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Anything Is Possible

If You Believe

Joseph Corallo

Evergreen Publishing

ISBN # 0-9731959-1-6

Copyright 2003 by Heavenly Broadcasts All rights reserved

[email protected]

Contents Introduction…………………………………………....................5 Anything Is Possible If You Believe…………………………….7 Are You Strong Enough To Love?..........................................9 Life Is The Greatest Adventure There Is…………………….11 Give Me Words Of Peace……………………………………..13 My Smiling Angel……………………………………………….14 Hope of the Future……………………………………………...15 The Garden Of Love……………………………………………16 A Lifetime Of Opportunities……………………………………18 I Can’t Help Loving You………………………………………..20 I Am Glad To Be Just Me………………………………………22 Choice……………………………………………………………24 Programmed To Be Free………………………………………26 No Walls Are Too Thick For My Love To Penetrate………..28 The Greatest Thrill There Is…………………………………..30 To Be Or Not To Be, That Is The Question………………….32 If Things Had Been Different………………………………….34 Bigger Than The Universe…………………………………….36 Paradise Found…………………………………………………37

Anything Is Possible If You Believe

INTRODUCTION In this booklet, you will find prayers, commentaries on various spiritual subjects, as well as writings which I have called “heavenly broadcasts”. These are what I personally feel to be messages which God communicated to me from the spirit world. I believe that our loving Heavenly Father tries to communicate with all of His children if we only believe, ask and learn to connect to His Spirit. I do not consider my writing to be the result of my own wisdom and intelligence, but rather a gift from God simply because He loves me. He has given me the desire to write these things. The thoughts that He puts in my mind and the words He inspires me to say feed my soul in a very special way and remind me that help from heaven is only one step away. Life has taught me that there is much to gain by being grateful for all the things I have, but there is very little to be achieved by complaining about what I may be missing. But sometimes I get overwhelmed by the problems and difficulties in my life, and I seem to forget how special and beautiful life really is. I get too involved in the affairs of this world, spending a lot of time, energy and resources doing things that don’t necessarily need to be done and buying things that I don’t necessarily need to have. At times, I spread myself so thinly that I don’t have a lot of time or strength left to do all the things that I believe we should all really be doing, and that is to learn about our Creator and His great love for us. We do not need to have a lot of money to be happy, to help people and to make a difference in the world. We can do it by learning how to use our hearts and our minds. To achieve our full potential and do our very best, we have to use both mind and heart. We need our minds to give us the will to help us do things, and we need our hearts to inspire us to love and to show that we care. Some time ago, I decided that if God was as wonderful as I thought He was, I would love Him every day for the rest of my life, and if He was as magnificent and powerful and loving as I imagined Him to be, then my greatest desire and ambition in life would be to want to know all about Him and His love. If God is worthy of being loved at all, He is worthy of being loved every single moment of my life with all of my heart. If He is going to be believed at all, He is worthy of being believed with all of my mind. And if He is to be followed and served at all, He is worthy of being followed and served all the way and with all of my strength. The last article in the booklet is a condensed account of my life in Italy, where at the age of 19, I experienced something that would change my life forever. My desire is that people find true peace and happiness. I hope that this booklet, “Anything Is Possible If You Believe”, will inspire you to make good choices in your life.

ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE IF YOU BELIEVE You can change your future depending on what you decide to believe in. Building your life is the greatest and most important task you could ever have, because whatever you become will have an impact on the world. If you have faith, it will inspire your every thought and action and help you to accomplish what you never thought possible. Faith requires trust, and trust has to be founded on the truth. In order to have a strong, solid foundation, you have to believe that what your faith is based on is the truth. But cheating and lying for personal gain has become so popular nowadays that it makes it almost impossible to trust and believe in anyone or anything. So the question remains, who and what should we believe in? Our good thoughts and good ideas and the joy and love that we feel in our hearts all come from Above and are put there for a reason: to help us have faith and to believe that we are special and important. Knowing that God believes in me inspires me to believe in myself and also to see the good in others. Being loved and accepted by Someone as great and powerful as He is has made me able to accept and love others too. Because He has helped me to see how special I am, I can see that others are special too. And He has never asked me for a thing except to love and thank Him in return. I realize that what bothered me the most about problems I had in the past was not so much the problem itself but not understanding why it happened, therefore becoming angry at myself or others or even God because of it. Having faith will not change the things that happen to me, because I will always have problems and difficulties. But faith will help me to see things differently. My belief in His promises is how I know that my future will be bright and wonderful and that things can only get better for me. The moment you believe, you will start to see. You won’t see first and then believe, because seeing is the reward for believing. Faith is positive, never negative. If you doubt in your mind, you are already defeated even before you start, because without faith, you will never get what you want. Faith knows no fear. You either have faith or fear, one or the other, and you can’t have both at the same time. Faith sees life not as it is but as it should be. Faith has nothing to do with feelings, emotions or circumstances, because those things are all as unreliable as the weather; they change continuously. You can be happy about yourself in spite of your failures, mistakes and imperfections, if you trust the unconditional, unchangeable, unmovable, indisputable, infinite love of God, which is forever true and forever lasting, and if you know that He will love you forever and will work things out for you. Faith inspires love, and love is the most important thing of all, because love is what everyone needs. If you have love, you can’t go wrong. True love doesn’t cheat, steal, kill or hurt anyone. On the contrary, love has healing power, healing everything that it touches. It creates, and it builds up.

