Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Mary TV: December 11, 2018 Reflection -You are my hope...

   
 
(c)Anthony Zubac 2018
 
 

December 11, 2018
St. Damasus I

Dear Family of Mary!
"...Apostles of my love, my children, have trust in my Son. Help all of my children to come to know His love. You are my hope - you who strive to sincerely love my Son. In the name of love, for your salvation, according to the will of the Heavenly Father and through my Son, I am here among you..." (December 2, 2018)

 
Mary the dawn, Christ the Perfect Day;
Mary the gate, Christ the Heavenly Way!
Mary the root, Christ the Mystic Vine;
Mary the grape, Christ the Sacred Wine!
Mary the wheat, Christ the Living Bread;
Mary the rose tree, Christ the Rose blood-red!
Mary the font, Christ the Cleansing Flood;
Mary the cup, Christ the Saving Blood!
Mary the temple, Christ the temple's Lord;
Mary the shrine, Christ the God adored!
Mary the beacon, Christ the Haven's Rest;
Mary the mirror, Christ the Vision Blest!
Mary the mother, Christ the mother's Son
By all things blest while endless ages run. Amen.
(Medieval Hymn)
In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018






"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
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Monday, December 10, 2018

Mary TV: December 10, 2018 Reflection -Faith is a most wonderful mystery which is kept in the heart.

 
 
(c)Anthony Zubac 2018
 
 

December 10, 2018
Dear Family of Mary!

" ...I know that you desire to have a strong faith and to express it in the right way. What my Son asks of you is to have a sincere, strong and deep faith - then every way in which you express it is proper. Faith is a most wonderful mystery which is kept in the heart. It is between the Heavenly Father and all of His children; it is recognized by the fruits and by the love which one has towards all of God's creatures..." (December 2, 2018)

Advent is a time of faith. We are waiting on several different levels. We wait for the Second Coming of Christ. We wait for our own particular judgement (when we die). And we wait for the celebration of the Incarnation and Birth of Jesus! Christmas!!! We wait with faith on all three accounts. Faith is what gives meaning and hope in each case.

And so I am really intrigued by Our Lady's little teaching on faith in the December 2nd message. She seems to understand that Advent is all about faith. And she shows us how we can best relate to it.

She tells us she knows we desire to have a strong faith. She knows that we struggle sometimes in our very challenging world to maintain a strong faith. We live among so many who do not have faith (yet). And there is a river of public opinion that would move us away from our faith in God. This pressure makes us maybe too quiet about our faith. It is not easy to go upstream.

And so she tells us what Jesus would have us know, "What my Son asks of you is to have a sincere, strong and deep faith - then every way in which you express it is proper." Jesus does not want us to be shy about our faith. But strong faith without sincerity or depth will not be enough. To be sincere means that our faith has become personal. Our faith is not a habit or a way of life that makes us feel safe. No, our faith needs to come out of our personal relationship to the One in whom we believe. Our faith has to rest on Jesus.

And our faith also needs to be deep. What does this mean? I think it means that our faith, our belief in Jesus has to come from the very bottom of our heart, the very bedrock of who we are. Our faith cannot be just one of the things we do in life. It has to be the basis of who we are! A deep faith is one that will never be shaken. Why? Because we have been deeply and powerfully loved by our Savior.

I am also blown away by the next sentences: "Faith is a most wonderful mystery which is kept in the heart. It is between the Heavenly Father and all of His children..." Imagine! Our faith is a mystery, my faith cannot be understood by anyone else but me. My faith is so intimate that only the Father understands where it comes from and how I got it. My faith is a function of the Father's love for me and my response to Him. Our God respects each one of us so much that He will never disclose what is in our hearts to others, and He will always be faithful to that intimacy. He sees, He understands, He loves, where no one else can go, the depths of our hearts. And it is from that love that our faith springs.

Only God can love each one of us individually, all the billions of humans He has created are each known and loved by Him intimately and uniquely. No one is unnoticed or unloved. No one.

The only way we can see the faith of another is through the fruits of their lives. "...it is recognized by the fruits and by the love which one has towards all of God's creatures
..." It is by our love that we are recognized as people of faith. Our good works and our great-heartedness show the footprints of God's presence in us. It can't be counterfeited.

Well, I just love Our Lady's words on faith. May we all take time in the Advent season to go deeply into ourselves, to find that spot where the Heavenly Father resides in us, and let Him share the mystery with us. Oh the joy!!!

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018

PS. Christine Watkins has written a new book, "Of Men and Mary." It is a wonderful book about the conversions of six different men, through Our Lady. Thank you, Christine for your tireless efforts to help us grow closer to Our Lady and Jesus!

