The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle, 05 July 2023
Ephesians 2:19-22 <*((((>< +++ ><))))*> John 20:24-29
Caravaggio’s painting “The Incredulity of St. Thomas” (1602) from en.wikipedia.org.
Praise and glory
to you, Lord Jesus Christ,
for always believing in us,
coming to us,
calling us to follow you
despite our doubts and weaknesses
like St. Thomas the Apostle.
Most of all,
thank you dear Lord Jesus
for blessing us who have not
seen you and yet believed in you!
Jesus said to him (Thomas), “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
John 20:29
Let me follow you,
Jesus, for you are "the Way,
the Truth and the Life"
as you have told St. Thomas
at your Last Supper;
like St. Thomas,
comfort me with your presence
and understanding in times of
insecurities when pains and
disappointments make me doubt;
like St. Thomas,
give me the courage to conquer
my many doubts in life
and lead them to outcomes
brighter than any uncertainties
I often fear needlessly;
like St. Thomas,
let me persevere
despite the difficulties
of deepening my faith in you
by keeping me close to you,
"my Lord and my God".
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Solemnity of Sts. Peter & Paul, Apostles, 29 June 2023
Acts 12:1-11 ><}}}}*> 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18 ><}}}}*> Matthew 16:13-19
The lithography of Sts. Peter and Paul in Missale Romanum by unknown artist with initials F.M.S (19. cent.) printed by Typis Friderici Pustet. (Renáta Sedmáková | us.fotolia.com)
Praise and glory to you,
Lord Jesus Christ
for this Solemnity of your
two great Apostles,
Sts. Peter and Paul
whom you have both
chosen to be the solid rock
on which your Church is built,
remaining forever her
protectors and guides;
to them Rome owes her greatness
when you, O Lord, led them to
sanctify that capital of the
ancient Empire
with their martyrdom
to become the center of
the Christian world
until now.
In their great efforts
of fulfilling your mission,
there emerged a most unique
even unlikely partnership
in making you known,
O Lord, teaching us
that important lesson
that discipleship is always
being together with others
being sent on a mission,
never alone nor simply a case
of "me and Jesus"
as we would always
insist.
Teach us, dear Jesus,
to be like Sts. Peter and Paul
focused only in you to overcome
our many differences in the Church;
help us to set aside
our biases and prejudices
to always find you
as the very essence
of our discipleship;
may we learn to
respect each other
by finding you in
each co-worker
and with everyone
we serve and meet.
May our lives
mirror your true person,
Lord Jesus,
so that people are not
misled to who
you really are.
How inspiring
that both Sts. Peter and Paul
were imprisoned for preaching
your name and yet,
no bars nor chains not
even death held them captives
in spreading your good news;
in fact, some of the finest
parts of the New Testament
were composed when both
Apostles were in prison;
what a grace for us today
their many letters
still sound
so true and relevant,
providing us compass
in charting our ways
in a world so divided
and so sick with
individualism, relativism,
and materialism.
Help us, dear Jesus,
to break free from
the many prisons
that hold us from freely
witnessing your loving service
for others like Sts. Peter
and Paul; set us free, Lord,
from the chains that hold us
and make us fearful
of standing by our faith
and of your teachings
in this time of total disrespect
for life; most of all, free us, O Lord,
like St. Peter from our prison cells
of indifference in the face of
continued erosion of
marriage and family
as envisioned by God
since creation.
Dear Jesus,
make us realize
that every present moment
is the time of our departure;
may we live fully at your service
by keeping the faith in you
like Sts. Peter and Paul.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Feast of Sts. Philip & James the Less, Apostles, 03 May 2023
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 ><))))"> + ><))))"> + ><))))"> John 14:6-14
Photo by author, sunrise at Katmon Nature Sanctuary & Beach Resort, Infanta, Quezon, 04 March 2023.
Thank you, dearest Lord Jesus Christ
for the gift of two Apostles whose
feast we celebrate today,
St. Philip and St. James the Less;
thank you in giving us examples
to personally be near you,
to be one with you
and to be one in you.
How lovely it is to recall
when Philip along with Andrew
approached and asked you
where you stayed and you told them
to "come and see"; what they saw
and experienced must be so wonderful
that Philip was so convinced in
calling Nathanael to come and see you
whom he had recognized as the Messiah.