You have the privilege and opportunity, if you choose to, of helping to create heaven on earth by changing human hearts, thereby fulfilling your mission on earth. The alternative is to live as you please and do as you wish, forever learning but never actually coming to understand. Like a small stream joining other small streams, which together become a river and finally join the huge sea and become one with it, so it is when you show love to others and work together with them in harmony, believing and accepting God’s love and becoming one with Him.

ARE YOU STRONG ENOUGH TO LOVE?

There was a time when I believed that my way was the best way, and I thought that pride, greed, anger and aggression were all virtues, characteristics to be proud of. I believed that in order to be successful in life and make it to the top, I had to be strong and tough, and if I wanted to look cool and earn respect, I had to not only make people love me but fear me as well.

I believed that love was like a sickness and that being good and nice was a

weakness of the mind, like a disease, something to be avoided. I only cared about myself, and I trusted no one but myself. But I only ended up building walls all around me, shutting out God’s beauty and love that I had known as a child but had somehow forgotten. I wanted so much to be happy and enjoy life, but I was anything but happy, and I was not enjoying what I was doing.

Then one day I met a girl with a sweet and peaceful smile on her face who told

me about the true power of love. Her words were kind and gentle, and listening to her was like being cured of my own deception. It worked like a medicine, healing my wounded heart. I began to believe that pure love had real power and that it takes a lot of strength to love, to give, to forgive and to say, “I am sorry.” I knew it was easy to hate, but could I be strong enough to love?

This was a new idea for me, and I wanted to see for myself if the idea could

possibly become a reality in my life, so I asked God to help me to do things right and to help me to love. I started doing exactly the opposite of what I was used to doing, and the more I loved and helped people, the happier I became! Then I started thinking how wonderful it would be if everyone could just do that, just love one another. What a beautiful world that would create! I don’t think that we would have very many enemies if all we did was show love to people and care for one another.

But I still had some questions in my mind about the existence of God, and I was hoping to see some kind of sign to encourage me. I looked to the stars, hoping I would see something miraculous, and I wished that an angel would visit me in my dreams like happened to Joseph, but none of those ever occurred and I felt a bit let down and disappointed, wondering why God didn’t answer me. But then I understood that maybe I had asked God for the wrong thing. Instead of asking him for proof, something to see so that I might believe, I should have asked him to help me to believe first, so that then I could see what I needed to see. After that wonderful thought entered my mind, I began to discover things that only faith could help me to see. I came to realize that no matter how hard I tried to figure out and explain everything, there would always be things that I could not understand or explain, because some things are meant to be accepted and believed only by faith.

LIFE IS THE GREATEST ADVENTURE THERE IS

(Prayer:)

One lifetime is hardly enough time to thank You for all that You have done for

me. That is why time is so precious to me. Each moment that passes is an opportunity to show You my love and gratitude. Since You have given me Your very best and withheld nothing from me, I too will give You my best and will withhold nothing from You.

You have shown me so much more than I could ever have hoped for, and You

have taught me a great many things that my mind could never have understood on its own. I cannot keep silent about what I know anymore. I have swum too far from shore to ever be able to come back. I have become lost in Your immense love; I am drowning in Your goodness and mercy. I have bathed myself in Your sweetness and love; there I find comfort and joy. I have tasted and seen that You are good, and I will never depart from You.

If I am going to love You as You love me, then I have to love You all the way and

love You unconditionally with all of my heart. If You are worth being believed and served, then You are worth being believed and served with all of my mind and with all of my strength. I will not wait until I am retired and have lots of time nor until I have a lot of money and am living comfortably before I start serving You. Besides, by that time I may be too old and tired to do much for You. I may even be sick or dead, who knows?

It has been my joy and privilege to give You the best that I’ve had: my youth and

my strength, the best years of my life. I would rather live as a poor man but be rich in spirit than to live as a rich man but be poor in spirit. I do not mind dying with nothing if I know I have a treasure waiting for me on the Other Side. That is better than dying with riches but not even knowing where I will be going.

He has turned my dreams into reality, And made my heart’s desires come true. He has quenched all of my thirst, With His Living Word; My cup is running over. He has given me love, peace and joy as my companions, And together we are having a wonderful time! Life is the greatest adventure there is! It doesn’t matter what others think, say or do, As for me, I have a job to do, And that is to love someone like you!