A quote from one review of the book: OF MEN AND MARY recounts the riveting conversion stories of, among others, a convicted murderer and a man who was clinically dead. Three of the book's six subjects became Catholic priests and one became a deacon.  At a time when men are feeling discouraged and disengaged from the Church and the priesthood is under attack, this book offers a much-needed dose of hope, courage and inspiration. Female readers will also want to hear her grace-filled message-and to share it with the men in their lives.
    
Here is a link to see more about the book and/or order one!
   
 
 
 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv


Friday, December 07, 2018

Mary TV: December 7, 2018 Reflection -"I wish that your hearts be similar to my heart.."

 
 


(c)Anthony Zubac
 
 
December 7, 2016
St. Ambrose
First Friday

Dear Family of Mary!
"Dear children! When you come to me, as to a mother, with a pure and open heart, know that I am listening to you, encouraging you, consoling you and, above all, interceding for you with my Son..." (December 2, 2018)

Tomorrow is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception! One more day to prepare. I thought today we could let the prayer that Our Lady taught Jelena Vasilj speak to our hearts and help us to pray properly.
 
Jelena was very young when Our Lady taught her this prayer. And you can tell that Our Lady was speaking to a young person. The words are simple and straightforward and they can open us up to Our Lady in a truly childlike way.

Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
(Given by Our Lady to Jelena Vasilj, 11/28/1983)

O Immaculate Heart of Mary,
Overflowing with goodness,
Show us your love for us.
May the flame of your heart, Oh Mary,
Descend upon all peoples.
We love you immensely.
Impress in our hearts a true love.
May our hearts yearn for you.
Oh Mary, sweet and humble of heart,
Remember us when we sin.
You know that all mankind are sinners.
Through your most sacred and maternal heart,
Cure us from every spiritual illness.
Make us capable of looking at the beauty of your maternal heart,
And that, thus, we may be converted
to the flame of your heart. Amen

Our Lady tells us:
"Dear children! Today I call you to prayer. I am with you and I love you all. I am your Mother and I wish that your hearts be similar to my heart. Little children, without prayer you cannot live and say that you are mine. Prayer is joy. Prayer is what the human heart desires. Therefore, get closer, little children, to my Immaculate Heart and you will discover God. Thank you for having responded to my call." (November 25, 1994)

May we all grow very close to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the heart of the Woman who is called the Immaculate Conception!! She is the Heart of our Church. Her Heart will keep our hearts burning with love for Jesus and protect us from all harm.

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018
 


PS. Again I am including the new information about Mike Nolan's Pilgrimages, found on his new website! It includes the schedule for 2019!!
 
 
 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv 

Thursday, December 06, 2018

Mary TV: December 6, 2018 Reflection - Heart of Mary, like unto the Heart of God!

  

(c)Anthony Zubac
 
 
December 6, 2018
St. Nicholas

Dear Family of Mary!

"Dear children! When you come to me, as to a mother, with a pure and open heart, know that I am listening to you, encouraging you, consoling you and, above all, interceding for you with my Son..." (December 2, 2018)

Today we have a litany written by Blessed John Henry Newman! I think the way to pray this litany is not to rush, not to rattle off the words as if we are in a race. Instead, let's take each title as an invitation to silent prayer, a moment to ponder what this title could mean. Our Lady, when she was greeted by the Angel Gabriel, took a moment to ponder, to let the words he spoke to her rumble around in her heart and head, until she had inspected them properly. Only then could she respond.
 
In the same we when we pray, especially prayers that are written for us, we need to take some time with the words we say, let them rumble around in our poor heads and hearts until we can make some sense out of them. Then we need to present them to God for light. What does this mean, and what do you make of it, Lord? Or in this case what do you think of it, Mother? Then wait for light. Each title carries a grace and a gift for us, because everything about Our Lady is a grace and gift for us!

So here is our prayer for today, as we approach the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception:
 
LITANY OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY
The First of Three Litanies
(For private use only)

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us.

Heart of Mary, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, like unto the Heart of God, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, united to the Heart of Jesus, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, instrument of the Holy Ghost, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, sanctuary of the Divine Trinity, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, tabernacle of God Incarnate, pray for us., 
Heart of Mary, immaculate from thy creation, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, full of grace, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, blessed among all hearts, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, throne of glory, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, most humble, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, holocaust of Divine Love, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, fastened to the Cross with Jesus Crucified, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, comfort of the afflicted, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, refuge of sinners, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, hope of the agonizing, pray for us.
Heart of Mary, seat of mercy, pray for us.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us.

