How do I have someone discern my article on http://www.afterthewarning.com john-Sevant of God

My name is John, and my family and I live in the Texas Hill Country. I was born in San Antonio, Texas and I am happily married to a wonderful Catholic born-again Christian. I have a Spiritual Director with whom I have shared almost all aspects of my spiritual experiences, a journey I humbly attribute totally to the graces of God and Our Lady. It has taken me over 34 years to write what I am going to share with you.

At the very beginning of this journey, I truly did not understand what was happening to me. I have experienced visions, locutions and spiritual instructions by our Blessed Mother. I do not know why the Lord selected me to receive this spiritual information; there are many others so much more worthy.

I ask for anyone that might read this message to remember that all private revelations, visions and spiritual prophecy must be carefully discerned. Satan can try to imitate things that we think are from God. We must be very careful and pray for discernment from the Holy Spirit. We are called to pray, repent of our Sins and open our hearts to God. We must all turn to God with our whole hearts.

I was told by the Lord to wait and not to share the first part of His Plan until now. His Plan for mankind has already started to unfold. At this time, He has given me permission to share some of my spiritual experiences. Evil is running rampant and things have been set in motion. We are in the great Spiritual Warfare that Jesus foretold in the Gospels. World and local events have resulted in the unfolding of God’s plan. It is not a matter of years before this will take place; It has already started now. It will all happen a lot sooner than the world expects.

To give you some background, I am a cradle Catholic who was raised in a poor neighborhood on the Southside of San Antonio, Texas. I attended CCD at Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Church and our teachers were wonderful nuns dressed in full habits. Something within me needed to know more about this man called Jesus and His Mother Mary, whom the nuns told us was also our mother. As I grew older, I had come to the conclusion that the best way to get to Heaven was to join Bingo, Fish Fry’s and other Church activities and attend Mass on Sunday to get a star when I got to Heaven. On Sunday, by my narrow way of thinking, I was doing God a favor by going to Mass. I thought I had all the answers and that I could call on God when I got in trouble. I thought I was a good Catholic and the no

 

Welcome, John, but you need to finish your thought! I love testimonies!

Safe in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary!

 

Hi John...hope you make it back...would love to hear your testimony...welcome...

 

Here is John's story which he asked me to post.

I believe this to be quite genuine and true, but it is for you discernment of course.
#1 - Refuges That Are Now Being Prepared

By Our Blessed Mother and the Holy Spirit


My name is John, and my family and I live in the Texas Hill Country. I was born in San Antonio, Texas and I am happily married to a wonderful Catholic born-again Christian. I have a Spiritual Director with whom I have shared almost all aspects of my spiritual experiences, a journey I humbly attribute totally to the graces of God and Our Lady. It has taken me over 34 years to write what I am going to share with you.

At the very beginning of this journey, I truly did not understand what was happening to me. I have experienced visions, locutions and spiritual instructions by our Blessed Mother. I do not know why the Lord selected me to receive this spiritual information; there are many others so much more worthy.

I ask for anyone that might read this message to remember that all private revelations, visions and spiritual prophecy must be carefully discerned. Satan can try to imitate things that we think are from God. We must be very careful and pray for discernment from the Holy Spirit. We are called to pray, repent of our Sins and open our hearts to God. We must all turn to God with our whole hearts.

I was told by the Lord to wait and not to share the first part of His Plan until now. His Plan for mankind has already started to unfold. At this time, He has given me permission to share some of my spiritual experiences. Evil is running rampant and things have been set in motion. We are in the great Spiritual Warfare that Jesus foretold in the Gospels. World and local events have resulted in the unfolding of God’s plan. It is not a matter of years before this will take place; It has already started now. It will all happen a lot sooner than the world expects.

To give you some background, I am a cradle Catholic who was raised in a poor neighborhood on the Southside of San Antonio, Texas. I attended CCD at Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Church and our teachers were wonderful nuns dressed in full habits. Something within me needed to know more about this man called Jesus and His Mother Mary, whom the nuns told us was also our mother. As I grew older, I had come to the conclusion that the best way to get to Heaven was to join Bingo, Fish Fry’s and other Church activities and attend Mass on Sunday to get a star when I got to Heaven. On Sunday, by my narrow way of thinking, I was doing God a favor by going to Mass. I thought I had all the answers and that I could call on God when I got in trouble. I thought I was a good Catholic and the non-Catholics were going to Hell! (I was ignorant and confused) more to follow ……….

