doing all those processes, one will learn more to continue to grow while being alive in the experiences. There will be no reference to worry or fear about being judged or attached and then getting stuck.

The conclusion is the ultimate act of becoming aware of preparing the self to enter the novel gate of opportunities.
DR. Kusnadi

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Every day is a good day

“Every day is a good day” is a simple statement, but few know its real meaning.

The “good day” does not refer to a nice day compared to a bad one.

It means the absolute, not the relative day.

Today is the absolute day, the only day in the eternity of time.

Today is never repeated. Every day is fresh and new, just as one’s life is new each day.

Every day is good, but the good is not of one’s own making.

It is good in the original or absolute sense—rain or shine, war or peace, sickness or health.

The past is only a reference; the future is the only hope. Today is real.

By Gyomay M. Kubose (Zen Koans)

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Explore your spiritual core

Questioning who the person you are and the calling in this life is the way to explore your spiritual core. “Understanding who am I? What is my purpose? What do I value the most?” will tell you what path you are on now. These questions lead you down a road where you will think more in-depth about yourself and notice things about yourself to help you achieve fulfillment.

DR. Kusnadi

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“Waves” to Surrender

Waves
The rhythm of the ocean invites you in
like a new love
Relaxing in its cradling arms
You feel whole and at peace
Taking in the sky
But the waves sometimes catch you off guard
Coming one after the next
Forcing you to go under again and again
Struggling to catch your breath
Swept off your feet
Thrown against the ocean floor
Sand scraping skin
You gasp for air when the next wave pushes you down again
As soon as you come up for air you see the next wave about to crash on your head
Over and over
exhausted
Ready to surrender
Ready to give in
you eventually drag yourself out
Depleted of all energy
Muscles weak and aching from lack of oxygen and the energy it took to pull yourself out
You have nothing left
Body shaking
You must rest and catch your breath
It will take time to feel right again
You will think twice before you trust the ocean again
But that doesn’t matter right now
You’re too tired

-By LMcN

Becoming an author the heart’s desire paths

Happy Thanksgiving Day! 🙂

Mindfulness is the process of thought that consciously brings awareness to your here-and-now experience.

This process happens when the mind merges with the heart, making a person can have openness, interest, and receptiveness. Surprisingly with a humble process, one can live in the present moment. Because “mind with heart” makes it possible to experience the surroundings, have the clarity to engage fully with all senses, and detect what the automatic thoughts say.

Rather than getting lost in the moment, one can reprocess the dilemmas without dismissing them and making a clearer decision to do or respond. Rather than controlling the feeling, one can let the feelings be as they are without judging.

Through this process, the most painful thoughts, feelings/emotions that are unbearable remain neutral. Then, the “mind with heart” can observe and explore, then learn to accept and forgive. In this way, a desirable path that one doesn’t necessarily expect or see at that moment will arrive amazingly.

The transformation is happening daily in big and small ways. The suffering becomes the path of transformation to be better than experienced as bitter emotional control that needs to be avoided or fought. Destructiveness thoughts become the creative thoughts that create the heart’s desire paths.

DR. Kusnadi

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