GIVE ME WORDS OF PEACE (Prayer:) Give me words of peace, so that I may defuse all guns and bombs around me. Give me words of hope, so that I may begin rebuilding and repairing again. Give me words of love, so that I may put an end to hate. Give me words of faith, so that I may cast out fear. Give me words of thankfulness, so that I may show my gratitude to all those around me. Give me words of truth, so that I may fill the hungry hearts and satisfy the thirsty souls. Give me the right words to make others happy, because a voice that speaks the truth can heal wounds, and sweet is the sound of a word spoken in love. Lips that proclaim compassion are sweeter than honey, and a tongue that advocates mercy is better than sacrifice. Our mouths declare whatever things our hearts are full of, and our eyes cannot lie about what we feel inside. We cannot stop bad thoughts from entering our mind, but we can decide which ones we allow to remain. We have the power to have a positive impact on the world by choosing to live a meaningful life.


MY SMILING ANGEL I am glad that I have been given a heart that is not too proud to accept Your

loving kindness and a spirit that is not too cold and hard to receive Your warmth and gentle truth. I am blessed beyond words, because You have shown me how I can reflect Your joy and love to others, and You have revealed to me the secret of how wonderful it is to share everything that You give me.

When I picture my angel’s gentle and joyful face smiling down on me, I feel

secure and at peace, because I know that means You are happy and pleased with me. Her sweet smile is the most precious gift I could ever receive, more desirable than the finest of all jewels. It is like the entire world is smiling whenever I picture her loving smile, and it doesn’t seem to matter anymore what may lie ahead for me. I will rejoice and be glad, for as long as I still have her smiling face, my reward is still with me.

Her smile is the result of Your love for me, and it is more alive and vibrant and

powerful than all creation, speaking more clearly than words. Her smile is the perfect remedy for my troubles and worries, working like a medicine to cure me from my pains and heartaches and relieve me from stress and fear. It takes only one good thought entering my mind and reaching down into my heart to turn my frown upside down into a smile.

Wear anything you like,

But nothing will look as beautiful As the smile you can wear.

Every time I see someone give me a happy smile, It inspires me for weeks,

To say the least. You can smile all you want!

The more the better! I will never get tired of seeing

The joy on your face. A smile is a sign of a grateful heart,

And the world would be a much happier place, If everyone would give more smiles,

So smile!

HOPE OF THE FUTURE

(Written to someone special I met in the park one day): When I think about people like you, so sweet and kind, I have no doubt that you must be the reason the world is still turning. I am convinced that love like yours and a desire to do good in life such as you possess has a lot to do with the Earth’s survival, because a gentle spirit and tender heart are Heaven’s delight. I can picture God’s angels being moved with compassion, pleading to our loving King to help you grow and learn and be able to fulfill your mission in life. You are like a signal light placed in a high tower to guide someone who is lost in darkness. You are their only hope, because by seeing you, they will be able to find their way home. Your presence is bright, warm and shining like the sun, slowly melting the ice-cold surface, uncovering life and beauty underneath, reaching down to the very soul, inspiring and stimulating growth again. It is for your sake that the world and everything in it was created, because from the very beginning, Someone big and powerful loved you so much. You, and others like you, are the hope of the future.


THE GARDEN OF LOVE (Inspired by my daughter:) There is a splendid, magnificent garden that is like no other garden, because in this particular garden, there is a special saying: anything is possible, and miracles do happen every day. Not everyone is able to find this garden, unless they first believe in their heart that such a garden really exists. In the Garden of Love, everything grows easily, because the soil is soft and fertile. The grass is bright green, the trees are strong and healthy and the water flowing in the rivers is crystal clear. Each plant and every flower gives thanks to the friendly, refreshing water, displaying their beauty and colour toward it, because it is satisfying all their thirst. There is no sign of contamination, pollution or disease in all of My garden, and the air is fresh and pure. You can enjoy all kinds of delicious fruits in My garden of love. I don’t use any chemicals or pesticides, so all My products are naturally healthy. The food that I give you to eat is full of vitamins and minerals, high in fibre, and containing all the nutrients you need to fill all of your hunger. Likewise, anyone who drinks from the water that I will give them will never thirst again. My greatest desire is to see that everyone who eats and drinks from My garden is happy and satisfied. What is the garden of love? It is My Spirit within your heart. I am your loving Heavenly Father who likes to plant good seeds of love and truth into your heart to bring you peace and joy. My words have the power to give you all that you need, to set you free from all types of fear and to expose all the lies of your great adversary, the enemy of your soul, whose job is to corrupt and destroy you with his bad seeds of discontent, deceit and hate. He too likes trying to sow his seeds, his negative seeds of discouragement and fear, into your heart by way of your thoughts, in order to slowly poison you, weaken you and make you ineffective. But be strong and of good courage, because it is true that in My garden, anything is possible, and miracles do happen everyday. Anything Is Possible If You Believe All you have to do is ask Me to help you, and I will continue to sow My good seeds into your heart, so that with your gratitude and humility, your garden will be as magnificent and splendid as it can be.

Let love make your heart flourish in softness and gentleness,

Bending graciously in humility and tenderness.

Make your life the most magnificent garden of love, By allowing My words of truth to penetrate deep into your heart.

