We celebrate the feast day St. Faustina Kowalska (1905-38) on October 5.  She grew up in poverty, lived a short and obscure life, and endured much suffering, including a difficult death from tuberculosis.  However, she was rich in virtue and the love of God and was His chosen instrument to spread the message of Divine Mercy and the Divine Mercy devotion.

Faustina was part of a poor peasant family in Poland, the third of 10 children.  Her father was a carpenter.  From age 7, when she participated in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, she decided she wanted to be a nun.  She was distracted from this desire while a teen, but had a vision of a suffering Jesus at age 19, and refocused on her desire to enter the convent.  After being rejected by multiple communities, she was finally accepted by the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy at age 20.

Her life, like Christ’s, became a sacrifice lived for others.  She offered her sufferings in atonement for sins, but always remained cheerful and humble.  She encouraged others to trust in God, and to prepare to meet Him in the next life.  She was devoted to the Eucharist, the Blessed Mother and the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

In 1931, Jesus appeared to her as the Divine Mercy image, wearing white with rays emanating from His heart, one red and one pale.  His hand was raised in blessing.  Jesus asked her to have the image painted with the words “Jesus, I trust in You” painted below it.  It was Christ’s will that people venerate the image throughout the world, so that they might know of the mercy God extends to repentant sinners.

Sister Faustina undertook having the image painted with the assistance of her spiritual director, Blessed Fr. Michal Sopoćko (1888-1975), and Eugeniusz Kazimirowski, an artist who was Fr. Sopoćko’s neighbor.  Sopoćko was initially suspicious of Sister Faustina and insisted she be evaluated by a psychiatrist, but over time became convinced of her authenticity.  The image took six months to complete, with Sister Faustina insisting many changes be made along the way. 

Decades after her death, Archbishop of Krakow Karol Wojtyla took an interest in her story.  In 2000, now as Pope John Paul II, he canonized her.  St. Faustina’s remains can today be found below a Divine Mercy image in the convent chapel in Cracow-Lagiewniki in Poland.

The Divine Mercy devotion comes from St. Faustina’s 600-page Diary: Divine Mercy in My Soul, her record of private conversations she had with Christ over the last four years of her life.  It details the revelations she received about God’s mercy.  It has a variety of components, including devotion to the image of Divine Mercy itself, Divine Mercy Sunday (the Sunday after Easter), the Divine Mercy chaplet, the Divine Mercy novena and the Hour of Great Mercy.

WONDERFUL READING

The Diary makes for wonderful reading.  It contains many promises from our Lord to St. Faustina such as “fear nothing; I am always with you” (586) “the greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy.” (723)

We learn in our prayer and study to always ask for His mercy and to be merciful to others and completely trust in Jesus.  Jesus told St. Faustina, “Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me.  To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask.   I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion. (1146)  Be for mercy for the whole world. (570)  No soul who has called upon My mercy has ever been disappointed.

  We learn from the Diary that Our Lord spoke to St. Faustina about teaching about acts of mercy: “I demand from you deeds of mercy which are to arise out of love for Me.  You are to show mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere.  You must not shrink from this or try to excuse yourself from it…Even the strongest faith is of no avail without works.” (742) He also said, “If a soul does not exercise mercy in some way, it will not obtain My mercy on the day of judgment.” (1317)

   We learn we are to be apostles and missionaries of mercy.  “Proclaim to the whole world My unfathomable mercy.” (1142)  “Souls who spread the honor of My mercy I shield through their entire lives as a tender mother her infant, and at the hour of death I will not be a Judge for them, but the merciful Savior.” (1075.) “Do whatever is within your power to spread devotion to My mercy.  I will make up for what you lack.  Tell aching mankind to snuggle close to My merciful Heart, and I will fill it with peace.” (1074)

