The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, 22 February 2022
1 Peter 5:1-4 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Matthew 16:13-19
Photo from en.wikipedia.org.
Glory and praise to you,
O Lord Jesus Christ,
as we celebrate today
a most unique feast,
the Chair of St. Peter
your anointed leader of
your Church here on earth.
It is so unique especially
in this time
when we are so concerned
where we sit - whether at home,
in school, in offices, in churches,
and in buses and planes - everywhere!
because every seat is about position,
rank, power and convenience,
always having the "keys" so to speak.
Sadly, as we seek the comfort
of our "asses", we have forgotten
that more important than where we seat
is where we stand.
Remind us, dear Jesus,
on this Feast of the Chair of St. Peter,
especially us your priests
of that beautiful example
you have shown at the Last Supper
when you left your seat
to wash the feet of the Apostles.
How sad and shameful, O Lord,
when we your priests fail to realize
that the throne of the Eucharist
is not a seat of power or prestige
but a seat of loving service to everyone.
St. Ignatius of Antioch said it so well
in his Letter to the Romans (year 110)
that the Primacy of Rome
is the Primacy of Love
because primacy in faith
is always primacy in love,
two things we can never separate.
May we all heed the call of St. Peter,
the designated “owner” of that Chair,
that we “Tend the flock of God in your midst,
overseeing not by constraint but willingly,
as God would have it,
not for shameful profit but eagerly.
Do not lord it over those assigned to you,
but be examples to the flock” (1Pt.5:2-3).
Lord Jesus,
as we grow deeper in faith,
make us more loving too!
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Week VI, Year II in Ordinary Time, 18 February 2022
James 2:14-24, 26 ><)))*> + ><)))*> + ><)))*> Mark 8:34-9:1
Photo from inquirer.net, 2021.
Awaken us, O Lord,
from our mistake and
error of insisting
that our pious and religious
exercises are the "good works"
that express our faith in you;
let us realize that it is not
enough that we simply
celebrate Mass, recite the
Rosary, join processions and
pilgrimages and keep other
devotions that make us good
practicing Catholics; these are
not the good works that St. James
is asking from us in the first reading:
faith is the true living out
of our faith in you, Jesus Christ!
For just as a body without spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
James 2:26
True faith in you,
O Lord, is forgetting
one's self to reach out
to those in need, fighting
for justice and peace,
being more loving and kind,
forgiving and understanding
of others just like you, dear Jesus.
True faith in you,
dear Jesus, is being
your disciple which is
a call to deny one's self,
to take up one's cross in life,
and to follow YOU always
(Mark 8:34).
Give me the grace
this day, Jesus,
to sincerely look into
myself and examine
how true is my
faith in you,
how my very life
and actions reveal
the faith I have
or simply do not have
at all. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Week VI, Year II in Ordinary Time, 17 February 2022
James 2:1-9 ><]]]]*> + ><]]]]*> + ><]]]]*> Mark 8:27-33
Photo by author at Jaffa, Israel 2017.
Your words today, Lord Jesus,
are disturbing, even shocking,
jolting us to our very core of
being because they are very
true, and happening among us.
Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Did not God choose those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom that he promised to those who love him? but you dishonored the poor. Are not the rich oppressing you? And do they themselves not haul you off to court? Is it not they who blaspheme the noble name that was invoked over you?
James 2:5-7
Lord Jesus,
what is most disturbing
in James' letter is not his
indictment of the rich for
their greed and other sins;
what is very shocking is how
most of the people who have
shown partiality to the rich,
allowing them to oppress
the poor.
This sad reality continues
among us, dear Jesus when
we are shocked and refuse to
accept, when we prefer to be
blind than to see your true
person as a suffering Messiah,
when we insist in recognizing you
as a royalty of the world who must
be served and honored, not
realizing that true wealth is
being poor before God, trusting
only in him. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Week VI, Year II in Ordinary Time, 16 February 2022
James 1:19-27 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Mark 8:22-26
Photo by Mr. Jim Marpa, 2018.
