“Good Times” by Bobbi Humphrey (1978)

LordMyChef Sunday Music, 17 March 2019

For our hot and humid second Sunday of Lent, here is Bobbi Humphrey’s “Good Times” from her 1978 album Freestyle to cool you off and remind you of the many storms you have weathered in life.

Bobbi’s soothing voice, lovely lyrics and jazzy beat match so well with the gospel message this Sunday of the Transfiguration of Jesus that at the very core of His glorious Easter is always the Cross of Good Friday. There can never be a complete and correct picture of Jesus Christ without the Cross. In the same manner, there can be no real change in us, transformation into better persons and “good times” without pain and sufferings with Christ leading the way.

You and I have traveled life’s uncharted courses
We’ve been tossed around at many times on dark and stormy seas
But now the clouds are parting and the sun is shining through
It feels so good to know… you’re here with me,
To share the Good Times, that we waited for so long
I know the Good Times, will prove we weren’t wrong
To hold on to the dreams of how we knew it could be
We worked so hard at easin’ all the pain and misery
Until the Good Times had come ‘round for you and me
And now they’re here, now they’re here

Things may even get worst than better in the world, in our country and in our personal lives marked by sickness and deaths, problems and other woes but the story of the Transfiguration this Sunday assures us of our future glory in Jesus. Let us “stand firm in the Lord” as Paul tells us in his letter to the Philippians by reviewing the many decisions and choices we have made in the past to go back to Christ’s direction to His Cross with more love and faith with one another.

I remember all the hard times when there wasn’t much to eat
And the longest coldest winter, when we didn’t have much heat
But we had all we needed with love enough to spare
Cause more than money we had what I knew would get us here

We fought and won each battle that we had to fight
Made it through the darkness when we couldn’t see the light
And deep inside I guess we always knew that we were right
To try and catch that star….’cause baby here we are.
(Let’s share Good Times…. )

Enjoy your Sunday with good food and drinks, great company of family and friends with some music and a lot of prayers. A blessed week ahead with you!

“Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out” by U2 (2000)

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, Lent Week 1-C, 10 March 2019

Every year on this first Sunday of Lent, we always hear the story of the tempting of Jesus by the devil in the wilderness. According to St. Luke, Jesus was “filled with the Holy Spirit” when He went to the desert to pray and fast for 40 days. He was able to resist the temptations of the devil because Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit.

To be filled with the Holy Spirit means to be docile to the Holy Spirit. Being docile is not merely being obedient; from the Latin word docilitas, being docile literally means being “attentive”. Lent is the season that invites us to bring back the spirit of docility in our lives, that is, to be attentive to one’s self, to God and to others. How sad that in this world of advanced technologies, we have become more attentive with things and gadgets than with persons. Maybe if we are more attentive to our inner selves, to God and to others, we could have prevented the many disasters and problems we now have.

If we have been attentive to our self, to God and to others, we would not be “stuck in a moment we can’t get out” – the very same title of a cut from the U2’s 2000 album All That You Can’t Leave Behind. I have always loved that song – and that album which I feel is their second best after Joshua Tree – that I used it so many times in my talks and recollections with young people. According to Bono, it was written after his friend from another band committed suicide, of how he wished he had exerted more effort to prevent his friend from killing self, of being stuck in a moment you can’t get out.

The song perfectly suits our gospel today. Every time the devil tempts us, its aim is not merely for us to commit a sin. The devil’s ultimate goal in tempting us to sin is to destroy our lives, to get us stuck in a moment we can’t get out. The good news is that Jesus had shown us how we can get over every temptation by the devil. Moreover, He has filled us with the Holy Spirit so that like Him, we can be docile – attentive – to God, to others and to our self so that we avoid sins and avert destroying our lives.

 
You've got to get yourself together
You've got stuck in a moment
And now you can't get out of it
Don't say that later will be better
Now you're stuck in a moment
And you can't get out of it

Photo above from Bing.com; music video from Youtube.

“The Keys to Your Heart” by Orup (1991)

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 03 March 2019

It’s a very beautiful Sunday, the first in this month of March.

I have been thinking of so many other songs that best capture our reflection for the Sunday gospel which is about education of the heart when Jesus said, “A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks” (Lk.6:45).

