Our Lady of Guadalupe

                “My dear Lord, I think of the beautiful show of love for Your Blessed Mother that is being shown on the feast of the Lady of Guadalupe and I wonder what You desire for all Your people honoring Your Blessed Mother.

                “To love Your Mother as You do? She is the model of humility, the model of pure love for God and the ultimate model for all humanity. It began with her immaculate conception as You had chosen her to be a tabernacle for Your son, sinless, holy and pure, to participate in the incarnation of not only her Savior, but the Savior of all mankind. You saw all You needed in her heart to be the one to be the mother of Your son.  Her simple yes to Your invitation to conceive a son through the power of the Holy Spirit, even when she didn’t fully understand how it would be, shows us how to have faith – faith in knowing that if You ask something of us, it will be in our best interests and for Your glory. We need to remember that we are all simple handmaids of the Lord, Your instruments. We belong to You and were created by You so we owe our lives to You. Whatever You ask of us can never be too much. Our gratitude and love needs to transcend all sense of human reasoning and lead us to trust that whatever You ask of us is what we need to do and that it will glorify You. You chose to be born in a manger amongst beasts of burden to a woman betrothed to another man. Mary’s humble heart and deep love for God gave her the faith that helped her form the words, ‘Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord, May it be done according to Your word.’ Luke 1:37-38. This is the ultimate example of how to love You our Lord, our Creator, our Savior. When we adopt Your mother’s humble heart, then we can love, honor and glorify You with her immense faith, hope and love.

                “The Lady of Guadalupe celebration reminds us how our dear Mother once again reveals how much the You love a humble pure heart. In 1531, she chose an unknown, uneducated farmer, an Aztec convert, to be the one to show a sign of Your love and divine desire by placing an image of herself on San Juan Diego’s tilma (peasant cloak) and filling it with out of season roses to prove to the local bishop that her request to build a chapel in her honor was real. The chapel was constructed in two weeks and within seven years, eight million native people were converted. You never choose the ones we expect and Mary continues to teach us that as she appeared to San Juan Diego in Mexico, to the three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal in 1917, and to a peasant girl Saint Bernadette in Lourdes France in 1858. The humble heart is the most beautiful gift we can give to you Lord.

                “As we strive to imitate You Christ, I see You as the baby Jesus in Mary’s arms looking up into Your mother’s eyes and seeing only love and comfort. You, the Lord and Creator of us all, with all that power, condensed into a tiny helpless infant that must rely completely on another for all its care. I see the tiny infant and hear the words, ‘Momma, I trust in you.’ I see how much You love and trust Your mother and You ask us to do the same.  Jesus, I trust in You, in all that You send me and all that You don’t send me. I trust in You and give You my heart through Your mother because I trust in her that she will lead me to You.

                “Dear Lord, may the sweet smell of off season roses fill the noses of all your people this day and throughout this Advent.”

Surrender

                As Advent began, I humbly asked the Lord how best to prepare for the Christmas celebration. This is what I heard.

                “Surrender. Throw your hands up and fall back into the vast abyss of the unknown; but do so with total faith in Me, Your God, Your Creator, because I love you with all my being. I created you out of love, for love, to love and to be loved; not just by Me, but by all my people. Do not doubt my love for you oh you of little faith. Trust in Me that I want you with Me forever and that I want you to be joyful and filled with peace and love. Have faith in Me . Hope in Me. Trust in Me. I am shaping you for eternal joy. Trust in my vision because I see all from start to finish of each life, of each stage in history and in the future. I see the beginning of time and I see eternity for all of us. I know how it began, how it is designed and how it will be forever. There is no need to question or doubt anything happening to you or to those around you or to the entire world.

“Surrender. Float like a leaf blowing in the wind of the Holy Spirit. I will send you up and down in that current. You may spiral, swing, hover and touch the ground only to be blown up in the air again. Do not cling to your reasoning, your intellect, your doubt, your fear. Trust in Me and let go. Free yourself to ride the current of my love for you.

                “Surrender to my teaching. It may be hard at times, but learn from my Word and you will grow. Your heart will expand and I will pour in more love. The more you learn of my Word, the more I can shape you to receive My love and then to share My love. My teaching is complete in My Word. Contemplate it, meditate on it, let it saturate your heart and soul so that you can be formed more closely into My image.

                “Surrender yourself to Me. That is all I wish for. Give me all of you and let me show you my great love. Your gift of self to Me is worth more than anything on earth. I gave myself to you completely, to each and every one of you. I gave my life for all of you so that we could all be together as one, as I am with the Father, for eternity. This is My greatest desire. Surrender so that this is also your greatest desire.”

I Hear You Knock

                “Dear Lord, love of my life, I hear You knock on the door of my heart. I run to answer it, thrilled, afraid, excited, anxious, joyful yet slightly ashamed to let You in to the mess of my heart. Forgive the mess I created in here Lord. I am working on cleaning it up. Come here, sit in the seat of honor at the center of my soul and let me sit at Your feet like a child ready to listen to the most awesome words ever. Lord, my eyes well up with tears and my heart skips a beat as I look up into Your loving eyes. Your smile, Your face, it is so full of love, so warm, so gentle. Suddenly, my shame washes away as the shower of Your mercy gently rolls over me. The mess around us becomes unimportant and unnoticeable in the glowing light emanating from You and Your outstretched hands. I reach up and hold Your pure and holy hands and the warmth spreads from them through me, throughout my entire body. I am enveloped in the comforting heat of the Holy Spirit. Oh dear Lord, I thought I had so much to say but now it has all disappeared and all I can do is stare into Your intense eyes. I am listening. What do You wish to tell me?