V. Immaculate Mary, meek and humble of heart,
R. Make our hearts like unto the Heart of Jesus.

Let Us Pray
O most merciful God, Who, for the salvation of sinners and the refuge of the miserable, was pleased that the Most Pure Heart of Mary should be most like in charity and pity to the Divine Heart of Thy Son, Jesus Christ, grant that we, who commemorate this sweet and loving Heart, by the merits and intercession of the same Blessed Virgin, may merit to be found like unto the Heart of
Jesus, through the same Christ Our Lord. R. Amen.

This litany was composed by John Henry (Cardinal) Newman shortly after he converted to Catholicism in 1845.
In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018

PS. Again I am including the new information about Mike Nolan's Pilgrimages, found on his new website! It includes the schedule for 2019!!
 
 
 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Wednesday, December 05, 2018

Mary TV: December 5, 2018 Reflection - O Immaculate Conception, Mary my Mother!

 

(c)Mateo Ivankovic
 
 
December 5, 2018
In Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

Dear Family of Mary!

"Dear children! When you come to me, as to a mother, with a pure and open heart, know that I am listening to you, encouraging you, consoling you and, above all, interceding for you with my Son..." (December 2, 2018)

Again today we approach our Mother, Mary, with our hearts wide open and full of love and trust. We pray with all our hearts, calling out to Mary as children who need their mother. We are setting aside these few days before the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, to pray with all our hearts in simple faith to the Mother of Jesus and our Mother. She will hear us, she cannot forget us, because she is our Mother:
St. Bernard encourages us:

In the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I Trust
Look to the Star
Call upon Mary!

In danger, in difficulty
or in doubt,
think of Mary,
call upon Mary,
Keep her name on your lips,
Never let it pass out of your heart.

Following in her footsteps,
you will not go astray:
praying to her,
you will not
fall into despair:
thinking of her you will not err.

While she keeps hold of your hand,
you will not fall ...
you will not grow weary ...
you will have no fear ...
Enjoying her protection,
you will reach the goal.
(Saint Bernard)

Let us pray:   
Immaculate Conception,
Mary my Mother,
Live in me, Act in me,
Speak in me and through me,
Think your thoughts in my mind,
Love through my heart,
Give me your dispositions and feelings,
Teach, lead me and guide me to Jesus,
Correct, enlighten and expand my thoughts and behavior,
Possess my soul,
Take over my entire personality and life, replace it with Yourself,
Incline me to constant adoration,
Pray in me and through me,
Let me live in you and keep me in this union always.
Amen
© 1956, Mother Immaculata, OCD

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018

PS.  Announcing a new improved website for Michael Nolan's pilgrimages.
Mike has posted his 2019 schedule of pilgrimages!! Don't put it off!  Go to:






"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Tuesday, December 04, 2018

Mary TV: December 4, 2018 Reflection - Preparing for the Immaculate Conception!


  (c)Mateo Ivankovic
 
 
 
December 4, 2018
St. John Damascene

Dear Family of Mary!

"Dear children! When you come to me, as to a mother, with a pure and open heart, know that I am listening to you, encouraging you, consoling you and, above all, interceding for you with my Son. I know that you desire to have a strong faith and to express it in the right way. What my Son asks of you is to have a sincere, strong and deep faith - then every way in which you express it is proper..." (December 2, 2018)

We are approaching the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. We have 4 days to prepare. I think that the opening of Our Lady's December 2 message is a perfect preparation for this earthquake of a feast day!

Why do I call it an earthquake? Well, this event changed the world forever. God looked forward to Jesus' redemptive death, looking forward as only God can look forward, and He decided to take an advance on it and use the grace to be received then to form and protect the perfect Woman who would be Jesus' Mother. The Immaculate Conception happened because Jesus died! Hard to wrap our puny minds around. But it did! And Mary was conceived without sin, without the brokenness that all other humans bear from conception. She was spared in order to bring Christ into the world to save all of us.

This was an earthquake that no one heard or felt or saw. But it was an event that changed everything!

Anyway, we approach this feast now with our broken and struggling hearts, longing to know Our Lady better, longing to be touched by her, needing to be mothered by her. And she tells us in the message that she is listening to us, encouraging us, consoling us and above all interceding for us to Jesus. She is longing to mother us!! Our hearts are searching for her, and her Immaculate Heart is searching for us. She wants us!!!

She continues to tell us that our desire to have faith is good, and that if we are sincere, and our desire is strong, we will find that our faith is strong! There is no question, if we seek we will find!