Please bear with me,
O Lord Jesus, for being
playful today like a child:
first thing that came to my
mind while praying is how
things have really changed
so much in our time.
If your Apostle James were
with us today, he might have
written us first with the admonition
to "Think before you click..."
and then proceeded with his timely
reminders:
Know this, my dear brothers and sisters: everyone should be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, for anger does not accomplish the righteousness of God. Therefore, put away all filth and evil excess and humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you and be able to save your souls. Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.
James 1:19-22
So much have really changed
among us, dear Jesus: we have
been so glued to our TV and
computer screens and cellphones
and other gadgets, so detached from
God and from others; we no longer
listen nor hear your voice, Lord, and
worst, we speak so much that we
have come to dread silence where
we can hear you loud and clear;
as a result, we gone out of touch with you
and others too, isolated, alone and
distant not only from everyone
but with reality.
Touch us again, Jesus,
pull us away from all the noise and
screens of media that hinder us from
experiencing you and your presence;
let us pray and listen first to your words,
then think before clicking the computer;
most of all, be patient with us, Jesus,
like the blind you healed away from others
and help us find our way home
to the Father and one another. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Week VI, Year II in Ordinary Time, 15 February 2022
James 1:12-18 ><))))*> + <*((((>< Mark 8:14-21
Photo by Philip Santiago, Lourdes, France, 2018.
Lord Jesus,
please remove the many
blindness I have in myself
that prevent me from seeing you
from understanding you
from following you.
Please remove that one
particular blindness in me
about temptations: they
do not come from God nor
God wills anyone of us to be tempted;
temptations come from deep
within each one of us!
No one experiencing temptation should say, “I am being tempted by God;” for God is not subject to temptation to evil, and he himself tempts no one. Rather, each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his desire. Then desire conceives and brings forth sins, and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death.
James 1:13-15
Thank for this clarification and
reminder by St. James that
temptations originate from
one's self in three stages:
desires, sins, death.
Please open my eyes, Jesus,
enlighten my mind, my heart
and my soul to see the sources
of evil in me to see where these
are leading me.
At the same time, Lord,
let me count my blessings too
at how "God willed to give us
birth by the word of truth
that we may be a kind of
firstfruits of his creatures"
(James 1:18).
Open my eyes, dear Jesus,
remove my many blindness
like your apostles who readily
jumped into conclusions and
missed your whole point about
hypocrisies of the Pharisees,
thinking you were worried with
their lack of bread, totally forgetting
how you have multiplied bread twice
to feed thousands.
Sometimes too, we are so blinded
with our high regard for ourselves,
seeing more ourselves that we no
longer look at you nor see you
as our sole sole reference in
everything and everyone.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Memorial of St. Cyril, Bishop and St. Methodius, Monk, 14 February 2022
James 1:1-11 ><]]]]*> + ><]]]]*> + ><]]]]*> Mark 8:11-13
Photo by Ms. Jo Villafuerte, 2019.
So many people today, O Lord,
are so busy and excited, being
Valentine's day, a day of the heart
when sweethearts speak sweet
nothings, giving flowers to
express their love to their beloved.
I can't blame them, O Lord,
for being taken for a ride in this
highly commercialized world that
has become more stressful;
people have been suffering from
so many forms of difficulties and
trials that for many, they try to
escape momentarily.
Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials, for you know the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:2-4
Teach, O Lord, to consider it true
joy and a blessing in disguise every
trial we go through in life; inasmuch as
we greatly dislike inconvenience and
sufferings, failures and powerlessness,
poverty and sickness, may we recall
yesterday's Beatitudes, that true
blessedness and joy come from going
through these difficulties that bring out
the best in us through time than the
instant gratifications and feel-good
offered by the world.
