I have a very special delivery for you this month. It’s from someone we all know and love. But before you read it, let me ask you something - Do you want to know how Jesus felt on the day He rose from the dead? Do you think he’s happy? Would you like to experience His Joy? Well, you can. You can actually taste Jesus’ Happiness and feel His Joy in its truest form. Are you interested? If you are, please read the invitation. And also, by the time you’re reading this, know that you’re among some of the luckiest people chosen to receive this personal invitation. Know also that this invitation comes from the heart and that Jesus would be thrilled if you’d replied "Yes". So, go ahead, read on and find out what this is all about...

Invitation

You are cordially invited to make a journey with me into the desert for the next 40 days. This journey will be long and hard at times, but you will be provided with the basic necessity to get through it. If you put in your best effort, you might find yourself exhausted, helpless and even vulnerable at times. Know that I’ve been through it and I know what it’s like. I promise I will not abandon you. I’ll be there for you. Please travel light, don’t bring excess luggage because the load will slow you down. Put away the usual niceties that you’ve been so attached to; with them, you will loose focus of our destination, and really, you can do without. Persevere and believe that we will reach our goal. I really hope you’ll say "Yes". Walk with me during these 40 days and you will learn to love the way I love, you will feel true happiness in your heart, and you will experience true freedom, the way our Father wanted you to.

Place of travel: The desert inside your heart

Time : From February 25^th to the evening of April 10^th

Destination : To taste true happiness and Jesus’ Joy of Victory.

Invitation by: Jesus Christ

RSVP: (phone not needed, talk to me directly 24-7)

Lent is a time for Catholic Christians to grow closer to God through penance, fasting (and abstinence - not eating meat on Ash Wednesday & Fridays), and giving money to the poor. In short, Lent is about giving up something of ourselves—in three different ways.

Lent starts from Ash Wednesday (February 25^th ) and ends on the evening of Holy Saturday (April 10^th). Lent is the time when we deny ourselves of certain things that we normally enjoy and try to live a simpler life style. You might ask: "What exactly will God gain if I give up drinking soda, or eating French fries, etc.?" Well, a quick answer would be: "Nothing". God gains nothing from your giving up soda, or whatever it is that you give up. You, on the other hand, I will gain something very special, something much more valuable than the very things you gave up. Among other things, you’ll gain self-control, sensitivity & compassion for the needy, and more intimacy with Jesus. Here’s how it works:

During Lent, the Church is inviting us to take a closer look at our life and see how we could live with less. What can each of us let go of that will bring us closer to God? You might wonder: "How can giving up shopping, or TV bring us closer to God?" Well, the mentality and reasoning of fasting during Lent is different from other ways that you normally give up something. For example: You could decide to give up eating food with carbohydrate because you’re on a "no-carb" diet and you want to loose some weight. That’s a good thing, but that reason alone is not the "Lent mentality". If you’re going to give up carb for Lent, you want to do it for a "higher purpose" - do it with the realization that the the word "overweight" doesn’t even exist in the dictionary of the poor in India - these folks don’t even have the basic necessity of life like rice or bread to eat. If you’re going to give up something for Lent, do it to remind yourself that you CAN do with less, you CAN do without the extra pair of high-heels, or the latest digital camera. Do it knowing full well that the cost of a new pair of Etnies is more than enough to provide many warm meals and blankets for the homeless women and children on the street. In other words, we give up these extra nice things because from the depth of our conscience, we know it’s not right to spend money so recklessly when there are human beings all over the world, dying of starvation every second, every day of the year.

During Lent, all Catholics are encourage to make an extra effort to examine our conscience, to take an honest look at ourselves, our bad-habits, flaws, imperfections, etc. We’re called to take a hard look at our sins and how they affect our relationship with God. It’s like a relationship between a boy and her mom. The boy is loved dearly by her mom and he enjoy snuggling up safe & warm in his mom’s tender embrace. But when the boy disobeys his mom and sadden her, he feels very troubled, because there’s a tear on their "love bond" - their relationship became less than perfect. In the same way, when we sin, we do damage to our love relationship with God. God is sadden. When we love someone, we don’t want that person to be sad at us, no, we want that person to be happy with us. That’s why Lent is a great time for us to "make-up" with God, through the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession). Through this Sacrament, our "broken" relationship is mended, God totally wiped out our sin, he doesn’t keep any record of our sins after confession. What’s more, the Sacrament of Reconciliation is truly a source of grace for us. It gives us the strength and the power to live better lives.

