Mary’s message at Medjugorje on Decemeber 25, 2009: Dear children! On this joyful day, I bring all of you before my Son, the King of Peace, that He may give you His peace and blessing. Little children, in love share that peace and blessing with others. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Mary’s message at Medjugorje on Decemeber 25, 2009:
Dear children! On this joyful day, I bring all of you before my Son, the King of Peace, that He may give you His peace and blessing. Little children, in love share that peace and blessing with others. Thank you for having responded to my call.
While many of us have to return to work now, remember that the Christmas season is still upon us. The store-bought gifts are all opened, the Christmas cookies are now gone, and the Christmas tree is starting to dry up. But the love of Jesus Christ entering this world remains. Embrace it! Continue to meditate, pray, and fast especially for those who are living far from God’s love.
Mother Mary’s message at Medjugorje on Dec. 2, 2009:
Dear children. At this time of preparation and joyful expectation I, as a mother, desire to point you to what is the most important, to your soul. Can my Son be born in it? Is it cleansed by love from lies, arrogance, hatred and malice? Above all else does your soul love God as your Father and does it love your fellow brother in Christ? I am pointing you to the way which will raise your soul to a complete union with my Son. I desire for my Son to be born in you. What a joy that would be for me as mother. Thank you.
Image via Wikipedia
Mother Mary’s message at Medjugorje on Dec. 2, 2009:
Dear children. At this time of preparation and joyful expectation I, as a mother, desire to point you to what is the most important, to your soul. Can my Son be born in it? Is it cleansed by love from lies, arrogance, hatred and malice? Above all else does your soul love God as your Father and does it love your fellow brother in Christ? I am pointing you to the way which will raise your soul to a complete union with my Son. I desire for my Son to be born in you. What a joy that would be for me as mother. Thank you.
You cannot help but notice that obvious Advent and Christmas theme in Mary’s message as She talks about Jesus being born in your soul. Like Her previous messages, Mary asks that we make room in our hearts for Jesus by clearing away the “junk” of sin. We do this house cleaning through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I know that for most people between the Christmas shopping, work, and getting ready for that huge family gathering, going to Confession is probably the last thing on “TO DO” list. However, a clean soul would be the perfect Christmas gift for Mother Mary this year. And like a selfless mother, Mary does not ask this of us for Her sake, but for ours. She desires nothing more than seeing us, side-by-side with Jesus, in His Heavenly kingdom. So as we flock to the malls, let us also remember to flock to our churches as well and really receive the gift that keeps on giving — God’s grace.
Oh boy, I have fallen very behind on my commentary on Mary’s messages at Medjugorje as well as other posts to RosaryMeds. With Thanksgiving, catching a cold, and now Christmas, I haven’t been able to spend a lot of time reading Her messages, much less meditating on them. This is doubly-bad considering Her message asks us to make more room for Jesus in our lives. This time you all receive a special “double feature” of Mary’s messages on Nov. 25 and then Her Dec. 2 message in a post in the very near future.
Our Lady’s message on Nov. 25:
Dear children! In this time of grace I call you all to renew prayer in your families. Prepare yourselves with joy for the coming of Jesus. Little children, may your hearts be pure and pleasing, so that love and warmth may flow through you into every heart that is far from His love. Little children, be my extended hands, hands of love for all those who have become lost, who have no more faith and hope. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Image via Wikipedia
Oh boy, I have fallen very behind on my commentary on Mary’s messages at Medjugorje as well as other posts to RosaryMeds. With Thanksgiving, catching a cold, and now Christmas, I haven’t been able to spend a lot of time reading Her messages, much less meditating on them. This is doubly-bad considering Her message asks us to make more room for Jesus in our lives. This time you all receive a special “double feature” of Mary’s messages on Nov. 25 and then Her Dec. 2 message in a post in the very near future.