                “You tell me, ‘My plan is perfect; trust in Me completely. My love for all of You is perfect; trust in Me. My timing is deliberate; trust in Me. My chosen people are just that, chosen by Me; trust in Me. Those who suffer, suffer for Me chosen by Me; trust in Me. Those I call from this earth, I have chosen for a perfect reason; trust in Me. Love will conquer all, there is no need for fear, doubt, anxiety; trust in Me. Love is more powerful than anything else. I created it, I command it, I choose to rule by it, I share it and it always comes from Me. All love in this world began from Me, like a tiny seed that grows into a tree and creates a dwelling place for all. I am love; trust in Me.’

                “Oh dear Lord, I feel Your love pulsing through us from Your hands to mine, throughout our bodies and throughout Your body the Church. Oh Lord, the heat is almost overwhelming, yet so comforting. The love is filling my entire soul and now emanating from me like the glow from a fire. I can’t contain it, it wants to flow back to You and to all Your creations, all the things You love I love too. Oh dear Lord, as I hold Your hands and am held captivated by Your holy gaze, I have lost all sense of time and space. I am floating in this moment suspended in this loving union.

                “I know You must go now to knock on other doors. Dear Lord, I pray for them that they will open the door as the knob lies only on their side. Oh dear Lord, speak to Your people and may they listen with open hearts, unencumbered by thoughts of not being ready to visit You or not ready to receive You as an honored guest in their souls. Oh dear Lord, I trust in You, I trust in You, I trust in You.”

Filled With the Desire to Pray

                “Dear Lord, my God, my heart beats faster and stronger just knowing You are here, knowing that You are listening. Why is it so hard for some people to pray to You? You love us more than we can imagine so what keeps people away from You? How can they not believe in Your love for them?

                “When you love someone, you can’t keep your eyes off them, whether it is a romantic love interest, your child, your mentor, or your parent; you just want to see them, see how they are doing, see what they are doing and see if they are happy. Their happiness brings you peace and joy. Your love for us is like that but amplified a million times more and yet there are those who don’t approach You in prayer. If we can write letters, send texts, emails or pick up the phone, why is it so difficult for some to pray?

                “Is it a lack of faith? People need the instant gratification of an immediate answer. When they don’t think they ‘hear’ an answer, they think You are not there or that You are not listening. Some think they are not worthy of Your love; that there is no way You the almighty powerful God, would be interested in insignificant them. That’s ridiculous. You created them to love and to be loved.

                “Others think they don’t need to talk to God; that prayer is only for the weak or simple minded. They think they are doing just fine on their own. That is also ridiculous. No one is that well off. Who wouldn’t benefit from a conversation with the one who made them and the one who loves them so much that they only want the very best for them? How silly it is when a teenager won’t talk to a parent about something that is bothering him/her. The parent knows the child very well and wants that child to be happy and successful in everything. The parent can see things on a larger scale and in the context of the whole picture. When the teenager refuses to talk to the parent and blindly tries to move ahead without any guidance, they often travel a rough road. Why not seek some help and companionship from one who is full of love for him/her?

                “Then there are those who are blind or indifferent. Who could be so numb to not care about You and Your great love? Who refuses a precious gift of eternal love indifferently? It makes no sense to me. Indifference infuses an entire person. Indifference muffles passion. Indifference stifles joy. Indifference blocks peace replacing it with numbness. Who prefers life without passion, joy and peace? Who prefers to just exist?

                “Oh Lord send the Holy Spirit to fly through the souls of all Your people like a strong wind to get their attention. Then may the Holy Spirit gently awaken the soul’s desire to seek You in prayer. Call Your people in a way that causes them to turn to You, longing to seek You in prayer. May they pour out their hearts to You. May they tell You all their hopes and desires the way lovers share their dreams with each other, the way a child tells his parent about his day, the way a young adult will sometimes truly ask for advice from a parent or mentor. Oh dear Lord, may their hearts beat stronger and faster knowing You are there, listening and loving them all. May they be filled with the desire to pray.”

Filled With the Holy Spirit

                “Oh dear Lord, I humbly place myself in Your presence. I feel so small, vulnerable, exposed. What do You see when you look at me? Your gaze is more than our humanly view of what lies directly in front of our eyes. Your gaze penetrates much deeper, into the souls of those who humbly stand before You. I feel Your gaze pierce through my flesh and into the spirit of my soul. What do You see there? If anything is not of Your liking, pluck it out and reshape me to what You see as a thing of beauty. Empty my soul of all I don’t need, of anything that blocks Your light. I feel empty, lonely, silent and unable to move. My soul longs for You in this state more than ever. I feel like a lost starving child with nowhere to go.

                “Fill me now with the Holy Spirit. May it blow into my soul like a cool fresh breeze through the windows You have opened. Oh Holy Spirit, first You fill me with love, hope and faith. You assure me that I am becoming all that You want me to be. Oh Holy Spirit, You fill the empty void in my soul. You quench my deep longing the way water moistens my dry throat – slowly but surely restoring the dry damaged tissue layer by layer. Oh Holy Spirit, next You fill me with knowledge and intelligence, providing a mind ready to discern God’s will. I breathe in deeply, inflating my body with all Your grace. Oh dear Holy Spirit, I feel great joy and deep peace throughout my soul. I no longer feel small and vulnerable; I feel tall like I could reach a cloud and I feel protected, shrouded in the power of the Holy Spirit.

                “Dear Lord, my God, my risen King, I humbly but gratefully place myself in Your holy presence.”