How God Tests the Soul Before Granting Divine Intimacy | St. Catherine of Siena (video title)

A bit of a real-life urban fantasy story: The Rosary vs. Ouija board (video)

Reality can be more frightening than fiction. 

A Protestant's View On Becoming Catholic (video title)

 

Happy New Year!

ID 385314395 © Ekaterina Pereslavtseva | Dreamstime.com

May 2026 bring you closer to God and His love forever!

The Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you;

the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.

~ Numbers 6:24-26

Casting Out Mental Torments

Praying with imagination and the interference of Satan and human ego. Fr. Joseph Iannuzzi explains. (video title)

The Lord Is Trying to Speak To You | 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (video title)

The Power and Purpose of Prayer (video title)

Is The Rosary Demonic Deception? - A Catholic’s SHOCKING Answer and Message... (video title)

Never question an internal command to pray...

Yesterday, near the end of the late afternoon mass at the church I attend on weekdays (because of my schedule and I like that they have a communion rail so I can accept Our Lord on my knees in humility and reverence), a darkness fell. It wasn't the lights. Rather, there are big sections of window, and the sun's light had been diminished.

I looked to the window and felt a catch in my chest.

Not again.

Ominous clouds loomed in the sky, blocking the sun. We've had nasty weather two other times already with tornadoes and it was a 100 F day yesterday (not unusual for July, when we usually get the nastiest weather). Seeing dark clouds concerned me.

After mass, I prayed that I made it home before any bad weather hit.

I made it with plenty of time. In fact, the radar showed nothing coming for us, yet I had a sense that I should be praying my Rosary.

I didn't.

I came to regret that.

A severe storm formed out of nowhere on the radar only about 15-20 miles away to the southwest and quickly headed right for us, but I hadn't checked in the time since before it formed to when it hit, so I didn't know it was there, much less barreling towards us. I was trying to write while ignoring that little voice that was nagging me about praying the Rosary. I wanted to do things my way.

I did that until the first "THUNK" hit on the house. And it was loud. A few more hit and I looked out the window to see large white balls of hail. Not the pea-sized we normally see. These were golf-ball sized (as seen in the sampling below with my hand, hail balls which had already melted down a bit).

When I realized what was happening with the hail, I ran upstairs and grabbed my Rosary. No sooner did I start than the hail turned to pea-sized and soon quit. However, there was more red on the radar. I continued through two sets of mysteries because there was another system to the north that refused to move and had been expanding towards us with a tornado watch included in that. The worst of it dissipated during my prayer.

After the storm from the southwest was passed but before the one from the north was known to be a threat, we went out to check the house and yard (between my praying a few decades of the Rosary). Fortunately, the golf balls were few and far between and our garden, trees, and my new roses were all untouched. Unfortunately, they were enough to leave holes in a few pieces of siding on one wall and likely the roof, as well as a couple nice dents to the youngest kid's car roof, but I'm not worried about her vehicle because it's old (2009) and had some cosmetic damage when we bought it two years ago and also because all the windows were fine. After all the nasty storms we've had in the last month, insurance adjusters are busy; they'll get to us when they can.

The picture above was taken after the rain was no more than a few drops here and there but the clouds still loomed over us with a clear sky to the western horizon. I went out and took pictures of the hail and the perfect shot of my first rose blossom. This is now my iPhone wallpaper, minus the watermark:

My first rose blossom of the three rose bushes
I planted less than a month ago!

After I had finished the Rosary prayers, the storm passed and merged with the north storm, but they grew along the western edge and dropped more pea-sized hail on us. No sooner did I start praying a single Hail Mary to ask her intercession to keep any large hail from hitting than the hail stopped altogether and only rain fell.

The moral of the story is to listen to that nagging voice when it's telling you to pray... To put it simply, when you're told to pray, obey. It was likely my guardian angel, and I am humbled by the consequences of not having listened when I should have.

Next time, I won't hesitate to grab my Rosary. I won't question any message from the Lord (who speaks through others, like our guardian angels, who are always with us). I will listen. It reminds me of Moses having to keep his arms up for the success of the battle of the Israelites in Exodus.

God bless!

writer's block unlocked

I was stuck, stuck, STUCK! As if I'd fallen into quicksand and was only sinking further. The more I tried to walk through it, the deeper I sank.

I could not do a thing of what I had expected... for a week! My mind was completely at a halt. And I had been doing so well with the writing on Book 22 up to that point.

A couple of days ago, I finally escaped.

I realized I needed a different POV scene. I kind of knew, but I didn't know how.

The answer only came after lots of prayer and my scheduled adoration time. I had been so completely blocked in writing that I said to the Lord (interiorly) in front of the Blessed Sacrament--paraphrasing--if you want me to write this to serve you, I need you to make it clear that it's your will, not just mine. (I know that anything promoting sin (i.e. deeply romantic or sexy scenes or gratuitous violence, occult, etc.) does not come from the Lord, so I do exercise discernment.)

