A Visit By Her Guardian Angel

An Excerpt Taken from Open My Eyes...

"As we all know, our Guardian Angels are powerful friends given to us by God to accompany us on our earthly journey. In the book of Exodus our Lord told Moses that He would send an angel to guard him.

In the Acts of the Apostles, St. Peter is freed from prison through the help of an angel.

God blessed my mother with an extraordinary gift, a vision of her own Guardian Angel.

One evening, a slight wind in her bedroom woke her from a sound sleep. She saw an angel who spoke not a word, only gazed so lovingly at my mother. This presence of an angel brought tremendous peace and tranquility to a suffering soul. Little did we know that through this angelic visit, God blessed my mother with courage and strength to withstand the stormy days that lay ahead."

Peace ~ Harmony ~ Calmness ~ Serenity ~ Tranquility

Angels bring this and so much more!

They are a gift from God.

Turn to them whenever you feel despair. They will bring you great peace.

God be with you,





(Kathleen M. Wabick is author of the book titled Open My Eyes...a story about her mother's amazing visions of Heaven at the time of her death. It may be purchased by visiting the website http://www.treasuresofgracellc.com/)

The Love of the Cross

A Reflection from Pope Benedict XVI:

The most basic Christian gesture in prayer is and always will be the sign of the cross. It is a way of confessing Christ crucified with one's very body.

To seal oneself with the sign of the cross is a visible and public Yes to him who suffered for us; to him who in the body has made God's love visible, even to the utmost; to the God who reigns not by destruction but by the humility of suffering and love, which is stronger than all the power of the world and wiser than all the calculating intelligence of men.

The sign of the cross is a confession of faith:

I believe in him who suffered for me and rose again; in him who has transformed the sign of shame into a sign of hope and of the love of God that is present with us. The confession of faith is a confession of hope: I believe in him who in his weakness is the Almighty; in him who can and will save me even in apparent absence and impotence.

By signing ourselves with the cross, we place ourselves under the protection of the cross, hold it in front of us like a shield that will guard us in all the distress of daily life and give us the courage to go on.

We accept it as a signpost that we follow. The cross shows us the road of life - the imitation of Christ.

Whenever we make the sign of the cross, we accept our Baptism anew; Christ from the cross draws us, so to speak, to himself. We make the sign of the cross on ourselves and thus enter the power of the blessing of Jesus Christ. We make the sign over people to whom we wish a blessing.

Through the cross, we can become sources of blessing for one another.

Benedictus
Pope Benedict XVI

To Be Loved and to Love

A Reflection on Love From Pope Benedict XVI:

God brings Abraham out from among his family and sets him on certain path. When it comes down to it, everyone has to undergo his own exodus. He not only has to leave the place that nurtured him and become independent, but has to come out of his own reserved self.

He must leave himself behind, transcend his own limits; only then will he reach the Promised Land, so to speak - the sphere of freedom, in which he plays his part in creation.

We have come to recognize this fundamental law of transcendence as being the essence of...love.

And of course the act of one who loves me is an act of this type. He has to bring me out of the comfortable inclination to stay within myself. Isolation is contrary to man's inmost inclination. If isolation means not being loved, being abandoned, being alone on one's own, this situation is indeed the fear underlying all our fears.

Thus we can see again that man is constructed from within, in the image of God, to be loved and to love.

At this point I believe we have to refer to man's being in the image of God. God is love.

The essence of love portrays its own nature in the Trinity. Man is in God's image, and thereby he is a being whose innermost dynamic is likewise directed toward the receiving and the giving of love.

Benedictus
Pope Benedict XVI


Who is God asking me to show love to today?

Peace,

Trust Him

A Lesson on Trust

After my mother died, I found this prayer amongst her belongings and many times it brought me great comfort.

I wanted to share this prayer with you.

When trials come your way and the sea gets a little stormy, read this prayer and then place all your trust in God, the One Who knows all things.

God sends trials to those He loves.

He never tests us beyond our strength.

Theses trials purify our souls in order that our love for God and our neighbor may grow in strength. Here is the prayer. May it bring you comfort in times of trials.

Trust Him

Trust Him when dark doubts assail thee,

Trust Him when thy strength is small,

Trust Him when to simply trust Him

Seems the hardest thing of all.

Trust Him, He is ever faithful;

Trust Him, for His will is best;

Trust Him, for the Heart of Jesus

Is the only place of rest.

Trust Him, then, through doubts and sunshine,

All thy cares upon Him cast.

Till the storm of life is over

And the trusting days are past.

God bless you,

Be Merciful

"Be merciful, as your Father is also merciful."
Lk. 6,36


Jesus reveals this mystery of God's love for us in order that He may teach us to be merciful to others.

The more we contemplate God's mercy, the more we will be able to imitate it.

If we should feel annoyed with someone, we ought to attempt to dive into the inexhaustible mercy of God. This will help extinguish all resentment in ourselves.

Could we try to show others only a small image of God's mercy in our actions?

The world would certainly be a better place.

God has such a desire to shower His mercy upon all souls. And yet, we in return are so quick to act the opposite towards our neighbor.

"O Lord, You so easily pardon us of all our sins. May we also easily forgive those who trespass against us."