Our Lady’s message on Nov. 25:
Dear children! In this time of grace I call you all to renew prayer in your families. Prepare yourselves with joy for the coming of Jesus. Little children, may your hearts be pure and pleasing, so that love and warmth may flow through you into every heart that is far from His love. Little children, be my extended hands, hands of love for all those who have become lost, who have no more faith and hope. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Mary calls us to have a renewal of prayer. That seems like a perfect message during this time of Advent. I feel that we too often get so consumed with the Christmas shopping season that we forget about the Advent praying season. Everyone looks for that perfect gift, the perfect tree, the perfect dinner, and tasty treats. And yet, we often forget to perfect our prayer lives. Mary reminds us that this is a time of prayer. Don’t forget to do your Christmas shopping but also don’t neglect your Advent praying.
Mary further asks us to help those who are far from God‘s grace. But she asks us to do more than just remember the lost souls in our prayers (although that is very helpful). She asks us to be an example of God’s love for those who have no hope. In other words, Mary asks us to follow up our prayers with good works and action. She does not say that we should come down hard on those who have strayed from God’s path with words of judgment and condemnation. Instead, she asks us to remain in a state of grace so that those who are lost will be attracted to God’s ways through our example. Basically, Mary is reiterating the old adage, “You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.” Let us remember that those who have fallen into a life of sin need more of our love, not less of it.
May we all strive to be beacons of God’s grace so that we may guide those who are lost back to God’s love this Advent season. May we strengthen ourselves through prayer and make room for Jesus in our lives. Basically, may we all have the strength to live according to the spirit and meaning of Advent.
Dear children! Also today I bring you my blessing, I bless you all and I call you to grow on this way, which God has begun through me for your salvation. Pray, fast and joyfully witness your faith, little children, and may your heart always be filled with prayer. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Image by Dshalock® the Libertarian Emperor of America via Flickr
Mary’s message at Medjugorje on October 25, 2009:
Dear children! Also today I bring you my blessing, I bless you all and I call you to grow on this way, which God has begun through me for your salvation. Pray, fast and joyfully witness your faith, little children, and may your heart always be filled with prayer. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Her message, as always, is a simple one — pray and embrace your faith. She asks us to make our lives a living prayer. This means living a life dedicated to God. Living a life of prayer is not something reserved for priests or nuns, but is the way God desires us all to live. I always chuckle when people justify sin when they say, “I’m not a priest! You can’t expect me to live like one!” And you know what, they are right. God doesn’t ask us to live a life of prayer like a priest. In reality, God calls us to be more spiritual than any priest, nun, bishop, cardinal, or pope. Because everyone, even the Pope, usually fall short of how God wants us to live. All of us, from the daily-churchgoer to the non-churchgoer, can always improve our spiritual life in little and big ways. Mary’s message, asking us to have a heart filled with prayer, is simple to understand but takes a lifetime to implement. As She stresses in Her many messages, there is no time like the present to live a holy life.
I know that many times I focus on the rules of the Catholic Church in my articles. I mention using Church doctrine as a guide for discerning between right and wrong. I talk about praying the rosary every day and finding ways to integrate prayer into your life. To some, all of these rules just seems too rigid, too strict, and requiring too much effort or a giant leap of faith. This causes many people to become resentful of the Church and all its “rules” and abandon Her. I’m sure all of us can think of a handful of people who are feeling detached from God’s graces and are lost in life (it might even be you). Unfortunately, we forget about these lost souls as we go about managing our lives. We often don’t want to deal with the added burden of dealing with others’ misery. However, we must always pray for those who are lost and sacrifice for their conversion. After all, when compared to God and the majesty of Heaven, we are all lowly sinners in need of each others’ prayers. The next time you pray or fast offer it up to those who are in most need of God’s mercy.
This is Mary’s message from Medjugorje on October 2, 2009. Unlike the messages on the 25th, these messages focus on those who are have drifted far from God’s love. The tone is a little harsher, almost like a mother scolding a misbehaving child. However, even if you do try to live a life free of sin, you should listen to these messages since we all have moments of sin which separate us from God’s grace.
This is Mary’s message from Medjugorje on October 2, 2009. Unlike the messages on the 25th, these messages focus on those who have drifted far from God’s love. The tone is a little harsher, almost like one of a mother scolding a misbehaving child. However, even if you do try to live a life free of sin, you should listen to these messages since we all have moments of sin which separate us from God’s grace. Furthermore, even if your soul is as clean as one fresh out of the sacrament of Confession, you probably know someone who is separated from God’s love. You need to read them to understand the danger people are in when they sin and pray extra hard for their conversion towards our Lord, Jesus Christ.