In 1979, at around 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning, my wife woke me up screaming that there was a man dressed like a monk kneeling on the side of the bed; he was praying for me. She pointed to him, but I could not see him. She could not understand why I could not see him, so she turned on the lights and continued to point to this man praying by me. I thought either my wife was going nuts, or some unnatural man (ghost) was next to me. A few months later, I saw my wife coming towards me looking much shaken, as if she had seen a ghost. She told me that she had seen a holy card of the monk that had been praying for me at the side of the bed. She showed me the holy card, and it was Padre Pio.

I called my Pastor, Father Flanagan, and I explained to him what had taken place earlier that morning. He listened and told me that he would pray for me. I felt something within me that was seeking answers Father Flanagan directed me to go to a prayer group at St. Henry De Oso Catholic School on Wednesday evenings. When I walked in, I thought that I had entered into the holiness of God. I saw over 300 people raising their hands to heaven and praising God. They were singing in a beautiful language that I did not understand. The room was full of love and joy. I had never experienced this in the Catholic Church. My wife and I joined this prayer group, and could not get enough of Holy Scriptures. I asked the leader of the prayer group, Dan De Celles, if I could help in some way. He gave me the job of setting up the chairs before the start of the prayer group. After seeing the faces of my new brothers and sisters, I asked God to please give me what they had.. The only prayers that I knew as a Catholic was the Our Father and the Hail Mary; I needed and wanted more,

On a personal note, after returning from Vietnam, I was very troubled and traumatized. I had also been unemployed for some time, and was struggling mightily with myself as well as the practical reality of making a living. I felt like giving up and asked God to take me home to Him. One bleak day, as I was sitting down in my backyard, my heart started to beat very fast and I could not breathe. I felt like passing out. I thought I was dying, and asked my wife to drive me to St. Vincent De Paul Catholic Church. I remember the nuns telling us that the best place to die was in front of the Blessed Sacrament in church, and that is what I wanted to do. When we arrived at the church, Father Flanagan was walking a German Shepard dog in front of the church. When I opened the door of the car, I saw the person of Jesus in front of me. I was startled; I looked into His eyes and He stretched his hands out to me, as if asking me to come to Him.

I turned around to tell my wife and Jesus disappeared. I asked Father Flanagan if he had seen a man in front of the Church and he indicated that he had not. I was puzzled.. I went inside the church and looked for Him but could not find Him. I prayed to God for direction and help. I remembered that my mother used to light a candled after she prayed in church. I did not have any money, but I lit a candle and made an IOU for $1.00. I did the same thing every day for 7 days and nothing happened. I became upset, and said to myself: if I cannot find Jesus in my Church, I will go to other churches and look for Him. I left the Catholic Church and went to various non-Catholic churches. I was so desperate that I even went to a witch doctor, visited the Masons and others similar groups.

After seven months of searching I found Jesus. I was in my den and praying for direction. Suddenly, there was a beautiful presence of holiness around me. I fell to my knees, and started crying because I knew how much I had offended God. I heard God say that I had been like a black onion, and that it had taken all this time to remove the many peels from the onion. The onion peels were my sins. He showed me that as onion peels were removed, one at a time, I was being cleansed until there was nothing left except for my dust. I saw my dust in His hand, and he blew the dust and told me that I was ready to serve Him. The problem was not the Catholic Church; the problem was me. He was only 16 inches from my nose. He dwelt in my heart.

After that experience, I asked Father Flanagan to be my Spiritual Director, and he agreed (he is now a retired Bishop). He instructed me in various ways, and encouraged me to apply to the Permanent Deaconate Program. I was ordained in 1982.

After my encounter with the Lord, my life started to change. I became very involved with the Charismatic Prayer Group. In a Charismatic Prayer Group there is a time for Prayer, Praising, Song and Prophecy. A prophetic word came forth from my lips that I did not understand as I was seeing the Blessed Virgin Mary walking and blessing us in the group. The night this happened, the prayer group leader told me that the Lord had spoken to him and told him that I, John, was to take over as prayer group leader. Dan had been prayer group leader for over 20 years; I tried to tell him that all I knew was to put up chairs for the prayer group. He told me not to worry, but to put my trust in God and ask Our Lady to guide and teach me. Again, I fell to my knees, and could not stop crying because I did not know what to do. The next morning, I called my Spiritual Director, and he told me to pray to the Holy Spirit and Our Blessed Mother for guidance.

As the new prayer group leader, I immediately called the Archdiocese Charismatic Liaison to the Archbishop, Father Enda. I told him that, as the new leader of the prayer group at St. Vincent De Paul, I was offering our help. I read all that I could on being a Christian leader, and sought out Catholic seminars. I found out that in the 125 parishes in the Archdiocese, we only had 5 Prayer Groups. I was invited to a dinner meeting in the evening to meet with the other prayer group leaders and was overjoyed because now I would learn from them. I saw them in prayer and rejoicing in the Lord, but my desire was to learn more about God. Dinner was over, and we said our goodbyes.