One act of mercy performed everyday makes God smile!

Have a very blessed week,

Jesus Visits Our Soul

Do you know how to recognize the moments in which Jesus visits your soul?

How do I know when our Lord visits my soul?

I am still trying to improve ways to recognize Jesus dwelling in my heart.

It may be through a word that I read or heard.

Sometimes when I am a reading Sacred Scripture or other spiritual books, I stumble across a word or phrase that touches my heart. And I know this is not by chance; I know this is Jesus.

It may be through an interior inspiration.

Once in a while, I will feel inspired to say or do something. After taking it to prayer, I wait to feel the peace of Christ. If the inspiration is still there, I know it is from God.

A new light which makes me see my faults.

God may reveal one or more of my faults in order that I may improve on removing them (or at least try to) from my life. He may make me totally aware of my sinfulness and through His grace, help me to be a better person.

Jesus can and will visit our soul if we are open to letting Him in. When He visits our soul, it is a grace. Time spent with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is a wonderful way to allow Jesus to enter your heart.

"My love, reign in the most secret recesses of my heart, there where my most secret thoughts are conceived, where You alone have free access, in this deepest sanctuary where human thought cannot penetrate. May You alone dwell there, and may everything I do exteriorly takes its origin in You. I ardently desire, and I am striving with all the strength of my soul, to make You, Lord, feel at home in this sanctuary." ~ St. Faustina ~ Diary 1721

Jesus, may You always feel at home when You visit my soul!

Could This Have Been An Angel?

My Angel of Mercy
(This story happened in September of 2007. I wanted to bring it back for the anniversary of Father Baker's death this July 29th.)

I had the opportunity to experience God's good grace.

As my day unfolded, I knew I wanted to stop and pray at the crypt of Father Nelson Baker, a saintly priest who founded Our Lady of Victory Homes of Charity. He also built the Basilica of Our Lady of Victory which was consecrated in 1926. Father Baker died on July 29, 1936. His cause is up for sainthood and he is confirmed with the title of Servant of God.

As I walked into to the Basilica, I noticed several people praying at different areas of the church. I slowly and reverently approached Father Baker's crypt, which was located in the grotto within the Basilica.

I knelt down to pray. I closed my eyes and began to ask God for a healing of my grandson Jude. Suddenly, a calmness and stillness came over me. I truly felt God's presence.

With a slight awareness I could feel someone nearby. I began to hear soft taps on the kneeler next to me and sensed this person needed my help.

So I opened my eyes and slowly glanced over my shoulder.

A man, seated in a wheelchair, was trying to read the intercessory prayer that was printed and taped to the top of the kneeler. As he strained his eyes, I noticed his wheelchair kept him from getting a clear view of the prayer.

I asked him, "Would you like a copy of that prayer? It's on a prayer card and I can get one for you?" He shook his head in approval.

I quickly got off my knees, picked up a prayer card off the table to the left of me and gave it to him. He looked straight into my eyes and said, "Please, place this prayer card on Father Baker's tomb."

I followed his orders.

As he closed his eyes in prayer for a moment, I too bowed my head and offered my prayers for his private intentions. Then he opened his eyes and nodded to me; he was giving me consent to lift the card and hand it over to him. I willingly reached for the card and delivered it into the hands of this pious man.

I then proceeded to tell him I was here praying for my grandson who was very ill.

He said to me, "What is his name?"

"Baby Jude", I replied. "Can you please pray for him?"

With a wink of an eye and a smile on his face he responded, "I will pray for him."

"What is your name so I can also pray for you?", I requested.

"My name is John", he acknowledged.

I prayed for John that day and asked God to grant him the desires of his heart. My act of mercy may have been to lend a helping hand to John, but John may not have realized what an act of mercy he presented back to me. His willingness to pray for Baby Jude, amongst his own trials and tribulations, made a lasting impression on me. I will never forget the smile on his face and the twinkle in his eye.

Could this have been an angel sent from God?

I saw something very special in the eyes of this humble man. Reverent, believing, angelic, pure in heart are all words that I could use to describe him.

This man came to the Basilica to possibly pray for a healing for himself or maybe a loved one, but in return he also prayed for the intentions of someone whose heart was searching for a healing. He said a prayer for a complete stranger.

As I walked away from the crypt I turned to look back at him. His head was bowed in prayer and I knew he was asking God to heal Baby Jude.

Was God sending me an angel not only to intercede for me, but to teach me something?

When nighttime fast approached, I placed my head upon my pillow and reflected on what happened to me that day at the Basilica. I thought about how wonderful it is that we can offer intercessory prayers of healing for each other. Even total strangers can pray for each other if we can only reach out and manifest God's mercy.

What lesson did God want me to learn from this?

Could this man have been an angel sent from God to teach me to pray as I ought?

Was God trying to show me His Mercy? Was He teaching me how to be merciful?

I like to think He was.

As Jesus told St. Faustina, "I unite Myself with you, take away your misery and give you My mercy. I perform works of mercy in every soul." (723)


May our God of mercy be with you today and always,







(Kathleen M. Wabick is author of a book titled Open My Eyes ~ you may purchase this book at http://www.treasuresofgracellc.com )