I also want to reiterate that even if you do not believe in the events at Medjugorje this is still an important message. Mary offers nothing different or contrary to what the Catholic Church already teaches so this message could easily have come from a priest’s Sunday homily, the commentary from a Bible study, or the teachings of a saint.
Dear Children, As I look at you, my heart seizes with pain. Where are you going my children? Have you sunk so deeply into sin that you do not know how to stop yourselves? You justify yourselves with sin and live according to it. Kneel down beneath the Cross and look at my Son. He conquered sin and died so that you, my children, may live. Permit me to help you not to die but to live with my Son forever. Thank you!
Mary’s message sounds very much like a mother who sees all the ignorant and dangerous things her children do and wonders what could possibly be going through their young minds. She has the benefit of seeing the splendor and glory of God’s kingdom and she tells us that all the sins that we commit are not worth losing the gift of Heaven for all eternity. She wants us to take a hard look at our lives and ask ourselves why we sin. Sure, certain sins may make us a little happier temporarily, make our lives a little easier, make us a little more popular, or richer. But all those small gains in this world will cost us much more in the next. In the best case we will serve more time in Purgatory for those sins. At worst, we lose the gift of Heaven forever. Mary does not want any of us to miss out on what awaits us in Heaven and that is why it pains her so much to see people living only for this world without regard for the next.
We should listen to Mary and turn away from sin. Jesus taught that all are welcome into His kingdom as long as we have the courage and strength to turn away from sin. We should lay all our worries and weaknesses before the Cross and ask for greater faith in God’s loving mercy.
The August 25, 2009 message from our Mother Mary at Medjugorje:
Dear children! Today I call you anew to conversion. Little children, you are not holy enough and you do not radiate holiness to others, therefore pray, pray, pray and work on your personal conversion, so that you may be a sign of God’s love to others. I am with you and am leading you towards eternity, for which every heart must yearn. Thank you for having responded to my call.
The August 25, 2009 message from our Mother Mary at Medjugorje:
Dear children! Today I call you anew to conversion. Little children, you are not holy enough and you do not radiate holiness to others, therefore pray, pray, pray and work on your personal conversion, so that you may be a sign of God’s love to others. I am with you and am leading you towards eternity, for which every heart must yearn. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Mary isn’t pulling any punches in this message. She basically tells all of us that we need to step up our game and become holier. She even has tough words for those who do try to live a good and holy life of prayer and avoiding sin. Mary says that it is not good enough to be holy in private, but we must “radiate holiness to others.” All too often I think we have a tendency to erect a wall between our spiritual lives and our “normal” lives. Mary challenges us to make our spiritual life our normal life for all to see.
Her message has many connections to the mysteries of the rosary. She tells us that we must orient ourselves towards eternity which means we must orient ourselves towards God. This is the message of the Transfiguration that we become oriented towards God whenever we listen to His son and follow Jesus’ teachings. Mary calls us to go out and spread Jesus’ message by living holy life. We do this with the help of the Holy Spirit as seen in the Pentecost. We are also called to lead a holy life through the Institution of the Eucharist where we act as holy vessels of Jesus Christ by being His hands, legs, and voice in this world.
This message reminds me of a story I heard from Father Corapi. He talked about one day when St. Francis asked one of his fellow friars to go and preach throughout the village. They walked around all day in their robes and conversed casually with the townspeople. They never got up and gave a formal sermon. At the end of the day the friar asked St. Francis when they were going to preach God’s word. St. Francis replied that they had been doing that all day. They were “radiating” holiness by making others aware of God’s presence in the world by the simple act of making themselves, and hence, the Catholic Church, available to others in the community. It is as true today as it was back in the time of St. Francis that small acts of holiness can go a long way in bringing people closer to God.
