God Listens. Lorene Hanley Duquin

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СКАЧАТЬ this change in my mother. I turned to prayer because prayer was all that I had. It felt good to pray for help in carrying this burden. I was not alone when I prayed.

      Before long, my mother was discharged to a nursing home where another doctor decided to take her off one of the drugs she was on. Her mind cleared up quickly. I did some research on the drug, and one of the side effects was hallucinations. All of the other doctors had missed it.

      My mother came out of the fog. She was her old self. This was much more than I had asked for in my prayers! When I prayed, I just wanted to accept what I could not change in my mother. But God answered my prayer with a very big change in my mother. I prayed for one small thing and got another large and wonderful answer to my prayer.

      — Barbara Andrulis

      What is a Novena?

      A novena is a prayer or a series of prayers that are offered for nine consecutive days. The significance of the nine days stems from the nine days following the Ascension of the Lord when the apostles and Our Lady gathered in the upper room waiting for the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost.

      The early Christians offered novenas as prayers for the dead that were intended to commend the soul to God’s infinite love and mercy. During medieval times, novenas were prayed in preparation for great feast days such as Christmas, Ascension Thursday, and Pentecost.

      Over time, people in France and Spain began praying novenas to ask for the intercession of Our Lady. Novenas to the saints also became popular and were prayed during the nine days before a saint’s feast day. Today, novenas are still a popular Catholic prayer form.

      The Lord Always Answers

      The Lord lets us know that he hears our prayers. One time, several people at our inner-city mission wished out loud that we had flavored creamers for their coffee. That afternoon a truck pulled up with twenty cases of flavored creamers. They were astounded!

      But this is how people come to have faith that the Lord will take care of them. These little miracles help to build their faith. People learn the best prayers are when they just talk to the Lord and then wait to see how the Lord answers.

      The Lord always answers as long as we are doing his will. Every day something else happens that helps us to see how the Lord cares for his people. One of my prayers is, “Lord, let me always have a sense of awe. Never let me take anything for granted.”

      — Amy Betros St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy

      St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy

      St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy was founded in 1994 by Amy Betros and Norm Paolini, who raised money to purchase an inner-city church, school, rectory, and convent that had been closed by the Diocese of Buffalo the year before. By serving the physical and spiritual needs of the poor, the mission proclaims, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, God’s great love and mercy for all people.

       “Lord, I Really Need This”

      After Mass one day a friend invited me to “Men of Christ,” a huge men’s conference in Milwaukee. We went to the conference and they were rolling out a men’s group for parishes called “That Man Is You.” It promised to help men strengthen their relationship with God, with their spouse, and with their children. I prayed, “Lord, I really need this.”

      My friend and I got our pastor’s approval, and we introduced “That Man Is You” in our parish. It was an answer to my prayer!

      We have between fifteen and twenty guys in the group. We meet every Thursday morning at 6:00. I get there at 5:30 to make coffee. The first year takes you through how to be a man, and the second year is how to be a husband, and then how to be a father. The sessions explore the issues of our day. It takes what we know and analyzes it, whether it’s social science or medical science, and then it takes what our faith says about that issue. Then it looks at how one of the saints handled this type of situation. It brings everything together — this is what we are seeing in our culture, this is what the Church teaches, and here’s how a saint handled it. It shows how the Church and our faith in Jesus are the solutions to the problems of this world.

      It changed my life. It made me who I am. It saved me.

      — Mike Nuzzo

      Men’s Spirituality Groups

      Since the Second Vatican Council (1961–1965), men’s spirituality groups have sprung up in many dioceses and parishes. Some are Scripture-based, and others focus on discussions of Catholic teaching and social issues. The purpose of these groups is to allow men to experience spiritual support and fellowship. Many dioceses also offer annual men’s conferences, which feature prayer, music, nationally known speakers, opportunities for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and a closing Mass.

       Go Deeper

      I was on a pilgrimage to Ávila, a walled, medieval city in Spain, when I saw a banner with the words, “I was born for you. What do you want me to do?”

      These two sentences were part of Saint Teresa of Ávila’s prayer, “In the Hands of God.” I found myself intrigued by these two sentences, and I felt Saint Teresa urging me to go deeper into my own relationship with God. When I returned home, I searched the Internet for the entire prayer, but after printing it out I could not pray the words. It was too deep, too demanding, too overwhelming.

      “I’ll work up to that,” I promised myself.

      In the meantime, I had work to do. I pushed aside Saint Teresa’s urgings to “go deeper,” and I dove back into my busy schedule of radio shows, writing, and speaking. It wasn’t long, however, before my busy schedule came to an abrupt halt. The sniffles I developed after coming home from Spain turned into an upper respiratory infection and a debilitating case of laryngitis. My doctor warned of permanent damage to my vocal chords if I did not agree to complete voice rest. No radio show. No public speaking. No phone calls. No talking.

      At first, I was grumpy and frustrated. But after a few days I decided to surrender to the urging of Saint Teresa to go deeper. I took advantage of this silent time to read, and each Gospel reading, each book passage spoke directly to me about the need to rest and be still. Before long I began to crave the silence.

      With images of Ávila fresh in my mind, I drew closer to Saint Teresa, whom I have loved since childhood. I learned more about her and about myself. Finally, I was able to read her entire prayer and say to the Lord, “I was born for you. What do you want me to do?”

      — Teresa Tomeo

      Saint Teresa of Ávila

      Saint Teresa was born in Ávila, Spain, in 1515. At age twenty, she entered the Carmelite order. After contracting malaria, she had a vision of the wounded Christ. As her mystical life deepened, the visions increased, and she began to see the need to restore the Carmelite order to its original charism. She established what became known as the Discalced (or Shoeless) Carmelites. During this time, she wrote several books, including her spiritual autobiography and books on prayer. Saint Teresa died in 1582. She was canonized in 1622. In 1970, Saint Teresa of Ávila was declared a doctor of the Church because of the depths of her understanding of theology and prayer.

      Chapter 3

       Come, Holy Spirit

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