As I had forgotten my Bible inside, I went in to get it and encountered Father Enda, who asked me what I thought of the meeting. It was difficult for me to say this to a priest, but I told him that I had a good dinner, but needed and wanted more spiritual nourishment. He asked if I had any ideas or suggestions of what to do, and I said that maybe I did. He asked if I could meet with him in the morning at St. James Church.

 

That night I went home and prayed for direction as to what the Lord wanted me to say. I started to receive messages and directions as to what needed to be done. I wrote them on three 4 x 5 white boards. I was at St. James Church, and met Father Enda at 9:30 am. He greeted me warmly, and we prayed before I presented to him my ideas and suggestions. I started my presentation which lasted almost an hour without a response from Father Enda. I assumed that I had messed up. He was quiet for about 10 minutes, and then he got up from his chair, came over to me, took my hand and told me “Welcome, John you are now the Director to the Charismatic Renewal for the Archdiocese and you will be my assistant”. Eventually, Father Enda and I were two of 800 people selected throughout the World and were asked to go to Rome for a Renewal Conference. The Archbishop gave us a letter to the Vatican for an audience with St John Paul II. I also had the honor of meeting Mother Theresa

Once again I was guided to pray before the Blessed Sacrament and asked for direction of what God wanted from me. I asked the Holy Spirit and Our Lady to help and guide me. Something had changed within me. All fear was gone and the Spirit of the Lord was upon me. I received a message that the Lord wanting His children to come together for a weekend in San Antonio. He was telling me to invite both Catholics and non-Catholic Christians. He wanted us to rent the largest arena in San Antonio, Texas. We rented the arena where the San Antonio Spurs played. We had no money, but we knew that God was in control. We formed a Core Group to pray for discernment and counsel. The Lord had given me the Scriptural passage John 23:17: “Father that they all be one as You and I are One”.

We agreed that I would visit all 125 parishes and speak to each group. I was amazed but not surprised that the Holy Spirit and Our Lady were leading us. Our convention was to take place on Pentecost weekend. We had no idea who was going to show up. We had 800 volunteers from all the 125 parishes and other non-Catholic churches. We were amazed as to what took place. There were many healings, conversions, miracles and reconciliation with fallen-away Catholics. 18,000 people showed up!

There were many other miracles, revelation and visions that were taking place in my life to prepare me for was to take place in the future.

I shared the lengthy testimony above to show the context of the revelations I am about to share:

Places of Refuge:

1. When I attended the prayer group at St. Henry the Oso School, I was asked to attend a Life in the Spirit Seminar. I happily agreed. It is a seven day seminar that teaches us about our Church, Our Lord and the Holy Spirit. When hands were laid on each person attending to receive the Holy Spirit, all the participants received various gifts as indicated in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11. I did not receive anything.

2. There was a tremendous joy among all of the attendees, but I was disappointed in thinking that I did not receive one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I was still happy but somewhat puzzled by this.

3. After the seminar, the following morning an event took place within me that took another turn in my spiritual life. It happened in the fall of 1979, between Comfort, Texas and the Texas Hill Country.I am a construction contractor, and the morning after the Life in the Spirit seminar, I had an appointment at the VA Hospital in Kerrville, Texas. As I was driving and praising the Lord, all of sudden I began to pray and sing in a strange language. I felt a tremendous peace and love all around me. It seemed like someone else was driving my truck and I was just along for the ride.

4. The Lord then spoke to me, and showed me a vision of the future-a revelation of coming events. Most of what was shown to me on that day I did not fully understand. The Lord told me that the Hill Country in Texas was going to be a “Refuge” for the future, and that I was going to play a part in His Plan. He indicated that it was Our Blessed Mother and the Holy Spirit who would be preparing these refuges for the time of horror and death that was coming. He said that many people would come from the East, the West, the North and the South. It would be a place where no sin would exist, and that his Holy Presence would be our protection. The area was very large, and thousands of people would be guided by Our Lady and the Holy Spirit to gather in this area for sanctuary and for protection. He indicated that there would be many refuges throughout the earth to save God’s people from harm and to prepare for the coming of His Son. He stated that there would be seven persons that he had selected for the preparation of this place of refuge, and those individuals would be selected and anointed by God himself. He told me that if I looked for these persons that I would not find them. At the unfolding of His Plan, I would know them by their Spirit. The Lord also told me that I would be moving to the Texas Hill Country in the future, and that one of my Spiritual Directors, Fr. Enda, would also be sent there. Through a series of God-incidents, we have indeed moved to the Texas Hill Country as has Father Enda.


