Diary of a Ghetto Priest | My vocation is to love

In my limited way, given my sinfulness, my selfishness, my self-indulgence, my desire still is to love and serve totally.

Jesus loves us totally and completely. I wish I could be like Him - giving everything I have and am. My vocation is to love and serve, but I do not love enough.

Jesus wants us to love Him. He wants us to love Him so that we will serve Him, and, by serving Him, serve others, especially the loveless ones, the poor, and sinners. I am drawn to the poor, I am attracted to prisoners. I want to give and give of myself.

I am so happy that within my lifetime, there are brothers and priests, sisters, laypeople, and friends, to reach out and love.

I am happy that the Lord has given me my vocation with gifts of music, preaching, and teaching so I can reach out and love more people.

I want to reach out to people all over the world. I want them to know Christ, to honour Him, and to glorify Him. Thus, all will know the one true meaning of life - Jesus Christ. If I really love people, I should want to give them the best that there is: the love of Jesus Christ.

I am very happy that Food For The Poor came out of the Mahfoods and their experience with our ministry. I am thankful that Monsignor Gregory Ramkissoon began with the Missionaries of the Poor (then known as Brothers of the Poor) and branched out into the Mustard Seed Communities.

Jesus! He is the reason for it all. He wants us to love Him. He thirsts for our love. That's amazing - considering that He is the great God, the greatest Lover of all, and the mighty God through whom all things were made!

SORROW

I am sorry, Lord, I have not loved you enough. I am sorry for my sins. You love me, and want me to love you? You, Jesus Christ, thirst for my love? I, who am a nobody. Yet you did say, "I thirst," as you hung upon the cross.

Jesus, who could I love other than you? You who came to Earth as a little baby. You, who changed water into wine, who preached the good news to the poor and set prisoners free, who fed 5,000 and more. You stilled the storm at sea, and gave sight to the blind, cured the lame, cleansed lepers, healed the woman with the hemorrhage, lifted up the cripples, raised men from the dead, and drove out demons.

You Lord, have called me to love you? And, your teaching, your preaching, your wisdom, and your strange calling to us poor sinners to "Come and follow Me".

You loved us and sinners, too, as well as prostitutes, tax collectors, murderers, and hypocrites. You called us to be with you, that we should love and serve you.

And, at the end of it all, as long as we try our best, You will welcome us into Heaven where you and the Father and the Holy Spirit dwell with your holy ones.

All the tears, fears, pains, worries, weaknesses and sins will be taken away! No more anxieties. No more loneliness. It will all be gone.

Yes, Lord, we will love you and serve you. Yes, Lord! Yes, Lord! Yes! Yes! Yes!