In being your apostles,
Philip and James remind us
of the need to be close
and familiar with you to
discover your true identity,
to enter into a personal contact
with you by listening, responding
and communing in you Jesus daily,
of the need to dwell in you always.
During your last supper,
you expressed clearly how
the word "dwelling" means -
intimacy and oneness in the Father
in you and with one another also
in you, dear Jesus.
Your cousin James who eventually
became the bishop of Jerusalem
practiced this meaning of dwelling
in you by working to resolve the
the tensions among the Jewish
and Hellenist converts to
Christianity; how beautiful that
the early Church lived in
harmony with each other,
rooted in you, Jesus,
our home,
our dwelling.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Apostle, 25 January 2023
Acts 22:3-16 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Mark 16:15-18
Praise and glory
to you, O God our Father
for this glorious day of
celebration of the Feast of
Conversion of St. Paul,
the 13th Apostle of Jesus Christ!
He is the perfect example of
your boundless mercy in Christ,
that every sinner can always be
a saint, that every sin can be
forgiven for your love is more
immense and vast than all the evils
that men do!
While St. Luke tells us of the vision
that led St. Paul to conversion,
the great Apostle himself tells us
it was more of an illumination
when God's light "has shone in our
hearts to bring to light the knowledge
of the glory of God on the face of
Jesus Christ" (2 Cor. 4:6); moreover,
St. Paul claimed conversion
was a revelation and a vocation
in the encounter with Jesus Christ
that began "from my mother's womb"
when God "had set me apart and
called me through his grace,
was pleased to reveal his Son to me,
so that I may proclaim him
to the gentiles" (Gal. 1:15-16).
If we could just realize this most
wonderful truth like St. Paul
that you have called us too
while we were in our mother's womb
because you have a beautiful plan for us
in this world, in this life;
that we all have a special mission,
an important role,
and noble purpose in being
alive,
in being here
in this world!
Therefore, Lord Jesus,
let us not delay our own
conversion in the same manner
that Ananias told St. Paul after
regaining his sight in Damascus
that "The God of our ancestors
designated you to know his will,
to see the Righteous One,
and to hear the sound of his voice;
for you will be his witness before
all to what you have seen and heard.
Now, why delay? Get up and have
yourself baptized and your sins
washed away, calling upon his name"
(Acts 22:14-16).
Most of all, dear Jesus,
like St. Paul, may we put you
at the center of our lives so that
our identity is marked by our
encounter with you,
by communion in your Person
and with your Word; help us reach
that wonderful stage of conversion
when like St. Paul we begin to see everything
considered as value is just a loss and refuse
(Phil. 3:7-10) because you, O Lord,
is the only essential, the most precious
one we can ever have in this life; hence,
place all our energy and being
at your service, dear Jesus and your Gospel
so that eventually, we may truly be
your Apostle, becoming
"all things to all men" or
"omnia omnibus"
(1 Cor. 9:19-23).
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Second Week of Ordinary Time, Year I, 20 January 2023
Hebrews 8:6-13 <*(((>< + ><)))*> + <*(((>< + ><)))*> Mark 3:13-19
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, 2020.
Praise and gratitude to you,
our loving Father for this day
filled with newness,
when everything is new -
new lease on life,
new hopes,
new joys,
new opportunities,
new blessings,
new friends to meet,
new problems to solve,
new situations to deal with,
new chances to grow and mature,
new me!
Most of all,
a new day to renew
your new covenant in Jesus!
Brothers and sisters: Now our high priest (Jesus Christ) has obtained so much more excellent a ministry as he is mediator of a better covenant, enacted on better promises. When he speaks of “new” covenant, he declares the first one obsolete. and what has become obsolete and has grown old is close to disappearing.
Hebrews 8:6, 13
Thank you, dear Jesus,
for your gift of call,
in renewing your call
every new day to be
your disciple,
your apostle like
the Twelve;
let me value and
treasure, and
nurture your call,
Jesus, by growing
closer to you;
help me overcome
my sinful past
to welcome every
graceful present
in you even at the Cross;
let me renew myself
to you today,
to focus more on you
amid our many differences.