5. There is much more to share, but I was told not to disclose certain revelations until I am told to do so. The Lord said that I would walk alone for many years, and that I must be like an ordinary but good brother to my brothers and sisters in Christ. He indicated that the time coming would be similar to the time of Joseph, but much worse.


6. As I was praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament: Our Blessed Mother appeared to me in a locution. In prayer, I was lifted up into the sky. It seemed like I was in space or near the moon; I could see the earth completely black. I asked Our Lady why the earth was completely black. She responded that the BLACKNESS was the SIN of man covering the earth. As we were dropping down towards the earth I saw small white lights in various parts of the earth. The largest was in the Texas Hill Country. She told me that these white lights were Refuges that She was preparing to protect God’s children from all the evil that would surround us. She told me that the Black areas would be destroyed and world had to be clean before the coming of her Son. The refuges were for God’s people that were to enter into a New Era Of Peace. She showed and continue to explain what needed to take place.



7. There are many other revelations that I have been shown, but was told to keep to myself until I am told to disclose them. What I am sharing with you is currently taking place or developing rapidly. My family and are now living in the Texas Hill Country. My Spiritual Director, after 20 years of not seeing each other, has been sent to our parish. The words and messages that I was shown/ told are coming to pass without any personal effort or steering on my part. We have encountered other people, and even some pastors, that have received the same or similar messages, and have moved to this area. I have been asked to speak in various locations about Jesus, and have travelled all over the country when invited.


Comment in Closing: I have a deep feeling that the Holy Spirit and Our Lady are telling us to come together, and share with each other what we sense and know is coming. My sense is that we need to establish a central point of contact and information for the coming times. I ask that anyone who might read these messages please discern all that I have shared. May all praise and glory be to God, and may Our Blessed Mother continue to pray and intercede for us.

Pray, Pray Pray…….


John Martinez, Jr. 408 N Edison Fredericksburg, Texas 78624 (830) 456-9608 Email: johnmartinez1952@austin.rr.com




Revelations 22: 17 The Spirit and the Bride say “Come” ……….

 

View attachment 2033

 

I feel John's humility clearly coming through this writing, I feel the Holy Spirit is saying 'yes' to me, that what I read is true.

What did Padre Pio say about doing more when he passes away than even when he was alive.

I will pray for John. I will pray for our discernment in this and such matters.

 

Dear John, I too know about this. Our Lord has shown me. That is why He told us to get off the coast. We are now in Montana. I know others who have been called to Texas. We must talk!
Thank you for opening up and sharing with us! Your testimony is sincere and I hope that people will wake up and realize that we MUST be ONE in spirit if not ONE in Faith!

 

Great testimony John. Your conclusion needs prayerful consideration -

Comment in Closing: I have a deep feeling that the Holy Spirit and Our Lady are telling us to come together, and share with each other what we sense and know is coming. My sense is that we need to establish a central point of contact and information for the coming times. I ask that anyone who might read these messages please discern all that I have shared. May all praise and glory be to God, and may Our Blessed Mother continue to pray and intercede for us.

The internet allows us to come together in a way previous generations could only dream about. You obviously have further insights that you are not free to share yet but in due course God will allow you to reveal these & I hope you can share them with us on the Mother of God Forum. We all sense the times are ratcheting up as darkness increases and the light of faith diminishes then heaven will be pouring out grace for those who seek God the will of God. We all must be fully converted to a life in the Spirit which is difficult to do living within sinful secular society. That is why God has called you and others to places of refuge where the world cannot contaminate or influence your decisions.

Modern mass media is dangerous and there is a lot of mind control going on, subtle and even subliminal images on mass media are used to indoctrinate and shape the masses - I have come to a realization that the key thing that governments want is a servile and passive population who will do what they are told because they have been indoctrinated into total dependence on the state and economic systems. So the population are like sheep and will not resist when the governments become tyrannical. That is why in the USA, Obama wants gun control and hates the gun lobby because they are the last bastion and obstacle to his plans. Thank God for the 2nd Amendment which was designed to allow the people to resist tyrannical government, so watch out if he tries to tinker with this amendment.

That is why places of prayer and refuge are such a good idea as they become enclaves of a Christian society shaped by prayer and Christian values and not by the paganism of the modern world. How liberating it must be to live in such a place. Also I believe God is calling us to remove ourselves as best we can from total dependence on the economic system. We need to get back to roots literally - learn to grow our own food, become more self sufficient, learn from our ancestors who were generally self-sufficient. We have become dependent on the State and on the economic system so if there is a collapse we are going to go down the road of anarchy as in parts of Greece in the recent times. But there is a coming economic meltdown that will affect us all, much greater than 2008 etc. The signs are all around. In fact I believe Pope Francis spoke prophetically when he recently condemned the idolatry of cash/money - and this idol will come crashing down at some stage -

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/22/pope-francis-idol-money

 

People must be very careful to not 'create' something out of fear. God calls certain individuals to do these things. Don't 'assume' just because there is a refuge in your state you are called to be there. Do some serious praying. I've seen some places I would rather not be part of at all. Others, I would. Its GOD'S CHOICE---not mine!

