Fruits and Thoughts

ONE day to go before, what is now, a twenty-date concert tour begins. I am excited, because I sensed when my latest album was produced, that these songs would begin healing in many souls. Then along came Pope Francis calling the Church to become a “field hospital” for the wounded. ^[1]cf. The Field Hospital And so, on Tuesday my wife and I are setting up the first “field hospital” in our ministry as we begin a journey through the prairie province of Saskatchewan. Please pray for us and especially for all those that Jesus wants to heal and minister to.

At last, I have had a few minutes today to sit down to all of the letters and cards that have been sent to us. This is always a very, very special and anointed time as your words, encouragement, and love wash over my soul. It is a powerful time, because Our Mother lifts me up for just a moment to taste the fruit of her ministry to you, and together we laugh, cry and pray over all your intentions. What a blessing. I read every word. I pray over ever request. I take note in my heart of your own tears, sorrows, and how God is leading and confirming you through this ministry. 

And I want to affirm you in this regard, to know that Jesus Himself is always speaking to your heart. You don’t need me; you need the Holy Spirit, and Jesus has promised this great Gift to you. What Our Mother does through this blog (so you tell me) is confirm, strengthen, and encourage you in what you already sense, in what you already see, adding clarity and wisdom. So rejoice because you are not abandoned. Jesus will be with you until the end of time as He promised.

Some of you might be afraid when you read the words of Our Lord asking if “when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?” ^[2]cf. Luke 18:8 And the answer is “yes.” Absolutely. We read at the end of the book of Revelation that there is a camp of saints who endure through the reign of the beast, through a time of peace, all the way to the final uprising. ^[3]cf. for a concise chronology as taught by the Early Church Fathers, see How the Era was Lost You are in this little camp, and will remain so insofar as you continue on the daily path of obedience, repentance, and prayer. It’s not that hard to be faithful—His yoke is easy. ^[4]cf. Matt 11:30 It just means paying attention everyday to your soul—to “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” ^[5]cf. Matt 26:41 As my confessor said to me recently, quoting St. Pio: “A saint is not one who never stumbles, but one who always gets up again when he does.”

So thank you from the depths of my heart for your prayers, the Masses you’ve had said, the Rosaries, the donations from your already tight budgets, the sacrifices you’ve made… thank you for all of it. How you have blessed, sustained, and encouraged me to persevere in this writing apostolate of Our Lady’s.

For truly, this is her ministry. I’m sure many people assume this blog is my soapbox, my moment to tell the world how smart I am… oh, how far from the truth (though sometimes I wish it were so… but it wouldn’t take that long). The fact is, the topics I write about, the titles, come as “words.” As I sat with my bishop before Christmas, trying to explain the secret and mysterious ways in which Heaven guides this ministry, I was at somewhat a loss for words. Because while some in this type of prophetic ministry receive audible locutions, visions, or apparitions, the Lord seems to speak to me in a unique but still clear way (which, frankly, frightened me for about five years—that, and if the Lord or Our Lady appeared to me, I’d be a mess [insert smiley].) He has taught me how to recognize His voice in someone at the till, a phrase in a movie, a passing cloud, a news headline, a deeper meaning in Scripture… the Lord is almost constantly speaking to my heart. I suspect it is this way because, unlike those with specific messages and focused missions, my ministry is meant to give the “big picture”, often tying many things together. Still, this is a delicate process that requires a lot of prayer, a lot of waiting, incubating, and ultimately filtering it all through my spiritual director and above all the clear and sound teachings of our Catholic Faith. In the end, I make no claims, but submit everything to the body of Christ for discernment, as any of us should do when it comes to matters of the Faith. For my part, I have done everything I can to ensure that what you read here conforms to Sacred Tradition.

Well, it does not matter really how the Lord works, what matters is that you receive the “spiritual food” that Christ desires. I just thought I would open up a bit and share a smidgen of the mysterious ways the Lord works in a very imperfect creature. I am just one molecule in the body of Christ, so it’s really not that important.

There are more “words” to come on the Black Ship, the Woman of Revelation, and other somewhat serious matters. But let us never let the seriousness of our times steal away our joy, the grace of the present moment, and the gift it is to breath, and love, and live. And so, I want to end this letter to you, in the spirit of discerning prophecy that St. Paul urged the Corinthians (and us) to have, ^[6]cf. 1 Thess 5:19-20 by quoting today’s alleged message from Our Lady of Medjugorje. ^[7]Do you think Medjugorje is a deception? Read On Medjugorje. But before I do, I will quote what I wrote a couple of weeks ago in the The Black Ship-Part I:

…the Black Ship is propelled by the hot breath of Satan—satanic lies that come like a gentle breeze (all the way from the Enlightenment), but carry the force of a whirlwind… Only reconciliation and harmony with God will bring an end to the long saga of war and misery that man is now inflicting upon himself, and will inflict in exponentially greater degrees in the months ahead, until God is forced to intervene in a decisive manner that will crush Satan, and eventually all who persist in serving him. And we can’t—we mustn’t forget that Heaven is fully engaged in this Final Confrontation. Divine Mercy has many surprises to come. Hope is the domain of the little remnant.

The alleged monthly message to Marija today:

Dear children! Also today I call you: live your vocation in prayer. Now, as never before, Satan wants to suffocate man and his soul by his contagious wind of hatred and unrest. In many hearts there is no joy because there is no God or prayer. Hatred and war are growing from day to day. I am calling you, little children, begin anew, with enthusiasm, the walk of holiness and love; since I have come among you because of this. Together let us be love and forgiveness for all those who know and want to love only with a human love and not with that immeasurable love of God to which God calls you. Little children, may hope in a better tomorrow always be in your heart. Thank you for having responded to my call. —Message of January 25, 2015

…prophecy in the biblical sense does not mean to predict the future but to explain the will of God for the present, and therefore show the right path to take for the future. —Cardinal Ratzinger (POPE BENEDICT XVI), Message of Fatima, Theological Commentary, www.vatican.va