Jesus was born into this world to accomplish the Father’s plan for our salvation. At the age of twelve Jesus would speak intelligently about the scriptures, amazing all who listened with His wisdom and understanding. That scene foreshadows the teaching ministry of Jesus that would take place two decades later as crowds would gather from near and far to listen to Him preach. We are also part of the story, for we have the great privilege of listening to the Lord Jesus every time we open the Bible. Now, as then, His words have the capacity to inspire, convert, motivate and console. Jesus continues to draw us to Himself and bids us to be nourished at the two-fold table of Word and Sacrament every time we participate in Mass. May we keep these things in our heart and place our confidence in the Lord Jesus so that we might remain in Him, and He in us.
We pray together: St. Jude, increase our longing for Christ our Savior and give us the strength to grow in love, that the dawn of his coming may find us rejoicing in his presence and welcoming the light of his truth
While reading this posting, I could not help but reflect on an event (miracle) which happen on Christmas Day this year in Corpus Christi, Texas, where scripture came to life. The two scripture quotes that surfaced during this miracle were; “Do not be afraid any longer, only believe” – Mark 5:36 and “Wake up, strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die, for I have not found your deed completed in the sight of My God” – Revelations 3:2. Beginning on Dec. 20th a friend’s niece attempted suicide with prescription medicine and alcohol. This beautiful 14 year old girl was likely responding to her view on life being herself and her three younger siblings had been left behind in an impoverished environment follow the incarceration of their mother weeks earlier. The uncle of the four children came to the aid of his sister and attempted to provide for the children to the best of his ability. Immediately following the attempted suicide, Child Protective Services (CPS) intervened for an interim period and placed the other three children in foster care while the oldest was in the ICU of a local Children’s Hospital with a very bleak prognosis. She was not expected to make it through the first night. By Christmas Eve, the young girl had stabilized some and she was responding to touch and would occasionally nod in what appeared to be reply to yes and no styled questions. The uncle still seemed overwhelmed and somewhat crushed by all that had taken place on his watch. Before leaving ICU that day, the uncle (Robert) and I prayed over the young girl (Bonnie) asking the Blessed Virgin Mother to watch over Bonnie as she gave birth to her son Jesus. We also asked that baby Jesus’ crying be cries of hope for Bonnie and her entire family and that Bonnie experience a full awakening on Christmas Day if it was God’s will. During this prayer Bonnie responded with attempts to open her eyes and she moved her legs from side to side. The attending nurses said this was the most movement they had seen. On Christmas morning, I arrived at Robert’s home and picked him up to go have a meal with my family at our home. On our way, I felt moved to stop at a nearby Adoration Chapel. While spending some quiet time in front of the Eucharist, a priest walked to the front of the chapel and announced he would be hearing confessions. Again, I felt moved by the Holy Spirit to ask Robert how long it had been since his last confession. Robert said he was 10 years old so “about 30 years”. Following a brief reminder of the steps to take, Robert looked at me and said “I am afraid”. I responded with my hand on his shoulder; “Don’t be, the Holy Spirit will be with you and I will be right out here”. It was 11:30AM. Following Robert’s confession and a nice lunch with my family, Robert and I went to visit Bonnie at approx. 2PM. When we arrived, Bonnie appeared to have more color in her face and she was holding the hand of one of the nurses as we approached. The lead nurse was quick to say; “At about 11:30 this morning she came around…”. In that very moment, Robert went to her side and was as loving as I have ever seen anyone be to another person. He blessed Bonnie’s forehead and told her repeatedly how much he, her mom and everyone else loved her. Bonnie’s eyes open wide and remained open for the entire 45 minutes that we stayed to visit. Bonnie tried to talk but was restricted due to the tubes in her mouth so she began to lift her hand and write in the air with her index finger. The nurse quickly went to get a clipboard and a pen. Bonnie then wrote a question asking about her brother and two sisters. She asked and answered several other questions as well. Bonnie and her uncle Robert both had an awakening at 11:30AM on Christmas morning. Robert chose to not be afraid any longer and to believe. Bonnie also woke up and she will hopefully fulfill all that God has in His sights for her as she matures and moves in, with and through Christ. God is good and He answers our prayers. Ron / CCTX