 

Saint Pope John Paul 2nd's perhaps most lasting words to us were,

'Be not afraid'.

The characteristic of the world in these last days before the Warning and in times to be that they will indeed be afraid, in fact be in a state of gibbering terror.

Frightened people are of course very easy to manipulate and people will sell their very souls for what they conceive t o be a place of safety. I believe we must now at these times begin to view with the very gravest distrust the Leadership of our Governments (in the first place), secondly the media and I say they with great sadness but even view with grave reserve the Leadership of even some of our Spiritual Leaders (I do not speak of Our Holy Father but of Cardinals, Bishops and priests) .

This should not alarm us Christ is with us, Christ is always with us. But we are entering a time when as Jesus warned, 'Every hand will be turned against you'

We must as Jesus warned,

Matthew 10:16
Comfort in Persecution
16"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves. 17"But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues;…

Christ is our rock, our stronghold, our Saviour..in Him is our salvation, now as ever and for evermore.

View attachment 2034

 

Sound advice from MS7 & Padraig - a deeper prayer life allows the spirit to attune to the whisperings of God and He leads us gently - and if we are converted we do not fear death and we are ready to lay down our lives for Christ.

Like St Paul says 'For me to live is Christ to die is gain'.

 

The Coming Refuges and Solitudes
By Mark Mallett
markmallett.com/blog/


THE Age of Ministries is ending… but something more beautiful is going to arise. It will be a new beginning, a restored Church in a new era. In fact, it was this present pope who hinted at this very thing while he was still a cardinal:

The Church will be reduced in its dimensions, it will be necessary to start again. However, from this test a Church would emerge that will have been strengthened by the process of simplification it experienced, by its renewed capacity to look within itself… the Church will be numerically reduced.

—Cardinal Ratzinger (POPE BENEDICT XVI), God and the World, 2001; interview with Peter Seewald

He was echoing, perhaps, Pope Paul VI, who made the startling admission that, because of the growing apostasy in the Church, there will likely be left a mere remnant of the faithful:

There is a great uneasiness, at this time, in the world and in the Church, and that which is in question is the faith… I sometimes read the Gospel passage of the end times and I attest that, at this time, some signs of this end are emerging… What strikes me, when I think of the Catholic world, is that within Catholicism, there seems sometimes to pre-dominate a non-Catholic way of thinking, and it can happen that tomorrow this non-Catholic thought within Catholicism, will tomorrow become the stronger. But it will never represent the thought of the Church. It is necessary that a small flock subsist, no matter how small it might be.

—POPE PAUL VI, The Secret Paul VI, Jean Guitton, p. 152-153, Reference (7), p. ix.

It is the divine protection of this little flock in times to come that concerns this present writing…


A PURIFIED FLOCK
The Church must follow Jesus into her own Passion. It is through the Cross that she is purified. Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it cannot bear fruit, He said.1 Although the Church experiences this crucifixion continually, each minute of each day in her individual members, the time must come when, corporately, she will face a "final confrontation":

Before Christ’s second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers… The Church will enter the glory of the kingdom only through this final Passover, when she will follow her Lord in his death and Resurrection.

—Catechism of the Catholic Church, 675, 677

This corporate purification involves, as it did for Jesus, a Great Persecution that is already here and coming.2 But the Lord will not abandon us. All those who remain faithful to Him will be protected in the Refuge of His Mercy. But there will also be for some—who are not called to martyrdom—physical refuges: geographical places where God will protect His people, lest the Church be entirely extinguished.3

Because you have kept my message of endurance, I will keep you safe in the time of trial that is going to come to the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth. (Rev 3:10)


THE PARALLEL COMMUNITIES
After the Illumination, the world will be reeling from the fulfillment of the Seven Seals of Revolution… those hurricane winds of change4 that are already beginning to blow and that will bring about a whirlwind of mass chaos and confusion:

When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind… (Hos 8:7)

In September of 2006, I wrote about a "word" the Lord has never ceased repeating in my heart, that there are soon going to be "exiles" all over the world:

​

New Orleans was a microcosm of what is to come… you are now in the calm before the storm.

