Vicka of Medjugorje: the value of suffering before God

Question: Vicka, Our Lady has been visiting this land for years now and has given us a lot. Some pilgrims, however, only limit themselves to "asking" and do not always listen to Mary's question: "What do you give me?". What is your experience in this sense? VICKA: Man is constantly looking for something. If we ask true and sincere love from Mary who is our mother, she is always ready to give it to us, but in return she also expects something from us. I feel that today, in a special way, we are living in a time of great graces, in which man is invited not only to ask but also to thank and give. We are not yet aware of how much joy we feel in the offer. If I sacrifice myself for the Gospa (because you ask me) without looking for anything for myself, and then ask for something for others, I feel a special joy in my heart and I see that Our Lady is happy. Maria rejoices both when you give and when you receive. Man must pray and, through prayer, give himself: the rest will be given to him at the right time. Question: Generally, however, in suffering man seeks a way out or a remedy. VICKA: Our Lady has explained many times that when God gives us a cross - sickness, suffering, etc. - must be received as a great gift. He knows why he entrusts it to us and when he will take it back: the Lord only seeks our patience. In this regard, however, the Gospa says: “When the gift of the cross arrives, you are not ready to welcome it, you always say: but why me and not someone else? If instead you start to thank and pray saying: Lord, thank you for this gift. If you still have something to give me, I'm ready to accept it; but please give me the strength to carry my cross with patience and love ... peace will enter you. You cannot even imagine how much your suffering has value in the eyes of God! ”. It is very important to pray for all people who find it hard to accept the cross: they need our prayers, and with our life and example we can do a lot. Question: Sometimes there are moral or spiritual sufferings that you don't know how to handle. What have you learned from the Gospa in these years? VICKA: I must say that I am personally very happy, because I feel a great joy inside me and so much peace. Partly it is my merit, because I want to be happy, but above all it is the love of the Madonna that makes me so. Mary asks us for simplicity, humility, modesty ... As far as I can, I try wholeheartedly to offer others what Our Lady gives me. Question: In your testimony you often say that when Our Lady took you to see paradise, you went through a kind of "passage". But I believe that if we offer ourselves and wish to go beyond suffering, the passage is also present in our souls, isn't it so? VICKA: Of course! Gospa said that paradise is already lived here on earth, and then simply continues. But that "passage" is very important: if I live paradise here and feel it inside my heart, I will be ready to die at any moment when God calls me, without placing any conditions on it. He wishes to find us ready every day, although nobody knows when it will happen. Then the "great passage" is nothing other than our readiness. But there are also those who resist and fight against the idea of ​​death. This is why God with suffering offers him a chance: he gives him the time and grace to win his inner battle. Question: But sometimes fear prevails. VICKA: Yes, but fear doesn't come from God! Once the Gospa said: “If you feel joy, love, satisfaction in your heart, it means that these feelings come from God. But if you experience restlessness, dissatisfaction, hatred, tension, you must know that they come from somewhere else ”. For this reason we must always discern it, and as soon as the restlessness begins to turn around in the mind, heart and soul, we must immediately throw it out. The best weapon to drive it away is the crown of the Rosary in the hands, the prayer made with love ”. Question: You talk about the Rosary, but there are different ways of praying ... VICKA: Definitely. But what the Gospa recommends is the s. Rosario, and if you suggest it, it means that you are pleased! However, any prayer is good if it is prayed with the heart. Question: Can you talk about silence? VICKA: It is not very easy for me because I am almost never silent! Not because you don't love him, on the contrary, I consider him very good: in silence man can question his conscience, he can gather and listen to God. But my mission is to meet people and everyone expects a word from me. The greatest silence is created when, at a certain point in the testimony, I invite people to remain silent, while I pray for all their problems and difficulties. This moment lasts about 15 to 20 minutes, sometimes even half an hour. Nowadays man does not have time to stop to pray in silence, so I propose that experience, so that everyone can find himself a little and look inside himself. Then, slowly, consciousness will bear fruit. People say they are very happy because in those moments they feel good, as if they were in paradise. Question: It seems to me, however, that sometimes, when these moments of "eternity" end, people start talking loudly and distracting themselves, dispersing the grace they had received in prayer ... VICKA: Unfortunately! In this regard, the Gospa says: "Many times the man listens to my message with one ear and then makes it come out of the other, while nothing remains in his heart!". The ears are not important, but the heart: if man wishes to change himself, he has many possibilities here; if, on the other hand, he always seeks the best for himself, remaining selfish, he nullifies the words of the Madonna. Question: Tell me about Maria's silence: how are your meetings with her today: pray? converse? VICKA: Most of the time our meetings are made up only of prayer. Our Lady loves to pray the Creed, our Father, the Glory to the Father ... We also sing together: we are not very silent! Before Maria spoke more, but now she prefers prayer. Question: You mentioned joy first. Man today is in great need of it, but often finds himself sad and dissatisfied. What do you suggest? VICKA: If we pray with a sincere heart that the Lord will give us joy, we will not miss it. In 94 I had a small accident: to save my grandmother and a grandchild from the fire, I got burned. It was a really bad situation: the flames had taken my arms, my torso, my face, my head ... At the hospital in Mostar they immediately told me that I needed a plastic operation. As the ambulance ran, I said to my mother and sister: sing a little! They reacted surprises: but how can you sing right now, do you see that you are disfigured? Then I replied: but rejoice, thank God! When I arrived at the hospital, they informed me that they would not touch anything ... A friend seeing me said: you are really ugly, how can you stay like this? But I replied serenely: if God wants it to remain so, I will accept it in peace. On the other hand, if you want everything to heal completely, it means that this episode was a gift for me to save the grandmother and the child. It also means that I am at the beginning of my mission, in which I only have to serve God. Trust me: after a month there was nothing left, not even a small scar! I was really happy. Everyone was saying to me: did you look in the mirror? And I replied: no and I won't ... I look inside myself: I know my mirror is there! If man prays with his heart and with love, he will never miss joy. But today we are increasingly busy with things that are not important, and we flee from what gives joy and happiness. If families put material things first, they will never be able to hope for joy, because matter takes it away; but if they want God to be the light, the center and the king of the family, they must not fear: there will be joy. Our Lady is sad, however, because today Jesus is in last place in families, or even, he is not there at all! Question: Maybe we sometimes exploit Jesus, or we want him to be as we expect. VICKA: It's not so much an exploitation as a showdown. In the face of different situations it happens that we say: “But I could do this alone! Why do I have to look for God if sometimes I can be in the first place? ". It is an illusion, since it is not given to us to go before God; but He is so good and simple that He allows us - as we do with a child - because He knows that sooner or later we return to Him. God gives man complete freedom, but remains open and always awaits his return. You see how many pilgrims come here every day. Personally I will never say to someone: “You must do this or that, you must believe, you must know Our Lady… If you ask me, I will tell you, otherwise, stay in your free will. But be careful that you are not here by chance, because you have been called by the Gospa. This is a call. And therefore, if Our Lady brought you here, it means that she is waiting for something from you too! You have to find out for yourself what you expect in your heart. " Question: Tell us about young people. You often mention them in your testimonials. VICKA: Yes, because young people are in a very, very difficult situation. Our Lady says that we can only help them with our love and prayer; while to them he says: “Dear young people, all that the world offers you today passes. Be careful: Satan wishes to use every free moment for himself. " At this time the devil is particularly active among young people and in families, which he increasingly wants to destroy. Question: How does the devil act in families? VICKA: Families are in danger because there is no more dialogue, there is no more prayer, there is nothing! This is why Our Lady wishes that prayer be renewed in the family: she asks that parents pray with their children and children with parents, so that Satan is disarmed. This is the basis of the family: prayer. If parents had time for their children, there would be no problem; but today parents leave their children to themselves to have more time for themselves and for many nonsense, and do not understand that children are lost. Question: Thank you. Do you want to add something? VICKA: I will pray for all of you, especially for the readers of the Echo of Mary: I will introduce you to Our Lady. The Queen of Peace bless you with her peace and her love.