He came through and showed me a glimpse at that time of the way out of the mire into which I had fallen. The next time I sat to write, the scene I needed just flowed out onto the document effortlessly, by the grace of God. It was an antagonist POV that added a layer to the story that I hadn't even considered!

Eucharistic adoration isn't where I go for writing ideas. It's where I've had wonderful encounters with Jesus, my guardian angel, and the Holy Spirit; but I'll take writing inspiration, if that's what He wants to give me. Generally, I'm there just to be with Jesus Christ, our Lord, in the Holy Eucharist exposed in a monstrance, and I pray for others; and sometimes He provides insights that completely blow me away. And when I bring a trouble like this to Him, and it's the right time, He gives me something I want.

Anyway, I'm happy to report that the 35K I have written on Book 22 is moving along again after a week of a complete block.

ps--All the rose shrubs are in; we planted the last one this morning. After a night of storms that downed tree limbs in the area (and some whole trees completely uprooted in town), two tornadoes in the east that took lives, hurricane-force winds, thousands without power in the north, etc., they're doing well and one is really leafing out already; the company cuts them down and takes off all the leaves for shipping and they're already growing. Also, I was praying my Rosary and the chaplet of St. Michael through the storm; and we had, at worst, some strong wind, but the corn will recover from that. As for the roses, we didn't kill them--yay! We'll see how they look in a month. I can't wait to see blossoms. 😊

Spiritual Warfare, Sacrifice, and the Call to Holy Boldness (video title)

A simple prayer... a little story

While working on some tedious tasks at the day job, I regularly listen to YouTube videos.

However, the ads on the app have been filthy and disgusting. I didn't know what to do (I have custom ads off--I loathe tracking and don't trust this company). They've only been showing me sexual images (massively immodest images of women and drugs for men--you get the idea).

This morning, I got fed up while scrolling content and seeing these ads in my feed, which has become mostly Catholic videos. In that moment of annoyance, I silently prayed to not see the sexual ads, a prayer to banish the demons of lust and sexual perversion (as suggested by exorcists).

I should have done that sooner.

Voila!

No more sexually perverse ads. Suddenly it was all real estate and household products. I didn't change any setting. (edit: I forgot to mention that one of the ads changed right in front of me on the screen. How's that for amazing?!)

All glory to God! He made everything and controls everything. He can do whatever He wants. When we seek to grow in the virtues and avoid sin and vice, He loves that from us because it is how we show we love Him.

(According to exorcists, we have authority over our belongings, so demons have to listen (they are literally lawyers from hell!); however, if one is in a state of mortal sin, the demons have ownership over the soul, so such prayers may not be effective in ridding demons of lust, greed, gluttony, envy, etc. After the initial baptism, detaching of demons and forgiveness of mortal sins only comes from the confessional, which reconciles one with God through the priest in persona Christi. It is the hardest, most humiliating sacrament to present yourself before Christ in the earthly presence of the priest with true contrition, but such a great cleansing of the soul! Once we're out of mortal sin, all those demons are detached from us and we then have full authority to banish them from ourselves and our belongings.)

Every morning, I pray the little prayer suggested by Fr. Dan Reehil, which he learned from another priest, and it's the neatest thing, producing incidents like this. It's the Permission Prayer and is simply this:

Lord, I give you permission today to use me in any way you desire, and I ask you to give me the grace to see your hand in action so I can give you all the glory.

God did. I saw it. I shared it. I give God glory for these amazing graces and demonstrations of His power (like the previous story about spiritual warfare and the cell phone in the confessional), which leave me in awe and wonder. It doesn't happen every day, but it has been happening a LOT since I started offering that little prayer every morning.

Incredible stuff!

God bless!

-----------------------

5/20/25 Edit: adding these to emphasize the point on confession:

bumps, thumps, and... flowers

This is a little story about signs from heaven.

It started with a picture flying off the wall in front of me... sideways (August 2023). I already posted about that, so I won't repeat the details again. You can follow the link to read that part of this story. To sum it up, however, I took it as a sign that my uncle who died in a helicopter crash in Vietnam 55 years earlier (to the minute of when the picture flew off the wall!) needed prayers to reach heaven. I prayed a rosary novena and never thought of it much until this past summer.

Wondering if I had done enough started to bother me more and more, until August 27 rolled around (the anniversary of my brother's death in 1997--my brother who was absent from the family picture that flew off the wall in August 2023).

That day, I had been in the dining-kitchen area and heard a couple knocks from the dining table and investigated, but nothing was there, except one of the cats sleeping on a chair; she wouldn't have made the sound I heard. Later that afternoon, I was in my bedroom and heard a couple of knocks but dismissed it as the house creaking. That night, I was kneeling in prayer by my bed and nightstand and heard three knocks seemingly from the nightstand. That's when I realized it happened three times that day. It was the anniversary of the death of one of my two brothers, but I had been wondering over the few days prior if I needed to offer more prayers for my uncle, so I started adding my uncle to my rosary intentions and offering daily masses for him.

