"Dear children! Also today I call you to prayer. Little children, believe that by simple prayer miracles can be worked. Through your prayer you open your heart to God and He works miracles in your life. By looking at the fruits, your heart fills with joy and gratitude to God for everything He does in your life and, through you, also to others. Pray and believe little children, God gives you graces and you do not see them. Pray and you will see them. May your day be filled with prayer and thanksgiving for everything that God gives you. Thank you for having responded to my call." 

THROUGH PRAYER, YOU OPEN YOUR HEART TO GOD

Once again, this message of Our Lady, as the majority of her messages, begins with a call to prayer. At this moment, she has nothing more important and more necessary to tell us. Mary, our mother, wants us to
become filled with joy and gratitude as she is. It is prayer that should lead us to joy and gratitude. Our Lady knows no other path than the one that she is recommending us during all these years with such zeal. If she knew another or a different way, she certainly would not hide it from us. She is a mother that loves each one of her children and she cannot and will not mislead us. As for us, we will not be deceived by her if we listen to her and take refuge in her. This is why Saint Bernard used to pray: "Remember, o most blessed Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help or sought your intercession was left unaided." Many have made the experience, even a tangible experience, of the power and the efficacy of prayer to God. The most powerful is the prayer of thanksgiving, which open the heart of God, beginning by opening the door of our heart, through which God can and wants to approach us.

What the Virgin Mary recommends to us, what she puts into our hands and want to put into our heart, is prayer, which may seem to us such a simple and weak means. By pure human logic and intelligence, it is
difficult to believe that it can obtain something big. Our Lady's language here is very simple, it is not wise in the eyes of the world. Saint Paul said already: "For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength." (1 Co 1:20b-21.25) And Jesus exclaims in the Holy Spirit: "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure." (Lk 10:21) Truly, only the little ones recognise God, they recognise the motherly presence here in Medjugorje. We know from the Gospel that Jesus himself could not help those who approached him full of themselves, with mountains of their haughtiness. God himself found no space to approach them and offer them his salvation. Through our prayer, we create ourselves space for God, and without this space, he is unable to enter into our lives.

Saint Theresa of Avila used to say: God waits for our decisions, in order to do everything in our lives himself. God is patient; he waits for us all our life. He waits for us with nothing else but his love, to give us himself and to enrich us with himself. He waits for every human heart, he waits for each family to receive him as a dear guest and friend, to open to him the door of their houses as Zaccheus did. Then a new life happened, a full life in his heart, which became grateful, able to forgive and to share. We can do little with our human powers. It is impossible to become holy with human strength, it is impossible to forgive, to love, to share one's time and one's heart with others. Very often the real problem in our life is not to be able or not to be able to forgive something to someone, but the real problem is our NO to forgiveness and to the freedom that comes. The problem is also in the fact that maybe we have not allowed God to forgive us and we have not had the experience of his forgiveness.

Let us allow to Mary, our Mother, to lead us to her Son Jesus, so that we may become joyful and grateful to God, that we may become people who see and recognise God in their lives and in every person that God has
put on our path. 

Fr. Ljubo Kurtovic
Medjugorje October 26, 2002

Important News!

For those who have not heard about Pope John Paul II's announcement of
the new "Luminous Mysteries" of the rosary, please visit the site at:
http://www.medjugorje.org/rosary.htm

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English translations of messages, commentaries and reflections are courtesy of The Information Centre in Medjugorje and gratefully acknowledged.  Sign up for The Medjugorje Web e-mail information service.   http://www.medjugorje.org

Message from Steve Shawl - The Medjugorje Web. "All of you know that we do not solicit our subscribers or recommend products or causes. But, we have been involved for over one year with an incredible relief effort called "Rebuild for Bosnia". The organization provides assistance to the forgotten victims of the horrors of the war in Bosnia-Hercegovina. The effort provides homes, medical attention, and help to the most severe and needy cases. Please take a look at the following page on our site: http://www.medjugorje.org/rebuildforbosnia.htm To help raise funds for this effort, we are selling excellent quality and unique videos about Fr. Slavko, and Medjugorje. Please note that all videos are in NTSC format only for the US & Canada. There is also a secure donation page for those who would just like to contribute to the cause. This initiative is a grass roots expression of living the Gospel and Our Lady's messages in Medjugorje!!" God Bless! - Steve Shawl - The Medjugorje Web - http://www.medjugorje.org