Our heart is the core of our person and that is why it is called “corazon” in Spanish from the Latin “cor”. And the best way to understand it is to simply feel what is inside.

Can we really look inside one’s heart as David Benoit said?

The French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote that “the heart has its own reasons that the mind can never understand.”

Another Frenchman, the aviator and writer Antoine de St. Exupery expressed in his book “The Little Prince” that “what is essential is invisible to the eye; it is only with the heart one can truly see.”

And so, I have decided this Sunday to share with you the music of the Swedish pop singer Orup (Thomas Eriksson) called “The Keys to Your Heart” released in 1991. I can’t find its lyrics but that’s the key to our heart – just feel the music and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/ONmJrQsqHe0

“Ashes to Ashes” by Dennis Lambert (1972)

DSCF1487 — *Yehliu Geopark in Taiwan with “mushroom” rock formations at the background. Photo by the author, 30 January 2019.*

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 17 February 2019

Every year when Valentine’s comes, I only think of one song: Dennis Lambert’s “Of All the Things”. It is probably the ultimate love song of all time especially for us die-hard romantic Filipinos that even Sr. Bubbles Bandojo, rc covered it for a Jesuit CD of popular songs often sung in weddings in the country. No wonder, Dennis Lambert gained a cult following in the country for that song he released in 1972 from the album “Bags and Things”.

Another cut from that great album is “Ashes to Ashes” which I find as a perfect match for our gospel this Sunday about the Beatitudes preached by Jesus Christ during His sermon on the plain based on St. Luke’s gospel. In the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us true blessedness and happiness in following Him is being poor, hungry, weeping, and hated by others. They are paradoxical because they run directly against the values of the world and yet, we know deep in our hearts how they are very true! Life is not about having and amassing but giving and sharing. Dennis Lambert reminds us that in the end, we are all “ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” And there lies the great paradox in this life that Jesus has always reminded us, “Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it” (Lk.17:33). The saints who have followed the Lord knew it so well and lived it through as well as poets, writers and musicians like Lambert wrote about it too. A blessed Sunday to you!

“Still in Love” by Seawind (1980)

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 10 February 2019

It is a very lovely Sunday despite the very warm weather. Perfect for listening to the music of Seawind with vocals by Fil-Am Ms. Pauline Wilson who would surely touch your heart and delight your soul with “Still in Love” from their self-titled album “Seawind” released in 1980.

How lovely to realize that after all these years, you are still loved by someone you have loved. Exactly the kind of love of Jesus Christ to us all. In the gospel today, we find Jesus calling His first apostles while preaching by the shores of Lake Gennesaret after being rejected at their synagogue in Nazareth. That is how true and faithful Jesus is with His mission to reach out to everyone proclaiming His good news of salvation. Jesus is the only one who would always still be in love with us no matter how often we turn away from Him or reject Him.

Are you still in love with someone special? Or with Jesus?

Rejoice because most likely, you are still loved by that someone.

And definitely by Jesus!

“O-o-h Child” cover by Lisa Loeb (2017)-

RaffySampaloc Cove4 — *Photo by Mr. Raffy Tima of GMA-7 News, Sampaloc Cove in Subic, Zambales, 20 January 2019. Used with permission.*

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 03 February 2019

As I was telling you in my last blog, we had a unique weekend yesterday when we celebrated the Feast of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple because its gospel reading complements our gospel this Sunday. Recall how yesterday we have heard Simeon telling Mary the Mother of Jesus, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted – and you yourself a sword will pierce you – so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Lk.2:34-35). Today in our gospel we have seen the fulfillment of Simeon’s prophecy of Jesus being a sign of contradiction when people at their synagogue were amazed at His “gracious words” in proclaiming the word of God on a Sabbath. Then suddenly, the same people became skeptical of Him, wondering where or how He got such wisdom, asking “is he not the son of Joseph the carpenter?” This deteriorated more when the people became furious of Jesus, trying to hurl Him down headlong a ravine after He had explained to them the meaning of the word of God that revealed their hypocrisies.

