Day 14: God Alone - With, In and through Mary - 33 Days to Total Consecration

 "I am all yours, and all that I have is yours, O most loving Jesus, through Mary, your most holy Mother" 

(True Devotion, 233).

DAY 14 of 33: 
SECTION 2: Contemplate the Our Father as we take St. Maximilian Kolbe as our guide.

Action:
1. Resolve to pray a complete set of mysteries of the Rosary every day - as an act of love to God and in fulfillment of Mary's requests to us. 
So, therefore, PRAY the Joyful mysteries of the Rosary today and every day - see day 8 for instructions/ guidance on how to fit this into your day.
2. Skim through the accompanying pictures and the extraordinary wisdom of St. Louis and St. Maximilian Kolbe, and read through as much (below) as possible. 

3. Continue to choose to enter more deeply into the daily prayer program (below) at least in this way: 

Ponder and pray the Our Father today and the accompanying Scripture texts as you meditate and PRAY THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES  - while praying for the grace to listen, to hear and respond to God as Mary does.
 Praying also for the grace to surrender whatever is keeping me from responding fully  - in and through and with Mary’s love and help.

In the light of our meditations on the Rosary and the wisdom of the saints below, let us begin, then, by praying the Our Father, with all of these mysteries in mind - while entering into the depth of this most perfect prayer that Jesus taught us:  

Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done,
on earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Today we contemplate how God has sent Mary to save us again and again through the power and miracles of the Rosary.
Watch for astounding miracles, many of which have taken place in our lifetime!
When we pray the rosary, we have the power to change history and the lives of countless souls who have not yet come to know the love of God!
Imagine the power in our hands! 
Imagine!

God has sent us his Divine Intervention: Mary and the Holy Rosary.
May we not reject them because they seem too insignificant.
May we not be too proud to listen and obey God speaking through Mary, Whom He has sent: 
Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.” Luke 10: 16

As Maximilian said: 
 "the first fundamental priority of the Church's mission is to imitate the Lord Jesus, the Missionary of the Father par excellence, to do as He did, that is, emptying ourselves in the womb of the same mother, Mary."
  
He also explains how we are to join our loved ones to her and our prayers for them - while also only and always giving her everything and only praying for her intentions to be realized. We do this when we entrust them to her and place them into her heart - a place of grace incomparably better than all our mere efforts that we can offer them on our own: 
"Serving the Immaculata with fidelity, we can give the best service to our family. In fact, is she not able to help our families incomparably better than we can ourselves? Let us entrust to her all of those close to our hearts, and she, the best among mothers, will help them in the best way possible."

Entrusting ourselves to Mary and living in her is like being joined to the strength of God Himself, for He has poured in her every grace and blessing and strength and courage of Himself. 
We learned today in our lesson on praying the rosary that it is infinitely better to pray with others than alone - because we are like an army fighting against evil instead of a single soul - citing the analogy of how much easier it is to break a single stick than a bundle...
While that's true and I do believe its infinitely more powerful to gather together to pray... 
it is also true that if we've consecrated ourselves to Mary - even if we are unable to pray with others - we are still joined to a powerful army of souls consecrated to God through her - for then we are united to all who have also come to live in her. 

As Jesus did in the womb, we are called to live in her in our consecration.

In this is our confidence. For when we are united to Mary and live in her - we live united to Jesus and the Blessed Trinity in and through Mary's completely open heart, not our own cluttered heart (that puts up barriers of sin and pride and selfishness that keep us being fully united to God)!  
Thus we can be fully confident - no matter what happens in our lives - that we have all of heaven with us - in and through our Mother's heart and soul.
How beautiful!

Daily Prayer Program for these 33 Days:

It is important to make a commitment to strive to pray more deeply, more intensely and with more of your heart during these days of preparation. Here are some guidelines and suggestions for how to live these days. Pray about how you can grow in each of these areas listed below and while living out this prayer program it is especially important to 

Trust in the Truth and Supernatural Reality of God’s Presence within each of them

1. Sacraments

    •            LIVE Grace and Renew our Baptism - renounce sin and Satan

    •            Mass and the Eucharist the Center of our lives

    •            Confession frequently

2. Scripture - Pray and Internalize it daily

    •           To Jelena: “I’m going to reveal a spiritual secret to you: if you want to be stronger than evil, make yourself a plan of personal prayer. Take a certain time in the morning, read a text from Holy Scripture, anchor the Divine word in your heart, and strive to live it during the day, particularly during the moment of trials. In this way, you will be stronger than evil.” (Our Lady of Medjugorje, April 19, 1984)

    •           Rosary – With and in Mary, contemplating Scripture and the mysteries of God

3. Fill mind with wisdom of Mary and the Saints

    •            God is sending Mary to earth for she is the Crusher of Satan. Listen to her words.

