Pray and love (Fr. Lubo Kurtovych, OFM)

Our Lady of Medjugorje’s October 25, 2025 monthly message:

“Dear children! The Most High in His goodness gave Me to you to lead you on the way of peace. Many have responded and are praying, but there are many creatures who do not have peace and have not come to know the God of love. Therefore, little children, pray and love, create prayer groups to encourage each other to the good. I am with you and am praying for your conversion. Thank you for having responded to My call”. (With Ecclesiastical approval)

The Virgin Mary as a true Mother never ceases to encourage, motivate and call Her children to what is the most important in their lives – to come to know the God of love. Jesus says to us: “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (Jn 17:3). Our Christian duty and right is to come to know God and His Son Jesus – that is to come to know love with wich God loves us. We can give only what we ourselves have and experience. Yet we are unable to possess or experience anything if we do not ask Him Who alone has everything and Who alone is truly rich. We are all miserable and poor before God. Jesus Himself encourages us: pray, seek, knock… God is not deaf to our cries and sincere prayers which we lift up to Him.

The way to come to know God and His love is through prayer. There is no other path to God except prayer.

Every person thirsts for God as Mother Teresa confirmed. This thirst which we experience in silence can be satisfied only by God Himself. Prayer widens our hearts making them large enough to receive God Who gives Himself to us. What the blood is to the body prayer is to the soul. Prayer is not only the turning of the mind and heart toward God but also a dialog. Prayer is a conversation. I look at Him and He looks at me – that is the most perfect prayer. The perfect prayer is not found in many words but  in an ardent desire that elevates the soul to Jesus.

Mother Teresa gave many people she met each day a miraculous medal  and a small card that she called her “business card”. There was printed one of her well-known sayings on it: “The fruit of silence is prayer, the fruit of prayer is faith, the fruit of faith is love, the fruit of love is service, and the fruit of service is peace”.

Our Lady says to us: “… I lead you on the path of peace”. Peace is achieved gradually and persistently. It begins with silence. Our Lady teaches us: “Dear children, in the silence of your hearts seek Jesus”. In the silence of the heart God speaks. Only by listening to God we can enter into a dialog with Him. We may say many prayers but for our prayer to be true we should learn to be silent. God speaks in silence. When we hear God in silence then we may truly say that we are praying. Prayer nourishes faith which inspires love and love becomes service to others. Service to others brings peace into our hearts, lives and our relationships.

Let us listen to Our Mother’s call and encourage each other to the good so that we may experience our personal conversion day by day.

Prayer

Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of peace, the Most High has sent You to us at this time for our conversion and transformation of our lives and for us to grow in faith and love. You see our hearts and desires better than anyone as well as the hearts of those who have not yet come to know the God of love and those who live senselessly lost in this world. You, O Mother, Who sees all that we need and all that we lack, intercede for us before Your Son as You did at Cana in Galilee. Obtain for us the grace to hear what Jesus says to us so that we may experience the divine newness which only Jesus can give. Amen.