From Our Blessed Mother’s Message

“You are all called and loved in a special way through baptism. Therefore,
bear witness and pray so that you may be my extended hands in this world that
longs for God and peace.” (25.12.2011)

Meditation
Why do unrest, conflicts, and wars exist?

The key lies in the mentality imposed on people: 1.The strong want to dominate
the weak; 2.The prevailing mindset is “either-or.”

Such a mentality excludes others and those who are
different. Others are seen as enemies, threats, and surplus, and therefore must
not exist.

Are there solutions or paths to peace among people?

Solutions are possible if hearts change. That change of heart is manifested as
follows: 1.The strong help the weak; 2. We adopt a mindset of
“both-and.”

Such a mentality includes (integrates, respects) others
and those who are different. Others are seen as friends and enrichment, and
therefore their existence is not bothersome.

The essence of Christmas is that God descends to
humanity. God, who is life, did not hold on to life for Himself, “did not
consider equality with God something to be grasped” (Phil 2:6), but came
to help humanity, to give life to those whose lives are broken or deadened.
God, who is love, came to seek the lost, heal the sick, free the captive, and
forgive those who have sinned.

The fundamental Christian thought and the essence of
Christmas is that the strong come to help the weak. God, who is stronger, comes
to save humanity, who is weaker. God’s mentality is love, and it is manifested
in living according to the “both-and” model.

Jesus says that God’s love, like the sun and the rain,
“…for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain
on the just and on the unjust.” (Matt 5:45) With God, there are not
“either good or bad” or “either just or unjust.” God
excludes no one. He is the Merciful Father who wishes to embrace both sons—the
younger and the older. God is love (both-and), unity in diversity (Trinity),
that is, peace. That is why Jesus came to reconcile those who live by the
“either-or” rule, who exclude each other, who live in unrest,
conflicts, wars, fear, and anxiety. “Glory to God in the highest, and on
earth peace to people of good will” (Luke 2:14), proclaimed the angels on
Christmas, the day of Jesus’ birth.

Prayer
Ask yourself the following questions:

• Have I excluded someone from my life?
• Do I refuse to forgive someone?

Therefore, pray:

Jesus, give me love for the person I have excluded because they hurt me or have
a different opinion than mine…

Give me love for the person I do not like…

Give me love for the person I cannot stand, whom I do not accept…

Give me love…

From Our Blessed Mother’s Message

“Prepare yourselves with joy for the coming of Jesus. Dear children, may your hearts be pure and pleasing so
that love and warmth may flow through you into every heart that is far from His love. Dear children, be my
extended hands, hands of love for all who are lost, who no longer have faith and hope.”

(December 25, 2009)

Meditation

We can say that Our Lady’s school in Medjugorje is based on the spirituality of the heart (pray with the heart,
fast with the heart…), but if we pay closer attention, we will notice that the goal is not the heart but the
hands.

Interestingly, Our Lady most often speaks about hands on the eve of or during Christmas: about her hands, in
which she brings us Jesus, and about ours, which she wants to be extended toward others. Just as she brings
us Jesus, she wants us to become bearers of Jesus to others.

It is often said, “I just want to live in peace! I don’t care about others!” In contrast, Our Lady educates us to
rise above selfishness and turn toward others. She wants us to take action, not remain passive and static, not
revolve solely around ourselves. “Dear children, I invite you to give gifts to others with love, not to keep them
for yourselves.” (August 5, 1986)

In her school, Our Lady educates us for the mentality of God’s love, which operates on the principle of “both
and.” She wants her children to be people who spread the spirit of love, forgiveness, and reconciliation.
“Today, I invite you to be love where there is hatred and food where there is hunger. Open your hearts, dear
children, and let your hands be outstretched and generous so that through you, every creature may give
thanks to God the Creator.” (September 25, 2004)

From the following message, we also see that Our Lady wishes to spread peace in the world through
individuals who learn to transcend the principle of “either-or”: “I want you to love everyone with my love:
both the good and the bad. Only in this way will love reign in the world.” (May 25, 1988)
But now, we return again to the heart. The condition for living love in everyday life is heartfelt prayer, where
the heart opens to God’s love in the Eucharist, confession, adoration, reading, and listening to God’s word…

Such prayer transforms the human heart, and a person gains the experience: God loves me, who am weak and
sinful. God forgives me. Therefore, I also want to love people who have wronged me and forgive them.
Such a transformed heart adopts a new principle of behavior: As God does for me, so I will do for others.