So I propose that we take the next four days and pray a beautiful prayer to Our Lady, one for each day, and let the prayer lead us to our Mother who is waiting for us, longing to mother us, hoping that we will come to her and give her our hearts. Let's seek her with all our strength, and know that she will be found.

Here is the first prayer. We might consider praying the prayer often throughout the day, slowly and with silence in our hearts!
 
Glorious Virgin Mary, I long to love your Son, Jesus, the way he deserves to be loved-with the love of your Immaculate Heart.
Unite me to your Immaculate Heart so that I will be open to receive your Son with the same dispositions by which you received him.
Your Immaculate Heart is supremely gentle, steadfast, watchful-completely given over to the will of God.
Lead me out of the darkness of ignorance, free me from all selfishness and willful self-assertion, and train me in conformity with your Immaculate Heart.
 
Let me always trust your Immaculate Heart as a true source of grace and mercy.
In sharing in the Passion of your Son, your Immaculate Heart was pierced.
May your immaculate love embrace me in moments of suffering.
I beg to make reparation for all offenses against your Immaculate Heart as I offer you my intentions (mention your request). Amen.

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Sunday, December 02, 2018

Mary TV: December 2, 2018 Message from Our Lady



Mirjana Soldo encounters Our Lady - December 2, 2018

  (c)Anthony Zubac
 
 
December 2, 2018
First Sunday of Advent
 
Dear Family of Mary,

Here is the message to Mirjana Soldo of December 2nd, 2018:
 
Dear children! When you come to me, as to a mother, with a pure and open heart, know that I am listening to you, encouraging you, consoling you and, above all, interceding for you with my Son. I know that you desire to have a strong faith and to express it in the right way. What my Son asks of you is to have a sincere, strong and deep faith - then every way in which you express it is proper. Faith is a most wonderful mystery which is kept in the heart. It is between the Heavenly Father and all of His children; it is recognized by the fruits and by the love which one has towards all of God's creatures.

Apostles of my love, my children, have trust in my Son. Help all of my children to come to know His love. You are my hope - you who strive to sincerely love my Son. In the name of love, for your salvation, according to the will of the Heavenly Father and through my Son, I am here among you. Apostles of my love, along with prayer and sacrifice, may your hearts be illuminated with the love and the light of my Son. May that light and love illuminate all those whom you meet and bring them back to my Son. I am with you.

In a special way, I am alongside your shepherds. With my motherly love I illuminate and encourage them that, with the hands blessed by my Son, they may bless the entire world. Thank you.

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
Mary TV




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Friday, November 30, 2018

Mary TV: November 30, 2018 Reflection - Stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.



Stand erect and raise your heads!!

  (c)Anthony Zubac
 
 
November 30, 2018
Dear Family of Mary!

"...I am with you, little children, and encourage you not to give up from what is good, because the fruits are seen and heard of afar..." (November 29, 2018)

Yesterday, Fr. Maximilian Dalve gave an inspired homily about how we can do as Our Lady says, and not give up from what is good! He uses the readings from yesterday's Mass (Revelations 18:1-2, 21-23: 19:1-3, 9a, and Luke 21:20-28) as a way to understand our time, and to live in it with faith! Here is the transcript of the Homily for English Mass, November 29, 2018:

Fr. Maximilian Dalve:
 
In today's Scripture readings that we have just heard we see the downfall of two cities, Babylon and Jerusalem. Everything comes to an end. As we are journeying towards the end of the Liturgical Year, we see the end of all things. Not only Babylon, the great symbol of worldly power that is against God, but also Jerusalem we see coming to an end. Jerusalem is a sign of the Church, and Jesus said and promised that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. But obviously there will be a final trial of which some say we already have had some experience.
But we don't need to worry because we have already seen, today, right now, the Wedding Feast of the Lamb (the Eucharist). So Jesus in His goodness brings us always beyond these experiences and lets us with His grace go through them without our head downcast but raised up as He said today in the Gospel.

Yes all things come to an end in this world, and we are many times tempted to question when is that time. When is the time when the end comes? But we should rather ask, "What is the end towards which we are directed?" Not when, but what is it all about? What is coming?

You see today in Jerusalem, this destruction is presented like birth pains. It's an agony, but it is also a birth pain, because the Son of Man will come. So new life is coming. We see in Babylon this agony goes towards death. I can see here very well those two cultures. The culture of life and the culture of death. Well expressed for example in those who are pro-life. The promote life, that life is born! New life is coming. And those who promote death. Abortion...that the birth becomes a birth of death. Tremendous...
 
