Apparently, God finally got annoyed with me as well, and decided to smack me over the head with what my friend Lisa termed a "spiritual 2 x 4". :) It sure took me long enough though to get the message!!
I have long wanted to have a relationship with Mary, but just honestly didn't really know how to go about it. I had seen this book, "True Devotion to Mary" at my parent's house and figured that Title sounded exactly like what I wanted, so I borrowed (stole?) it and always meant to read it but never did. Last year we were doing trainings for faith sharing small groups, and there was an email about Mary that made me think of this book and I went to go look for it on my shelves. I could not find it ANYWHERE but found another good book instead and then eventually forgot again about True Devotion.
A few months ago, or whenever the "Timeline" feature came out on Facebook, I saw an old "note" that I had done which was a meme where people post a memory they have of you, and I noticed that my friend Katie (who is now a nun) had listed a few things , including "I remember that you had a copy of 'True Devotion to Mary' on your bookshelves". Kind of random. Then a few weeks later, in a new book that I had started, there was made mention of True Devotion, AND in my daily spiritual reading the SAME book came up! At our next Light Weigh, guess which book was discussed in the video?? It also came up a couple of other places, including while searching for an iphone app! I installed the "My Consecration" app, which I later found was THE Consecration to Mary of St. Louis de Montfort, that the "True Devotion" book is written about.
I was REALLY starting to get the picture now that someone way up high really wanted me to read this book. But the clincher was that when Robbie was working late one night, I popped in a Lighthouse Media CD on marriage that I had picked up from the back of Christ King Church. After the intro, GUESS WHICH BOOK the lady proceeded to recommend, right off the bat?! Well I shut off the CD and said OK God I get it!!! It took me long enough but I get it!!! I searched the house but still couldn't find it, after years of seeing it's spine on the shelves (eerie, since supposedly the manuscript of this book was "lost" for 100 years after St. Louis de Montfort wrote it because the devil knew it's impact would be so great!) The next morning I called my mom and sure enough she had two copies and dropped one off.
A few months ago, or whenever the "Timeline" feature came out on Facebook, I saw an old "note" that I had done which was a meme where people post a memory they have of you, and I noticed that my friend Katie (who is now a nun) had listed a few things , including "I remember that you had a copy of 'True Devotion to Mary' on your bookshelves". Kind of random. Then a few weeks later, in a new book that I had started, there was made mention of True Devotion, AND in my daily spiritual reading the SAME book came up! At our next Light Weigh, guess which book was discussed in the video?? It also came up a couple of other places, including while searching for an iphone app! I installed the "My Consecration" app, which I later found was THE Consecration to Mary of St. Louis de Montfort, that the "True Devotion" book is written about.
I was REALLY starting to get the picture now that someone way up high really wanted me to read this book. But the clincher was that when Robbie was working late one night, I popped in a Lighthouse Media CD on marriage that I had picked up from the back of Christ King Church. After the intro, GUESS WHICH BOOK the lady proceeded to recommend, right off the bat?! Well I shut off the CD and said OK God I get it!!! It took me long enough but I get it!!! I searched the house but still couldn't find it, after years of seeing it's spine on the shelves (eerie, since supposedly the manuscript of this book was "lost" for 100 years after St. Louis de Montfort wrote it because the devil knew it's impact would be so great!) The next morning I called my mom and sure enough she had two copies and dropped one off.
After reading the book, I asked Robbie if he would make the 33 day Consecration with me and he agreed. He has not yet read the book as I have, but I knew it would still bring much fruit for us to do this together. Another amazing detail is that almost as soon as I finished the book I looked on the Consecration app that had all the prayers, and it showed if you start it on a certain date, it will end by a certain Marian Feast Day. Well, starting basically the next day after I finished reading, we would finish our 33 day Consecration on the Feast of the Visitation- the Feast Rosary mystery which I was NAMED for. My Dad had been meditating particularly on the Joyful mysteries before my birth and named me Elizabeth after the Visitation. I was very moved, in the same way that I would feel moved if Robbie planned a beautiful surprise which tied in perfectly with some special date or event. How amazing.
I found the Consecration to be intense. And intensely beautiful And so deep- I can't explain the theology of it any better or more clearly than St. Louis de Montfort, so I won't recap it here. I will only urge you to pray about making this Consecration for yourself! Or at least read the book!
Our family has already begun to see some wonderful fruit since this Consecration and I can't wait to see where Mary leads us next. We have invited her into our home and our souls, so much so that the day after the Consecration I didn't know how to feel- I wondered if it would be like having your mother-in-law come live with you? How was I supposed to act differently now that Mary had been given such a central spot in our home? But I've found that she has been so gracious and blended in so seamlessly, I feel like she has come in and started sweeping out all the dusty corners of my soul without me even realizing she is doing it. I have noticed distinct changes in Robbie as well, and in the kids.
I am so grateful that Mary waited until I was ready, and then came for me. She didn't leave me to my own spacey ways. :) She smacks me with a two by four when that's what I need, but otherwise she has been gentle and loving, helping me up and redirecting my attention off my own distractions and up at her son Jesus whenever I need it- over... and over.... and over again.
The book: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_13?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=true+devotion+to+mary&sprefix=true+devotion%2Caps%2C201 (Mine was the older translation by Faber)
The Consecration Prayers:http://www.amazon.com/Preparation-Total-Consecration-Louis-Montfort/dp/0910984107
The website for the app: http://www.myconsecration.org/
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