How ironic, dear Jesus,
when we were younger
we love and welcome
everything that is new;
as we get older, the more
we refuse to let go of the old
to give way to new
like YOU who is ever new
and radiant!
Amen.
Photo by author, Lake of Galilee(Tiberias), Israel, 2017.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday in the First Week of Advent, Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle, 30 November 2022
Romans 10:9-18 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Matthew 4:18-22
Brothers and sisters: If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 10:9
If Advent is the preparation
for your coming, Lord Jesus Christ,
then Advent is also the preparation
for the coming of your Cross!
As St. Paul had taught us in all his
writings, there can be no proclamation of
of your salvation for us without preaching
your Cross, O Lord Jesus Christ!
Without your Cross, O Lord,
all your words and deeds
would be empty;
that is why, there is no saint
without a love for your Cross!
Teach us to love the cross
you have assigned each of us
because it is on the Cross
where you are found, Lord Jesus;
like St. Andrew, make us realize
that our own crosses can only have value
if we consider and accept them
as part of your own Cross;
though our crosses may be
of different shapes or colors,
each one is always a reflection of
your eternal light, dear Jesus,
that ennobles our sufferings and pains.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Feast of Sts. Simon & Jude, Apostles, 28 October 2022
Ephesians 2:19-22 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> Luke 6:12-16
It has always been your desire,
O God our Father that we may
all be one in you that was fulfilled
in Jesus Christ your Son who
had come to call and gather
first his Twelve Apostles
who prefigured the Church
representing all the peoples
of the world.
Brothers and sisters: You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord; in him you are also being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Ephesians 2:19-22
What a beautiful way to cap
this week with these words
reminding us of our great honor
in being called in Jesus Christ
to build up his body the Church
here on earth,
of being a part of the bigger
whole of peoples gathered
as one in God;
may we realize that you call
everyone - regardless of color
or gender or status or whatever
differences we may all have
just like the Twelve who
were united in Christ.
Help us, dear Jesus,
to imitate your two Apostles,
Sts. Simon and Jude whose feast
we celebrate today; fill our hearts
with the zeal and ardent love
for you and your Church
like Simon called the Zealot -
whether he was in fact a member
of such political party or not,
his love for you must be so evident
that he came to be known as a Zealot;
in this time when Catholics are declining
in numbers in going to church
and even in professing their faith,
may we be filled wit enthusiasm in
making you known O Jesus especially
in our actions and celebrations.
Grant us also the strength,
clarity and courage like that of
St. Jude Thaddeus in dealing with
the many contradictions of the world
we live in today as Catholics and
Christians: "But you, beloved,
build yourselves up on your
most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit;
keep yourselves in the love of God;
wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus
Christ unto eternal life.
And convince some,
who doubt..." (Jude 20-22).
Bless us, dearest Jesus,
through the help St. Simon and
St. Jude, to rediscover
the beauty of our Christian
faith and of our Catholic Church
by working hard to build it up
without tiring through our silent
and peaceful witnessing
of the Gospel.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle, 21 September 2022
Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13 <*{{{{>< + ><}}}}*> Matthew 9:9-13
Photo by author, Lake Tiberias from the side of Capernaum where Jesus called Matthew to follow him.
You never fail to amaze me,
Lord Jesus Christ with your
unique manner and ways
of finding us, calling us,
and loving us.
Of your Twelve Apostles,
only five were called while
working: the brothers Simon
and Andrew, James and John
who were fishermen and
Matthew, a tax collector;
the first four belonged
to the most ordinary
and lowliest job of the time,
fishing, while Matthew did
the most despicable job of
collecting taxes unjustly for
Roman colonizers making him
both a sinner and a traitor.
But, you have your plans
that are so different from our
ways when you told the Pharisees
and scribes that "Those who are well
do not need a physician,
but the sick do... I did not come
to call the righteous
but sinners" (Mt.9:12, 13).
Thank you, Lord Jesus
for still calling me when
I was at my lowest point in life,
when I was most sinful,
when everyone was rejecting me;
thank you, Jesus,
for believing in me,
in calling me to come,
follow you; help me to rise
from my pit of anger and
bitterness, hopelessness
and desolation like Matthew,
leaving all evil and sins
to follow you
and share you with
everyone.