And these two parties are more clearly seen. Now what we need to do, we have to pray for all. Jesus said "Especially those in most need of thy mercy." That all might be saved. There should be our prayers, there should be our tears. For those who do wrong without knowing. I could be one of them. God has given special grace to me and to all of us, but for them. We should not do as they do, making of us enemies. Our brothers and sisters who don't know yet, maybe through our prayers and fasting, they might realize, their eyes might be opened, they might be saved.
 
Mary says, Don't indulge, but say "I want to help Jesus and Mary that all the more brothers and sisters may come to know the way of holiness." (to be saved...) (10/25/03). That is the only things that matters. This world, all the treasures we gather today, they all will come to an end. We waste our time with foolish things. They may be useful things, all things have dignity, but in the right order. Have God first, then everything falls into place.
 
Then we have to work for our daily conversion, because you see it is not that we are already there. The great St. Paul said that he had not already arrived. The little trials of every day prepare us for the big trial. The big trail which finally would be our encounter with the Lord in death.

Yes, this Gospel passage has many interpretations. There is the literal interpretation, the historical interpretation, the symbolic interpretation, the Ecclesial interpretation, the Christological interpretation...many different types of interpretation. There is a certain amount of truth in each of them, but in order to interpret it really, we have to receive the grace of the Holy Spirit. If we just do it with our mind, we always go wrong. Any interpretation will be wrong.

It is written by the Holy Spirit. The primary author is not the man who wrote it, Luke. No the primary author, we know it, Vatican Council II told us. It is the Holy Spirit. So we have to read it by the Holy Spirit with a humble heart. And if we don't understand, don't worry about it. Don't try to understand everything - Mary says in one of the latest messages. We do a lot of harm in the Church by being those who have to understand everything. We are still little children. And it is beautiful to be little children if we have a big daddy and mom. It's true!!

You are all little children. You are all afraid. If there is no dad or mom, you don't know if the baby sitter will come or not. No we are not orphans. We are children of God. And He takes care of us. Especially in this moment of trial. We should not undergo this moment of trial with fear. Do we have to be afraid? There are ten secrets. And Our Lady said once that these ten secrets are not the end time, but the beginning of a new time. Mary said it in different messages very clearly. But do we have to be afraid? Mary said, who is with God is not afraid.

And so I would like to take a moment to ponder the interpretation of these Scriptures today, which is our intimate journey to God where we undergo also this death and birth experience. The old man has to die, that the new man, Christ, can rise in us. I like to use the old symbol of egoism.  The branch has to come to die, and acknowledge he is only a branch. That is "I", who has to realize he is part of a tree. That is a new consciousness. Where I don't lose my old identity, but I find my roots. That is so beautiful! That is all the church, that is all the prayer life, that is all about it. That Christ comes alive in us.

And it is so simple. We make things difficult. In my prayer life I make things so difficult, I try to concentrate. Open to the Spirit, ask for grace, let it flow!! Let prayer flowing in you. Mary said, "Open to prayer." Because that grace wants to flow.

So that intimate experience of death and live comes to us in our prayer life. St. John of the Cross describes it very well. He describes it as night. It can be, he says, a night of the senses. Now I can't enter into an interpretation of it, but he says that it is quite tremendous. But there is no way to describe the night of the spirit. Fortunately, very few souls have been in some way called to this, like Mother Teresa of Calcutta or Faustina Kowalska, these great souls. When they describe the night of the spirit that is just beyond our reach. God calls certain souls to it.   

 
But some nights we all pass through.  We don't have to look in French mystical experiences.  It can be a financial problem.  A sickness.  Family problems.   All these external experiences, they are part of it.  God doesn't work in just one direction. He doesn't write this Scripture for just one interpretation.  They are multiple.  And in this river of grace that is Sacred Scripture we can just sip a few drops... because it's so intense.  Most of it is anyway hidden.  St. John of the Cross says the more you delve into it the more treasures you find - there are endless treasures in Christ. 
 
So these nights, trials and nights we undergo...  if we learn to walk through them: standing erected and raising your head...  that's what Jesus wants from us right now in these times of troubles in the Church! 
 
I say in a family when daddy and mom are fighting  (the Church is a family and daddy and mom are fighting - you know what I mean), what do children do?  Do they make politics?  I stand with mom; I stand with Dad...  No!  they just continue to play.   They don't enter into arguing.  No, he's right.  No, that one is right.   And then we waste time discussing even in church, instead of praying. 
 
