July 1, 2016 Friday: St. Junipero Serra
July 1, 2016 Friday: St. Junipero Serra
Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” (Matt 9:13)
A near-death account of a man who died and went to Heaven and came back
Jesus looked at me, and His expression was so excited and joyful. He placed his arm around my shoulder and said, ‘I want you to see what I have prepared for you from the moment you were created.’” Simon broke down and sobbed, and leaning forward, he wrapped his hands over his face and wept. After a minute or so, he straightened up and wiped his eyes. “Had I any idea what was waiting for me, and how much my Lord truly loved me”—he looked up and pointed his finger at me—“I never would have let you people bring me back!”
After a long time of silent tears, and a few more tissues, he lifted his head and went on. “We were standing before a huge structure similar to our buildings, but not made from stone or brick because you could see through it. It was incredibly beautiful and shone as bright as the sun. This . . . this was my mansion!” (Then Simon quoted the biblical passage in John 14:2, “In my Father’s house, there are many mansions . . .” and Matthew 6:20–21, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal . . .”) “But as I stood in front of it and looked into this immense structure, it was revealed to me that my life was the architect and the source of its construction and design. Everything that I had done during my life that was good, kind, and directed toward the good of another human being, it was all there. Every bowl of soup, every piece of bread, every blanket or an encouraging word, every tender gesture done for the love of God built and engineered it all. He rewarded to the n th degree every single thing I had done here on earth that pleased Him. I didn’t deserve any of it, to be brutally honest, but His generosity magnified my feeble efforts on earth to such a degree that I was awestruck standing before such incredible magnificence. It was beyond anything any mortal mind could remotely comprehend, and it was specific only to me. No other structure looked like mine because every soul’s life experience is unique. Your life, your gifts and graces, are different than mine and vice versa. All of my prayers, every single one that I had ever offered up to heaven were there. Prayers of praise, thanksgiving, and petition were there, and all of them in combination formed the mortar that held it all together, adorning it with such beauty that there is no way that I could begin to describe it. But the prayers that I had said for other people were the most pristine and the most ornate of its decoration. Oh, if only I had the words to tell you what it all looked like.”
By Kelley Jankowski
An Army in Heaven
Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” (Matt 9:13)
A near-death account of a man who died and went to Heaven and came back
Jesus looked at me, and His expression was so excited and joyful. He placed his arm around my shoulder and said, ‘I want you to see what I have prepared for you from the moment you were created.’” Simon broke down and sobbed, and leaning forward, he wrapped his hands over his face and wept. After a minute or so, he straightened up and wiped his eyes. “Had I any idea what was waiting for me, and how much my Lord truly loved me”—he looked up and pointed his finger at me—“I never would have let you people bring me back!”
After a long time of silent tears, and a few more tissues, he lifted his head and went on. “We were standing before a huge structure similar to our buildings, but not made from stone or brick because you could see through it. It was incredibly beautiful and shone as bright as the sun. This . . . this was my mansion!” (Then Simon quoted the biblical passage in John 14:2, “In my Father’s house, there are many mansions . . .” and Matthew 6:20–21, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal . . .”) “But as I stood in front of it and looked into this immense structure, it was revealed to me that my life was the architect and the source of its construction and design. Everything that I had done during my life that was good, kind, and directed toward the good of another human being, it was all there. Every bowl of soup, every piece of bread, every blanket or an encouraging word, every tender gesture done for the love of God built and engineered it all. He rewarded to the n th degree every single thing I had done here on earth that pleased Him. I didn’t deserve any of it, to be brutally honest, but His generosity magnified my feeble efforts on earth to such a degree that I was awestruck standing before such incredible magnificence. It was beyond anything any mortal mind could remotely comprehend, and it was specific only to me. No other structure looked like mine because every soul’s life experience is unique. Your life, your gifts and graces, are different than mine and vice versa. All of my prayers, every single one that I had ever offered up to heaven were there. Prayers of praise, thanksgiving, and petition were there, and all of them in combination formed the mortar that held it all together, adorning it with such beauty that there is no way that I could begin to describe it. But the prayers that I had said for other people were the most pristine and the most ornate of its decoration. Oh, if only I had the words to tell you what it all looked like.”
By Kelley Jankowski
An Army in Heaven