  The promises of the Diary of St. Faustina which the Lord Jesus Christ gave her are incredible.  They are very comforting and greatly assist us in our prayer lives.  They give us great hope, peace and joy.  Here are more thoughts from the diary: Encourage souls to say the chaplet which I have given you. (1541)  Whoever will recite it will receive great mercy at the hour of death. (687)  When they say this chaplet in the presence of the dying, I will stand between My Father and the dying person, not as the just Judge but as the merciful Savior. (1541)  Even if there were a sinner most hardened, if he were to recite this chaplet only once, he would receive grace from My infinite mercy. (687)  I desire to grant unimaginable graces to those souls who trust in My mercy. (687)  Through the chaplet you will obtain everything, if what you ask for is compatible with My will. (1731)

SERIES OF THREE DREAMS

I received a series of three dreams in 2019 that led me to incorporate the message of Divine Mercy into the apostolate I founded in 2014 to engage in evangelism, Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry.  In each dream Our Lord told me to spread His Divine Mercy throughout the world. 

After the Lord gave me these dreams, I turned to prayer.  The Lord came upon me and gave me these words, “Receive My agape and unconditional love.  Forgive yourself and forgive others by turning to My mercy.  Let My mercy fill your heart, soul and mind.  In order to give others mercy, you must receive My mercy.” 

So, in response to this request, in the period of less than a year, Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry held 22 seminars with an average of 130 people in attendance.  The 2020-21 pandemic prevented us from holding in-person gatherings for a time, but now as I write we are preparing to launch a new initiative, “Jesus Thirsts for America.”  We’ll have a Catholic crusade in 21 large American cities, including prayer, healing, teachings and a chance to receive the sacraments.  Prominent in these presentations will be the message of Divine Mercy, of God’s love and His readiness to extend to us mercy and forgiveness.

BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL

We see God’s desire for mercy in the 5^th beatitude in Matthew 5:7, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”  The importance of mercy is seen in Luke 6:36, “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.”  In the Old Testament we see in Exodus 34:6, “God is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”  The word mercy appears in Scripture 149 times.

One of the most powerful uses is in the beatitudes.

Matthew 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful,

for they shall obtain mercy.” 

This is similar to the words in the Lord’s Prayer: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  To the extent that we let mercy into our lives is the extent that God’s merciful grace will flow into us.

Mercy is at the core of forgiveness.  To the extent we forgive is the extent we receive God’s mercy.  We see God’s mercy in everything that He does for us.  The Father is our role model. 

Luke 6:36 “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” 

In the Old Testament, we see:

Exodus 34:6 “God [is] merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”

So, let us be grateful to God for presenting the message of Divine Mercy through St. Faustina.  Let us strive to be holy and to be set apart.  The Divine Mercy devotion will help you do that and grow in your love of Jesus.  It encourages us to consecrate our lives to Jesus and His mercy, holiness and forgiveness.  We become instruments of His mercy and forgiveness.

What an act of love from Jesus to us and a great act of love, forgiveness and mercy when we become “Divine Mercy evangelists.” Tell people about the special grace available that Our Lord revealed to St. Faustina regarding Divine Mercy Sunday.

When we receive Holy Communion on Divine Mercy Sunday, go to confession within 20 days of Divine Mercy Sunday, pray for the pope’s intentions and have a public devotion to Divine Mercy on Mercy Sunday, we have the equivalent of a complete renewal of baptismal grace in the soul which is complete forgiveness of sins and punishment.  This makes our soul “whiter than snow.”

And finally, take the time to read St. Faustina’s Diary.  We find the words of Jesus to her saying, “It pleases Me to grant everything they ask of me by saying the chaplet.”  Jesus tells her over and over that even the most hardened sinners will receive mercy when they say the chaplet.  Saying the chaplet at the hour of death will bring great mercy and grace to the person dying “for the sake of the sorrowful passion of my Son.”

Don't give up!  Don’t give up!  Don’t give up! Don’t give up on your family.  God’s love and mercy are bigger than your family challenges!