Prayer

Pray with the heart:
Lord, give me love for the person who is weak, who sins, in whom I see only negative traits, whom I hate,
toward whom I feel jealous… Help me to see what is positive, beautiful, and good in them, even if it is the
smallest detail…
Give me love for the person who has hurt me, whom I cannot forgive…

Our Lady’s Message

“Dear children, pray and prepare your hearts for the coming of the King of Peace so that He, through His blessing, may grant peace to the whole world. Restlessness has taken over hearts, and hatred rules the world. Therefore, you who live my messages, be light and extended hands to this unbelieving world so that all may come to know the God of love.” 

(November 25, 2001)

Meditation

Sometimes one hears the question: Why so many calls from Our Lady to prayer? Where are the calls to action? Why doesn’t Our Lady criticize those who spread unrest in the world, and why doesn’t she demand more efforts for peace?

We will correctly understand Our Lady’s frequent calls to prayer in Medjugorje when we grasp the purpose of prayer. “Open yourselves to prayer until it becomes your joy. Through prayer, the Most High will give you an abundance of grace, and you will become my extended hands in this restless world that longs for peace.”
(January 25, 2012)

Why does Our Lady teach us to pray? To teach us to love! Prayer, therefore, should be the birthplace and
school of love. In other words, prayer is the time to open our hearts to God and allow Him to shape our hearts
(a new spirit, a new mentality) so that our eyes and hands may open toward others.

Prayer is the time when we draw inspiration from Jesus’ example of love. Especially in the Eucharist, as well as in confession, we receive divine love given to us so that we may have peace. There, we experience acceptance
and forgiveness. There, we absorb Christ’s love so that we can live by it. There, we learn to love as Christ has loved us.

We cannot draw closer to God’s mentality (heart) without prayer. We cannot allow God to transform us into His image without prayer. Prayer is the time when we open ourselves to God’s love, when we transcend our human love (the principle of exclusivity: either-or) and adopt the principle of God’s action (both-and). Without prayer, we cannot grow or mature in God’s love, which transcends exclusivity (the either-or model of thinking).

Prayer

Holy Spirit, You open the hearts of people, the hearts of apostles… Open my heart now…
Just as the sun with its warmth opens the petals of a flower, so too, with Your warmth and love, open my
heart now…

Holy Spirit, open my eyes, free me from blindness and all forms of slavery.
Grant me the grace to recognize my sins…
Free me from the slavery of sin…
Grant me love for God so that I may know Him.
Grant me love for God so that I may love Him with all my heart.
Grant me love to listen to God’s word with my heart, to receive Jesus in communion with my heart.
Grant me love to recognize in every person a creation of God, my brother and sister, and to see what is good in them..

Our Lady’s Message
“I want each of you to reflect on and carry peace in your heart and say: I want to put God first in my life!” (December 25, 1997)

Meditation
Our Lady calls us to place God first in our lives. What does it mean to have God in the first place, and why is it important for prayer?

For example, on a ship, the captain holds the first place. With the help of the helmsman, the captain steers the ship. The direction of the ship depends on him.

Similarly, whatever occupies the first place in our hearts governs us, influencing our thoughts, words, and actions. If love holds the first place, it guides us. If hatred takes the first place, it will do so instead. In other words, if love is strong within us, it will take precedence in our hearts, outweighing any negative feelings that may arise. Conversely, if envy is strong within us, it will dominate our hearts and control our thoughts and perspectives.

Is God in the first place in your daily life, or is He perhaps at the last? Is prayer the first thing in your day, or is it the last? When do you pray—early in the morning or only at night, when exhaustion leaves you no choice but to sleep?

If we love God, prayer will take the first place in our day. Love for God will inspire us to begin the day with Him in prayer. If we haven’t started the day with prayer, it’s a clear sign that God isn’t in the first place and that our love for Him has weakened.

It’s important to remember that Satan also seeks to claim the first place in our lives: “Therefore, dear children, I call you to prayer and complete surrender to God, because Satan wants to distract you with everyday things and take the first place in your lives.” (October 16, 1986.)

Advent is a time of grace that invites us to (once again) allow God to take the first place in our lives. Here’s one way: When I wake up and wash my face, I make the sign of the cross, thank God for the past night and the new day, for my family members… I entrust myself, my family, and everything that will happen during the day to the Lord, asking Him to guide it all.

