Reported by Robert R. Schwarz
People Don't Have to Be Just Like Us
to Be Following Jesus with Us. (Anonymous)
A Gardener Who Connects with Jesus Via a “Vine”
" Sounds like you have a relationship with Jesus , " I said.
" Oh, yes," he replied. He then quoted the refrain from a favorite hymn saying, What a Friend We have in Jesus .
I encouraged Rich to tell me more--boy, did he !
"Ever hear His voice ?" I finally asked.
"Yes, I have. You know Jesus says He is our shepherd.”
"And of course, you pray to Him?" I asked.
" I pray directly to our Savior. We need to take time with private moments with our Lord and have fellowship with Him, and that we be responsible about it…make a daily commitment …so we can drink directly from the throne of God."
"Honestly now, Rich," I asked, "have you ever seen Jesus or had a vision of Him ? "
Rich paused for a moment, obviously pleased with the question. "Yeah , in my mid twenties , when I was in the Marine Corps. " He explained that it was after a church event in Arlington Heights, Illinois, where we both live.
"I was alone in a hotel room. My eyes were closed and I had a mini vision of Jesus with tears flowing out of His eyes. I knew it was straight passionate love for the church, and that He wanted to reach out and help people."
It was my turn to pause.
"Tell me, Rich, " the journalist in me had to ask , "can you recall a moment in your life when you cried to Jesus for mercy ?"
Rich related an event when returning one winter from a visit with his father in Arizona ( Rich was then about 25 years of age ) and was driving through New Mexico and decided to head north through the mountains towards Denver . "There was a bridge with ice on it. I slid on the ice and hit the side of the bridge. I called on the Lord that I would not go off the bridge and into a dark ravine below .
"Jesus heard me. My car was ruined, but I was fine. I started hitchhiking. Whoever picked me up told me about a nearby church , and then drove me to it. The pastor's wife took me in for the night, and I got a good night's rest. "
The next day, Rich told me, he hitchhiked back to his mother's house in Arlington Heights."Today ," Rich said, "I thank God for all the people who helped me then. The Lord was watching over me…"
***
An Army Chaplain in a War Zone , Now a Priest, Saw Jesus as "Trust, Mercy and Grace "
As a U.S. Army chaplain for five and a half years during our country's warfare in Afghanistan, Fr. Matthew Foley knows exactly what Jesus Christ meant with His words, Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends. Fr. Foley often saw the holy truth of these words lived out by American soldiers. As pastor of the St. James Catholic Church in Arlington Heights, his homilies often urged his parish members to have an ongoing relationship with Jesus .
"What his real-life relationship and personal thoughts were about Jesus are what drew me to interview him," he continued. "As a Christian, I had questions that needed answers, like what really is a relationship with Jesus?"
We sat in his office. Fr. Matt was then is in his mid-fifties, he has blue eyes and black hair always trimmed short . He exercises to stay trim and stands at five- feet- seven. He smiles a lot and listens more than he talks.
Me: A lot of Christians hear that phrase, a relationship with Jesus. Tell me, how do you, as a priest define, it ? I think a lot of people would like to hear about your own relationship with Him."
Fr. Matt: I see my relationship with Jesus as an ongoing process of surrender [ to Him ], a discovery, with trust, mercy and grace.
Me: Do you talk with Him , have a conversation ?
Fr. Matt: I talk to Jesus all daylong. I believe I believe there are moments of a tremendous sense of humility I have before Him when I'm celebrating the Mass , anointing the sick.
( Fr. Matt said there also are moments when he has a strong sense of Jesus' presence . He said he distinguishes between what Jesus is saying to Him and what his own mind is saying . )
Fr. Matt: I take advantage of one of those moments and enter into a dialogue [ with Jesus ] , which is listening more than speaking.
Me: Can you recall how your relationship with Jesus was formed ?
Fr. Matt: I believe that probably the relationship began with God's mercy and grace at the time I was baptized... and then, also by the modeling of my parents and other Christian people . My parents were the first and foremost teachers of my faith in Jesus Christ. Through the reading of scripture, Jesus has allowed me to see His heart and receive the spirit of wisdom that allows me to go deeper into my prayers.