What Jesus says today, He says, when these times come, fly to the mountains!  What is that?   The mountain in the Bible?  It's the place where you meet God.    I would say today, one interpretation, fly to Adoration!  Go to Jesus!  Don't mix in the city...mix in all these discussions and gossip, even within the church.  Don't nurture it by putting wood on the fire....   No.   Call upon the Spirit.   Call upon the Spirit to give clarity that quenches that fire of hatred and division and creates unity.  Only the Spirit can make it, not we with our power...we have to understand our great limitation... how can we make a branch the unity of the tree?  So call upon the Spirit, that sap of the tree which unites us all and lets us feel that oneness.
 
Yes, so Mary wants to prepare us here in these troubled times to become pillars, pillars of faith.  Pillars of hope.   As these troubles get worse we don't need to worry at all.   There our faith is proven.   If we still start to worry about little things, how we will worry when big things are coming...  So let our faith grow!  Let us ask for the growth of faith.  As we are nurtured everyday by the Eucharist.  I think we should ask for that faith, hope and love... Let us ask Mary to help us to receive Jesus. Let us ask Mary to intercede for us so that faith grows in us, living faith!

Fortitude!  It comes forth from focusing on Christ.  Because Fortitude is not "we are strong" but the Holy Spirit empowers us, and it comes if we start to look on Jesus.  In all these troubled times look on the star, look on Jesus.  Don't worry about the rest.  Then for all the rest, for this world, you will be a blessing.   Be a pillar of faith and then one day maybe many people come to climb, to cling to you.
 
Yes, Mary is preparing for the Triumph of her Immaculate Heart.   And we are all part of it!  So let us use in these times everything for it.   I mean, whenever little trials come let us learn to live them looking at Jesus. 
 
Sing already, as they sing in today's scripture reading, "Alleluia! Salvation, glory and might belong to our God, for true and just are His judgements."  In the moment of trials, the best thing you can do, yes you can cry for help, but if you have the faith, cry "Alleluia!  Salvation, glory and might belongs to our God, for true and just are His judgements." 
 
Yes, let us transform our trials into songs of praise.  This needs real faith.  This needs faith - only the humble can have this faith.    It's not that we won't fall... there is a little bit of Babylon is in all of us.  But Saint John of the Cross, in that night, could say, "I sing!  I sing because I love!   I believe in the love!"  That this love might be born in us in this Eucharist, and grow until it warms up all of us around - the Church and the world!  Amen   

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018

PS: Today and tomorrow, our studio in Medjugorje is being moved as work is beginning, and so we will not have live streaming from Medjugorje for a couple of days. The Live Cameras will also be down. Don't worry, all will be back as soon as possible!!

 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
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Thursday, November 29, 2018

Mary TV: November 29, 2018 Reflection - God is giving Himself to you...





  (c)Anthony Zubac
 
 
November 29, 2018

Dear Family of Mary!   
"...God is giving Himself to you that we may love Him above everything. Therefore, little children, open your hearts and families, so that this waiting may become prayer and love and, especially, giving..." (November 25, 2018)

Our Lady tells us that in this time of grace God is giving Himself to us. As we wait and pray, God comes to us. He wants to give us His love, and help us to love Him in everything. This exchange of love is everything! It is our eternal destiny, and our most concrete situation now.

We may not realize it, but we are not the only ones who wait in this time of grace. Jesus is also waiting, waiting for us to open the doors of our hearts to Him. He waits, and waits and waits. His heart suffers at our lack of openness to His love.

Mother Teresa would say that Jesus "thirsts" for our love. He is parched with thirst for our love. She wrote:

"Jesus is God, therefore His Love and His
Thirst are infinite. He, the Creator of the universe,
asked for the love of his creatures. He has thirst
for our love ... These words:
"I THIRST" ... Do they echo in our soul?
Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta
If we only understood how much Jesus wants to love us and be loved by us...If only we knew...
Fr. Joseph Langford, MC, wrote an extended meditation on this idea of Jesus waiting for our love. It is exquisite. It might be good for us to see the other side of the waiting process we are in. It is the heavenly and eternal side of things, where Jesus waits for us. Here is an excerpt of his meditation. There is a link below to purchase the meditation in pamphlet form which is perfect for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament:

Fr. Joseph Langford, MC:

It is true.
I stand at the door of your heart, day and night.
Even when you are not listening,
even when you doubt it could be Me, I am there:
waiting for even the smallest signal of your response,
even the smallest suggestion of an invitation
that will permit Me to enter.