Like the roots of an oak tree, they will never depart. Anything is possible in My garden of love,

And miracles do happen every day, If you only believe and pray.


A LIFETIME OF OPPORTUNITIES

(Prayer for a friend:)

Look how beautiful and sweet she is and the way she thinks of others and cares

for them. Remember neither her faults nor her shortcomings, but think of her tenderness and the love that she has for You, and in Your mercy, oh God, grant her strength and wisdom. You understand her better than I do, because You look deep into her thoughts and know her heart’s desires.

You are also aware of the passion and desire that she has to learn about You

and Your Word. Remember the joy You felt upon seeing her take her first steps in life and the pleasure it gave You when You heard her saying her first words and how You watched her grow and mature step by step throughout her life.

I wish I could help her and tell her in one instant everything I know about You so

that she too could feel the joy that You give and could know that You are real. I ask You to help her remember for the rest of her life the spiritual experiences that You are going to give her and to always consider Your loving Words.

My desire is that she will be surrounded by Your invincible spirit, so that she can

be victorious over the evil and the negative forces of this world and can continue to learn and receive Your wonderful Words of truth. Give her special gifts to help her to distinguish the truth from the lies, and bless her with faith and the wisdom to know how to choose between right and wrong and the conviction to follow Your leadings. (Heavenly Broadcast :)

Look at My creation: the plants, the trees, the birds and every living and non-living thing I have made on the face of the earth. I made it all, but that does not mean that you should embrace all of it, because some things are harmful and dangerous and are not meant to be touched and are meant to be stayed away from. And it is the same in the spiritual world as it is in the physical world. If you ask

Me to help you, I can give you all the answers and show you everything that you need to know, better than anyone else can. I love you, and I would never do anything that would cause you harm.

I want you to know that no matter what you have done, you can always trust Me

never to turn My back on you, because My desire is for all My children to be saved. Believe me! Let My love flow into your heart, and let Me teach you wisdom. If you choose to do My will, then when you come to Heaven some day, it will be like coming back home. It is in your best interest that you take advantage of life’s opportunities to learn to do good and that you make it a habit to love, share and live in harmony with one another.


I CAN’T HELP LOVING YOU

(Inspired by someone I met downtown) (Heavenly Broadcast:)

You are just such a beautiful human being, and I love you so much. I love being

with you, listening to you, communicating with you, seeing you smile and hearing you laugh. I am not bothered by your variety of opinions, and I like the fact that you’re so inquisitive. I find your curiosity and questions rather cute, like a little child that asks so that he can learn and know. The more he asks, the more he learns, and the more he learns, the more he asks.

It is not a terrible thing if you have a little doubt about this or that or if you are a

little confused about who and what to believe or have questions about whether the Bible is true. I can joyfully accept all your sincere questions and reservations, and I am willing to patiently explain to you what you don’t understand and help you see the truth.

But for your own good, do not let your doubts become criticisms and your

questions turn into accusations as if you were My judge. Cynicism is like a barrier surrounding the very thing that you are trying to reach. It can cause your heart to become bitter and hateful, and when that happens, there is less chance that My Spirit can come in.

You were created to love and to be loved. When you start to love Me with all your

heart, soul and mind, you will also start to receive from Me all the things you need to be truly happy. But if you choose not to include Me in your life, if your main focus in life is just yourself, you will never be satisfied, and you will keep seeking for more and keep searching without end. I have created you in such a way that once your spirit unites with My Spirit, you will be satisfied and will find real peace and happiness.

My little child, be not troubled or afraid, because I love you, and I always will, and no one can take you from Me.

You are the very reason I came to Earth, so that I could become human too, so that I could better understand you and how you feel. I experienced the same emotions as you feel, the same need to love and to be loved, and the same weaknesses and temptations, but at the same time, I had the divine power to overcome those weaknesses and temptations.

I couldn’t help loving you from the start. No sacrifice could ever have been too

much for Me, because the thought of having you with Me for all Eternity is what kept Me going. Can you visualize the magnitude of My great love for you? My love knows no boundaries. I wanted to show you that I really loved you, so I was willing to go any place, risk everything and pay any price, and that is exactly what I did. It cost Me My life. I was not only willing to love you in words but in deed as well, and I have the scars to prove it. My blood was shed for your Salvation. I paid the ultimate price, and I fulfilled My mission.

Those who choose to believe in Me and who choose to love Me will be filled and

satisfied, and they will live forever with Me and My Father in Our Heavenly Kingdom.


I AM GLAD TO BE JUST ME

I really enjoy being who I am. I like the way I look and think, and I am very pleased with every part of me. I wouldn’t want to be anybody else but me. And what gives me the greatest satisfaction in life are the unfolding mysteries of the universe, the marvellous wonders of creation and the miracles of life, because those things make me realize that there is more to life than what my eyes can see.

The compelling desire in my soul to search for my God is what gives me a

refreshing outlook on life and hope for tomorrow. Believing that behind the intricate precision of our universe there is an Architect and Designer is the greatest discovery of all, because it reassures me that there is hope for eternal life and that death is not the end, but only the beginning.

