Dear Friend,

What is the secret of success for those who play the lottery? You will hear all kinds of stories from picking the dates of grandchildren’s birthdays to throwing darts at a board which displays all the lottery numbers.

But what is the real secret for winning the lottery? Luck! One can use the most elaborate of strategies, but in the end, only luck is the cause behind the picking of winning lottery numbers … good luck, and nothing more.

I heard a person once say that if they had good luck, God would hear and answer their prayers. WRONG!!! That is absolutely dead wrong! Luck has nothing to do with answered prayers. If there is a secret for having one’s prayers answers, it is having a spirit of deep and committed faith … not luck.

Pick up your Bible today and read about the life and times of Jesus as found in the four Gospels. Without exception, we hear Jesus saying to those he healed from physical and emotional afflictions, that they had been made well because of their faith. Have faith, and one can be healed. Have faith, and one can move a mountain. Have faith, and one can be set free.

Ask anyone who has ever visited the miraculous Grotto at Lourdes about their experience. Over and over again you will hear them say, “It is a place of prayer. It is a place of peace. It is a place of faith.” The three key words are prayer, peace, and faith. If a person wants the peace any miraculous healing can bring, then one must pray with a faith-filled heart.

In few weeks from now the world will celebrate the anniversary of Our Blessed Mother’s first apparition at Lourdes to Saint Bernadette. On that day thousands of people from all over the world will pray at the “Sacred Grotto of Miracles,” and if you look into the faces of those thousands of people you will see faith-filled faces.

At Lourdes one never hears anyone talk about luck, but only about faith. The millions who visit Lourdes each year are men and woman of faith, and even those who may not be receiving the cure they were seeking, they will still tell you that they left Lourdes with a sense of peace in their hearts. And thus in a unique way, they were still touched by the grace of Lourdes. Faith always has its rewards, and whatever those unexpected gifts may be, they are always quite satisfying. No one leaves Lourdes empty handed.

In writing you today, I’m presuming that you probably will not be able to pilgrimage to Lourdes to personally participate in the February 11th feast day commemoration. However, that is no reason why you can’t celebrate the great anniversary from the comfort of your own home.

You can do this by writing and checking on the enclosed form each of the special personal needs you would personally want prayed for if you found yourself kneeling before the Sacred Lourdes Grotto on February 11.

I want you to send me your prayer petitions so they can be prayed for here at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Shrine in our Annual Lourdes Mass Novena. A copy of your prayer petitions will also be sent to Lourdes to be placed in the prayer vault located within the Lourdes Grotto.

So while you may not be able to travel to Lourdes, your prayer petitions for better health, for freedom from worry and anxiety, for financial security, for peace of mind, or a cure from a serious illness can still rest at Our Lady’s feet in the Lourdes Grotto.

I pray that you have the faith needed to turn to Our Lady of Lourdes and ask that you might receive, to seek that you might find, and to knock that the door to a better and a much more peace-filled life be yours in the weeks ahead.

When sending me your Lourdes Mass Novena prayer petitions, please also consider enclosing a donation in support of the education of our dedicated seminarians. If you are able to give a donation of $25 or more, I'd like to show my appreciation by sending to you, in return, a beautiful Lourdes statue, identical to the one pictured on the enclosed form.