    •            St. John Paul II – example of life given over – Totus Tuus

    •            St. Maximilian Kolbe – Militia Immaculata every soul consecrated to Mary will save the world

    •            St. Louis de Montfort – Mary will form the greatest saints who ever lived – easiest shortest most sure way to sanctity

    •            St. Mother Teresa and many more

PART 2: Readings and Prayers for St. Louis-Marie de Montfort's Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary

PART 3: A taste of Fr. Gaitley's 33 Days to Morning Glory if you have time:

“Come, Holy Spirit, living in Mary, Prepare me to give all to the Immaculata for the sake of the kingdom."

CLICK HERE for Podcast of Day 14 

© Janet Moore 2019. All Rights Reserved.

Day 13: God Alone - With, In and through Mary - 33 Days to Total Consecration

 "I am all yours, and all that I have is yours, O most loving Jesus, through Mary, your most holy Mother" 

(True Devotion, 233

DAY 13 of 33: 
SECTION 2: Contemplate the Our Father as we take St. Maximilian Kolbe as our guide.

Action: 
1. Resolve to pray a complete set of mysteries of the Rosary every day - as an act of love to God and in fulfillment of Mary's requests to us.
Start by contemplating the Joyful mysteries of the Rosary - see day 8 for instructions/ guidance on how to fit this into your day.
2. Skim through the accompanying pictures and the extraordinary wisdom of St. Louis and St. Maximilian Kolbe, and read through as much below as possible. There are two parts of St. Louis' teaching just for today alone.
3. Continue to choose to enter more deeply into the daily prayer program (below) at least in this way: 
Ponder and pray the Our Father today and the accompanying Scripture texts as you meditate and pray one decade of the Rosary - the 4th Luminous Mystery of the Rosary- the Transfiguration - while praying for the grace to listen, to hear and respond to God as Mary does.
Praying also for the grace to surrender whatever is keeping me from responding fully  - in and through and with Mary’s love and help. 

In the light of our meditations on the Transfiguration, let us begin, then, by praying the Our Father, with these mysteries in mind: 

Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done,
on earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Because of the length and depth of the video teaching entering into the Mystery of Transfiguration, I will not add more teaching here, except to share a few words in summary. 

Jesus reveals Himself Transfigured to help us stand fast in the midst of the seeming triumph of evil and sin that would come upon them; and to prepare his disciples for his death which would come shortly after this manifestation - this Theophany of His Heavenly Glory... demonstrating to them that His upcoming death is even a part of God's plan...

Likewise, our deaths are also part of His Heavenly plan... for He tells us unless a grain of wheat fall to the ground and die, it remains just a grain of wheat. But, if it suffers to fall to the ground and die it will yield thirty, or sixty or one hundred fold.

God's ways are not our ways... so much so that He shares that His real glory is in dying on the Cross to save us: 

"The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 

For it is written:

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,

and the learning of the learned I will set aside.”

Where is the wise one? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of the world foolish? For since in the wisdom of God the world did not come to know God through wisdom, it was the will of God through the foolishness of the proclamation to save those who have faith. For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength." 1 Cor 1:18-25 

In the video we also look deeper into the lives of the other people present at the Transfiguration... Moses and Elijah and Peter and James and John... briefly contemplating each of their lives, their place in this mystery and in God's plan of salvation. 

Here is more about the apparition of Mary that James had that I referenced in the video: https://enteringintothemystery.blogspot.com/2018/07/st-james-and-mary-does-mary-come-in.html

Lastly, we hear of the amazing transfiguration of a man condemned to die on death row. 

Please don't miss hearing it! It's one of my absolute favorite stories of all time!

