Some Guidance from Vassula to TLIG Prayer Groups
I take this opportunity to give you some instructions for TLIG «prayer groups»:
I wish to inform all readers and prayer groups of True Life in God how we live a True Life in God based on the Mind of Christ, so that we become like Him and follow His ways. Inthe messages and the spirituality of True Life in God we are learning to be: compassionate, self-effaced, little, humble, patient, tolerant, meek, gentle, united, weak in the sense of Jesus, and totally abandoned in Christ. We like to be like children.
You want to grow in the love of God? Repay evil with love; love one another. Then become a witness and you can attract thousands in the teachings of True Life in God. Jesus taught me how to read the Bible and He Himself explained it to me. I am His pupil. By explaining it to me He explains it to all those who read True Life in God. Jesus gives us what is necessary for our conversion for our times. We noticed that those who read, by underlining passages of True Life in God, and re-read 2, 3, 4, 5 times the messages from the beginning each time they were the ones that today are the greatest apostles of True Life in God, and have produced abundant good fruit to offer to our dear Lord. They have created very easily prayer groups because they were formed as I was formed in the spirit of True Life in God and they stand firm. I have noticed that the followers of True Life in God are also people who are very, very strong. Strong in the sense of facing opposition and persecution and of how to deal with these; this of course is given by the Spirit.
If anyone prepares a prayer group, they should have always in mind what St. Paul had said: «There must be no competition among you, no conceit, but everybody is to be self-effacing. Always consider the other person to be better than yourself…. In your minds you must be the same as Jesus Christ.»
If God wants to give a charism, no one would stop Him and He would give it. But if you desire it the evil one might come. So, one has to be on the watch. In fact, even if we think we have obtained by grace a charism or a mystical favour, one has to deny it and reject it and fight against it in the beginning and if it is not from God it leaves and if it is from God it doubles in its power. (I had been chasing away Jesus for about 3 months in the beginning after I had been told that it could be the devil…)
When people ask me if I have the gift of healing, I say, «I do not have it.» I do not heal, although there are healing all the time. I am not healing even the ones that were miraculously healed from cancer and from all sorts of deadly diseases. I know that it is not I and I just cannot say I have this gift. I always say: I did not heal and I have not the gift of healing. If anyone gets healed it is because of their faith and the Holy Spirit who is the giver of Life who has healed them… He is the Healer, not I, I have nothing and have done nothing and deserve nothing….
The one who imposes his hands on people should remain small and humble, effaced, knowing that it is not in his power this blessing but in the Spirit’s power. The maximum humility is being nothing.
I would like though to warn your groups of certain things that can develop and destroy the group. If a group is shallow and would never expand, but would diminish, or, would lose interest and would start following other messages that were not even coming from God. It could be that they have not read meditatively the messages — and not opened the Scriptures either — to grow in sanctity and be imbued by the love of God, and so they would dry up. They would be of those who focused and talked only about events, dates signs, etc.
What made these people return to their first stage just like before their conversion? We found out that it was those who never were rooted in Christ, not relied on grace for inner strength, but relied on their own strength. They never read the messages which are contemplative and which teach you to be in silent prayer with God and feel His presence, to which God elevates the soul and unites it in His love. Scriptures warns us telling us : «Always be wanting peace with all people and the holiness without which no one can ever see the Lord. Be careful that no one is deprived of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness should begin to grow and make trouble; this can poison a whole community.» (Heb 12:14-15) So, imitate Jesus. God himself has said : «I will not fail you or desert you». Where there is love there is God.
Remember that conversion is the biggest miracle of all.
Vassula, December 8, 1998