Then I got sick in September soon after my ten-year anniversary at my day job and took a lot of time off work and worked from home some days, in the hopes of not giving the crud to my boss. I also didn't go to any masses for three weeks. In that time, I offered my suffering as penance for my uncle.

This past week was the feast day of St. Therese of Lisieux (the little flower) on October 1; I went to daily mass that day. I had finally been getting back to Sunday and daily masses, although scaring people away with clearing my throat frequently (I'm on antibiotics now, which seem to finally be kicking out the crud). I had asked St. Therese for a sign that my uncle had finally reached heaven after all my rosaries and the masses I had offered up for him. I had wanted to know if I had done enough and could switch to offering masses for my brother and others (aside from the rosaries, which I pray for several intentions).

I didn't know it at the time that those who pray to Saint Therese of Lisieux have been known to receive flowers in answer, usually roses but it can happen with any flowers. Friday morning (yesterday; three days after my request for a sign), I went in to work to find a lovely bouquet from my boss with a note of thanks for 10 years with the organization. I almost never get flowers from anyone, and this was a month after my anniversary date. (I was at work a few days in early September before the first crud hit and in mid-September as I was getting over one illness before the second hit.) I just learned that flowers are the way one gets an answer from St. Therese.

Along with this, I had an incredible joy and good feeling all day that left me puzzled about why I felt so good, and my senses of taste and smell were cranked up high. I found this described as a flower for the soul, also credited to the intercession of St. Therese. That all returned to normal today, but Friday was special.

And today (Oct. 5), the day I realized all this, would have been my brother's birthday. There are no coincidences with God.

The saints are alive in heaven, and to ask their intercession is to honor God's goodness. They are closest to Him and looking upon Him to eternity. From heaven, they help us and bring us closer to God to become saints ourselves. St. Therese is one of many whose intercessions result in miracles and even simple answers like this. 🥰 

St. Therese of Lisieux, pray for us.

God bless!

Still looking good on Monday
(added 10/7/24)

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10/7/24 updates: 

• I added a picture of how the bouquet looked Monday morning when I went into the office. Still beautiful!
• I removed what I had written about completing a 54-day novena because I realized I hadn't yet reached that count. I made one of my stupid math errors that happens on occasion (especially since I was still dealing with some lingering illness crud that affected my sleep). I have two weeks left to finish the novena, but there's an extra sense of gratitude as I am completing it in appreciation of God's grace through the Blessed Virgin Mary.
• I added another detail from Friday, which had puzzled me at the time but I dismissed, and then I learned from some more research of the flowers of St. Therese--the spiritual flowers. I believe I received this gift as well.

ps- for more on purgatory, check out the Uniquely Mary Youtube channel, which is also included on the Faith Resources tab listings.

Amazing true story! the power of prayer

 

A devotion that will change your life

I have a revelation for many who love to hate on the mother of Jesus.

Guess what? The Hail Mary is in the Bible! EVERY. SINGLE. LINE! It is Biblical!

Stop! If you're fuming, tell Satan to take a hike and keep reading. Don't listen to his anger and pride and envy against the Mother of Jesus. Hear me out.

Line 1:

Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee.

"And coming to her, he said, 'Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.'" (Luke 1:28)

Line 2:

Blessed are thou among women, 

"Blessed are you among women" (Luke 1:41)

Line 3:

and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus.

"Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said 'Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.'" (Luke 1:42)

Line 4:

Holy Mary, Mother of God,

"How does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Luke 1:43)

(Mary is the mother of Jesus (Lord with capital "L", an honor bestowed only on God). Jesus is the second part of the Holy Trinity aka God. Therefore, Mary is the Mother of God, specifically of the second part of God.)

Line 5:

Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

"Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful." (James 5:16)

"And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand." (Revelation 8:4)

Saints are those who have died and live in eternity in heavy. Do you not expect when you die to go to heaven? Will you be dead, nothing... or will your spirit be with God (alive)? What about everyone who has gone before you? If they were followers of Christ, do they not go to heaven? Are they "dead" in heaven? NO! They live. What better saint than the first Christian, the first follower of Christ--his mother who loves Him eternally--to add their love of us to our prayers in petitioning God for mercy?

Think about it.

But don't take my word for it. Look up the the scriptures yourself and see how they've been pulled out of the Bible and put together to create what we know as the Hail, Mary (Ave, Maria) prayer.

Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee!

Blessed are you amongst women,

and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God,

pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

 

 

One-line prayers

I was inspired by a video (below) to share these simple one-line prayers that are easy to say when you need them. These are simple prayers that you can repeat over and over to great effect in your life. If you can't remember any other prayers, keep these in mind.

Note:  "To pray" means "to ask". (It is NOT worship.) You are asking, making a request. Requesting the Lord's mercy or the intercession of His Blessed Mother is very powerful in our lives.

Most precious blood:
Most precious blood of Jesus Christ, save us and the whole world.

Jesus prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Surrender prayer:
Jesus, I surrender myself to thee, take care of everything.

Miraculous Medal:

O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.