Preserve Your Faith

I try really hard not to be an alarmist. I like to think that as time goes on, I'm learning to trust more and more in the fact that God is in control of everything - even in the minutest details of my life.

However, once in a while I read something that really smacks me upside the head. I've gone back to this post three times now and I can't seem to get this one part out of my mind, so I'm going to share it with all of you. Do with it what you will.

This is from Mark Mallett's most recent blog post entitled, "Revolution". You really have to read the entire post to get a feel for what he is talking about, but he is referring to a priest who receives visits from souls in purgatory, as well as others in Heaven. Recently this is what the priest heard:

And then recently, in January 2009, Fr. audibly heard St. Therese repeat her message with more urgency:

In a short time, what took place in my native country, will take place in yours. The persecution of the Church is imminent. Prepare yourself.

"It will happen so fast," he told me, "that no one will really be prepared. People think this can’t happen in America. But it will, and soon."

Right before this section, Mark includes this quote:

Be careful to preserve your faith, because in the future the Church in the U.S.A will be separated from Rome. —St. Leopold Mandic (1866-1942 A.D.), Antichrist and the End Times, Fr. Joseph Iannuzzi, p.27

What jumps out at me in both of these is the "prepare" message. Prepare your hearts, receive the sacraments as often as you can, "preserve your faith". What better way to help you to "preserve your faith" than frequent reception of the sacraments? Even if nothing happens for years, I figure I'll still be better off for it. I guess I look at it as a win-win situation. Sure it's a hardship sometimes to get to Mass during the week, but what if next year I can't even get to Sunday Mass?

Again, I'm not trying to promote fear here in anyway. I read somewhere else this past week that God gives us these "warnings" so that we have time to prepare. I just wanted to put this out there as some food for thought. Maybe you've also been feeling like it's time to work harder at spiritually preparing yourself?