Fasting means to eat 2 light meals & one full meal a day. First of all, it’s a gesture of imitating Jesus when he fasted 40 days in the desert before he began his ministry. Second, it’s a way to practice denying ourselves of certain things, or certain desires and offering it up as a gift of sacrifice to the Lord. The intention here is to pray for yourself or anyone in need of prayers. As we fast, we ask for God’s grace to help us practice self-control, to freely say NO to our indulgences, or any things that we think might satisfy our urges / desires. It’s a gesture of emptying yourself, of allowing yourself to live with just the basic necessity. As you begin to feel the hunger creeping is while you fast, think about the needy people in the world who are feeling that same hunger, not just 40 days, but every day, every minute of their life. Think of the youth in developing countries who had to grow up 3 times faster than their age. At a time when many kids in America get excited over Play Station and X Boxes, countless children in India would be thrilled to earn a few rupees from a long day’s work selling knick-knacks on the street. Think of the little 6 years old Vietnamese boy who has to carry a cigarette case with him all day long trying desperately to get a customer to buy cigarette. If you choose to give up bickering with your siblings, think of the many young girls whose parents are so poor and deep in debt that they had to sell their children. casual childish bickering is unknown to them, for at such tender age, they’ve already lost their innocence, many are forced into a life of prostitution. As you give up eating sweet treats, think of the kids in Africa who go to sleep each night without having a meal—forget about dessert—that day. This is not to make you feel guilty but to start you thinking about a world out there where reality is much harsher than what we’re so used to live in.

Another important question to consider when you fast is "To what are you saying yes?" Author Stephen Covey states simply, "It's easier to say no when there is a deeper yes within." For instance, you may say no to TV, but you are also saying yes to homework—homework done well.

These are the ways to bring you closer to God. The important thing is not so much where the fasting leads you but that you set out wanting to go where it may lead you.

Almsgiving means to give money to the poor, to help the needy, doing acts of kindness and charity. One good way to help you practice alms giving and fasting is to learn to live more simply. Simplicity means choosing to pare down, to live with less. Be truthful and ask yourself "what do I really need?" Once you’ve determine what you truly need, then choose to live with less of what you simply want. For everyone, the basics of life are food, clothing and shelter. May be you can try eating a simpler one course meal instead of the usual 3-course (soup, salad and main entrée)? How about waiting until you used up all the ink on your Pilot "Easy-Touch" ball point pen before you by a new package? Or simply taking shorter shower instead of lingering in the warm water until you finish singing your favorite song for the 5^th time. Compare between your lifestyle and that of those beyond your school or neighborhood. What do you really need? When you give up the things you don’t really need, you can use the money that was saved to help the needy, particularly the poor and orphans in Vietnam.

The gospel call us to constantly look at our possessions to distinguish needs from wants. To live the spirit of Lent is not easy, but, when you do it well, you will be changed. You’ll be more aware of others throughout the world and experience a morsel of their suffering. This will give you a sense of caring for and connecting with others.

If you put your whole heart into fasting this Lent, be certain that you will celebrate the joy of Easter in a much more satisfying way.

Imagine yourself being invited to have dinner at a famous "all-you-can-eat" restaurant. Would you want to save room in your stomach by eating less at lunch? Of course you would, you’d want to enjoy the food to the max! In the same way, in Lent, we and our Church are preparing ourselves for the great Feast of Easter. Make good sacrifices so you can enjoy a great celebration.

On Easter we celebrate a very powerful truth that has changed the world. Jesus died and was raised from the dead. He conquered sin, he conquered death for all of us. He suffered greatly, but he persevered, endured and loved until His last breath. In his footsteps, we too will suffer much hardship in trying to give up our bad ways, but with Jesus’ strength and merit, we will endure our sacrifices with love. In the end, we will triumph. We will taste the sweetness of victory when the Church celebrate Christ’s Resurrection. Jesus’ victory proves that we too, through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, can conquered sin & death. Jesus was given new life because he offered his life for us. Jesus was not just given back his life but was given new life, one unlike the life he—and we—have known before. The Joy of Victory means that we, by the blood of Jesus Christ, have been redeemed. We too, will one day be given new life, one much more amazing than the life we have now, a life where perfect joy reigns and misery have no hold on us. Jesus was the first human being who rose to new life, paving the way for all of us. Jesus must be ecstatic that his mission was fully accomplished, He gained eternal life for all his brothers and sisters on earth. This is Jesus’ Joy, this is his satisfaction!