When Hurricane Katrina struck, many residents found themselves in exile. It did not matter if you were rich or poor, white or black, clergy or layman5 —if you were in its path, you had to move now. There is a global "shake up" coming, and it will produce in certain regions exiles.

—from Trumpets of Warning – Part IV

These "winds" will also bring about that great moment of mercy—The Eye of the Storm—when souls will see themselves the way that God sees them in a moment. Thus, two things will emerge from the Illumination: many people searching for God—and many continuing to search for food and shelter.

Around that same time in 2006, I gathered with a small group of missionaries in the upper room of a small chapel in the mountains of Western Canada. There, before the Blessed Sacrament, we consecrated ourselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the powerful silence of that moment, I received a rare, flowing, and lucid interior "vision" that I want to share here again for your discernment and prayer:

I saw that, in the midst of the virtual collapse of society due to cataclysmic events, a "world leader" would present an impeccable solution to the economic chaos. This solution would seemingly cure at the same time economic strains, as well as the deep social need of society, that is, the need for community. [I immediately perceived that technology and the rapid pace of life have created an environment of isolation and loneliness—perfect soil for a new concept of community to emerge.] In essence, I saw what would be "parallel communities" to the Christian communities. The Christian communities would already have been established through "the illumination" or "warning" or perhaps sooner [they would be cemented by the supernatural graces of the Holy Spirit, and protected beneath the mantle of the Blessed Mother.]

The "parallel communities," on the other hand, would reflect many of the values of the Christian communities—fair sharing of resources, a form of spirituality and prayer, like-mindedness,

​

and social interaction made possible (or forced into being) by the preceding purifications, which would compel people to draw together. The difference would be this: the parallel communities would be based on a new religious idealism, built on the footings of moral relativism and structured by New Age and Gnostic philosophies. AND, these communities would also have food and the means for comfortable survival.

The temptation for Christians to cross-over will be so great, that we will see families split, fathers turned against sons, daughters against mothers, families against families (cf. Mark 13:12). Many will be deceived because the new communities will contain many of the ideals of Christian community (cf. Acts 2:44-45), and yet, they will be empty, godless structures, shining in a false light, held together by fear more than by love, and fortified with easy access to the necessities of life. People will be seduced by the ideal—but swallowed by the falsehood. [Such wlll be the tactic of Satan, to mirror true Christian communities, and in this sense, create an anti-church].

As hunger and incrimination escalate, people will face a choice: they can continue to live in insecurity (humanly speaking) trusting in the Lord alone, or they can choose to eat well in a welcoming and seemingly secure community. [Perhaps a certain "mark" will be required to belong to these communities—an obvious but plausible speculation (cf. Rev 13:16-17)].​

 

​

Those who refuse these parallel communities will be deemed not only outcasts, but obstacles to what many will be deceived into believing is the "enlightenment" of human existence— the solution to a humanity in crisis and gone astray. [And here again, terrorism is another key element of the enemy’s present plan. These new communities will appease the terrorists through this new world religion thereby bringing about a false "peace and security", and hence, Christian’s will become the "new terrorists" because they oppose the "peace" established by the world leader.]

Even though people will have by now heard the revelation in Scripture regarding the dangers of a coming world religion (cf. Rev 13:13-15), the deception will be so convincing that many will believe Catholicism to be that "evil" world religion instead. Putting to death Christians will become a justifiable "act of self-defence" in the name of "peace and security".

Confusion will be present; all will be tested; but the faithful remnant will prevail.

—from The Trumpets of Warning – Part V

Since that "vision," the Lord seems to have confirmed many of its elements, such as Pope Benedict’s comments on the dark-side of technology6 and moral relativism;7 the Vatican’s release of a document on the new age and a coming world religion;8

​

and the collapsing of the economy that began in 2008.9 Most recently, the Holy Father has compared the collapse of our civilization to that of the Roman Empire, and stated that, ‘without the guidance of charity in truth’, the world risks ‘enslavement and manipulation’ to a ‘global force.’10

Essentially, the time of the refuges would be at a time of general lawlessness. If there are no longer moral absolutes, which seems already to be the case, have we not already entered into that period of lawlessness?11

Given such a grave situation, we need now more than ever to have the courage to look the truth in the eye and to call things by their proper name, without yielding to convenient compromises or to the temptation of self-deception. In this regard, the reproach of the Prophet is extremely straightforward: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness” (Is 5:20).

