From the Desk-March 12, 2008

Yesterday, Tuesday March 11, 2008

When you commit to Our Lady’s messages, you never know where Our Lady will put you from one moment to the next. Two weeks ago, I was going out the door for 5:00 a.m. prayer. I could not find my wooden string Rosary anywhere, so I went to our Rosary box, filled with Rosaries, to grab one. Looking inside, only one was there. To my disappointment, it was beautiful gold-plated type Rosary with pearl white beads and faint swirl of brown in them. The medal, which usually connects the Rosary, had more like an oval cameo type look with beautiful blue image of Our Lady set underneathlittle clear glass. I wondered, “Why is this the only Rosary in here? How did this sole Rosary come to be here?” I vaguely remembered seeing it before. All the Rosaries in our home have been blessed many times by Our Lady so why was I disappointed? Because it wasnice Rosary and I didn’t want to be carrying it around, break it or lose it. I preferrugged string or wooden Rosary. Annoyed, I took it. Every day for the next two weeks, I wanted to exchange it, but found myself with it.

I was invited toconference Monday and Tuesday of this week. Well-known speakers were there, such as Dr. James Dobson and other Christian leaders. When there, you could choose among several speeches you wanted to attend, several of which we heard. Unaware of who would be speaking before we arrived, we found out Monday evening, the best speech would be Tuesday morning, March 11, inroom that could hold onlyfew hundred people. Among the speaker’s thoughts that he shared, he spoke very strongly about God, the evil in our culture and the wickedness of some people’s actions, of which he relayed, “we must depend upon ‘Our Lord’ and pray to Him to help us stop the terrible things they are doing.” He received five standing ovations. Everyone was so moved, and at the end of his speech wished to shake his hand and thank him for his stirring words as he moved across the front of the audience.

We were six rows back, so I stepped forward to thank him, but was blocked by others who pressed in tight to speak to him. I was not able to get close to him as he continued toward the exit, while he talked to some of the people in the crowd. As he walked and was twenty-five feet away from me, heading to the exit, I realized I would not be able to greet him. I felt disappointed, when suddenlythought came to me out of nowhere about the Rosary in my pocket that I had been carrying around for the past two weeks. I had just ended the Rosary preceding the speech, because we knew that during the speech it would be the time for Our Lady of Medjugorje’s daily apparition.

With this sudden thought, I realized, looking at my watch, that at that moment Our Lady was appearing upon the earth. It was apparition time. I prayed, “Please Mary, put this Rosary into his hands,” although circumstances clearly made this an impossibility. Immediately after I finished my short ardent prayer,man in the compressed wall of people in front of me, turned around towoman and said for her to change places with him. When he opened up, I whooshed through the opening and people in front of me just opened likelittle parting of the Red Sea. As the speaker was about to exit, I called his name. He looked. There was so much talking that he couldn’t tell where the call came from. Again, I called and he looked in another area.third time I called and he looked directly at me and then backtracked the twenty or so feet to where I was. I held out my hand with the Rosary in my palm. He grasped my hand, held on formoment, without any words, feeling the Rosary also in his palm. I then said, “This isRosary for you from Our Lady.” Surprised, he looked thoughtfully at me, still grasping my hand. Aftermoment, withlook of sincerity, he said thank you and continued to hold my hand. Then he took the Rosary and put it in his pocket, still staring at me as he turned and walked away. I watched the Protestant man who had just given suchstirring speech, unashamed about speaking of God, go through the exit.

That night, laying in bed, I thought of the goodness of God that had come through Our Lady. How two weeks before, I opened the Rosary box tobeautiful Rosary blessed by Our Lady. I realize now that She had orchestrated for me to carry this Rosary, knowing, with its beauty, She planned to give it asworthy gift, so that the one who would receive it, even from another faith, would not likely toss it aside, but hold onto it. Whatsweet consolation I fell asleep with, knowing thatfew moments after giving the gift, the blessed Rosary would be on Air Force One, and very likely, as the President of the United States of America emptied his pocket at the end of the day, perhaps the beautiful Rosary lay on the nightstand near the President’s bed that night.

In the Name of the Woman
Who Opens all Doors,