Me: When you were a chaplain in Afghanistan , was there a prayer you offered up more than other prayers?
Fr. Foley: 'Lord Jesus, help me surrender my will to your will.' I've been saying that prayer for years.
Me: Any other thoughts about Jesus related to your time as a chaplain there ?
Fr. Foley: Well, Jesus said there's no greater love than to lay down one's life for a friend…and I've seen that.
Me: Any advice for someone still searching for Jesus , for a real-life relationship with Him?
Fr. Foley: Find a friend who knows Jesus. Join a Bible study group or go to a retreat that focuses on Jesus.
"I Hear Jesus' Voice Every Day Like a Tap on Shoulder" , Says This Deacon and Missionary to Uganda
When Don Grossnickle has time to depart for a few days from his duties as deacon of his Arlington Heights church, he's off to Uganda, Africa, to help save babies and their mothers now dying there from Malaria. When back home again, he resumes his after-hours labor of raising funds for a non-profit foundation ( Microfinance Alliance Africa Projects Foundation Post Office Box 1471 ) .
We sat down at my patio table and talked . Don is a husky 73- year- old with Swedish heritage. He has authored 14 books and 50 articles for educational journals, and he likes to explain life's principles. He and his wife raised three children.
"Tell me about your relationship with Jesus," I began.
" I have a very close relationship with Jesus ," he said. "He has every dimension of kinship with me. I can see Him, imagine Him, taste Him, and feel Him through my prayer by reading His word in scripture . When I pray I definitely feel the person of Jesus . And , yes, "I hear His voice every day…"
"How so ? " I asked.
" Like a tap on the shoulder , an affirmation, " he replied.
"You see him'' ?
Don thought for a moment. He wanted to be clear, but I intruded upon his thoughts by recalling hearing retired St. James priest Fr. Bill Zavaski quote Pope Francis: "You see the face of Jesus on the face of people."
"I can relate to that," Don said. "I've seen a lot of pain—and joy—in people during my 32 years as deacon, at funerals, weddings. "
Don's faith life had been formed, he said, by listening to his mother from an early age talk about God. "The idea of Jesus really grew—and still is growing. There has come a feeling of being embraced by God the Father and Jesus the Good Shepherd ."
He explained that his commitment to the Commandments of Jesus and to his church and mission to Africa were cemented five years ago while on a pilgrimage to Sicily. He and a friend decided to climb an active volcano there. Climbing downward, both of Don's legs were disabled with severe cramps. Soon after that incident, he was diagnosed with a terminal heart ailment and given two years to live. That doctor's diagnosis was almost five years ago.
(to read more about Don's mission go to : https://exodustrekkers.blogspot.com/2019/06/the-heart-of-american-suburbanite_30.html )
Does the Teaching Contradict what the Bible Says
about God? (from footnote 13: 22, 23 for Mark 13, 31,
in the "Life Application Study Bible")
He Makes Disciples for Jesus. His 9-Year-Old Daughter Talked to Jesus
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Matt Marcheschi, 40, is a missionary for the St. James Catholic church in Arlington Heights. With the help of his associate missionary there, Sara Stanley, has helped hundreds of his fellow parishioners have a real-life relationship with Jesus. Obviously, it isn't easy work for him, but during our interview, Matt said he loves it.
His focus is on the parish outreach program FOCUS, which generates a Jesus-related discipleship "vision" for the more than 50 ministries at St. James Parish. .
" I'd like to hear more about that relationship with Jesus, " I told Matt.
" I think Catholic Christianity is all about relationship ," he replied. "When we have that , it's easier to see everything Jesus tells us . A phrase of his that has stuck with me is: rules without a relationship will lead to rebellion.”
When I asked whether members of his several FOCUS groups share with him about their personal conversations with Jesus , he replied, "Of course. I think their private prayers are those conversations. Here's an example: My wife and I were going to bed the other night when our my nine-year-old daughter told my wife that a 'scary image' had come into her head . She then said that she immediately started to have a conversation with Jesus that went like , 'Jesus I love you ', and ' I know you know what's best for me and please take away all the anxieties and burdens that Mommy and Daddy have ' ".