Daily Prayer Program for these 33 Days:

It is important to make a commitment to strive to pray more deeply, more intensely and with more of your heart during these days of preparation. Here are some guidelines and suggestions for how to live these days. Pray about how you can grow in each of these areas listed below and while living out this prayer program it is especially important to 

Trust in the Truth and Supernatural Reality of God’s Presence within each of them

1. Sacraments

    •            LIVE Grace and Renew our Baptism - renounce sin and Satan

    •            Mass and the Eucharist the Center of our lives

    •            Confession frequently

2. Scripture - Pray and Internalize it daily

    •           To Jelena: “I’m going to reveal a spiritual secret to you: if you want to be stronger than evil, make yourself a plan of personal prayer. Take a certain time in the morning, read a text from Holy Scripture, anchor the Divine word in your heart, and strive to live it during the day, particularly during the moment of trials. In this way, you will be stronger than evil.” (Our Lady of Medjugorje, April 19, 1984)

    •           Rosary – With and in Mary, contemplating Scripture and the mysteries of God

3. Fill mind with wisdom of Mary and the Saints

    •            God is sending Mary to earth for she is the Crusher of Satan. Listen to her words.

    •            St. John Paul II – example of life given over – Totus Tuus

    •            St. Maximilian Kolbe – Militia Immaculata every soul consecrated to Mary will save the world

    •            St. Louis de Montfort – Mary will form the greatest saints who ever lived – easiest shortest most sure way to sanctity

    •            St. Mother Teresa and many more

FIRST WEEK
THEME FOR THE WEEK: KNOWLEDGE OF SELF

PART 3: A taste of Fr. Gaitley's 33 Days to Morning Glory if you have time:

“Come, Holy Spirit, living in Mary. Unite my will to the will of the Immaculata, which is one with your will.”

CLICK HERE for podcast of Day 13 

© Janet Moore 2019. All Rights Reserved.

 

Day 11: God Alone - With, In and through Mary - 33 Days to Total Consecration

 "I am all yours, and all that I have is yours, O most loving Jesus, through Mary, your most holy Mother" 

(True Devotion, 233).

DAY 11 of 33: 
WEEK 2: Contemplate the Our Father as we take St. Maximilian Kolbe as our guide.

Action: 
Resolve to pray a complete set of mysteries of the Rosary every day - as an act of love to God and in fulfillment of Mary's requests to us.
Start by contemplating the Joyful mysteries of the Rosary - see day 8 for instructions/ guidance on how to fit this into your day.
Also, pray and contemplate the 3rd Luminous Mystery - the Proclamation of the Kingdom and the Call to Conversion

Today we contemplate the 3rd Luminous Mystery - The Proclamation of the Kingdom and the Call to Conversion. We could meditate on a thousand scriptures to plunge to the depth of this Mystery - of God becoming man to restore the lost, to bring sight to the blind, to free those in bondage, to heal, to teach, to encourage, to walk among us and to show mercy and compassion upon us...
We ask for fresh eyes and ears to enter into these Scriptures as if we are hearing them for the first time! To truly be moved and in awe of the Jesus' power and might and compassion and mercy! To be moved to repent and believe and follow Him in whatever way He asks... 
to become poor in spirit ... humble enough to enter into this consecration to Jesus through Mary...  

Let us also be moved by the fire of love of St. Maximilian who lived out the call of Jesus: to help God's Kingdom to come and His Will be done on earth as it is in heaven, as he sought:
“To conquer the whole world for Christ through the Immaculata.” 
[He saw this as possible through] the “total and limitless” belonging to the Immaculata [that] widens toward the passionate search for the heart of man, of all men, of all the billions of hearts beating on earth beyond Poland and Japan (cf. KW 647).

He lived this out through starting an apostolate called: "The City of the Immaculata" that housed 800 friars who worked tirelessly to promote and share the love of Mary.