—POPE JOHN PAUL II, Evangelium Vitae, “The Gospel of Life”, n. 58

Early Church Father, Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius (250-317 A.D), foresaw with great precision what this future period would look like… when the faithful would eventually flee to sacred refuges:

That will be the time in which righteousness shall be cast out, and innocence be hated; in which the wicked shall prey upon the good as enemies; neither law, nor order, nor military discipline shall be preserved… all things shall be confounded and mixed together against right, and against the laws of nature . Thus the earth shall be laid waste, as though by one common robbery. When these things shall so happen, then the righteous and the followers of truth shall separate themselves from the wicked, and flee into solitudes.

—Lactantius, The Divine Institutes, Book VII, Ch. 17

After the Illumination of Conscience, there will form two camps: those who accept the grace to repent, thus passing through the door of Mercy… and those who will harden their hearts in their sin, and thus, be destined to pass through the door of Justice.12 The latter will form that camp of the wicked who, for "forty-two months", will be "allowed to wage war against the holy ones and conquer them" (Rev 13:7). That is, persecute, but not destroy.13



WHERE ARE THESE REFUGES…?
"How will I get there?"

"How will I know where to go?"

"When will I know when to flee…?"

These are questions people have asked me on occasion. My answer is this…

In Psalm 119 it says,

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light for my path. (Psalm 119:105)

The Lord’s will for our lives is like a lamp that casts light a few feet ahead—not a high-beam headlight that lets one see way off into the distance. How, where, and when are turns in the road that perhaps neither you nor I can see ahead at this time. But if you are following God’s will for your life, moment by moment, along the path of the duty of the moment,14 one thing is for certain: the path will lead you to that crossroad. The light of wisdom will show you how, where, and when to go. You can’t miss the turn if you’re on the right path!

The key is that the lamp of your heart contains the Word, who is Jesus. That He is living and dwelling within you;

​

that your heart is filled with the oil of faith; that you are listening to His voice, and obeying it. Then you will have the necessary light for the approaching time when the Sun of Truth will be completely obscured,15 and the only light will be that burning flame of Wisdom which is in your heart.16 Such a soul will be ready when, in the midst of the coming darkness, the midnight of Antichrist strikes, and the Master arrives to show the way that leads, ultimately, to the Wedding Feast of the Kingdom.

The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’… (Matt 25:1-9)

The wise will find refuge in the Lord, while the foolish will seek the false light of the parallel communities. To these who have ignored the mercy of God through the Illumination and a myriad of other signs of His love and presence in their lives, God will (with great sorrow) let them follow their chosen course: to fill their lamps with a false oil…17

…God is sending them a deceiving power so that they may believe the lie, that all who have not believed the truth but have approved wrongdoing may be condemned. (2 Thess 2:11-12)


​

 

IN SCRIPTURE
I will say it again, the safest place to be is in God’s will. So if God wants you in downtown Manhattan or the suburbs of Baghdad, then that’s the safest place to be. But there may come a time in this Great Storm when God calls you to leave everything and "Go." Will it be your guardian angel who wakes you? Will it be simple common sense? Or will the Blessed Mother or a saint speak to your heart?

And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, [the magi] departed for their country by another way. When they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him." Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt. (Matt 2:12-14)



Rest on the Flight into Egypt, Luc Olivier Merson, French, 1846–1920

…the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle, so that she could fly to her place in the desert, where, far from the serpent, she was taken care of for a year, two years, and a half-year. (Rev 12:14)

The king sent messengers… to prohibit holocausts, sacrifices, and libations in the sanctuary, to profane the sabbaths and feast days, to desecrate the sanctuary and the sacred ministers, to build pagan altars and temples and shrines… Whoever refused to act according to the command of the king should be put to death… Many of the people, those who abandoned the law, joined them and committed evil in the land. Israel was driven into hiding, wherever places of refuge could be found. (1 Macc 1:44-53)

Bear the standard to Zion, seek refuge without delay! Evil I bring from the north, and great destruction. (Jeremiah 4:6)

So, yes, there are going to be physical refuges for God’s people. Some of these are already being prepared…


THE TRUE REFUGES…

​

Yet, these are temporal places, that in and of themselves, cannot save the soul. The only refuge that is truly safe is the Heart of Jesus. What the Blessed Mother is doing today is leading souls to this Safe Harbour of Mercy by drawing them into Her own Immaculate Heart, and sailing them safely to her Son. Such souls who have come to abandon themselves to God in these days are the ones who carry that spark, that light which will bring hope to the world in new communities of light… true refuges that even now have their beginnings, and will continue into the Era of Peace to build a new civilization of love…

These communities are a sign of vitality within the Church, an instrument of formation and evangelization, and a solid starting point for a new society based on a ‘civilization of love’… They are thus cause for great hope for the life of the Church.

