God is love. Where there is love, there is God. Where there is great love, with our families and those closest to us, I have found great miracles often occur.
With love, we can be pure of heart, leading us to serve as ambassadors of Christ with family and friends.
In praying for families, we can begin with our spouses, prayer enhanced by the Sacrament of Marriage.
My wife, Mary Anne, had severe arthritis in her hands and couldn’t pick up anything without pain. She was on 16 pills a day. I prayed over her and believed each day; months later, she was completely healed! The doctor couldn’t believe it!
Like most of you, Mary Anne and I have had our challenges with our children—spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically. Praying fervently to God has brought one miracle after another.
We prayed for our daughter to marry a holy man. Praise God, she married a man we think is a saint in the making! He wasn’t Catholic when they married, but years later converted and now he is, in many ways, an evangelist!
He has been amazing in supporting my daughter, who has been battling stage-four lung cancer. For strength, we stand on a verse from Romans (8:28)
“We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”
Both our daughter and son-in-law have become “evangelists” for lung cancer research, appearing in print media and on radio and television shows. Our daughter volunteers with the U.S. Department of Defense to provide her perspective as a patient to aid in research. Praise God!
My oldest son is an attorney who defends the poor, and my youngest son works for the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. They both are doing amazing things!
What is the key? Faith, prayer and not giving up. The Letter to the Hebrews offers important instruction on persevering. I suggest committing these verses to memory, to recall during discouraging times:
“Therefore, do not throw away your confidence; it will have great recompense. You need endurance to do the will of God and receive what he has promised.” (Hebrews 10: 35-36)
One of the most powerful tools of miracles for families is the rosary. When my children were teenagers, I felt everything I did was wrong. I said “Green,” and they said “Red, blue and white!”
One day when I was totally beside myself, I went into a church midday alone and prayed fervently. The Lord came upon me and said, “Pray the rosary every day for your family and children.”
I haven’t missed in 30 years!
Never give up expecting miracles for your families, no matter the circumstances. For example, I experienced an example of the power of miracles and prayer a few years ago when I was preaching on the power of the Holy Spirit. A family of five approached me after the talk and asked for me to pray for their daughter who was in attendance.
The father told me the story. A senior in high school, their daughter had always had a devout faith and served as a leader in the local Catholic youth group.
One day, however, she stopped going to church. She became depressed and didn’t want to leave her room. She even spoke of ending her life.
I asked the parents to join me in laying hands on their daughter and I expected a miracle. Suddenly, the Lord came upon me and I saw a vision of something evil buried in a chest of drawers in her room. I asked her parents to search the chest when they got home.
Later that night I received a text of a picture of a demonic tarot card. I told them to burn it immediately, which they did.
Within 24 hours, the young woman was completely back to normal. Praise God, now and forever!
God wants to heal your families today. He asks for your faith and to expect and experience His miracles.
Deacon Steve Greco goes into more detail about miracles in his 2017 book Expect and Experience Miracles. Click here to get a copy.