Help me, Jesus,
to write the fifth gospel
according to my life
like Matthew
by "living in a manner
worthy of the call I have
received" (Eph. 4:1).
Amen.
St. Matthew,
pray for us!
Caravaggio’s painting, “Calling of St. Matthew” from en.wikipedia.org.
*You may also want to check our reflection on Caravaggio’s painting “Calling of St. Matthew” by clicking this link:
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday in the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time, Year II, 06 September 2022
1 Corinthians 6:1-11 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Luke 6:12-19
Dearest Lord Jesus,
you have always told us
in many occasions in your
teachings that we try to settle
our cases with one another
instead of waiting for the courts to
decide on them that we might
end up in jail (Mt. 5:25);
Paul reiterates this wise teaching
to the Corinthians and to us today.
Open our minds and our hearts,
Lord, to the many implications of
our search for justice in our court
and judicial system that often leave
us with too much bitterness and
hurts not only when justice is not
rightly served but the painful process
it entails, draining us of energies as
well as of goodwill for one another.
In this age of social media
when even legal tussles in the
courtrooms are televised for all
to see and make fun of,
the more it becomes clear
why we must avoid it at as much
as possible because Paul was
absolutely right that as brothers
and sisters in Christ, we must not
resort to the courts of law at all!
I say this to shame you. Can it be that there is not one among you wise enough to be able to settle a case between brothers? But rather brother goes to court against brother, and that before unbelievers? Now indeed then it is, in any case, a failure on your part that you have lawsuits against one another. Instead, you inflict injustice and cheat, and this to brothers.
1 Corinthians 6:5-7, 8
Lord Jesus Christ,
teach us to live harmoniously
with each other despite our many
differences; teach us to always
find our similarities as beloved
and forgiven children of the Father;
teach us to always be one in the
Father like you; may we find the
great honor and value of being
called by you to be your apostle,
to be specially close to you and
to each other; most of all, let us
reach out to you like the sick who
find hope and healing only in you
in their afflictions and troubles,
not in man-made remedies that
often hurt us in the process.
Dear Jesus,
we pray in the most special
way today for those awaiting
court decisions in their cases,
especially those who have been
waiting for so long, for the
disadvantaged like the poor
and innocent. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Feast of St. Bartholomew, Apostle, 24 August 2022
Revelation 21:9-14 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> John 1:45-51
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Spirituality Center, Novaliches, QC, 2018.
Everywhere we find
layers of everything:
layers of clothing,
layers of skin,
layers of meaning;
thank you, dear God
our Father in inviting me
today as we celebrate
the feast of St. Bartholomew
to examine the different
"layers" of my faith and
knowledge of you in
Jesus Christ.
First is the layer of my
self-knowledge: how true
am I with myself? How free
am I in being myself, in
expressing freely my thoughts
and feelings?
Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.” But Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him.”
John 1:45-47
Dear Jesus,
grant me that kind of
sincerity and honesty
of Nathanael/St. Bartholomew:
you were not disgusted with his words
for they were very true;
most of all, you even praised
him for being a true Israelite
without any guile!
What a revelation of the true
layer of St. Bartholomew
bared for everyone to see
unlike us in many occasions when
we hide our identity in many layers
often not true, so unreal of who
we are; teach us to come and see
you in your deepest layer, Jesus,
so we may be at home too with
who we really are.
Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”
John 1:48-49
Grant me also the grace,
Lord Jesus like Nathanael/
St. Bartholomew to perceive deeply
your true identity as "Son of God"
and "king of Israel"; two different layers
of your person that can only be perceived
by a deep faith, to see you who you really are,
the Son of God, and also the fulfillment
of our aspirations here in this life,
in this world as our Christ the King!
How interesting,
O God that St. Bartholomew
died a martyr after being skinned
alive and crucified upside down
like St. Peter; it must have
been his most glorious achievement
that after being skinned alive,
his persecutors must have seen
and realized too his faith was not that
skin-deep after all, that layers upon layers
of skin, they have found only you, Jesus
deeply ingrained in his very person.
Amen.
St. Bartholomew depicted by Michelangelo at the Sistine Chapel holding in one hand a large knife said to have been used in skinning him alive with his own skin held by his other hand. Photo from Pinterest.
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