Tag: life struggles

Facing life’s realities

Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 21 July 2025
Monday in the Sixteenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year I
Exodus 14:5-18     <*((((>< + ><))))*>     Matthew 12:38-42
Photo by author, Cabo da Roca, Pundaquit, San Antonio, Zambales, 15 May 2025.
It is a rainy, 
gloomy Monday,
God our Father;
like your people who have
left Egypt led by Moses,
suddenly we are again facing
life's realities of work and 
struggles,
of health and sickness,
of challenges and problems
bigger than us.

Pharaoh was already near when the children of Israel looked up and saw that the Egyptians were on the march in pursuit of them. In great fright they cried out to the Lord. And they complained to Moses, “Were there no burial places in Egypt that you had to bring us out here to die in the desert? Why did you do this to us? Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Did we not tell you this in Egypt, when we said, ‘Leave us alone. Let us serve the Egyptians? Far better for us to be the slaves of Egyptians than to die in the desert.'” But Moses answered, “Fear not! Stand your ground, and you will see the victory the Lord will win for you today… The Lord himself will fight for you; you have only to keep still” (Exodus 14:10-14).

Keep me still, Lord;
let me stand my ground
in you before my adversaries -
primarily my self when I doubt
you, when I lose hope,
when I am disillusioned,
when I am afraid,
when I complain a lot 
when the realities of life 
start to kick in
making me realize of your invitation
and calls for me to welcome you
into my life,
to believe you,
to trust you. 
O dear Jesus,
many times in the wilderness
of this life I waste precious
time and efforts like the Pharisees
asking you for signs
when each day,
each waking from sleep
is like me being a Jonah
coming out alive 
from the belly of the whale;
help me live 
your paschal mystery,
Jesus,
one day at a time.
Amen.

Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Our Lady of Fatima University
Valenzuela City

Praying to be better, not bitter

Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 10 July 2025
Thursday in the Fourteenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year I
Genesis 44:18-21, 23-29; 45:1-5   <*{{{>< + ><}}}*>   Matthew 10:7-15
Photo by author, August 2024.

“Come closer to me,” he told his brothers. When they had done so, he said: “I am your brother Joseph, whom you once sold into Egypt. But now do not be distressed, and do not reproach yourselves for having sold me here. It was really for the sake of saving lives that God sent me here ahead of you.” (Genesis 45:4-5)

Dear God our Father:
give me that magnanimity
of Joseph to his brothers,
give me that same kind of 
attitude of being better
than bitter with life's many
trials and difficulties caused
by others especially those closest
to us; what a tremendous grace
for Joseph after all those years of
pains of being sold and lost in a far-away
country, he remained faithful to you
and you gifted him the wisdom
to save not just a nation
but the whole region.
Photo by author, Alfonso, Cavite, 2024.
Teach us to be empty always
to never carry so many
baggages and luggages,
so many wealth and
extras in life journeys
whether they be positive
or negative because in life,
it is always that attitude of
emptiness for you and your plans
that matters for us to fulfill your
mission, everything else is
incomparable to you as our
most cherished gift
and treasure;
for those going through
many trials these days
especially when the days
are dark and rainy,
teach us to have fun
and celebrate life
with much love in you.
Amen.

Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Our Lady of Fatima University
Valenzuela City
Photo by Ravi Kant on Pexels.com

Wrestling with God

Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 08 July 2025
Tuesday in the Fourteenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year I
Genesis 32:23-33     <*((((>< + ><))))*>     Matthew 9:32-38
Photo from wikipedia.org, “Jacob Wrestling with the Angel” by Leon Bonnat (French, d.1922).
Once again,
you challenge us O Lord
to get closer to you like
the readings yesterday;
but, this time much, much
closer like in wrestling.

Jacob was left there alone. Then some man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. When the man saw saw that he could not prevail over him, he struck Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the hip socket was wrenched as they wrestled. The man then said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” Then the man said, “You shall no longer be spoken of as Jacob, but as Israel, because you have contended with divine and human beings and have prevailed” (Genesis 32:25-27, 29).

How I love this scene,
God most powerful yet 
so loving, 
so engaging,
always inviting us to a wrestling
but nobody would dare
not because we are afraid of you
but more because of pride -
we do not want to lose,
we always want to be on top,
always in control
even with you,
O God;
remind us always, 
Lord,
that every fight 
we have in this life is
already assured of victory in you.

At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36).