—JOHN PAUL II, The Mission of the Redeemer, n. 51


Make yourselves builders of communities in which, after the example of the first community, the Word lives and acts

—JOHN PAULl II, Address to Focolare Movement, Rome, May 3, 1986




PRAY PSALM 91: THE GREAT PRAYER OF BOTH PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL REFUGE

PSALM 91​

 

Then there is the parallel Church - the anti-church of compromise with its Christ without the cross - and its anti-gospel

http://ncronline.org/news/faith-parish/priests-criticize-head-doctrinal-congregation-rebuke-lcwr

 

Very fascinating! I saw John's experience on afterthewarning.com a few days ago and I've been trying to discern this. I have a friend who's family has been preparing for years a place in Montana and now Texas. I've been praying about where God wants our family to be. We have always wanted to move to the Hill Country area because of it's beauty. But I know if it is God's will it will be as he has to make certain things happen to accomplish this. But some of us are destined not to be here afterwards.

God Bless!

 

This wisdom is so true. We cannot go off running to the next 'safe shelter' that we read about. The army of Our Lady must be tactical in the sense that she needs foot soldiers everywhere. While a community safe shelter sounds cozy, it may not be where we are called to be. The wisdom already spoken of in the previous posts (especially Mark Mallett's blog above) in regards to a deep profound prayer life is most essential for us to discern our place or fort of battle. There is no doubt the battle for souls is on and the weapon that heaven has provided is the rosary and the armor is the brown scapular. Are we prepared?

 

My wife and I have been praying for sometime now asking for discernment on how to prepare for the upcoming trials. While this discernment in still on- going, we prayed to be part of a community of believers and God has given us that. He also brought me to this forum. I don't know yet what He is asking, but more and more I have the sense that He may be asking us to stay put right here near the belly of the beast (NYC) and be a witness for Him and yes maybe to suffer. I don't worry about this for myself, but as a man, a husband and a father, I do think about my family. Maybe they will be called to refuge? In all if this and after reading John's experience, I was moved this morning to read the Bible and opened to the Book of John:

[6] I have manifested thy name to the men whom thou hast given me out of the world. Thine they were, and to me thou gavest them; and they have kept thy word. [7] Now they have known, that all things which thou hast given me, are from thee: [8] Because the words which thou gavest me, I have given to them; and they have received them, and have known in very deed that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. [9] I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them whom thou hast given me: because they are thine: [10] And all my things are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.

[11] And now I am not in the world, and these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name whom thou has given me; that they may be one, as we also are. [12] While I was with them, I kept them in thy name. Those whom thou gavest me have I kept; and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition, that the scripture may be fulfilled. [13] And now I come to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy filled in themselves. [14] I have given them thy word, and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world; as I also am not of the world. [15] I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from evil.

[16] They are not of the world, as I also am not of the world. [17] Sanctify them in truth. Thy word is truth. [18] As thou hast sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. [19] And for them do I sanctify myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. [20] And not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me;

 

Hi this is my first post. I have felt for about two years that the Lord has called me to be a lifeboat for my family. I am a convert, a former Methodist who was not strong in my faith in Christ until seven years ago when due to an illness of one of my kids I promised the Lord He could do with me what He would like. My husband is a cradle Catholic and long story short as I could take up a lot of space with my testimony of how I came into the Church I am now Catholic and my husband is a revert now to the faith. Our young adult children are not Catholic however and one of them does not believe that she is Christian anymore. I believe the Lord has called me to a life of prayer and witness to my family so that when the bad times come or even if they don't but life just happens for my kids I will be able to be there for them to explain what is going on. I long for them especially on this feast day of Corpus Christi to experience the sacraments, even though as a Methodist mom at the time I did my best to teach them about Jesus and made sure they got to church and were confirmed, but I know as we are seeing with many of our young people, even with a good Catholic grounding it is not enough to keep them in the Church. Anyway, I was reading this thread and pondering this whole refuge concept and I felt the Lord tell me this morning at Church that I did seek refuge by coming into the Church and that there may not be many of us non Catholic Christians doing this now but there will be a flood. I strongly believe that the Church will be the only refuge standing soon with all that is going on in the world for those separated brethren who really love Jesus and have no idea why it all feels like sinking sand out there. I live in the Northeast and picking up and moving to Texas as a wife, mother, and business owner is not practical- however I also believe that Our Lady is setting up pockets of believers who will be ready for whatever is needed at the time. I am active in the Legion of Mary and I have truly found my family- I left good friends behind at my old church when I converted but I have been doubly blessed with a true network of family throughout the world through this lay mission group. I believe that when the going gets tough, Mary's army will get going! And I do believe that I am one of the few now but soon to be a flood of "Bible Christians" who will be entering the Church as the Protestant and even the evangelical world becomes more like the world. God Bless!

Val