The Hidden Power of the Hail mary Part 2

OUR LADY

How does Our Lady tie into this? Simple, Mary is the reason Satan fell from heaven. Satan, was once called Lucifer, the Guardian of Light. He was the greatest of all God’s creation outside the Holy Trinity.

When it was revealed to him that a young woman, The Virgin Mary, would bear the Savior and become the Guardian of the Light of the World, Lucifer could not stand it. He refused to bow down to a mere mortal woman who would surpass him in glory, majesty and proximity to the most Holy Trinity. He rebelled, attempted to overthrow the Trinity.

When he was cast from Heaven into hell, he made us his new target for his assaults because we bear the image of God in our very being. Women, in a very special way, reflect the Virgin Mother. As men, we hold a very dear place in the heart of Mary as her own sons.

PERFECT WILL, PERFECT OBEDIENCE

Being the guardian of the Light of World, Mary is intimately involved in the story of each of our lives through her perfect obedience to the will of the Father. Where Satan pledged unending disobedience and rebellion, Mary pledged perfect obedience and assistance in being a light in our lives, gently guiding us back to the Father through her Son.

She too wishes to see us flourish and become full and complete human beings. Like St. Irenaus, Mary too knows the “glory of God is man fully alive!” and she participates in making that a reality.

BRUISING HIS HEAD, CRUSHING HIS PLANS

In order to do this, Our Lady, crushes the head of the serpent. She aims for his head because the head is the place of supreme intellect where we process thoughts, convictions, beliefs, even desires and passions. If you get inside someone’s head you control them.

In any sport, the main strategy is not only to wear the opposition down physically, but to mentally depose them. Once you break their will to win, the body will follow suit. The famed NFL cornerback Charles Woodson said it best, “If you believe you’re going to lose, you’ve already lost.”[1]

Satan, while he cannot read our thoughts, does anything and everything to mess with our head and tear us down. He will use any and every wound you have suffered to keep you trapped in bondage, in a prison of hopelessness and despair. Then he will make you believe this is exactly what you deserve. He will hold the past in front of you like a TV screen, blaring out your weaknesses, fears, wounds, rejections. Perhaps his greatest lie is “This is the best you can do!” Because frankly, hell, lovelessness, loneliness, the past, envy and pride is the best he can do.

The beautiful news is where Satan sows these lies, deceptions, accusations and despair, frankly, where he sows darkness, Mary, the Guardian of the Light of the World, brings truth, healing and hope. In a word, Mary crushes these lies under the weight of her Immaculate Heart and she brings her Son, the Light of all Life to bind up these wounds and bring us back home to him.

Let me share a true story with you regarding this:

A friend of mine suffered from a wound he could not get over for years on end. Desperate, he sought the help of The Virgin. One day, while in prayer, in his mind, he saw himself as a child and the wound made manifest on his forearm. Frightened of how ugly it looked, he was ready to end his meditation. In that moment, he saw Our Lady come to him and she gently caressed his forearm, placed healing ointment on it and wrapped it in a pure white cloth. Then he saw her place her hand on it and through her intercession it was made whole.

THE EFFECT OF THE BLOW TO HIS HEAD

She knows all too well the wounds we have suffered and the ache for redemption within our hearts. To answer that, she crushes Satan’s plan for our lives!

Every Hail Mary is a blow to Satan’s agenda for us. The Hail Mary is an act of us freely giving Mary permission to replace what is evil in our lives with the greatest good imaginable, her Son. Thorns are replaced with roses, lies and deception with truth, anger with joy, hatred with love. Where Satan’s plan once stood, now stands the cross of her Son, given to us freely so we can live freely in him.

Every Hail Mary brings the truth that will set us free to be fully ourselves. It is the truth about you, me, our dignity, even the truth about our past failings. So many of us stay in the dark hiding from the truth because of fear. As long as we remain there, we will never be free. However, the Hail Mary crushes Satan’s plan to keep us in bondage.

The Hail Mary is a prayer of surrendering the past to her Immaculate Hands. She takes the knots of our lives, untangles them, and illumines the darkness with the light of her Immaculate Love, which Satan can never darken.

This light she brings welcomes us to move beyond the past and into the beautiful present and magnificent future she desires us to embrace. It is asking her to bring us to the Father’s plan of giving us all a second chance (a future), a new start (a hope) and to bring the deepest desires of our hearts to fulfillment (I know the plans I have for you says the Lord!) All she needs from us is our permission!

No matter where you are in life, let’s give it all to her and allow her light of life to reign supreme in our lives!

[1] Big Ten Elite 1997 Michigan Football, BTN Staff, 2012. http://btn.com/2012/10/02/big-ten-eilte-spotlights-michingan-team/