She Continues To Come...

She has come to the village of Medjugorje , located in the rugged mountains of Bosnia-Hercegovina, for nearly 26 years to ask us to pray. She has done so since June 25 1981 , appearing daily through the mystical power of apparition to at least three of an original six children chosen to be visionaries.

She is the Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus Christ, chosen messenger of God for these times. Her purpose, revealed through dramatic messages to the visionaries at Medjugorje, is crystal clear: to save her children—all of her children, the washed and the unwashed—through the holy power of prayer.

The Mother of Jesus has made clear that our present day world is far from the graces of her Son. It is a world without peace. She comes into this caldron of turmoil by God's holy grace, calling herself the Queen of Peace. Mary is inviting, urging, pleading and even begging us to listen, pray and convert our hearts to the ways of Jesus. Because of the positive response by so many, the grace of the Medjugorje message continues.

The village has become a modern-day Mecca . More than 35 million people have made pilgrimage to this predominantly Croatian Catholic community where they believe the Mother of God is appearing.

People go there for many reasons: curiosity, physical and spiritual healing, desire for solutions to their personal problems, etc. They go to find elusive personal peace. Mostly though, it is a great place of prayer. Many pilgrims return home spiritually transformed, wanting to do their best to answer the Blessed Virgin's call. Many of them become active graduates of this incredible “ School of Prayer .”

The prevalent question in the heart of most returning pilgrims—and in the heart of those who learn of this incredible grace through books, tapes, talks and personal witness of individuals—is, why has she chosen me?

The answer is simple and direct: she chooses us—all of us—because we are the children of God, His creation. The Blessed Virgin Mary is sent by Heaven to teach us about the awesome power of daily personal and group prayer. Just reading Mary's messages which she has given to the world through Medjugorje helps us understand this magnificent gift.

Everyone can experience this charisma of prayer through intimate guidance by the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is not just for visionaries or unique individuals.

It is for those who truly believe, surrender to the will of God and then try to obey the requests of the individual mission given to each of us.

All of us are asked to be participants. But it is our own free will that has to answer yes or no to God's request. In this case, the request comes from Mary in Medjugorje.

To acquire this heavenly grace, it is all but mandatory to develop an intimacy with our spiritual mother Mary. It is an intimacy necessary to truly accept and develop a strong, purpose-driven prayer life. It begins with our conversations – our prayers – with her and to her. She is affectionately called “Our Lady,” or “Mary,” or “Blessed Mother” by many who have found that intimacy.

My qualifications as a writer and commentator on the subject of apparitions of Our Lady are limited. I am not a theologian or priest or minister. I'm simply a lay person who found spiritual conversion and my own life-time mission triggered by discovery of this incredible event. But I've been involved in visiting, studying and investigating the apparitions at Medjugorje for more than 20 years, having travelled there 78 times as of this writing.

May she continue to come until every possible soul has had an opportunity to accept the grace and learn the holy power of prayer.

Wayne Weible