Grant us the wisdom to appreciate
the trials that come our way, producing
in us the depth and maturity that lead
to fulfillment and perfection; may we
stop looking for outward signs like
those Pharisees who kept on debating
with Jesus without any intentions of
being open to find and accept him.
Amen.
Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-11 ng Pebrero 2022
Paggunita sa Mahal na Birhen ng Lourdes
Isaias 66:10-14 + Juan 2:1-11
Mga tao pumipila sa mapagpagaling na tubig ng batis sa Lourdes, France; larawan mula sa Shutterstock.
Papuri at pasasalamat sa iyo,
Diyos naming Ama sa pagbubuhos
ng iyong mga biyaya at pagpapala
sa amin sa pamamagitan ni
Hesus na iyong Anak: kay sarap
isipin una niyang "tanda" o himala
nangyari doon sa kasalan sa Cana,
Galilea nang gawin niyang masarap
na inuming alak ang tubig na isinalin
sa mga tapayan.
Sa gitna ng tanda na ito ay naroon
ang Mahal na Birheng Maria na nagkusang
namagitan sa mga bagong kasal nang
maubusan ng alak sa kanilang pagdiriwang;
naligtas sila ni Hesus sa kahihiyan
nang gawin niyang alak mga tubig
sa tapayan.
Makalipas ang kulang-kulang
dalawang libong taon noong 1858,
napakita ang Mahal na Birheng Maria
kay Santa Bernadette doon sa isang
grotto sa Lourdes, France; bumukal
isang munting batis at hanggang
ngayon, tinuturing na mapaghimala
matapos mapagaling maraming mga
maysakit.
Salamat sa biyaya ng tubig na
siya ring dumaloy sa sinibat na
tagiliran ni Hesus doon sa Krus;
salamat sa biyaya ng tubig na
tanda ng paglilinis sa aming katauhan
sa sakramento ng binyag;
salamat Ama sa pagtupad ng iyong
pangako kay Propeta Isaias (66:10-14)
na kami ay iyong "padadalhan ng ina"
na sa amin ay "kakalinga at mag-aaruga
tulad ng sa isang sanggol sa oras ng
pagkakasakit at kagipitan"; higit sa lahat,
salamat sa pagbibigay mo sa amin,
Panginoong Hesus, sa iyong Ina,
ang Mahal na Birheng Maria
na naging daluyan ng maraming
pagpapala at kagalingan sa mga
may sakit at karamdaman sa
iyong kapangyarihan.
Panginoong Hesus,
dalisayin mo kami at linisin
aming mga puso at kalooban
upang makatulad si Maria na iyong
Ina at amin ding Ina; sa kanyang
pananalangin nawa kami ay maghatid
ng kagalingan at kapayapaan sa
mga may sakit at nahihirapan gaya
ng mapaghimalang tubig sa batis ng
grotto sa Lourdes, France lalong
higit sa panahong ito ng pandemya.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Memorial of St. Scholastica, Virgin, 10 February 2022
1 Kings 11:4-13 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Mark 7:24-30
Photo from ABS-CBN News, medical frontliners making the heart sign, 2020.
Your words today, O Lord,
invite me to examine closely
where is my heart especially after all
the triumphs and gains I have had
lately, after being showered with
your many blessings.
When Solomon was old, his wives had turned his heart to strange gods, and his heart was not entirely with the Lord, his God, as the heart of his father David had been.
1 Kings 11:14
Keep my heart entirely yours, Lord;
I am afraid that like Solomon,
I may have also been like him
with my heart being stolen from you
by the very blessings you have
showered me with like health
and some degrees of comforts,
triumphs and successes.
I do not ask for more pains and
sufferings, dear Jesus; just keep
my heart closest to you always
like that Syrophoenician woman in
the gospel who begged you to heal
her daughter possessed by the devil;
she was witty and wise in her answer
to you: "Lord, even the dogs under
the table eat the children's scraps"
(Mark 7:28) that you have her child
healed.