I want you to know that each time you invite Me,
I do come always, without fail.
Silent and invisible I come,
yet with a power and a love most infinite,
bringing the many gifts of My Spirit.
I come with My mercy,
with My desire to forgive and heal you,
with a love for you that goes beyond your comprehension.
A love in each detail, so grand like the love
I have received from My Father
"I have loved all of you as the Father has loved me..."
John 15:10

I come longing to console you and give you strength,
to lift you up and bind all your wounds.
I bring you My light, to dispel your darkness and all your doubts.
I come with My power, that allows me to carry you:
with My grace, to touch your heart and transform your life.
I come with My peace, to calm your soul.

I know you like the palm of my hand.
I know everything about you.
Even the hairs of your head I have counted.
Nothing in your life is unimportant to Me.
I have followed you through the years and I have always loved you
even when you have strayed.
I know every one of your problems.
I know your needs and your worries and yes,
I know all your sins.

But I tell you again that I love you,
not for what you have or ceased to do,
I love you for you, for the beauty and the dignity
My Father gave you by creating you in His own image.
It is a dignity you have often forgotten,
a beauty you have tarnished by sin.
But I love you as you are,
and I have shed My Blood to rescue you.
If you only ask Me with faith, My grace will touch all
that needs changing in your life:
I will give you the strength to free yourself from sin
and from all its destructive power.

I know what is in your heart,
I know your loneliness and all your wounds,
the rejections, the judgments, the humiliations,
I carried it all before you.
And I carried it all for you, so you could
share My strength and My victory.
I know, above all, your need for love,
how much you are thirsting for love and tenderness.
Yet, how many times have you desired to satisfy your thirst in vain,
seeking that love with selfishness, trying to fill the void
within you with passing pleasures,
with the even greater emptiness of sin.
Do you thirst for love?

"Come to Me all you who thirst ... " (John 7:37).
I will satisfy you and fill you. Do you thirst to be loved?
I love you more than you can imagine ...
to the point of dying on a cross for you.

I THIRST FOR YOU. Yes, that is the only way
to even begin to describe My love for you.
I THIRST FOR YOU. I thirst to love you and to be loved by you .
So precious are you to Me that I THIRST FOR YOU.
Come to Me, and I will fill your heart and heal your wounds.
I will make you a new creation and give you peace even in your trials.

(Excerpt of a Meditation written by
Father Joseph Langford, MC,)
   
In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018
PS. The pamphlet of Fr. Langfords meditation can be purchased from Our Sunday Visitor (in packets of 50) at this link: https://www.osv.com/shop/product?ref=article&productcode=P903
 
 
 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Mary TV: November 28, 2018 Reflection - To wait and to give.




  (c)Anthony Zubac
 
 
November 28, 2018
Dear Family of Mary!

"Dear children! This is a time of grace and prayer, a time of waiting and giving...

Our Lady tells us this is a time of waiting and giving. We might wonder what the connection is between waiting and giving. Waiting seems to be a passive activity. When we wait, we hold still, we cease to search or wander. We just wait for the one we expect and hope for. How does giving fit in with waiting?

I think in one sense, it is in waiting that we prepare to give ourselves. Think of a young couple waiting for the day they marry. They wait, and prepare for the day that they give themselves completely to each other. It takes preparation! It is a time to purify intentions and focus on the call.

It may be similar when we wait for a job, or we wait to graduate. When we wait to grow up! All that waiting is a time of self-control and focus. We wait with our eyes looking for the person or thing we hope for.

I think that in Advent we wait for God. We wait for our Savior to come. We wait for Him. And in waiting for Him, we prepare ourselves to be with Him. We summon up the courage to greet Him, the desire to love Him, the hope to finally see Him as He is. Waiting can be hard work!!

But we wait in order to make a gift of ourselves to our Savior. We prepare like a bride for her spouse, we prepare like a child prepares for the return of the parent, we prepare like a friends prepare for a reunion. We want to be given to those we love, just as they give themselves to us. This is love.

Jesus spoke of waiting and giving. Think of the parable of the ten virgins with their lamps:
"Then the kingdom of heaven shall be compared to ten maidens who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, `Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, `Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise replied, `Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.' And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut. Afterward the other maidens came also, saying, `Lord, lord, open to us.' But he replied, `Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.' Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. (Mt 25:1-13)
The ten maidens were waiting. They were waiting for the bridegroom to return. Isn't Jesus our bridegroom? But five of the maidens lost track of what they were waiting for. In their distraction, they forgot to make sure they had oil for their lamps. And so when the bridegroom returned, they were not ready. They were not prepared. They did not wait well. Waiting required preparation and focus. They lost sight of the One they were to give themselves to, as their King.