Prayer
My Lord and my God!
Take everything from me that keeps me away from You!
Give me everything that leads me to You!
Take me away from myself and let me be one with You.
(Prayer of Brother Klaus)

Our Lady’s Message

“Today I rejoice with the little Jesus and wish for Jesus’ joy to enter every heart.” (December 25, 1993)

Meditation

Mary rejoices, Jesus is joyful, God is joyful! Have we ever truly reflected on this? We can only begin to imagine the joy of Mary and the joy of God. Mary rejoices in the little Jesus, the Father rejoices in the Son, and the Son in the Father, with their joy being the Holy Spirit. It’s an indescribable mystery! Only an open heart, one filled with love, can draw near to this profound truth.

God’s joy is a manifestation of His love. He rejoices in creating freely and in giving Himself for us. We are God’s joy. He rejoices in us because He loves us. God loves all people and rejoices over every person, especially the one who converts: “I tell you, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7)

Jesus teaches us that true joy does not lie in what we possess or achieve but in who we are: “However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:17-20)

These words of Jesus reveal an important truth: joy is not found in accomplishments (“that spirits submit to you”) but in identity, in who we are (“that your names are written in heaven”). Imagine this: You are a beloved child of God, a son or daughter of God, created for eternity! When you are aware of this, therein lies true and everlasting joy that no one and nothing can take from you—not illness, suffering, failure, or even death!

“Do not let yourself grow weary from human, limited, and conditional love. Instead, leap for joy and sing! God’s love does not wait for your perfection to love you; He loves you so that you can improve and continue growing toward the fullness your heart yearns for. As soon as you open yourself to this love, those around you will also be happy, joyful, peaceful, and capable of truly living. Pray that you may be able to tell every person—and show them—that they are loved, so they too may leap for joy.” (Fra Slavko Barbarić)

Prayer
If Our Lady desires “that Jesus’ joy enters every heart,” then to pray with the heart means to open your heart to God’s, to Jesus’ joy. To experience and taste God’s joy with the heart, allowing it to embrace you—this is joy in prayer.

Christmas is near. Do you feel a longing and joy in your heart for Christmas? If not, become aware: God became incarnate and was born! You are so important in God’s eyes that He was born for you!

I believe this awareness will bring forth a prayer from your heart: “Jesus, You are joyful. Grant me the grace to feel and experience Your joy…”

Our Lady’s Message
“May the little Jesus reign in your hearts, and you will only be happy when Jesus is your friend. Then, praying, offering sacrifices, and witnessing Jesus’ greatness in your life will not be difficult, for He will give you strength and joy in this time.” (November 25, 1993)

Meditation
Our Lady reveals a profound truth to us: everything changes in our lives when Jesus becomes our Friend. But who is a friend? And how can Jesus be our Friend?
Jesus shares the secret of friendship: “I no longer call you servants because a servant does not know his
master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” (John 15:15)
A friend is someone with whom there are no secrets. The heart is entirely open. A friend knows everything about our soul. We trust them completely, sharing everything—nothing is hidden.
Jesus is our Friend because He has shared everything He knows. Everything He heard from the Father, He has told us. He kept nothing hidden or unsaid.
Praying with the heart means wanting to be with the Friend—with Jesus. You eagerly await this encounter because you want to share everything with Him: the secrets of your heart, your struggles, your joys— everything. And you want to listen to Him, to everything He wants to share with you.
Encountering Jesus as a Friend can happen in many ways. One way is through adoration: “Today I invite you to fall in love with the Blessed Sacrament of the altar. Adore Him, little children, in your parishes, and you will be united with the entire world. Jesus will become your Friend, and you will not speak of Him as someone you merely know. Your unity with Him will bring you joy…” (September 25, 1995)
In addition to adoration, we can be with Jesus in the Eucharist, in prayer before the cross, in praying the
Rosary, in reading God’s Word, in repeating His name (e.g., “Jesus”), or simply being with Him in silence: “Therefore, I invite you, little children, especially now, to open your hearts to prayer so that through prayer you may become Jesus’ friends.” (February 25, 1999)
Pray to the Holy Spirit with this intention: that He opens your heart so Jesus becomes your Friend, and prayer becomes a joyful time you love spending with Him. Always remember, Jesus desires this: “I say to you, My friends…” (Luke 12:4)

Prayer
Jesus says: “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
When you pray, be aware: Jesus is with me.
Now say with your heart: “Jesus, I also want to be with You, my Friend.”
Spend a few moments in silence. Do not do anything. Just be with Jesus, your Friend.
Listen to Jesus as He tells you: “You are My friend. I love you. You are so precious that I was born for you…”
Entrust yourself to Jesus. Share everything with Him, everything in your heart…