To live a life without faith and hope is like having winter all the time, with no

spring or summer, and no harvest time. It is like labouring with no pay or suffering with no rejoicing, with no fruit and no reward, because everything will be lost and dead in the end. As the day must rest at night and the sun must rise in the morning, so must we children of men rise and look to our God, the King of Heaven, to give us guidance and direction. (Heavenly Broadcast:)

You have been given the greatest privilege and opportunity: to live life on earth,

to learn about love and to experience a personal and close relationship with Me. At the same time, the pains and sorrows and joys that life brings you will help you to grow and to become wiser. It is a slow process, and it will take time for you to grasp things. But I am not worrying about you at all, because I know you, and I would not have put you here in this world if I wasn’t sure you could do it.

Anything Is Possible If You Believe I know who loves Me and who doesn’t, who has accepted Me and who has

rejected Me. Some fruits mature sooner than others, but the others will be ready soon, when the time for them comes. So be patient with yourself and have faith in others, as I have in you, and know that I will always be watching over you.

This is what is so special about me:

I know that God really loves me, And this is the reason I can always be

Happy just being me.

I don’t need expensive clothes, nor a fancy car, Nor a big mansion, nor precious jewels,

For God’s love and beauty are enough for me. His goodness and mercy are as precious jewels to me,

And I shall dwell in the presence of the Lord forever.

If you are ever in need of anything, Whisper it in your dreams and prayers,

And He will reach you at the speed of thought.


CHOICE (Prayer:)

Thank You, for giving meaning to my life and making each day, each hour and

each second worth living for. My greatest joy and satisfaction comes in knowing that I am not alone in this world and that You are always with me. I am especially grateful to You for revealing to me Your wonderful love and for including me in Your plans, that You have some use for me, and that I can serve a purpose in this life.

I am beginning to understand why life is so full of choices: they are like vehicles

that take us forward or backward depending on which choices we make. You have left the choices in life up to us. I have the free will to do whatever I want to do and to see what works and what doesn’t. I can learn by experiencing things personally.

You have given us the freedom and opportunity to find answers either the easy

way or the hard way. I can go my own way and do as I please and try to find the truth for myself. I don’t have to believe anyone else. I can choose to try to do it all by myself.

Or I can just believe Your Word and let You help me instead. It is wonderful to

know that I don’t have to try to do things all myself. When I realize it is actually You doing things through me, that is the greatest thrill of all. To choose to believe that You are real, that You want to be part of my everyday life, and that with You, all things are possible, that is the choice I want to make in my life. Amen. (Heavenly Broadcast:)

I am waiting with both hands stretched out, but unless you stretch out your hands

too, I cannot reach you and pull you toward Me. You must be aware of what is going on, keep your eyes on Me, choose Me with all of your heart and embrace Me fully. When your choice is to trust in Me and believe in My Word and do My will, My duty is to equip and support you, because If I don’t deliver, then you can’t deliver. I know when My children need Me. I remember all that

you have done for Me, and I joyfully honour any deeds that glorify My name and bring love to the world.

I have great hope for you that you will make the right choices and learn soon

enough, that you will put childish things away and that you will choose the high road, the only road worth taking. The only thing you need to take with you is My love and My words. The less you carry with you, the easier the journey, because it’s an uphill climb. Once the unnecessary weights and burdens have been cut loose, My strength will be sufficient to help you reach the top. It would be hopeless to try to keep on climbing while dragging extra burdens and weights. You must let them go, or you will not get too far.

But if you focus on My love and My Word, you will learn to see things in a

spiritual way, and I will be able to teach and train you and help you to become a humble, useful instrument in My hands. And once you give Me your all, I will be able to give you My full blessing.


PROGRAMMED TO BE FREE (Prayer):

It’s no wonder that I was not programmed to love You instantly and without

question, because if I was, I wouldn’t be free. Your wish is neither to force nor to intimidate anyone into believing in You, because from the very beginning, You knew that the best way for someone to show that they really loved You was for You to give them freedom of choice in the matter. You like to see who loves You willingly and cheerfully of their own free will.

This life I live gives me the opportunity to love You even though I have not met

You physically, and to believe in You even though I have not seen You face to face or witnessed Your miracles. I would rather put my life in Your hands than in the hands of men, and I would rather believe in Your Word and trust in Your promises than to believe the words of others and to trust their promises, because no one else gives the way You do. You took me out of the darkness of this world and bathed me in the light of Your love and mercy, washing away all my stains and making me white as snow.

You gave me love that casts out fear and faith that removes all doubts, and now

it is my joy to love You in return and show You my gratitude for being such a good friend to me. You have helped me to understand that I can still rejoice in times of trouble and find strength even in moments of weakness, because You are a very present help in time of need. Who am I that You should consider me and should care so much about me? You created me to be free, but now I, of my own free will, I choose to be Your servant forever. (Heavenly Broadcast:)

If you tune in to the right channel, you will be able to hear Me clearly without

disturbance or static. It is a matter of finding the right frequency: you have to just keep on looking and keep on trying until you finally get it. Some people just quit too soon or don’t try hard enough. A lot of people like everything in life to be easy. They want all the benefits but are unwilling to pay the price required. Gifts are free; you don’t have to pay for them. But rewards are only

given to willing, hardworking, faithful men and women who have chosen to seize the opportunity they have been given to be connected with Me.

