Kevin Muico – Page 2 – True North Missionaries Journal

The Game Changer

If Jesus lived and died – only. Then he would just have been a man whose teachings were profound and worth emulating. He would have been like Nelson Mandela, MLK Jr, Jose Rizal and the like.

Yet if Jesus lived, died and resurrected; then the game is forever changed. His teachings are not only profound but transcendent. His teachings are not just theoretical with practical implications, but His teachings becomes the law with practical and eternal effects.

What is this law if not love? For He is love. (1Jn4:8) He shows us that love isn’t just something to die for, but from it – springs eternal life.

Today, we celebrate a love that sin could not keep down, a love that darkness cannot overcome, and a love that death cannot contain. Today, we celebrate that God-Man that is risen.

He is risen! Alleluia! Alleluia!

O certe necessárium Adæ peccátum, quod Christi morte delétum est!
O felix culpa, quæ talem ac tantum méruit habére Redemptórem!

O truly necessary sin of Adam, destroyed completely by the Death of Christ! O happy fault that earned for us so great, so glorious a Redeemer!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phLBkIKBGwI&feature=kp

Fries

Crispy, salty, yummy, oily, fatty, carbohydrate-filled, cannot-stop-yourself-from-eating-it fries. Whether it be shared or eaten alone, we all suddenly get the craving to get these fries.

: This.

Why? Not because of the potatoes for sure, though it helps. We get potatoes in different varieties, but there is something with McDonald’s Fries. Well to cut the story short, it’s the right amount of SALT.

You are like salt for the whole human race. – Matthew 5:13

We should be like SALT.

Savoury

Have you ever tried any kind of food without or lacking in salt? You wanna spit it out as soon as you can right? Too much of it and you’ll stop eating.

Our faith, if lived out, makes others crave for more. It is not bland nor does it shoo people away.

Are we boring that no one dares to try it? Or too strong that people are put off by it?

: You know you want more

Amor

My best memories of hanging out at Mickey Dee’s were always with friends surrounding a pile of french fries and devouring them. It was not only a cheap way of feeding everybody but it was an experience rich in love. And that is what Amor is, love in Italian.

What is God’s love if not shared?

: Sharing is caring.

Life Giving

Salt gives life to your boring potatoes. Our lives should give hope to everyone we meet. We are beacons of hope in a world full of pain, suffering and at times monotony.

Are we a source of hope or despair? Is our testimony uplifting or scaring the heck out of everyone?

: Because life is full of twists and turns.

Thirst

Salt makes us thirsty, that’s why your large cup of pop doesn’t really cut it after consuming a bag of fries. If we live our lives filled with faith, hope, and love, it causes people to seek the One who gives us true life – Jesus. Our saltiness doesn’t highlight us, but the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Do our lives point to Jesus or to us?

: Not enough.

Faith, Hope, and Love makes our lives truly salty and it makes others thirst for Christ.

Stay salty my friends.

May we be the salt of the earth. Amen.

PS. I am not endorsing the Golden Arches, but if they want to sponsor me – that’s okay too.

PPS. This reflection was inspired by the homily of my parish priest at Merciful Redeemer, Fr. Robert, last Sunday on Matthew 5:13-16.

This blog is also hosted on my personal blog http://www.kevinmuico.com/2014/02/10/fries/

Flappybird

Yeah, that pixelated bird that can’t even flap properly.

: This.

Initially I thought it would be about getting the bird into the pipes, you know like Mario. Well because the pipes look exactly like Mario. Only to find out that the point of the game was to get the bird across without hitting the pipes. Lo and behold, you’ve got one of the most addicting games ever.

While playing the game (or gamessssszzzzsssss based on the unfortunate reality that you’ll have to play it several times before you top your previous score) I had this epiphany of sorts.

Flappybird is like our relationship with God!

Yep it is.

Here are my reasons:

1. Only through God’s grace are we able to fly. If not, we drop.

: Nosedive

2. His timing is perfect. Perfectly timed taps of grace that allows us to go through the obstacles of life called pipes. Which explains why at times we need to fall in order for us to rise.

: Even when it seems impossible

3. During the times we cease to open our wings to God’s much needed grace and we crash into a pipe, the Lord still chooses to play the game again not out of an addiction – but out of pure love that He wants to see us through.

: You know He’s gonna hit the play button again.

While the analogy is lacking, the Lord loves in a crazier, bigger, unconditional way. He keeps on loving, even when it doesn’t make sense anymore. I thank God that He is God and not me, because I would’ve quit a long time ago.

Lord, I know I don’t see the bigger picture but I trust that You are always there to raise me or allow me to fall when needed. Give me faith to trust when I can’t see past the obstacles before me. Give me hope that everything will be alright. Amen.

PS. My latest top score is 35. I don’t know how you guys get a 100.

PPS. This blog is also posted on my personal blog at http://www.kevinmuico.com/2014/02/07/flappybird/

Zion.

I just came from Hillsong United’s Zion concert, and it had a very profound effect on me. It was something unexpected for sure. Having been listening to Hillsong for most of my YFC life, it’s hard not to dream that one day you’ll worship with the band who actually made the songs. And they did not disappoint, the lights were on point, the songs sounded like they came off a CD played on loud speakers, they sang some of their old songs and of course their new songs. If I was in the same concert 5 years ago, I would’ve easily said that this was the best experience of my life. But tonight, everything about it was off.

