Fear of the Lord

             The fear of the Lord in my life has taught me that He is my mighty fortress.  God is bigger than all of my trials.

 This morning, on the Feast Day of St. Padre Pio, I woke up with a heavy heart.  Something was not right in my soul.  Was it hardness of heart, I detected?  That’s the last thing I wanted.

I was surprised, because I thought going to Confession two days ago would lift this gloom.  I forgave my husband.  I forgave myself.  So, what is this?  Why do I feel this way?

I begged Mary, my holy Mother of God, to unite my heart with her Son’s Sacred Heart.  I only want to love like Jesus loves.  I only want to live conformed to God’s will for me.  I only want to be free to please Him and to delight in Him.

I decided this foul attitude was not of God.  It wasn’t coming from me.  My conscience was clear.  I placed my faith and hope and trust in Jesus that He loves me, even when I don’t feel His love.

I decided to praise and worship and adore my God.  Besides, it was a gorgeous day outside, and I have every reason to be thankful and grateful for all that God has done for me.

I decided to pray the rosary, the Joyful Mysteries, since it was Monday.  I was only half way through the first decade when my sweet Mother Mary came to me in prayer.  I could see her in my mind.  I felt so unworthy to be in her holy presence.  Everything good just radiates from her!  She looked like Our Lady of Guadalupe, with her rays of sunlight shining forth from behind her, and piercing the darkness in my heart.

My heart looked like a bed of barren sticks, so much like the empty nest that all of my five children flew away from.  I could see in my mind that Mary gently laid her Baby Son Jesus in my heart and in my arms!  Jesus loves me so much to allow His Mother to give Himself to me.  I don’t deserve His Mercy and Loving Kindness, but I joyfully accept them deep in my soul.

Then I saw in my mind that Saint Padre Pio, Saint Therese of Lisieux, and Saint Catherine of Sienna were looking at Baby Jesus in my arms, and adoring Him!

All I know is that I was broken, and lonely, and empty, and Jesus came to me through His Holy Mother.  And then, in my mind, I was holding Him, a newborn baby, in my heart, and in my arms.

Jesus is with me!  Jesus loves me!  Jesus fills me up with His Holy Presence, His Peace, His Love, and His Joy!

I don’t need to be afraid.  I don’t need to be anxious.  I don’t need to be sad.  My God is my mighty fortress.  I rest in Him and He rests in me.

“My soul, be at rest in God alone, from whom comes my hope.  God alone is my rock and my salvation, my secure height; I shall not fall.  My safety and glory are with God, my strong rock and refuge.  Trust God at all times, my people!  Pour out your hearts to God our refuge!”  Psalm 62:6-9

“Lord, my heart is not proud; nor are my eyes haughty.  I do not busy myself with great matters, with things too sublime for me.  Rather, I have stilled my soul, hushed it like a weaned child.  Like a weaned child on its mother’s lap, so is my soul within me.”  Psalm 131:1-2

Encouraging Words for the Men’s ACTS Retreat Nov. 7 – 10, 2019

11/6/19    3:08 a.m.

“Oh, My Children, I love you like the day is long.  I love you into all eternity!  I will never stop loving you.”

“You were born from a well-spring of love, a fountain of My Living Water.  I desired to bring you forth into existence.  You are My one and only precious son, My Unrepeatable Soul!”

“I created you to dwell in you, to pour forth all My Goodness into you.  I am captivated by the beauty I created in your heart and soul.   You make Me happy.  I delight in you.”

“I never create junk.  I always create what I love.  There is something so special about you.  I need you.  I need you in this world, to be a beacon of My Light, to walk in My Holy Ways of Love.”

“I am happy to give you everything that you need to follow Me.  In fact, I give you My Very Self in the Holy Eucharist to nourish and strengthen you in your journey to your heavenly home with Me.”

“I died for love of you.  I shed real blood, My Precious Blood, for you.  I rose from the dead for you.  And now, I have My Holy Spirit to lavish upon you.”

“I was a man, just like you, in every way, except for sin.  I have seen your battles, and I know how to fight them.  I have seen your struggles with sin.  That is why I came, to give you victory over your sin, through My Cross, through My Forgiveness, through My Mercy, and through My Love for you.”

“I came to set you free from your bondage to sin.  I came to seek the lost.  I came to find you.  I came to rescue you.  I came to carry you back to My Heavenly Father, your Abba, your Beloved Daddy.”

“You are so worth finding.  You are so worth redeeming.  I am here to save you from a life of sin to a life of holiness.”

“I stretch out My Hand to you.  Take My Hand.  Open your heart to Me.  I will open My Heart, My Sacred Heart, to you.”

“Be the man that I call you to be.  Seek My Face.  Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you.  The fruit of our friendship will be My Love in this world.”

“I love you, My Child, I love you.  I bless you, My Child, I bless you.  Halleluia, Halleluia, Amen!”

From Now On

         “If you know me, then you will also know my Father.  From now on you do know him and have seen him…If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it.”  John 14:7, 14

These three words rang in my ears, “from now on,” as I was reading this scripture at my Lectio Divina (sacred reading) prayer meeting.  It immediately reminded me of the healing service that I attended the night before, when I stood in the gap for a member of my family who desperately needed healing.

Now that I have asked the Lord for healing, I was told, “from now on,” to thank the Lord for the healing every time I think of it.  “But he was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity.  He bore the punishment that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed.”  Isaiah 53:5

Instead of despairing about the illness, I am joyfully thanking God every day for the fact that Jesus already healed my loved one through His wounds on the Cross.  From now on, you, too, can thank God every day for the love He has shown you on this retreat.  From now on, you do know Jesus, and have seen Him!  From now on, you know the Father’s love for you.

Encouraging Words for the Teen ACTS Retreat June 27-30, 2019

6/21/19  3:33 a.m.

“Oh, My Children!  You are My Beloved Little Ones.  I hold you close to My Heart.  I carry you most days.  I love you much more than you know.”

“I care about everything that you care about.  I know what you truly need even before you ask.  I know that you need Me, more than anything, to be with you.”

"I did not create you to be alone.  I want so much to have a relationship with you.  I see your heart and soul.  I see the beauty that I created in you.”

“I love you forever.  You are Mine and I am yours.  I love you so much that I sacrificed My Life for you on the Cross.”

“I did this so that My Heavenly Father would forgive your sins because of Me.  That’s right, because of what I did for you.”

“I made a way for you to be with Me, so that you would not be alone.  I made a way so that you could know and feel My Love for you.”

“I will always be with you.  I will always love you.  I carry you close to My Heart.  Lay your head on My Chest.  Hear My Heart beating with love for you.  I am holding you.”

“You have nothing to fear.  You have Me.  I will be with you wherever you go.”

“I love you, My Child, I love you.  I bless you, My Child, I bless you.  Halleluia, Halleluia, Amen!”