It is your faith that links you to My power. My Spirit endows you with unlimited vision. All you have to do is just trust Me and take the first steps on your own. I will be right there with both My arms open, ready to catch you in case you should stumble and fall. Keep

on walking, and fear not, My child, because with Me, you’re on solid ground. Look to My promises and have faith and courage, and you will be honoured for it. This I say to you:

your love for Me and for others will not be forgotten, nor will it go unrewarded.


NO WALLS ARE TOO THICK FOR MY LOVE TO PENETRATE

(Prayer:)

I want to thank You for this exciting life You have given me. You are so cool! I

never know what is going to happen from one day to the next. My days are never the same, and my life is so full of nice surprises. As my love for You grows stronger, so does Your love for me. You like to make sure I’m OK and have all that I need. You are always loving and always caring. All I can say is, You make me so happy!

You satisfy all of my thirst and fill me all the way to the top. You have everything I

ever wanted, and It is Your joy to give me what I need and desire. You said, “Seek, and you shall find; ask, and it shall be given to You.” You could not have made it more clear and simple!

But that is not enough for some people. They have to go and complicate things,

distorting and twisting Your Word and putting the doorknob so high that only a few are able to reach it. But even then, those who say they are reaching it are actually more self-righteous and proud than anything else.

I can only convey what You show me and say what You tell me to, and I promise

to tell it like it is, take it or leave it. If You ever want to say anything to me, that is fine with me. My job is not necessarily to understand everything You are saying but just to pass it on and deliver Your message, and I trust that anyone who is searching for the truth and for freedom of spirit will hear Your voice and follow You.

It is only when we believe that we will receive, and it is only when we

acknowledge our mistakes and confess our faults that we will be forgiven. All it requires is a step of faith, a step of humility, a step which, if taken, will open the door of Heaven for us.

Anything Is Possible If You Believe (Heavenly Broadcast:)

If you believe in Me and My Word, then you will know that anything is possible. But some people will reject Me no matter how I present Myself to them, because they give in to doubts, and yield to pride. They want to believe whatever they want to believe.

You cannot somewhat believe in the Bible and somewhat not believe, for all of

My Word comes from My Spirit. The water that is flowing in so many different creeks all came from the same source, and those who are thirsty will drink the water and be satisfied.

Sure, you have the choice not to drink My water; you can go and drink

elsewhere, as so many others have done. But how do you know for sure that Mine is not the right one unless you really try it for yourself? The water that I give you leads you to eternal life, and once you drink of this water, you will never thirst again. My water spreads everywhere and overflows all over the place, giving life and beauty to all that touch it.

Please don’t fight My Spirit and hide from Me, for you will only hurt yourself. I

have what you are looking for and what you need. Your search for true love and happiness can end right in this instant if you try Me.

There are no walls too thick for My love to penetrate, neither is there any hole too

deep for Me to reach you and help you. Wherever you are or wherever you go, there I am. I am so near…and yet so far; so simple, and yet so complicated; so true, and yet so hard to believe, because unless you have childlike faith, you won’t be able to see nor recognize My great gift for you. Unless you become reborn spiritually, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. But as many as receive Me, to them is given power to become My children, and he that believes in the Son of God has everlasting life.


THE GREATEST THRILL THERE IS (Prayer:)

You are the reason that I live. You are my desire when I wake up in the morning

and all day long. I want to fill each day with You. One could say that I am addicted to You. You are my drug, the best that there is, but you’re not like the ones man creates, which make you think you are invincible and give you a fake sense of reality. Those drugs give you a temporary thrill, but it doesn’t last, and meanwhile they can seriously damage your body and even kill you in the end.

You, on the other hand, are a natural drug, and one hundred percent pure. You

make the weak strong, the simple wise and the shy as bold as lions. You take us to a new level of perception and maturity that helps us to go through hardships and overcome obstacles. When we have faith in you, we can always have peace, even when going through the most trying storms. No overdose of Your love can ever hurt us or make us sick. And best of all, You are free of charge.

Some people may say, “That’s crazy! Be real! Where is this God of yours? Look

all around You at all the suffering and misery. What is He doing about it? How can faith make things better? And how can faith help me?” I can somewhat sympathize with people who doubt the effectiveness of God’s power, considering the widespread failure of many of those who attempt to follow it. A lot of people mistake “churchianity” for Christianity; they confuse the love and power of God with organized religion. It is sad that the two are seen as the same thing, because in reality they often don’t have a lot in common with each other.

