Awesome Christmas

“Ma, ngano man nga milagroso man ang mga Santos?” nangutana ang anak sa iyang inahan. “Tungod kay suod sila sa Dios, pangga,” mitubag ang inahan. “Kon masuod diay ko sa Dios, Ma, mahimo sab kong milagroso?” “O, pangga, Kay mahimo man kang santos.”

This is the truth of our faith; the closer you are to God, the more he will manifest himself in your life. And people can see the goodness and the love of God in your heart.

“Father,” nangutana ang usa ka parokyano, “Ngano mang milagroso ang mga Santos?” “Tungod kay dako ang Dios sa ilang kinabuhi,” ako siyang gitubag. “Naay daghang mga tawo, Pads, nga walay panahon sa Dios, gamay ra kaayo ang Ginoo sa ilang kinabuhi.” “Tinood kana. Sumala sa imong pagtoo, molihok ang gahum sa Dios diha kanimo.”

In other words, if you have an awesome God, awesome things will also happen to you. Look at the lives of the saints. They validate the miracles in the gospels. We ask for the intercession of San Lorenzo Ruiz, San Pedro Calungsod and even including now the late bishop Teofilo Camomot because we believe they are so close to God and if they intercede for us our prayers and petitions will be answered.

Sa fiesta sa Inmaculada Concepcion, diha sa Santos nga Misa, miingon ko sa akong kaugalingon, “Pagkabulahan sa mahal nga Birhen Maria, puno sa grasya, Purissima. Pinili sa Dios. Pinangga sa Dios. Gipanalipdan sa Dios. Gipanamkon nga walay buling sa sala nga panulundon. Kalayo ra gayud kaha sa akong kalipay ikomparar sa iyang kalipay.

And at that moment I prayed secretly, “God let me feel your awesome presence, let me feel your awesome power, let me feel your awesome love...” As in a sudden, the Church became brighter, my vision became clearer, and I could even feel energy surging in my fingers, in my hands, in my arms, and I felt good, wonderful.

Multiply that one hundred times and maybe I would already levitate. Imagine how awesome the feelings of the saints when they experience mystical dreams and visions, spiritual ecstasy and rapture.

And then I looked at the thin wafer in my hands, and I thought, “My awesome God hides in this little piece of bread. With all his power and his glory and his majesty.”

That little baby in the manger is our awesome God Jesus Christ, our awesome savior. With his awesome love he becomes one like us. Nobody can ever be as awesome as our awesome God. Imagine this God who becomes one of us so that we will become one with him.

This Christmas put that awesome God in the manger of your heart and live an awesome life in his awesome presence in the years to come.

Advance awesome Christmas to all of you!-- John Jonah A. Orat of Daanbantayan, Cebu