Our Lady’s message from Medjugorje on July 26, 2009. Mary calls us all to a life of prayer. Sometimes the simplest message is often the hardest to carry out. After all, how much time do you spend in prayer every day? Or better yet, do you make your entire life a living prayer where you put God first above all other things?
Our Lady‘s message on July 25, 2009 is short and simple:
Dear children! May this time be a time of prayer for you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
That’s it. Of course, the simplest message is often the hardest to carry out. After all, how much time do you spend in prayer every day? Do you think you could stand before God and honestly tell Him that you spent enough of your life in prayer? Or better yet, do you make your entire life a living prayer where you put God first above all other things? I know that I have a tendency to isolate my faith where I set aside some time for God but then go about my day focused (or obsessed over) other things.
So ask yourself, do you make your entire life about loving God and having His love shine forth through you in all that you do? Or is there a disconnect between your prayers and how you live your life? Let us remember that prayer is more than just reciting an “Our Father” or “Hail Mary.” It is a time for us to talk to God and learn how we can incorporate His will into our lives. May our prayers bare fruit by living as God calls us to live.
The May 25, 2009 message from our mother Mary at Medjugorje. She sends a message that the Holy Spirit will lead you on the way of witnessing your faith.
Image via Wikipedia
The latest message from our mother Mary at Medjugorje:
“Dear children! In this time, I call you all to pray for the coming of the Holy Spirit upon every baptized creature, so that the Holy Spirit may renew you all and lead you on the way of witnessing your faith – you and all those who are far from God and His love. I am with you and intercede for you before the Most High. Thank you for having responded to my call.”
Let us pray for all of those who have wondered away from God’s grace whether it be deliberately or inadvertently. As I discussed in my Third Glorious Mystery meditation, the Holy Spirit’s greatest give is the strength and courage to live the faith and remain in God’s grace. The question is, will you let the Holy Spirit into your life or are you blocking Him? Let us make an effort to quiet our hearts and minds so that we may hear the Holy Spirit and let Him guide us. We must also pray double for those who are the furthest away from God’s Word and truth since they need the intercession of the Holy Spirit the most.
Our Mother Mary asks us to make God’s peace our highest priority and through prayer she can help us obtain that lofty goal. I interpret the peace that Mary talks about as being a little different than the conventional notion of peace. Mary’s peace is where we try to obtain a heart centered around God’s truth. Often, I feel like the greatest war is an internal and personal one waged inside our minds and souls.
Here is a new message from Our Lady at Medjugorje on April 25, 2009:
Dear children! Today I call you all to pray for peace and to witness it in your families so that peace may become the highest treasure on this peaceless earth. I am your Queen of Peace and your mother. I desire to lead you on the way of peace, which comes only from God. Therefore, pray, pray, pray. Thank you for having responded to my call.
The message this time is clear — pray for peace. Our Mother Mary asks us to make God’s peace our highest priority and through prayer she can help us obtain that lofty goal. However, I know a lot of people probably think that they are too small to bring about peace in this world. After all, we are not leaders of nations or political groups. We cannot attend international summits and converse with the world’s presidents. So what can we do to create peace?
I interpret the peace that Mary talks about as being a little different than the conventional notion of peace. It is more than just the absence of war and hatred. Mary’s peace is where we try to obtain a heart centered around God’s truth. I feel that the greatest war is an internal and personal one waged inside our minds and souls. Often we live for all the wrong reasons — money, power, sinful desire, and other pleasures of the flesh. Living for these goals creates disunity within ourselves because we replace God’s permanent and real love with shallow imitations. We often hear stories about people who have all the money in the world and yet are not happy. This is because they do not have the peace that only comes from following God’s will. As Mary says, real peace can only come from God.
I’m reminded of a story involving Saint Francis. One day a fellow monk asked him what he could do to bring about peace in this world. Saint Francis replied that he could start by closing the door quietly. Saint Francis was cleverly teaching that peace begins with the individual and the conscious effort to live peacefully. How can there be peace around the world if we are not at peace with ourselves? The first order in building a lasting peace is to “clean house” spiritually. Mary’s last message was all about making room for the Lord. Where do we start? Mary’s answer is simple — in prayer. Peace starts with praying and being connected to God. Without that connection we can never achieve the true peace of God.