I didn’t know the difference between the two either, until I met my Saviour, and

He showed me how to be “reborn”, “born again”…not reborn into any particular religion, group or denomination, but reborn in the Spirit, where old things fade away, and everything becomes new. That is the greatest thrill of all! Bonding together in a close relationship with the Creator Himself is

the highest trip anyone can ever take. You can end your search for the perfect fix and put a stop to all of your worries right now if you only acknowledge your limitations and recognize that you cannot do it alone and you need God’s help. His Word promises us that if we search for God with all of our hearts, we will find Him. So what have you got to lose? You have tried just about everything else. Why not try Jesus? (Heavenly Broadcast:) How do you get rid of darkness? You let the light in. When you let My light in, you will walk in the light. I am the way, the truth, and the life. The moment you decide to follow Me and start to receive My truth, then you will really start to live. If I put love in your heart, there will not be room for hate. The lies will not be able to stand the truth, so they will have to leave as well. What is of the physical is physical and will perish with the physical; what is of the spirit is spirit and will live forever. Feed your spirit with the spiritual food that I have

prepared for all those who hunger after it. Take, eat and be satisfied. Enjoy My creation and My gifts, and share them with others too. I have given you everything you need to be happy. I have the answer and solution to every question and every problem. In Me you have a true friend, one you can trust, and one who really loves you. If you have Me, that’s all you need. You can trash all those temporary fixes. They will only end up making your life more miserable. There is a whole new world waiting to be discovered. You don’t have to die to find out if you are going to Heaven. You can read in My Word how easy it is to become part of My kingdom. By asking Me to become your closest friend, you can experience, right this instant, My fulfilling, everlasting love and feel the joy of Heaven in your heart. Don’t throw all of this away over few bits of personal pleasure. Don’t let a few pieces of gold blind you to finding the real treasure in life. Don’t let the Enemy deceive you into thinking that you are too bad and that it is too late or that I don’t love you. I will give you a chance if you give Me a chance.


TO BE OR NOT TO BE, THAT IS THE QUESTION

I never thought it would have been possible for me to change the way I did. I

believed that that was who I was, that was how I was raised, and that was what I would be for the rest of my life. I didn’t even know that there was a better way until I met You, God, and You showed me otherwise. I learned from Your Word that I could be more than what I was, and I could become what I should have been all along.

Nothing is too difficult for You. If we truly believe that, not only will You be able to

deliver us from all kinds of bad habits and from physical addictions, but from spiritual problems as well. Our physical problems are often just a reflection of what goes on in our minds and hearts, and we cannot possibly overcome and permanently win the physical battles unless we first overcome and win the spiritual battles, and only You can help us do that. All we can do is scratch the surface of the problem. Only the truth that comes from You has the power to go deep enough to get to the root of the problem and cut us loose from it, no matter how many roots have grown, how deep they have extended or how big they have become.

You have proven to me that nothing is impossible for You to do. All we need is a

little faith in You, and that will be enough to move mountains. Oh, how beautiful life could be for all of us if we learned to lean on You more! I pray for those who are searching and who want more than what the world has to offer them, that You will give them the strength and courage to take a stand in life and ask themselves the question, “To be, or not to be?” We can either be what You want us to be or not. There is nothing great or exciting about who I am, but it certainly excites me the idea of discovering what I can become with Your help, so I am willing to try it.


Not many people like to be told what to do. They think, “I can do what I want to

do and be what I want to be, and no one has the right to tell me what is right or wrong and what I should or shouldn’t believe. I am the one who has the right to decide.” They resent the fact that there is someone reminding them of what they should be doing. They resent it from their parents, they resent it from their teachers, they resent it from their boss, and they resent it from Me too. They would rather do the things I have told them not to do than to do the things I want them to do. That’s just what Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden: they disobeyed and rebelled against what I asked them not to do.

Today’s newest religion is: “I am my own master, and I decide what is right and

wrong.” And look what that has brought the world to. Instead of becoming better and wiser, people are getting worse. People have refused to obey My original plan and follow My loving ways and care for My creation and be grateful for what they have, and that is why there is still so much war, starvation, disease, pollution and greed in the world.

All I ever wanted from you is that you trust and love Me and try to do things the

way I intended them to be done, because My desire is to help you be the kind of men and women you should be: not the kind who think they have all the answers themselves and don’t need any help from anyone, but the kind who are honest with themselves and who know they need My answers and help in their lives.

You can be whatever way you would like to be. You can choose to be kind and helpful and loving to others. You can choose to ask Me to help you and to show you how to be wise. You can choose to be humble and try to be obedient to My Word. If you give Me a chance, I will show you how to be all that you can be. So that is My question: to be or not to be? The answer rests with you.

IF THINGS HAD BEEN DIFFERENT

(Heavenly Broadcast from Jesus:)

Imagine what kind of world this would be if I had never come, if no one had ever known of Me and the things I did, the miracles I performed, the words I spoke. Let’s suppose for the sake of argument that I never existed and that Christianity was wiped from history altogether. Could you or anyone even begin to speculate what kind of life you would be living today?