So many times, Lord, in our wisdom
and intelligence, we rationalise
everything to justify what we want
and what we do like Solomon;
so many times, Lord, our wisdom
could not prevent our being ruled
by our hearts and selfish interests that
we keep on doing what we know is not
right and sinful; so many times, Lord,
we try other paths forgetting
that you are the only WAY,
the TRUTH and the LIFE.
Help me imitate St. Scholastica,
the twin sister of St. Benedict,
whose minds and hearts have
always remained united in you,
dear Jesus that even in the end
of their lives, not even death could
separate their bodies as they shared
just one grave. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Week V, Year II in Ordinary Time, 09 February 2022
1 Kings 10:1-10 ><))))*> + <*((((>< Mark 7:14-23
Photo by author, 2018.
Praise and glory to You,
God our Father in heaven
that you see more what is inside
than what is outside,
what is essential
than what is accidental.
Purify and cleanse my heart,
Lord, so I may also see beyond
what is external, what is on the surface
and everything that is superficial;
give me the drive to probe
deeper into the heart to see
the many wonders of every person
instead of criticizing and judging everyone
like the Queen of Sheba who travelled far
to verify for herself King Solomon’s wisdom.
Bless me with courage
to face and change things
not pleasing within me like
“evil thoughts, unchastity, theft,
murder, adultery, greed, malice,
deceit, licentiousness, envy,
blasphemy, arrogance, folly” (Mark7:21).
It is only with a clean heart,
dear God through Jesus your Son
when we are truly good and wise
because it is YOU, not us,
who must be seen and eventually
be praised by those who can see
the inner reality like the Queen of Sheba
who told King Solomon,
“Blessed be the Lord, your God,
whom it has pleased to place you
on the throne of Israel…
to carry out judgment and justice”
(1Kings10:9).
Moreover, it is only those
who live inside your heart,
Lord, like the psalmist today
who can murmur with ones lips
your wisdom and majesty. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Memorial of St. Josephine Bakhita, Virgin, 08 February 2022
1 Kings 8:22-23, 27-30 ><]]]]'> + <'[[[[>< Mark 7:1-13
Photo by Ms. Mira Mandal Sibal, 2021.
God our loving Father,
I praise and glorify you for
your might and majesty!
Like your servant King Solomon,
I wonder in great awe at how
you choose to dwell in our hearts,
in our homes, in our churches
when you cannot be contained
in your vast universe!
You are so kind and merciful
that when you sent us your Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ, he chose to
be even smaller just to be closest to
us as close as our breath; it is a marvel
of faith at how he can be truly present
with us in the words proclaimed and
prayed everywhere, most specially in
those tiny tabernacles and little hosts
we receive at Holy Communion.
Solomon said, “Can it indeed be that God dwells on earth? If the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain you, how much less this temple which I have built! Listen to the petitions of your servant and of your people Israel that they offer in this place. Listen from your heavenly dwelling and grant pardon.”
1 Kings 8:27, 30
Like my prayer yesterday,
let me be intense in seeking you,
in finding you, and having you,
Lord; while at the same time,
teach me to learn to limit my
imaginations and thoughts that
eventually limit your presence
like the Pharisees and some scribes
who have questioned you, Jesus,
"Why do your disciples not follow
the tradition of the elders but instead
eat a meal with unclean hands?"
(Mk.7:5).
Gift us with the same grace of
courage and perseverance amid
severe hardships and sufferings in
life like St. Josephine Bakhita who
still found you and experience your
loving mercy and justice in the terrible
ordeals she had gone through since
childhood after being sold as a slave
in Sudan.
St. Josephine Bakhita had shown us
in her life and example that you, O God,
cannot be limited to any particular
place nor time, nor people nor anything;
you are more than this world and our
experiences, more than our thoughts
and ideas for you are totally free
to fulfill your grand designs for each one
of us to find joy and peace, fulfillment and
meaning in this life despite and in spite
of whatever circumstances we are into.
Amen.
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