" It was beautiful coming from a nine-year-old….And, yeah, I think that's what we're all striving for , to have that conversation through the day, throughout the week with Jesus. Not just a rote prayer. "
" Do you ever hear Jesus speak to you ? "
" Sure, " Matt said. "When I'm reading scripture, something will resonate with me, like an affirmation of something I'm doing or plan to do. It helps if I hear this affirmation a second time when going to mass. One reason why FOCUS encourages daily prayer is that God speaks to us in the silence. I think he's trying to speak to us all the time , but we're just not attentive to it ."
Matt pondered the question whether he believed his FOCUS people actually ever saw Jesus. He replied with a question: " Do we ever trust that Jesus can perform miracles today , those we read about in scriptures or hear have occurred in our lifetime ?... Some things, you know, go beyond our understanding."
This missionary continued: " People are on different parts of their journey in FOCUS, " he said. " They are asking the fundamental questions: Why am I here? Who is Jesus? Who is God ? Others want to deepen their relationship with Jesus…The ultimate goal of FOCUS people is to share with others the answers they have found.
"My faith journey, my relationship with Jesus has been a series of deepening encounters…like when I was at a Good Friday service with my daughter and I heard it said that 'everything changes when the Cross becomes personal to us.' Right after the church's veneration of the cross, I saw the young, the old, the handicapped, the blind— all those people going up to venerate the wood of the cross in front of all of us . And as I got back to my pew, I just broke down because I had again been reminded that Jesus died for me . It all became personal in that moment. My daughter was there , and she's like, are you okay, Daddy ? It was a powerful moment, definitely an encounter I had with Jesus. He had reminded me of a truth."
"If you act with determination, I am ready to guarantee you that you have already found Him (Jesus ) "
In November of 2019 , Fr. Bill Zavasky told his Christ-seeking audience that " if you act with determination, I am ready to guarantee you that you have already found Him.” Then he delivered a homily that brought the congregation at St. James Church to a meditative silence. After walking a few paces across the altar with an emboldened expression, he ended his homily with: "I have something important to tell you ..." Lowering his voice, he said, "Here's how to have a true relationship with Jesus. "Look for Him on peoples' faces and in their behavior. "
Josemaría Escrivá is a Spanish Roman Catholic priest.and founder of Opus Dei, an organization of laypeople and priests dedicated to the teaching that everyone is called to holiness by God and that ordinary life can result in sanctity. He was declared a saint in 2002 by Pope John Paul II.The following is from ,Friends of God, one of his many books.
“I have distinguished it [ winning a true relationship with Jesus ] as it were four stages in our efforts to identify ourselves with Christ: seeking Him, finding Him, getting to know Him, loving Him. It may seem clear to you that you are only at the first stage. Seek Him then, hungrily; seek Him within yourselves with all your strength. If you act with determination, I am ready to guarantee that you have already found Him, and have begun to get to know Him and to love Him, and to hold your conversation in Heaven. “
A
closing note from the Exodus Trekkers author...
" I have a close daily relationship with the Holy Spirit who, when I diligently pay attention, guides me through the day, sometimes as if I’m on crutches and blind in one eye and deaf in one ear. In heaven, I'm looking forward to having a close-up conversation with Jesus and surrounded by my family,close friends, and a few others who blessed my life on earth."
I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say
(Text Horatius Bonar, 1808-1889.
Harmony by Ralph Vaughan Williams,
1872-1958 )
I heard the voice of Jesus say, " Come
unto me and rest; Lay down, O weary
one, lay down Your head upon my breast."
" I came to Jesus as I was, So weary
worn, and sad; I found in him a resting place, And he has made me glad.
The End
On Sunday, Dec. 3:
"What a Deacon Learned From His Ministry
For Poor People Living and Working
With Them on a Famous Race Track"
All comments are welcome.
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© 2020, 2022. 2023 Robert R. Schwarz
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