Our Lady’s Message
“That is why I invite you again, little children: pray, pray, pray—not with words but with the heart.” (December 25, 2002)

Meditation
Words in prayer are important and necessary for our spiritual growth, but prayer with words alone is not enough. Words must be deeply connected to the heart. Without that bond, words are empty, like “a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1). Jesus warns us about this: “When you pray, do not babble like the pagans, who think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” (Matthew 6:7–8)

This is why God, through the prophet Isaiah, criticizes the people, as Jesus later echoes: “This people honors Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.” (Matthew 15:8)

In prayer, the rule is simple: words and heart must be united. Paul understood this: “For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9)

If one were to prioritize, the heart would take precedence. John Bunyan once concluded: “In prayer, it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.” Therefore, when you pray, let your lips and heart act in harmony, as one.

Before her death, St. Thérèse of Lisieux lay in great pain on her sickbed. Her sister, Mother Agnes, entered the room and asked, “What are you thinking about?” Thérèse replied, “I am not thinking about anything. I cannot, for the pain is too great, so I simply pray.” Her sister asked, “What do you say to Jesus?” Thérèse answered, “I say nothing. I just love Him.”

The closer we are to God, the more sparing our words become. When we use too many words, we may find ourselves distant from God, failing to bow in reverence, worship, and awe. As we draw nearer to Him, silence grows. Then comes stillness. Questions fade, and we are simply with God.
—Dionysius the Areopagite

Prayer
Learn to pray with your heart, so that your words and heart become one.

• As you make the Sign of the Cross, move your hand slowly and say the words deliberately: “In the name of the Father… and of the Son… and of the Holy Spirit.” Speak these words without haste, consciously, from the heart.
• When praying the Our Father, say each word slowly, with awareness, and from the heart.
• Speak each word with complete trust and surrender to the Heavenly Father. Do the same with the Hail Mary and Glory Be.

As you say the words in prayer, feel them emerging from your heart. Sense how you are not just speaking with your lips, but how your heart is actively participating.

While repeating the words, “Jesus, I trust in You,” feel your heart surrendering to Jesus. Similarly, when you say the name Jesus, repeat it with deep trust, surrender, and gratitude in your heart.

Our Lady’s Message
“Today I invite you to pause before the nativity scene and meditate on Jesus, whom I still give to you today to bless you and help you understand that without Him, you have no future.” (December 25, 2008)

Meditation
The nativity scene holds countless details for families to observe, meditate upon, and learn from when they pause before it. At the center of the nativity is the humble stable where the Holy Family—Joseph, Mary, and the newborn Jesus—resides. Meditating on them reveals simplicity. They are a family whose child was born in
a modest stable.

If God chose to be born in such an “unsuitable” space by today’s standards, it sends a profound message: for a family, investing in the quality of relationships is far more important than focusing solely on material surroundings. The furniture in the home is not as critical as the warmth, understanding, kind words, forgiveness, mercy, laughter, and joy shared among family members.

For children, approaching the nativity brings them closer to the spirit of Christmas and to God, who became a small child. Seeing the nativity in church may inspire them to create their own at home. Searching for moss and other materials can connect them with nature, fostering a love for God’s creation. Most importantly, it nurtures curiosity, encouraging them to ask questions and learn about Jesus. This builds a relationship with God, who became one of us.
For adults, too, spending time before the nativity is invaluable. Life’s worries and challenges often make parents overly serious, lacking joy and ease, and sometimes harsh toward their children. Gazing upon the nativity can soften their hearts, making them gentler. If they take the time to create a nativity in their home, it might awaken the child within them.

Christmas offers a unique chance for the child in each person to be reborn. Missing this opportunity during the Christmas season leaves little room for another such moment.
The older one grows, the greater the risk of overlooking the beauty of “small” things. The nativity in church can help parents rediscover joy in these simple moments. Sharing the experience of making a nativity with their children at home provides a wonderful opportunity to talk about Jesus, share their faith, pray together, and read from Luke’s Gospel about the birth of Jesus.

Prayer
Gaze upon the nativity scene… Look at Jesus, Mary, and Joseph…
Begin speaking to them…
Take time to read from the Gospel of Luke about the birth of Jesus…

Pray: Jesus, You have already been born, but I ask You to be born in my heart, in my family, in my neighborhood,
in my school…
I pray that Your love will be born in me…