Like that Angel
wrestling with Jacob,
you finally wrestle with us
in your Son Jesus Christ
who became truly human like us;
and like your Angel at Peniel,
humans prevailed over you,
Lord;
your heart
 is always moved
with pity,
stirred
to bow down
to us from your immense
love and mercy;
we are all Jacob,
Israel who prevailed over you
not because we are stronger
but because we believe
and rely only on you, Lord.
Let us pick up your fight,
Jesus;
let us not be proud
and be humble
to wrestle with you
because whether we win
or lose our battles in life,
we still prevail
for after every fight
and struggle,
we are transformed
into a better person
in you,
O most loving
Jesus.
Amen.

Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Our Lady of Fatima University
Valenzuela City
Photo by author, Chapel of St. Francis Xavier, Sacred Heart Novitiate, March 2024.

Drought & blessedness

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday in Tenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 10 June 2024
1 Kings 17:1-6     <*((((><  +  ><))))*>     Matthew 5:1-12
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Your words today, O Lord,
seem to be so apart,
unconnected, even disconsonant
to some respect:
in the first reading,
You declared a drought as
punishment against Israel
who turned their backs from You,
worshipping Baal;
in the gospel,
Jesus preached His Sermon
on the mount, declaring as 
"blessed" are those who are poor,
the meek, the hungry and thirsty,
the persecuted and insulted -
conditions and situations
directly contrary to the ways of the world,
so uncomfortable and difficult.
Every time we are facing
trials and difficulties in life,
we consider it as a drought,
a time when You, O God,
seem to be so far from us
when in fact, it is us who have gone
astray and away from You!
Let us see, dear Jesus,
your blessings
in every drought,
in every hardship,
in every poverty,
 and persecutions
we go through;
 let us realize the blessedness
of these moments of drought
and trials and difficulties
when we can examine what's
in our hearts,
who's in our hearts.
Many times we unconsciously
drift apart from You, O Lord,
when we are carried away by
our modern baals and gods
that separate us from You
and one another;
help us find our way
back to You,
rejoicing always in times of drought
to seek You and follow You.
Amen.
Photo by Ms, Analyn Dela Torre, March 2024.

Jopay

Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-29 ng Disyembre 2022
*Isang tula bunsod ng nakatutuwa na awitin ng Mayonnaise.
Sino ka nga ba, Jopay?
Ako ay nakikisabay,
nakikibagay sa sayaw at ingay
pero pramis,
ang sarap sumakay 
sa awit sa iyo ay alay!
Jopay, 
gusto ko rin umuwi sa bahay
simpleng buhay 
hawak lang pamaypay
sabay kaway kaway
maski kaaway!
Kung sino ka man, Jopay,
totoo sabi nila sa iyo:
minsan masarap umalis
sa tunay na mundo,
walang gulo -
pero wala ding tao!
Kaya kung ako sa iyo,
Jopay, kakanta na lang ako
sabay sayaw:
spaghetti pababa
spaghetti pataas
ganyan ang buhay, Jopay,
isang magandang sayaw
lalo na kung iyong kasabay
mahal sa buhay 
mga kaibigan
hindi ka iiwan
maski kelan.
Mayroon tayong
isang kasabay
 sa sayaw ng buhay, Jopay:
tunay ka kaibigan
huwag lang siya ang mawawala
tiyak ika'y matutuwa
sa hapis at lungkot
hirap at dusa
hindi mo alintana
mga ito'y nalampasan mo na
siya palagi mong kasama
hanggang sa bahay ng Ama!
Pasensiya ka na, Jopay
ako ma'y walang kasama
at kausap dito sa bahay
sa mundong magulo;
naisip ko lang tumula para sa iyo
at sa mga kagaya mo
palaging masaya sa paningin
pero maraming kinikimkim
saloobin at pasanin
kaya isang taus-pusong panalangin
aking alay sa inyo,
para lumigaya kayo!

*We have no intentions of infringing into the copyrights of this music and its uploader except to share its beauty and listening pleasure.

From YouTube.com

Ang Diyos at ang kulay ng hangin

Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-30 ng Setyembre 2022
Larawan kuha ng may akda, bukang liwayway sa Lawa ng Tiberias, Israel, Mayo 2019.
Kay sarap namnamin,
kaninang pagkagising
Iyong tugon Panginoon namin
sa mga tanong ni Job
na amin ding dinaraing
sa gitna ng maraming hirap at tiisin:

"Job, 
nakalikha ka ba
kahit isang bukang liwayway?
Ang daigdig ba ay ang iyong
naigawa ng tanglaw?
Napunta ka na ba sa
pinagmumulan ng bukal?
Nakalakad ka na ba sa 
pusod ng karagatan?
Alam mo ba kung saan nanggaling
ang liwanag, o and kadiliman,
kung saan nagbubuhat?
Ang mga ulap ba iyong mauutusan
sa lupa ay magbuhos ng malakas na ulan?"
(Aklat ni Job 38:12-13, 16, 19, 34)
Inyong ipagpaumanhin
Panginoong namin
kapangahasan Ikaw ay tanungin, 
usisain kapag mabigat aming pasanin
 kami ay patawarin
katulad ni Job iyong dinggin:

"Narito, ako'y hamak, 
walang kabuluhan,
walang maisasagot, 
bibig ay tatakpan
hindi na kikibo, 
mga nasabi'y di na uulitin"
(Aklat ni Job 40:4-5).
Hinding hindi namin
makakayang sagutin
ni arukin kalaliman 
nitong maraming lihim 
ng buhay lalo't kung madilim;
sana'y Iyong dalisayin, Panginoon
aking mga paningin, upang Ikaw ay
malasin tulad ng kulay ng hangin!
Larawan kuha ni Bb. Jo Villafuerte, pagbubukang liwayway sa Atok, Benguet, Setyembre 2019.

Good news is when truth hurts

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Memorial of St. Alphonsus Ligouri, Bishop & Doctor of the Church, 01 August 2022
Jeremiah 28:1-17   ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*>   Matthew 14:13-21
Photo by Mr. Jay Javier, Acacias in UP-Diliman, QC, April 2022.
Praise and glory to you,
O God our loving Father 
for this gift of the month of
August, of another 31 days
for us to be better and stronger,
firmer in faith, vibrant in hope
and unceasing in charity and love.
On this first day of August when
we celebrate the memorial of 
St. Alphonsus Ligouri, patron
of moral theologians, we pray 
for the grace of accepting and 
embracing, owning the truth,
avoiding lies and falsehoods always.
I have heard and experienced the
veracity of the expression "truth hurts" -
so true and so painful indeed!
Let me not be like Hananiah who
prophesied in the name of the Lord
falsely in today's first reading,
sugarcoating the true situation of
the Israelites held bondage in Babylonia
for its wickedness; instead of telling them
the painful truth of their exile, Hananiah
lied and spoke of "good news", of deliverance
from Nebuchadnezzar and a return of 
the stolen vessels of the Lord's temple.
Give me the courage to tell the painful
truth, to stand by it always even if it is
unpopular like your prophet Jeremiah 
who spoke of your truth during the
Babylonian Captivity: of the need to
reform their lives and ways, to atone for
their sins and go back to you, O God;
let me keep in mind, dear Jesus, that
a good news is only good when it is 
difficult, uncomfortable, and disturbing
like the feeding of the vast crowd in the 
wilderness; a good news is not good at all
when there is no Cross.
Remove me, O Lord, 
from the way of falsehood
and favor me with your law;
take not the word of truth
from my mouth, for in your
ordinances is my hope (Ps.119:
29, 43).  Amen.

Fighting life’s battles

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Week I, Year II in Ordinary Time, 13 January 2022
1 Samuel 4:1-11   ><]]]'> + ><]]]'> + ><]]]'>   Mark 1:40-45
Photo by author, Pililla Wind Farm in Rizal, January 2021.
As we go into another year
with a new surge in COVID-19, 
teach me, dear Lord,
how to fight life's many battles;
just when we thought we are almost
done with the pandemic, recent 
events indicate more battles are
still coming our way for sure.
May we learn from the lessons of the
past two years to equip us better
this 2022 by deepening our faith in
you and stop manipulating you.

So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there the ark of the Lord of hosts, who is enthroned upon the cherubim. The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were with the ark of God. When the ark of the Lord arrived in the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth resounded. The Philistines fought and Israel was defeated; every man fled to his own tent. It was a disastrous defeat, in which Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers. The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were among the dead.

1 Samuel 4:4-5, 10-11
Forgive us, God our Father,
whenever we remember you most
when we are losing life's battles; 
and worst, when we manipulate
you to turn the tide in our favor!
Forgive us, God our Father,
when we behave and act like
pagans, believing more in our
images and signs of your presence
than in your very Person.
How foolish like lately in an
accident in Brazil, many among us
even questioned why you have allowed
a boat named "Jesus" crushed by a 
falling rock that killed ten people on
board including a child?!*
Teach me, O Jesus, to have the same
attitude of that leper who approached
you and humbly pleaded for healing,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
And you were so moved with pity that
you stretched out your hand and touched
the leper, telling him, "I do will it.  
Be made clean" (Mk.1:40-41).
You have come to join us in our battles,
Lord Jesus; let us then fight with you, 
and give us the courage
to approach you and humbly beg you,
trusting you which is in itself a way of
fighting our life's battles.  Amen.