No matter what your situation is with your family, whatever the circumstances, God is greater than your problems!  

Jesus loves your family more than you can ever imagine.  Our human love is but a drop in the ocean compared to the mercy and love of Christ!

Through His mercy, God wants to heal your family!  In order to have this happen, we need to trust Jesus and surrender your family to Him.  Then you will have peace that passes all understanding.

John 16:33, “I have said this to you, so that in me, you may have peace.  In the world you face persecution.  But take courage, I have conquered the world.”

How do we transform our families to embrace the love and mercy of Jesus?  There are seven steps to help parents become the warriors that God wants them to be.

1. Consecrate your family to the love and mercy to Jesus. Picture every member of your family individually and offer them up as “sweet incense” onto the Lord!  In this way we plead to God’s mercy. 

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

2. Pray for your family’s salvation. One of the most important scriptures to “stand on” and believe is Acts 16:31, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household!”

Think about this verse.  A family can all be saved through the prayers of the parents. Why?  Because of the indescribable love and mercy of God and His desire that all be saved.

1 Timothy 2:4 “Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

As much as we want to have things go perfectly in this life, the most important thing is to have your family and loved ones with the Lord for all of eternity in heaven!  Trust in the mercy and love of Jesus that He wants that much more than we do!  Become even greater prayer warriors to obtain this eternal objective for your family!

Romans 8: 38-39  “For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

3. Pray for an increase of faith to obtain mercy and blessings for your family. When we pray in faith, it is important that we believe that God has heard us and will provide mercy for the family and individual members.  Reflect on this critical Scripture,

Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please him. For whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” 

It is faith that moves mountains!  Matthew 17:20, “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.” 

We must believe and we will succeed!

Mark 11:24, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

We see this clearly in 1 John 5: 14,

“And this is the confidence which we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”

Let us pray, “Heavenly Father, increase our faith and that of our loved ones as we stand in the gap for our loved ones, to have the faith of a mustard seed.  Thank you for your mercy and giving us a hundred fold increase of faith, in Jesus name.  Amen.

4. Use praise and thanksgiving to transform your family. In Psalm 22 we discover that God inherits the praises of His people.  Why?  We see the answer in Isaiah 43:21, “the people whom I informed for myself so that they might declare my praise.”  How do we do this?  Hebrews 13:15, “Through him then, let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name.”

It is critical that we thank God for His love and mercy and praise Him for what He is doing in our lives!  When our attitude changes, God super charges blessings to us.  When we praise God for our family, we are saying we trust God and His mercy!  We realize that we are all on a journey and that God, through His mercy, will watch over us and our family.

Please pray this prayer, “Heavenly Father, we thank and praise you for my spouse, my children, my parents, and all the people in my life that I love.  Thank you for your love and mercy.  Teach me to show them your love and mercy in Jesus name amen.”

5. Lord, help me to see my family through your eyes. Read this Scripture out loud and insert every family member’s name in the verses.

Ephesians 1: 3-4 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.”

Be an encourager!  Build up and not tear down. Be merciful to your family.  Say these words often and sincerely, “I love you!  I believe in you!”

Say this prayer; “Heavenly Father, thank you for your mercy!  I praise you for my family.  I thank you for giving them every spiritual blessings in the heavens.  I thank you for making them blameless.  Thank you for giving me the gift of encouragement in Jesus name amen.”

6. Pray for your family without ceasing.

Ephesians 6:18 “Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.” 

Pray through the power of the Holy Spirit! 

Romans 8: 26-27, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.  And he who searches the hearts of men knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

Pray a family rosary.  Pray with the Blessed Mother.  Pray in the Spirit.

7. Pray for other families. Make a list of people and families for whom to pray and intercede.  You will never regret it!  You will be blessed for praying and showing mercy to families!  Show mercy by praying for family and friends in Purgatory.

God is healing your family through His never ending love and mercy!