I understand that Hillsong is a different church altogether, that I had to do the sign of the cross myself when they started and ended. I knew that, and I was okay with that. In one of their first few songs however, I found myself crying, not because of the song being sung – which was musically beautiful by the way – but because there was a real longing and realization of the truth.

I cried not because it was a song I would play when I wanted to be in prayer, but because today was a Tuesday. Tuesday is the one day of the week that I go to Adoration, Confession, and Mass aside from my Sunday obligation. I cried because I thought I made the better decision in spending my Tuesday night in Hamilton with thousands to “worship” The Lord, only to realize I left The Lord at the altar waiting for me for our weekly date. You see, I realized that though worship is beautiful and should be done, it fails in comparison to the actual presence of God in the blessed Sacrament. To actually behold Him in adoration, to be reunited with Him in confession, and to be offered Him in the Eucharist. No amount of jumping up and down can compare to being with the real presence of Jesus in the blessed Sacrament.

The Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life. – CCC 1324

The mountain upon which the City of God is built is called Zion. But its source and summit will always be the Eucharist.

And I say this with complete confidence because I say this in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

And let all the people say, Amen.

This blog is originally hosted on my personal blog at http://www.kevinmuico.com/2013/11/13/zion/

MEssenger?

Young people being and bringing Christ wherever we are.

That is the vision of CFC-Youth, and more often that not, I get hung up on the being Christ aspect of the vision. Giving talks, leading worships, journeying with the youth somehow displaces my sense of placement in the universe. Oh how many times has it crossed my mind that the results of all the activities in CFC-Youth in my area are brought about by me – my vision and my strength. Only to be humbled by the Lord in an awesome proportion reminding me that I am but a messenger – not the message. That my weakness, sinfulness, fears, faults – all of them – far outweigh what I can bring to the mission.

The game changer in fact is His grace. The grace that is experienced, transforms and is proclaimed. The message is Jesus Christ, not Kevin. The message is love made flesh, love on the cross, love that is raised up in victory from death. A love that triumphs over all doubt, all failures, and all sin.

I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me. – Philippians 4:13

Realistically

I met a brother during my recent trip to LA last month. I gave a talk for CFC-Youth San Diego and I was introduced to this joyful brother named Jayson Adams. Jayson is your typical CFC-Youth, happily spending his summer hanging out with his friends and serving the Lord through CFC-Youth. However, one thing that Jayson experiences that we don’t is that he has two rare forms of cancer. Not one, but two.

Now, I’m known to be critical (at times hyper-critical) of the things I do see and experience whether it be something positive or negative. I would still see something negative from something that is really positive. But the way Jayson lives his life is something that really slaps me in the face – yes a slap (or two, three, and then some) in the face of a missionary.

From a blog by his family of his journey – http://walkwithjayson.blogspot.com.au/ – Jayson shares from a recent Youth Camp a question that we might and most probably ask if we were in his situation.

He asked the question why.

But he asks something more. He asks why was he surviving?

Now when I face problems whether it be the big problems in life or the #firstworldproblems, that should never be a problem in the first place, I would usually make a big deal out of it and act as if the world would end if it wasn’t resolved quickly. At times be quick to announce that indeed #thestruggleisreal.

However, Jayson faces a real life-threatening problem, and asks for the source, of him still being able to enjoy the graces and blessings in his life. He focuses on God’s love. As I reflect on this, his point of view is not optimism but rather a realistic point of view. Allow me to explain.

A quick search of optimism on google yields this definition “hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something.” It based on a possibility of something positive in the future. Totally not the case for Jayson.

To be Christian is to believe, to experience, and to be transformed by the Love of God that is constantly and unconditionally at work in our lives. Jayson sees this perfectly in his own “struggle”. His is grounded, raised and is in fact very much living in the reality of God, Who is Love.

If I am then to be a Christian – the root of my missionary call – then I should be realistically looking and living in His love. His love gives meaning and purpose to my life. Ergo, I should see grace and blessings abound even amidst the trials and tribulations.

Yes, easier said than done. But at least knowing this, is a step in the right direction.

The thought of my pain, my homelessness, is bitter poison. I think of it constantly, and my spirit is depressed. Yet hope returns when I remember this one thing: The Lord’s unfailing love and mercy still continue. Fresh as the morning, as sure as the sunrise. The Lord is all I have, and so in Him I put my hope. – Lamentations 3:19-24

Lord, allow me to see everything for what it is – a product of your Love.

St. Jude Thaddeus, pray for Jayson Adams. Amen.

**This reflection is also posted on my personal blog at kevinmuico.com

The Narrow Gate

This is a reflection on the calling to be a missionary. This reflection is meant for those discerning for Full Time Pastoral Work.

God’s call for you is very unique. It is how the Lord calls. It is very personal to you. Ordinary to others, extraordinary to you. The more you reflect on it, the more you realize how the Lord has moved the universe in all its precision and accuracy to capture your attention.

That is how much the Lord knows you. He will pluck the right chords to capture your attention.

Your calling is like passing through the narrow gate (Matthew 7:13-14), it is narrow because the opening that leads to life is meant for you. Distractions abound and the gate to other things is wide open, but it is only when you pass the narrow gate will the call will bring you to life.

How is God calling you? How is God using the things that you find awesome and life changing, but ordinary to others?

Lord, may I be sensitive to Your call for me. Like Mama Mary, let me answer You with my full yes. Amen.