"Dear children! In this time of grace, pray with me for the good to win in you and around you. In a special way, little children, pray united with Jesus on His Way of the Cross. Into your prayers put this humanity which wanders without God and without His love. Be prayer, be light, and be witnesses to all those whom you meet, little children, so that the merciful God may have mercy toward you. Thank you for having responded to my call."
When Miracles Produce MIRACLES
By Greg Miller
When "miracles" produce "MIRACLES"? What's the
difference between "miracles" and "MIRACLES"? Arguably,
every miracle deserves ALL CAPS emphasis. Yet Scripture
emphasizes miraculous signs in nature that produce even
more miraculous interior conversions in observing souls.
At Cana, for example, Jesus' first miracle wasn't just to
change water into wine, but to change His disciples' lives.
Scripture says as a result of this miracle Jesus'
"disciples believed in Him" (John 2:11). A physical
"miracle" produced a greater interior, spiritual
"MIRACLE". With that view, here are miracles
from our family's Medjugorje trip in 1990 that
produced still greater MIRACLES thereafter.
OUR SON'S MIRACLE: What college
student wants to celebrate his 19th birthday on
a pilgrimage with his parents? Not our son. As
his parents, we required him to do so, praying
that this trip and birthday would occasion new
spiritual blessings for him. Thankfully, he was
obedient if not pleased. Our first full day in
Medjugorje was his 19th birthday. It started with
Mass (on a weekday) and his sarcastic groan:
"WHAT A BIRTHDAY this will be!" Throughout
Mass, I pleaded: "PLEASE, LORD, grant him
a special birthday blessing!" Afterward, our
family group (nine in total) began to pray the
Rosary outside when someone cried, "Look!
The sun's spinning!" (This miraculous phenomenon and
others had reportedly been seen by many pilgrims in
Medjugorje.) I and others in our family tried to look, but
our eyes naturally kept closing. Providentially, ONLY OUR
SON could stare at it without harm! Incredulous, he said,
"Dad, certainly you can see it!" Nope. Here was his Special
Birthday Blessing, a miraculous answer to our prayers! We
all delighted as he described the miracle only he among us
could see. His dreaded trip had become an unforgettable
pilgrimage. His life was forever changed. Throughout
college, he attended Mass faithfully. Later, as a married
man and dad, he prominently displayed a Blessed Virgin
statue in front of his home, and sent his children (at great
expense) to Catholic schools. By God's grace, that birthday
miracle produced life-changing MIRACLES for our son and
his family.
MY FATHER-IN-LAW'S MIRACLE: Just before we
left home, my father-in-law ("Pops") was diagnosed with
incurable cancer. His Alzheimer's had kept him from
knowing and saying he needed help. On our second day
in Medjugorje, we heard about and took Pops to a healing
service there. Although skeptical about such things, we
figured Pops and we had nothing to lose. When the "healing
priest" (Fr. Peter Rookey) arrived, he began to pray over
Pops and asked us to join him. As we prayed, amazing,
observable signs and wonders began to happen...at least
to us. Uncontrollable weeping, laughing, shaking, all as we
prayed over Pops with Fr. Rookey. When the service ended,
we knew God had done something for us, but what about
Pops? Of course, Pops with his Alzheimer's couldn't verify
that he felt any different. Back home 2 weeks later, his doctors
declared Pops "cancer-free, a MIRACLE MAN". Pops'
miraculous healing impacted our entire family. Moreover, his
healing story was shared with 1500 people at another healing
service led by Fr. Rookey near us in Ohio, bolstering their
faith, impacting their lives
Fr. Rookey
MY DAD'S MIRACLE: Cynically, my Dad went to
Medjugorje to protect Mom from "this obvious scam." At
every opportunity, he scrutinized
every "visionary" for any flaws. As
the week wore on, however, Dad's
cynicism seemingly wore out. Was he
just tiring of being a doubting Thomas?
No one knew. Finally, Mom confided
that "your father asked me last night if I
could see the lights streaming from atop
Cross Mountain (a famous landmark in
Medjugorje)." Mom saw nothing, and
told him Cross Mountain (in 1990) had
no lights on it. Dad mumbled to himself
and that was it. At trip's end, when we
were alone at the airport, I asked Dad:
"So, what do you think now (about
Medjugorje)?" His reply stunned me.
"Greg, I'm 63 years old, and I've got to
change." That was the most profound
thing I ever heard my Dad say, and
the most memorable moment we ever
shared. He hadn't just seen miraculous lights streaming
toward him personally from Cross Mountain. He had finally
"seen the Light" and received the call to change his ways,
his life. By God's grace, change he did. Dad only lived four
more years, but he made the most of it. He became a daily
communicant, a Legion of Mary member, a bold advocate
of praying the rosary daily. Moments before his death in
1994, Dad apparently saw his own holy mother and sister
(both long deceased) coming to greet him. He spoke to them
aloud as though others could also see them. The lights from
Cross Mountain had removed his shadowy doubts about
believing in and following the calls to prayer, conversion,
and holiness from Our Lady of Medjugorje. His MIRACLE
was a blessing for us and so many souls touched by his
dramatic conversion.
WOE TO US, IF miracles DON'T produce MIRACLES:
We all want miracles, don't we? But, do we want (and allow)
miracles to measurably change our lives? If not, Jesus warns
us about dire consequences: "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to
you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles performed in your midst had
been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they (unlike you) would have
repented long ago…" (Matthew 11:21). His message is clear:
Woe to us if miraculous signs don't also produce lasting signs
of repentance and change in our lives. By God's grace, our
family saw "miracles" like the "spinning sun," supernatural
healings, and inexplicable lights. More importantly, those
Medjugorje "miracles" also changed our hearts, our lives,
and others' lives. By God's grace, my wife and I have been
used by Our Lord and Our Lady in the years since that first
pilgrimage to lead others to Christ through other trips to
Medjugorje, very fruitful Bible studies (over 1000 students),
beginning Pro-Life ministries (saving hundreds of lives),
and witnessing to our love of Our Lord and His Mother
in many other ways. We can never repay Our Lord and
Our Lady for all the miracles and MIRACLES we have seen
and become. We offer this sharing of our family's "miraclesto-
MIRACLES" stories as a partial THANK YOU to Them,
along with our profound commitment to live our lives daily
in accord with Our Lady's messages hopefully on route to a
holy life that edifies others, honors Our Mother Mary, and in
all things glorifies Our Good and Gracious God.
Editor's note: Greg lives in Euclid, OH.