So many times we go through the same experiences like Jesus in His own hometown when family and relatives and friends would speak highly of us but later put us down with their gossips and nasty words. Like Jesus when we try to be true and just with everyone, there are those would feel insecure that they would backstab us and even worse, betray us like Judas to Jesus. These are all a part of our being a prophet like Jesus Christ. A prophet is more than being a spokesman of God but someone who makes the word of God happen and fulfilled in every here and now like Jesus declaring in the synagogue on that Sabbath day, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing” (Lk.4:21). Sometimes, the more we try to truly love, the more we try to truly care and be kind with others, the more we are maligned and disliked by others. Indeed, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.

And that is why I remembered this beautiful song originally sang and recorded in 1970 by the Chicago soul family group called the Five Stairsteps. This song was originally meant to be the B-side of the Five Stairsteps’ version of another song but due to its meaningful and soothing message of hope and love, it became an instant hit at that time. There have been so many versions of this song that has become timeless as it assures everyone in every generation of how things would get better despite the many obstacles and setback in life. It is the very same assurance of God to us all who try to follow His Son Jesus Christ in being a sign of contradiction in this world where the norm nowadays is selfishness and self-centeredness masquerading as love and service. A blessed Sunday to you!

What a Loving God We Have

The Lord Is My Chef Breakfast Recipe for the Soul

Tuesday, 22 January 2019, Week II, Year I

Hebrews 6:10-20///Mark 2:23-28

O God! You are so loveable and so loving!

You are the truest lover of all… so “nakaka-in-love” and so “kilig” as we say. You are so undeniably real, so personal, always my loving Dad, the only one who truly knows me and would always do things just to let me rest and have a break from all my worries and burdens in life.

As I prayed today’s readings, I could feel your strong presence that made me wonder what the author of the Letter to the Hebrews must have experienced when he wrote “God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones” (6:10).

What he had written has always been true. So many among us at this very moment or past days are feeling so low, crying in silence, grappling with anger within while bearing all the pains of the continuing lack of love and respect, kindness and concern, even civility by some of those around us who feel so entitled in this world. Then out of nowhere, you are suddenly here beside me, coming like a lover, embracing me, hugging me, or simply touching me softly or just tenderly glancing at me full of love and affirmations.

Sometimes like the Twelve we get so tired and hungry following Jesus that we would pick the heads of the grain while passing through a field on the Sabbath when the holier-than-thou people around us would object like the Pharisees saying that is unlawful to do on a Sabbath (Mk.2:23-24). But Jesus would readily defend us because you are “not unjust so as to overlook our work and the love we have demonstrated for your name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones” (6:10).

Thank you, dear God. Thank you. Help us to persevere in doing what is good in your sight, in fulfilling your will no matter how difficult it may be. Let us never doubt that you can never be outdone in kindness and generosity. Amen. Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Parokya ng San Juan Apostol at Ebanghelista, Gov. F. Halili Ave., Bagbaguin, Sta. Maria, Bulacan.

Photo from Google. During my prayer period, I remembered the song “Like a Lover” that partly inspired me in writing this prayer. Good morning vibes and hope you love it!

“Better Days” by Dianne Reeves (1987)

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The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 20 January 2019

It is still Christmas this Sunday here in the Philippines as we celebrate today the Feast of the Child Jesus known as Señor Sto. Niño. The feast reminds us of the most central teaching of Jesus Christ which is to be like a child for He said that “unless you become like children, you shall never inherit the kingdom of heaven.”

One distinct quality of being a child like Jesus Christ is to be always filled with love for everyone. In this age of modern technologies, how sad that we have become more technical than personal that slowly, real love has become so rare among us. Too often love is not only abused and misused but also misunderstood as mere feelings alone. No! Love is always a decision, a choice we make after the interplay of our mind and heart that leads to growth and maturity. And the more we stand on that decision and choice to love, the more it is deepened and perfected in God. So often, love is symbolized by the heart but its truest meaning can only be found in the great sign of the Cross of Jesus where we can find the perfect expression of Christian “childlikeness” and Christian maturity when we choose whatever is more painful and more difficult because we have found someone to love more than our self.