* For the article, click https://aleteia.org/2022/01/11/boat-named-jesus-crushed-by-falling-rock-in-brazil-why-did-god-allow-it/

To be encouraged to encourage

The Lord Is My Chef Breakfast Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Week X in Ordinary Time, 07 June 2021
2 Corinthians 1:1-7   ><)))*>  +  <*(((><   Matthew 5:1-12
Photo by author, Nazareth in Israel, 2019.

Your words today, O Lord, from St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians are so encouraging, so comforting as they are truly meant for us, too, in this time of trials and difficulties due to the pandemic.

In greeting the Corinthians as well as other Christians in the region who were facing tremendous tests and sufferings, St. Paul prayed fervently for them by introducing the virtue of “encouragement” – mentioning it ten times that we can feel his deep concern not only for the Corinthians but with anyone in any period of time like us going through severe tests like in this time of COVID-19.

 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
the Father of compassion and God of all encouragement,  
who encourages us in our every affliction,  
so that we may be able to encourage those
 who are in any affliction with the encouragement 
with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. 
(2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

Encouragement or comfort is what we really need at this time, Lord Jesus, in order to strengthen us “in enduring the sufferings” (2Cor.1:6) we are going through. It can only come from you for it is a grace that enables us to live out true blessedness found in your Beatitudes we heard in the gospel today.

So many among us are getting weak not only physically but also emotionally, mentally and spiritually in this prolonged quarantine periods when our mobility is so limited.

So many among us have lost their jobs and livelihood, with still many others so limited in their earning abilities while financial obligations are piling up.

So many among us feel so uncertain about the future, finding it so hard to focus on whatever we have at the moment so we can make the most out of every opportunity that comes out from this pandemic.

Worst of all, there are some of us who are in deep emotional traumas at this time when problems arise in their marriage and family life.

O God, you know the situation we are into, even the mess some of us have got involved with due to our own sinfulness and carelessness.

Send us the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, the Comforter and Encourager par excellence for us to be encouraged to persevere and to strive, to remain blessed so that we may encourage others too. Amen.

The lure of “Athens”

The Lord Is My Chef Breakfast Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday in the Sixth Week of Easter, Sts. Nereus and Achilleus, Martyrs, 12 May 2021
Acts 17:15, 22-18:1   ><)))'> + ><)))*> + ><)))'>   John 16:12-15
Photo by author, Dominican Hills, Baguio City, 2019.
After Paul's escorts had taken him to Athens,
they came away with instructions for Silas and Timothy
to join him as soon as possible.  Then Paul stood up at the
Areopagus..... When they heard about resurrection of
the dead, some began to scoff, but others said, 
"We should like to hear you on this some other time."
And so Paul left them.  
But some did join him, 
and became believers.
(Acts 17:15, 22, 32-34)

How amazing and different indeed are your ways, O Lord Jesus Christ! You have brought Paul to Athens that was the cultural capital of the world at that time and center of learning but, alas, it never became a hub for the proclamation of your Gospel.

Cities of lesser importance like the decadent Corinth would in fact be better off than Athens for Paul’s missionary endeavors that this is the only time he had gone to this famous city. Despite his best efforts at preaching, the people of Athens who were considered “bright and learned” did not accept your Gospel.

They could not accept your dying on the Cross and your Resurrection because for them God is never defeated, God is never put down, God is never humiliated.

They have great ideas of what is a God that speak so well of who they are – forgetting that in this this life, the most important is to know who you are, O Lord, so we may know what are we here in this life.

In this world described as highly competitive and so modern, we are easily lured into the glow of greatness and sophistications, of human intelligence and mastery of technology but so empty of our souls, of the inside not knowing you our Lord and God.

As you have promised during your last supper in our gospel today, send us the Holy Spirit to open our eyes and our hearts to believe in you, to believe in the folly of your Cross, to believe and accept your very person so we may enter into a relationship with you that is personal and intimate like Saints Nereus and Achilleus who were both Roman soldiers but after experiencing your love and mercy, they turned away from Rome and chose to fight for you in their lives of witnessing.

We pray today for those having a hard time believing in your loving presence, Lord Jesus Christ because of this pandemic. Those who have lost their jobs, those who could not make ends meet due to their very limited income, those who have take care of their sick family members.

Too often, O Lord, it is when your Cross is so heavy that many of us begin to doubt you, not realizing that it is on the Cross precisely where we meet and experience you truly, changing our person, changing our views as you make us realize the path to Easter is through the Cross. Amen.