OUR LADY OF MEDJUGORJE’S MESSAGE OF AUGUST 25, 2010

“Dear children! With great joy, also today, I desire to call you anew: pray, pray, pray. May this time be a time of personal prayer for you. During the day, find a place where you will pray joyfully in a recollected way. I love you and bless you all. Thank you for having responded to my call.”

Message to Mirjana August 2, 2010

“Dear children! Today I call you, together with me, to begin to build the Kingdom of Heaven in your hearts; that you may forget that what is personal and – led by the example of my Son – think of what is of God. What does He desire of you? Do not permit Satan to open the paths of earthly happiness, the paths without my Son. My children, they are false and last a short while. My Son exists. I offer you eternal happiness and peace and unity with my Son, with God; I offer you the Kingdom of God. Thank you.”

Preparing to Meet the Lord

A. Pray, Pray, Pray.

“Stay awake! For you do not know on which day the Lord will come.” (Mt 24:42) Such is the Gospel warning of August 26. On August 27 we have: “Lord, Lord open the door for us. Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.” (Mt 25:1f) Our Lady seems to be giving a commentary on these two Gospels.

1. Who is calling? Certainly Our Lady, who seems to be the special ambassador of God in our age. Ivan said once that in the first eight years of her apparitions most of the Messages came from Jesus. Heaven is calling us.

2. For Whom? Obviously each one of us, but everyone on earth. The theme of Ivan’s talk in Kurtland, Ohio on May 5, 2010 was that we are living in the darkest hour of the whole history of mankind.

3. Why? Our Lady has said that the world has drifted away from God into a practical atheism in which they think they can get along without God. As a result, she says, the world is heading for its own destruction. She wants to save the world and put it back on track through prayer.

B. Personal Prayer.

1. What is Prayer? Let us turn to the master of prayer, St. Teresa of Avila. “In my opinion, prayer is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends and taking time frequently to be alone with the One we know loves us so much.” She goes on to say that Christians pray differently than other people for two reasons: 1) they know that Jesus is always present no matter what and He is always watching us closely, especially the movements of our heart; and 2) that Jesus always loves us unconditionally wherever we are.

2. What is Personal Prayer? Personal prayer is an intimate conversation between two people who enjoy each other’s company. Each one shares spontaneously what is in his/her heart, so that for each there is a time for speaking and a time for listening to the other.

3. Why? When we pray in a group, we can let the group carry us and not put our heart into what we are praying or there is the temptation to let our mind wander all over the place. In personal prayer I am in front of another person who is watching me closely. I am more apt to speak very sincerely and say what is exactly in my heart.

C. Putting the Message into Practice.

1. Find a Time and Place. Our Lady calls us to decide on specifics. We have to go through our schedule and choose. If we are threatened by the request, we can start with a 1-minute meeting. After a few days that will give us the strength for a 2-minute meeting, and so we can build up to 15 minutes.

2. What to Say? In Mirjana’s Message of August 2 above, Our Lady indicates that the very best question is: “What do you want of me? How can I please you?” God’s Will is that we fulfill our mission in life and Our Lady reminds us that we have a mission so great that we cannot comprehend it!

3. General Purpose. The experience of personal prayer leads us to live in the presence of Jesus and Mary always so that we will then Pray, Pray, Pray!

-Rev. Robert Hughes, S.M.