But the five wise maidens were prepared. They were admitted to the wedding feast. They knew how to wait. They waited with focus and with love. They in fact could focus because they loved. They waited with love and were ready.

I know I need to examine my own heart in this regard. Am I waiting for Jesus, with love, with a readiness to give myself to Him, with a desire to live so as to give? Or am I waiting in indolence and sloth, with no flame in my heart for Him? How can I wake myself from my sleep, and wait with vigilance and joy for the return of my King?

Advent is a really blessed time to pray, receive grace, wait and give.

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018
 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Mary TV: November 27, 2018 - Dear Children, this is a time of grace and prayer. . .




  (c)Anthony Zubac
 
November 27, 2018
Dear Family of Mary!

"Dear children! This is a time of grace and prayer, a time of waiting and giving. God is giving Himself to you that we may love Him above everything. Therefore, little children, open your hearts and families, so that this waiting may become prayer and love and, especially, giving. I am with you, little children, and encourage you not to give up from what is good, because the fruits are seen and heard of afar. That is why the enemy is angry and uses everything to lead you away from prayer. Thank you for having responded to my call." (November 25, 2018)

Whenever I think about Advent, I get double vision. It is hard to focus with double vision. What I mean is that in Advent we celebrate two realities. Those realities are both about "comings". The first part of Advent we hear Jesus in the Gospels proclaiming the truth about Himself and preparing His people to be ready for His coming in Glory. It is a looking for the Second Coming of Christ, as King and Judge. We have been pondering this reality during November, and it continues in Advent.

The other "coming" is of course the Incarnation and Birth of Jesus! Man and God, Jesus' first coming is remembered as we look forward to Christmas. We learn each Advent that all of history was waiting for this coming of the Messiah. And we also learn that Jesus' coming as our Savior involved conflict from start to finish. For Jesus was entering a war zone.
 
So Advent is not as comfortable and joyous as we might think. The Coming of Jesus, both times, is a coming that tests the hearts of men! We remember the coming of Jesus the first time with thanksgiving and wonder, hoping that we will make room for Him in our hearts every moment, and we await the coming of Jesus as Judge and King at the end of time, praying that we will be ready for His return.
And that is why I think Our Lady's message is all about Advent. She tells us: "This is a time of grace and prayer, a time of waiting and giving." This time, right now, as we enter Advent, is a time of grace and prayer. God gives us grace through His Church, and Advent is a special time of grace for us. It is a powerful moment when we take in the great history of salvation, and ponder it anew! And Advent is a time of prayer, a time when we set aside extra time to be with Jesus and Mary, living with them the memory of Jesus' birth, a memory that Our Lady is well equipped to transmit to us.

So prayer and grace. These are the constant gifts we receive from God. But waiting and giving? Well Advent comes from the Latin - "adventus" which means "coming". How do we relate to a "coming"? We wait. We wait with hope, or with fear, or with joy, or with anxiety. We wait. And how we wait, especially how we wait for Jesus, tells us a great deal about our own hearts. Are they clean? Are they divided or whole? Are they given to God or kept for ourselves? Waiting for Jesus in both of His comings can be quite a process. A personal process.

Enough for now. We will see about the giving tomorrow.

I am excited that Our Lady is going to travel with us through this Advent. She can teach us how to wait with her pure and perfect heart. She can show us how to wait through giving!

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
©Mary TV 2018
PS. Our Website has been upgraded! The videos are now stunningly clear and beautiful! Thanks to Matt, who works night and day to make Mary TV the best is can be for Our Lady!!
 
If you are having trouble viewing our videos now, you may need to upgrade your devices, download the latest version of your browser (Chrome is a good one), download the Android App, which has been updated if you use a tablet or android phone, and finally if you use iPad or iPhone - wait a few days and then download the new Mary TV Apple App.
 
Thanks for your patience, and thanks for your prayers!!!
 




"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
Be connected!
www.marytv.tv

Sunday, November 25, 2018

Message From Our Lady in Medjugorje to Marija November 25, 2018


 








Our Lady's Message to Marija 
on November 25, 2018

"Dear children! 
This is a time of grace and prayer, a time of waiting and giving. God is giving Himself to you that we may love Him above everything. Therefore, little children, open your hearts and families, so that this waiting may become prayer and love and, especially, giving. 
I am with you, little children, and encourage you not to give up from what is good, because the fruits are seen and heard of afar. That is why the enemy is angry and uses everything to lead you away from prayer. 
Thank you for having responded to my call."

See more messages and articles about Medjugorje on our website: 
Children of Medjugorje, Inc., PO Box 18430, Denver, CO 80218