St. Louis de Montfort also seeks to bring about God's kingdom with and in Mary, who is our safeguard against evil. It is below, but I share it here, because I feel it is especially important for us in these times of such grave evil.  
He wrote:
88. 
2. The evil spirits, cunning thieves that they are, can take us by surprise and rob us of all we possess. They are watching day and night for the right moment. They roam incessantly seeking to devour us and to snatch from us in one brief moment of sin all the grace and merit we have taken years to acquire. Their malice and their experience, their cunning and their numbers ought to make us ever fearful of such a misfortune happening to us. People, richer in grace and virtue, more experienced and advanced in holiness than we are, have been caught off their guard and robbed and stripped of everything. How many cedars of Lebanon, how many stars of the firmament have we sadly watched fall and lose in a short time their loftiness and their brightness!
What has brought about this unexpected reverse? Not the lack of grace, for this is denied no one. It was a lack of humility; they considered themselves stronger and more self- sufficient than they really were. They thought themselves well able to hold on to their treasures. They believed their house secure enough and their coffers strong enough to safeguard their precious treasure of grace. It was because of their unconscious reliance on self - although it seemed to them that they were relying solely on the grace of God - that the most just Lord left them to themselves and allowed them to be despoiled. If they had only known of the wonderful devotion that I shall later explain, they would have entrusted their treasure to Mary, the powerful and faithful Virgin. She would have kept it for them as if it were her own possession and even have considered that trust an obligation of justice.
89. 
3. It is difficult to persevere in holiness because of the excessively corrupting influence of the world. The world is so corrupt that it seems almost inevitable that religious hearts be soiled, if not by its mud, at least by its dust. It is something of a miracle for anyone to stand firm in the midst of this raging torrent and not be swept away; to weather this stormy sea and not be drowned, or robbed by pirates; to breathe this pestilential air and not be contaminated by it. It is Mary, the singularly faithful Virgin over whom Satan had never any power, who works this miracle for those who truly love her.
Additional Options: 
See Frances Hogan's study (referenced in the video teaching) on the Beatitudes --
https://franceshogan.com/Voyage%20episodes/Episode%2014.html
the whole video leads up to her teaching, but she expressly starts speaking about the beatitudes at 6:15 in the video.

See also Dr. Pitre's study on Mary the Mother of the Messiah sometime during this 2nd week if you have time:
https://watch.formed.org/lectio-mary-with-dr-brant-pitre/season:1/videos/mother-of-the-messiah

Action:
1. Skim through the accompanying pictures and words below that highlight the extraordinary wisdom of St. Louis. Read them more thoroughly as the Holy Spirit inspires you and as time allows and when it is possible.
2. Continue to choose to enter more deeply into the daily prayer program (below) at least in this way:
Ponder and pray the Our Father today and the entire Joyful Mysteries as well as the 3rd Luminous Mystery  - while praying for the grace to listen, to hear and respond to God as Mary does.
Praying also for the grace to surrender whatever is keeping me from responding fully  - in and through and with Mary’s love and help.

Daily Prayer Program for these 33 Days:

It is important to make a commitment to strive to pray more deeply, more intensely and with more of your heart during these days of preparation. Here are some guidelines and suggestions for how to live these days. Pray about how you can grow in each of these areas listed below and while living out this prayer program it is especially important to 

Trust in the Truth and Supernatural Reality of God’s Presence within each of them

1. Sacraments

    •            LIVE Grace and Renew our Baptism - renounce sin and Satan

    •            Mass and the Eucharist the Center of our lives

    •            Confession frequently

2. Scripture - Pray and Internalize it daily

    •           To Jelena: “I’m going to reveal a spiritual secret to you: if you want to be stronger than evil, make yourself a plan of personal prayer. Take a certain time in the morning, read a text from Holy Scripture, anchor the Divine word in your heart, and strive to live it during the day, particularly during the moment of trials. In this way, you will be stronger than evil.” (Our Lady of Medjugorje, April 19, 1984)

    •           Rosary – With and in Mary, contemplating Scripture and the mysteries of God

3. Fill mind with wisdom of Mary and the Saints

    •            God is sending Mary to earth for she is the Crusher of Satan. Listen to her words.

    •            St. John Paul II – example of life given over – Totus Tuus

    •            St. Maximilian Kolbe – Militia Immaculata every soul consecrated to Mary will save the world

    •            St. Louis de Montfort – Mary will form the greatest saints who ever lived – easiest shortest most sure way to sanctity

    •            St. Mother Teresa and many more

PART 2: Readings and Prayers for St. Louis-Marie de Montfort's Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary

12 Days of Preparation renouncing the spirit of the world

Praying over and reading Christ's Teaching

Praying with the Heart

Examining our conscience 

Learning about Mary's place in God's plan 

PART 3: A taste of Fr. Gaitley's 33 Days to Morning Glory if you have time:

“Come, Holy Spirit, living in Mary. Renew the face of the earth, so that all creation may return to God.”

CLICK HERE for Podcast of Day 11 

© Janet Moore 2019. All Rights Reserved.