Let us pray that we find God in our prayers in order to bring real peace to our hearts and souls. May we have the courage to find peace, especially with those closest to us like our parents, family members, and friends. As the song says, “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”
It’s always a good time to visit and shop in the RosaryMeds Store.
One of my previous rosary meditations was on The Second Sorrowful Mystery — Jesus’ Scourging. I discussed how I see suffering broken down into different groups; one of them being actively-persecuted Christians. Pope Benedict XVI also calls us to mediate on the persecuted Christians in our world. We are called to not only pray for them, but to really contemplate deeply how their experiences mirror the Passion of Jesus Christ. This article discusses how the strength and faith of persecuted Catholics around the world shows us the power of the Holy Spirit that is in all of us.
One of my previous rosary meditations was on The Second Sorrowful Mystery — Jesus’ Scourging. I discussed how I see suffering broken down into different groups; one of them being actively-persecuted Christians. Pope Benedict XVI also calls us to meditate on the persecuted Christians in our world. We are called to not only pray for them, but to really contemplate deeply how their experiences mirror the Passion of Jesus Christ. This article discusses how the strength and faith of persecuted Catholics around the world shows us the power of the Holy Spirit that is in all of us.
I think it is very easy for people in the Western world, the United States in particular, to overlook that many Christians around the world are persecuted in their countries. Many of us tend to see persecution as something from a previous era. The first image that comes to my mind is one of people being fed to lions in an arena while a Roman emperor watches. Not exactly a modern example now, is it? Perhaps we may not want to think about persecution and instead focus on happier topics such as our Lord’s resurrection. Many of us also have no idea what real persecution and suffering is. For those of us living in relative safety, persecution means receiving an odd look or a condescending comment if you tell someone you are a practicing Catholic. I personally have a hard time praying for the needs of people around the world who actually face the same threats and challenges as early Christians. And unfortunately, because I do not actively suffer for my faith, those who do are quickly forgotten during the course of my day. Sure, I may think about them momentarily during a small prayer, but sometimes their problems just seem too big and it is far easier for me to retreat to Facebook or television.
We cannot turn a blind eye to those who actively suffer because of their faith. Of course we must keep them in our prayers and help them any way possible (probably by supporting a charitable, relief organization) to relieve or eliminate their suffering. Charity is always a great way to put our faith into practice. But we also must remember the persecuted because they are a very real example of following Christ’s path. Their suffering and faith reminds us just how real and relevant Jesus’ teachings in our lives. Through their faith in Jesus Christ these people have the strength to overcome their hardships. By meditating and praying for the persecuted we not only give them the hope and power to overcome their terrible situation, but we also prepare ourselves for the difficult moments in our lives. If the persecuted Catholics in places like China, India, and the Sudan can find the strength to practice their faith then that should be a sign that ALL of us have that same strength. The persecuted are evidence that the God did not only come into this world thousands of years ago and then left us to fend for ourselves. Their perseverance shows that God has always been with us through the very real prescience of the Holy Spirit to give us the guidance and strength to overcome any obstacle this world has to offer.
Let us pray for those who live out the Second Sorrowful Mystery every day. While we may never know their suffering, they are proof on how strong our faith in God can be. Let us pray that we let the Holy Spirit penetrate our hearts and minds and guide us through whatever hard times we may encounter. We know that the world can be a cruel and difficult place, but at the same time we have faith that God will see us through it. While some events do not go as we wish, let us pray that we truly have faith that God has a plan for all of us that lead us into His Heavenly kingdom. While it is easy to say that we have faith in God’s divine plan when everything goes smoothly, the real test is to trust in God when life turns difficult. But if the faith of the persecuted Christians is any indication, we know we can endure whatever challenges the world may bring.
It’s always a good time to visit and shop in the RosaryMeds Store.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=865b8c22-0716-4c47-910f-dff6fb19000c)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=2ac337f3-1e07-45fc-8b36-b07d0ac87b53)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=7bfd28f6-1d47-4b73-9b21-b38f5aa02b8d)