This is the child-like love that Dianne Reeves tells us in her 1987 crossover hit “Better Days” also known as the “Grandma Song” where she spoke of her grandmother not only teaching her but making her experience love that leads to better days. We find in the song her grandmother somehow portraying to us what we have said as Christian “childlikeness” and Christian maturity so that in the end, she peacefully joined God because she had always been faithful and loving as a child of the Father like Christ. That is also the challenge to us of this Feast of the Sto. Niño: to remain children of God even as adults like Jesus Christ. Or Dianne’s grandmother. If only we can be child-like like Jesus or Dianne’s Grandma, we can be assured of better days too not only here but in eternity.

Photo by the author, Dominican Hill, Baguio City, 18 January 2019.

“Waiting for Love” by Sergio Mendes and Brazil ‘77

waiting for love

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 06 January 2019

It’s the first Sunday of 2019 and we are celebrating in the Church today the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord used to be known as feast of the Three Kings. From the Greek word epiphanes that means appearance or manifestation, today’s celebration reminds us that Jesus came for everyone especially those forgotten and unloved, the poor and marginalized, the sinner and those lost. Most of all, Christ became human like us except in sin so that it would be easier for us to find God. In fact, it is actually God who searches for us and always finds us. Whenever we think we are looking for God and have found Him, it was actually God who first sought us and found us.

While praying over the scriptures for today’s celebration, one song kept playing at the back of my mind, “Waiting for Love” by Sergio Mendes and the Brazil ’77. Composed by Randy McNeill, it is from their 1974 album “Vintage 74” that features for the second time around the vocals by Gracinha Leporace and Bonnie Bowden. It is a very beautiful song with a haunting music because it is so true with many of us who are so afraid to love, afraid to follow our stars, and perhaps afraid to fail and get hurt in life. “Waiting for Love” challenges us like the Epiphany if who among us are wise enough to recognize and follow Jesus appearing daily in our lives in many occasions and circumstances? Surely, there were other people who have seen the bright star of Bethlehem when Christ was born but why only the three magi from the East came to follow it and search for Jesus? Matthew tells us how the whole Jerusalem along with Herod were greatly troubled upon hearing the magi looking for the newborn king of the Jews as indicated by the bright star! This is what the song “Waiting for Love” is saying, of how often that “(And) it seems I’ve spent my whole life, Waiting for love, And when it comes, I always run away.” This 2019, stop being “afraid of being close where I need to be the most” – follow and believe in the bright star of Jesus Christ! Cheers to more love this 2019!

Photo from Google.

“Land of the Loving” by Dianne Reeves (1986)

LordMyChefSundayMusic//AdventWeekII//09december 2018

Advent Is Creating A Room for God in My Life

The second Sunday of Advent reminds us that it is not enough to be open for the coming Jesus Christ; we have to create a room for God in our hearts, in our lives for Him to truly come inside us. It is only when we create a space for Jesus within us that we can truly experience His “intense presence” not only this Christmas but every day of our lives. Creating a space within us for God means allowing Him to possess us, to dwell and reign within us so that we are transformed into better witnesses of Christ’s coming like John the Baptizer. It is impossible to meet God when we are so filled with things of the world and of ourselves. Like John, we have to withdraw to the wilderness, we need to do some fasting, of self-emptying to create that room for Jesus in our hearts. It is only then can we truly experience Christ’s coming and loving presence, mercy and forgiveness, kindness and grace.

For our Sunday music, we have Diane Reeves lending her soothing vocals to David Benoit’s “Land of the Loving” (co-written with Mark Winkler) from his album This Side Up released in 1986. I have always loved this song, especially after watching David Benoit played the piano for this song in 1990 at the PICC with Ms. Jinky Llamanzares doing the vocals. After becoming a priest, I have always seen a more spiritual meaning in this song that speaks exactly of creating a room for Jesus Christ, of staying inside with Him in my heart, of being possessed by the Lord Himself. It is in being caught in the arms of Jesus, when we let Him possess us right in our own small room inside our hearts when“Finally my life has a meaning of its own; here in the land of the loving I am home.” Follow the lyrics from YouTube and as you immerse yourself into this beautiful music, think also of those days when you felt so blessed, you felt so close with God… rejoice and believe that He is coming again to redeem us. A blessed week to everyone!

*Photo/quote from Google.