Large, reddish black ants in bathroom again. Lights on- they’d scurry to hide; lights off- they’d come right back in.

Using my Nancy Drew skills, I followed one that seemed to be on the way out. He wandered off his path a bit, and eventually came to a back corner of the window sill.

There was a hole about an eight of an inch in diameter, plenty big enough for several to come and go at the same time. From somewhere outside, they had been able to chew or bore that hole, which hadn’t even been there two weeks before.

Amazing the persistence, and team work, of ants. I have seen tiny ants gather around a crumb, or a dead bug, and drag or lift (!) it to move it. It seems when they have a goal, nothing deters them. They might have an interruption (like the lights coming on), they may get sidetracked or even off-track, but they get right back to it. They keep the focus on the goal, determined. Like our marathon bike touring friends, who were riding in the downpours. They had a goal to meet and raise funds for a worthy cause.

This was a good reminder, and example to me, of a verse that was written in the front of a Bible, given to me many years ago at confirmation. The pastor wrote, next to my name, Phil. 3:14. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

The redeeming part of this ant story is that it reminds me to stay focused, to keep first things first, and to persevere, to keep on keepin’ on. Good news is that I (and we) don’t have to do it alone. Thank you, Lord.

So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Galatians 6:9

Heavenly experiences are not always other worldly.

We believe in Heaven. With us it is not just a matter of faith either. We also believe in Heaven because of all the evidence we see here on Earth. We see this evidence not only in the glorious natural world all around us but also in the endless acts of love that come from the hearts of people as well. These are the people who bring a bit of Heaven to Earth everyday and they are the ones we wish to thank now.

To all the people then who pick up the trash off the ground and plant trees and flowers in its place, thank you. To every parent who spends the day hard at work and then goes home and makes the time to play with and read to their kids, thank you. To every kind heart who has ever taken in and loved a stray dog or cat, thank you. To every person who has ever opened their purse or wallet and given to a charity not out of duty but out of love, thank you.

To everyone who has ever offered a ride, opened a door, or shared a smile with a stranger, thank you. To every good Samaritan who has stopped along the way to help a person in need, thank you. To every gentle spirit who has shared their laughter, encouraged a friend, or inspired another soul, thank you. To every single person who has tried to make this world a little better through what they do, thank you. And to every soul who not only knows the words “Love your neighbor as yourself” but tries to live them as well, thank you.

God doesn’t just want each of us to one day reach Heaven, He also wants each of us to bring a little Heaven down here to Earth as well.

Do your best then to love and be loved, to care for others and the world around you, to create joy rather than sadness, and to help everyone you can every chance you can. Do your best to let God’s love live through you. Then you will be ready for Heaven, because you will carry a bit of Heaven with you wherever you go.

You can’t give what you don’t have. How can I give love when I have hatred in my heart?

God is love (I Jn 4:16) and He has poured out this love into our hearts (Rom 5:5). So where has my love gone and what are the reasons of my heart being drained of the love of God? It is sin that robs us of the love of God. Sin never helps, sin destroys and enslaves us.

What is sin? Sin is the betrayal of the freedom God has given us, that is, breaking of God’s law.

We are made in the image and likeness of God. And our primary duty on earth is to love Him, serve Him and to be with Him in paradise, our eternal home. Salvation does not come easy, we have to work out for our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12).

Let’s not be carried away by the pleasures of the world, or as St. Paul puts it in Rom 12:2, “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

We are ready to go to any extent, for instance, to obtain citizenship of a foreign country. We are also called to be citizens of heaven (Phil 3:20). Have you applied for one? It is Jesus who is in charge. Let us go to Him for He is the way, the truth and the life.

- – - written by Antonio Cruz Fernandes