2007 Christmas

Our Lady, Virgin of virgins, was prepared by God to be the special dwelling place of His only begotten Son; the Holy Mother of Jesus Incarnate. “For She is the refulgence of eternal Light, the spotless mirror of the power of God” (Wis. 7:26). She is our model of all grace who lovingly draws us into Her womb of safe refuge where, in the stillness of the night, we too are “given a new birth to a living hope…to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading (1Ptr.1: 4). His power is at work in us while we gratefully remain hidden in Her antle of docility and grace until “the mystery hidden from ages past has been manifested to His holy ones… it is Christ in you, the hope for glory” (Col. 2:26-27). So we press on in this hope, drawing strength from our Master, Who in His great humility “bounded, a fierce warrior, into the doomed land” only to be wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger, a helpless Babe, yet Savior of the world (Wis. 18:15). Let our hearts gaze then, upon the Bethlehem crèche on this silent, holy night, in this place where all is calm and bright, for “the Light shines in darkness and the darkness has not overcome the Light” (Jn. 1:5). In this Light we also are prepared, like Our Lady, “to become a dwelling place for God in the Spirit… A body you have prepared for me; Behold, I come to do your will” (Eph. 2:22; Heb. 10: 5,7). . Our Lady, Virgin of virgins, was prepared by God to be the special dwelling place of His only begotten Son; the Holy Mother of Jesus Incarnate. “For She is the refulgence of eternal Light, the spotless mirror of the power of God” (Wis. 7:26). She is our model of all grace who lovingly draws us into Her womb of safe refuge where, in the stillness of the night, we too are “given a new birth to a living hope…to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading (1Ptr.1: 4). His power is at work in us while we gratefully remain hidden in Her antle of docility and grace until “the mystery hidden from ages past has been manifested to His holy ones… it is Christ in you, the hope for glory” (Col. 2:26-27). So we press on in this hope, drawing strength from our Master, Who in His great humility “bounded, a fierce warrior, into the doomed land” only to be wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger, a helpless Babe, yet Savior of the world (Wis. 18:15). Let our hearts gaze then, upon the Bethlehem crèche on this silent, holy night, in this place where all is calm and bright, for “the Light shines in darkness and the darkness has not overcome the Light” (Jn. 1:5). In this Light we also are prepared, like Our Lady, “to become a dwelling place for God in the Spirit… A body you have prepared for me; Behold, I come to do your will” (Eph. 2:22; Heb. 10: 5,7). With urgency Our Lady draws us, through the grace of Her own fiat, into an obedient response to Love’s invitation to “follow Me.” “We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness for the fulfillment of hope until the end so that you may not become sluggish but imitators of those who through faith and patience are inheriting the promises…for He who is to come shall come, He shall not delay” (Heb. 10:37). And so, with joyful expectation we peer into the Advent darkness, straining to glimpse this New Life which has been so carefully hidden away in ages past, only to be revealed in the fullness of time. Now is this time of fulfillment when “in the tender mercy of our God, the Dawn from on high will break upon us, to shine on those in darkness and to guide our feet into the path of peace” (Lk. 1: 78-79). Oh Holy Night! Oh Night Divine! “The people in darkness have seen a great Light; for a child is born to us, a Son is given us. His name is Wonder-Counselor… Prince of Peace” (Is. 9:1,5). The longing of every soul is quenched in the loving embrace of the One Whose Own longing has called us to this place, that where He is, we may also be. He is the King of Glory Who pursues us with such love; He is the Everlasting Father Who reaches down to lift up the lowly; He is the All Merciful Lord and Giver of Life. And we, as little stars shining in the Advent night, joyfully await the revelation of Love as the dawn breaks forth to reveal the Bright Morning Star on this glorious day of new birth! “Our Lady of Light” Dearest family, friends, loved ones and lambs, We are finally ready to break ground for our new Chapel, here at Bellwether—the Chapel of Our Lady of Light! We need your help! This building project has an estimated cost of $5,000,000. I was recently at the doctor’s office with one of our lay families, watching their four children while the mother saw the doctor.  Their little six year old son, John Michael, came up to me with his hands open, in which were two pennies and a dime. He said to me, “Mother, I want you to have this!” I knew it was all he had and I told him to keep it but he insisted I take it. So, I did and I asked him, “John Michael, how shall we spend it?” He joyously responded, “For the Chapel!” Upon returning home, I gave these coins to our accountant and told her to mark it “restricted funds” for our Chapel. We ask for your generosity as well so that we can move forward together in this labor of love for the greater honor and glory of God and the salvation of souls. We cannot do this without you. Please help! “For My house is to be a house of prayer for all peoples.” —Isaiah 56:7 Entrusted with this powerful ministry of intercession, our charism is forming more and more souls to become a house of prayer within themselves. Bellwether was established to be a contemplative formation center, developing and fostering a deep interior life in the hearts of God’s people. It is with great joy that we will open an expanded formation center where groups can come for more intense mentoring in the charism of intercession, spiritual direction, contemplative prayer, inner healing, and spiritual warfare. Core groups , leader s and companion group members will be able to come for further training. Also, priests will have a place available to them to come apart and rest, receive ministry and retreat. Over the next several months, we will be preparing the building to accommodate these plans. Recently, we have been visited by people from other countries wishing to take what they have learned here and to bring the charism back to their countries. A gentleman from Puerto Rico will be bringing the charism into the countries of South America. Another man from the United Arab Emirates has connected us with prayer groups in the Middle East and India. Translations are currently in process for European countries, Russia, China and Korea. The Lord is certainly taking us global now! Housing groups both large and smal l , the new Bel lwether Formation Center will be able to accommodate Intercessors from anywhere in the world who are being raised up for such a time as this. It seems that the Lord is accelerating His plans to bring us back to the enclosed garden within to regain intimacy with the Holy Trinity and to have a deeper empowerment for our respective ministries. “We shall devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word." (Acts 6:4) “There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens. …a time to tear down, and a time to build.” (Eccl. 3:1,3) Let us together build a fitting dwelling place in our hearts for the Blessed Trinity within. We look forward to welcoming you to join us as we go about our Father’s business in union with Jesus, and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

 

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