1ST DAY - LUNAR NEW YEAR'S MASS GOSPEL (Matthew 6:25-34) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” (Mt 6:33)

FIRST READING - Gen 1:14-18

14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.

SECOND READING - Phil 4:4-8

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mt 6:25-34

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[a]?

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

1ST DAY - LUNAR NEW YEAR'S MASS GOSPEL (Matthew 6:25-34)

THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE

Dear People of God,

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, God calls on all mankind to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. This is the main goal that humans need to achieve.

God does not want humans to fall into the traps of Satan, which are only care about enjoying material life and worry about achieving money, status, and fame. As a result, we forget to seek the happiness of the Kingdom of Heaven.

What God teaches and calls on humanity today will accompany humans throughout our lives on this earth. Satan is very cunning. As a result, they will infiltrate our minds to tempt humanity to not trust God completely or to have absolute faith in His love and providence.

They will cause humans to become anxious and confused; so from there, they will direct humans to seek material things rather than seeking the Kingdom of God and not obey His will.

God wants mankind to look at the image of the lilies in the field, the birds in the air, and the fish of the sea. They are just creatures, animals created by God without souls, unlike humans. However, God still takes care of them and clothes them more beautifully than King Solomon.

This is a metaphor that God wants to show mankind how magnificent and noble God's love and mercy are for humanity; no other human or god has love and mercy like God.

So, on this first day of the Lunar New Year, God calls upon all of humanity:

Entrust everything to God's loving, providential hands, so that He can take care of our lives on earth. God will never let humans starve or go without food or clothing. Whoever believes will receive it!

-We must listen to and follow God's teachings: worry about accumulating spiritual wealth to buy the Kingdom of Heaven and worry about seeking His righteousness, which is a holy and good life before God.

God wants to teach humankind that to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, then right here on earth, we must place God above all else, and follow His teachings: live in love, forgiveness, humility, simplicity, and smallness in front of God and our brothers and sisters.

By living like that, God will bring our souls to enjoy the happiness in His Kingdom. To reach the Kingdom of Heaven, souls must strive at all times and in all places, must endure much suffering, and undergo God's purification to be able to do the things that God teaches.

However, God calls on everyone to always be joyful, happy, and rejoice when being purified by Him; because this is the love that God has for everyone.

Purification through trials, hardships, humiliations, and persecutions helps us to live righteously, holiness, purely, and beautifully before God, and please Him.

To be loved by Him and to have Him dwell in our souls.

Through this, we learn the lesson of obeying God above all and putting Him first.

God desires us not to stray from Him, but to return to His loving heart.

Especially on the first day of the Lunar New Year, He calls on everyone to run to Him and Blessed Mother Mary first, asking them to bless, give peace, and strengthen us in this Lunar New Year, so that we may live the calling and the commands that GID has given.

Thanks be to God. Amen.