It is true that without Christianity, there would have been no Inquisition, no Dark

Ages, no Catholicism, no Protestantism, no denominations, and no fighting about which church to belong to. It takes wisdom to understand that merely possessing the truth doesn’t make someone righteous. It is always easy to be judgmental and critical of other people, but the thing that makes someone righteous is their commitment to live the truth in love and humility.

But what about the many great people that lived who were influenced by the

Bible and by the fact that they had found their Saviour? It was because of their faith that they accomplished the things they did. Would they have been the same great people if they had never had the opportunity to discover the Creator? One can only wonder. But they all acknowledged My love and a power greater than their own, and those people shaped the world into what it is today.

So if you think you don’t need Me and the world doesn’t need to believe in Me,

think again, unless you are willing to wipe out everything else that goes along with it. Maybe you have come to the conclusion that you don’t need to believe there is a heaven in order to be happy in this life. After all, things may be going well with your work, you may have a nice home to go to, a free country to live in and plenty of everything you want, so what do you need God for when you have everything you need?

For one thing, have you ever thought how it would affect the poor, the homeless, and the

misfortunate, those who are mistreated,

persecuted and suffering? If you were to take away from them their hope for heaven, the love of God, and their faith in My promises which give them the strength and courage to face their hardships, what would they be left with? Is there anything you can suggest that could give them peace of mind better than I and My Word can?

There are many reasons why people don’t want to believe in God, but what

bothers a lot of people the most is not the things they don’t understand, but the things they do understand, the fact that there is someone who is telling them what they should and shouldn’t do. It offends their pride. They would rather do it their way, even if it is wrong, than to do it the right way, to do it My way. Unless you humble yourself and have the faith of a little child, you shall not see the Kingdom of Heaven, because I give strength to the humble but send the proud away empty.

Anything can be forgiven except unbelief, rejection of Me. Everyone has to make this choice sooner or later. Why not choose to believe in Me, love Me and get to know Me by asking Me into your life today and beginning a personal relationship with Me? You will be surprised at everything that I can show and teach you. I am not the Jesus who hangs on the cross looking defeated, as people portray Me. Remember, I got resurrected after that, and now I am alive and well, and I yearn to know you and to show you that I have always loved and cared for you.

BIGGER THAN THE UNIVERSE

A question often asked is: “Why didn’t man know thousands of years ago the things he knows today? Why does it take us so long to discover simple truths?”

When we are little children, we learn that if we put two and two together, it

makes four, and then we keep on learning more and more. But some people come to a point where they become satisfied with what they already know and think that that is enough and that is all they need. At one time, people believed the world was flat and that there were no other planets except the ones they could see, and they never really believed that someday people could fly or be able to hear someone speak from the other side of the world, until a few brave souls kept trying and proved otherwise.

What we know to be simple truth today at one time was believed to be heresy by

almost everybody. People lived in darkness and in fear that an angry God would damn all of them to hell for just about anything they did wrong. Because of that, many people worshipped all kinds of objects and did all kinds of things to prove to some god that they regarded him. They carved and built statues in honour of the god. Some even had human sacrifices, believing that that was what their god commanded. All of it was based on superstition and ignorance. In our modern day, if we look at the history of mankind and the things he did, it seems so barbaric and incomprehensible to us that they could have believed and practiced such horrifying things.

These days, we think we know so much. Yes, we have learned from the past and found

the truth…our truth. Many people figure that they don’t need any truth that is different from their own. For a lot of people, their pride tells them they are wise enough and good enough that they don’t need God at all, because they themselves are God within. I am afraid that this is just one more tragedy of mankind, one more misperception, one more

presumption that needs clarification. In Your mercy, God, I ask You to give me the answer. Amen.


Even the entire universe is not able to contain Me, much less your little mind. I want you to look at the night sky, observe the moon, see the lovely stars all around it, and reflect for a moment. Imagine what kind of genius it took and how much power was required to create such amazing things. Can any mind on earth receive more than a fraction of the information about the mysteries of the universe?

The reason people have such a hard time understanding Me is because the

human mind can only accept and believe what is reasonable and logical to it — anything more than that would go over your head and would confuse your intellect — so it takes more than just your mind to understand My greatness. It takes more than man’s wisdom to perceive My simple truth. It takes humility — knowing I can be powerful enough to rule the entire universe. And it takes a simple faith — realizing I can be small enough to live inside you.

It is only faith in Me that can give you the strength to keep on going. There is so

much more to know about Me and My creation than you could ever learn. But be patient, take one step at a time, be open to the truth, and don’t have your mind too made up. Most of all, ask Me to help you and give you the answers. Who better than the One that made it all could explain it all and show you the truth?

But don’t try to do it alone. That is the hard way. Just give Me a call, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you never dreamed of.

PARADISE FOUND If there’s anything that I remember from my childhood, it is the strong faith I had

in God. I loved the Lord and depended on Him as far back as I can remember. I was raised a Catholic in Italy, and I was told that I could go to church and find God there and pray to Him there and learn out about Him from the priest. But I often wandered around God’s creation, spending hours of my time walking through beautiful fields with gorgeous flowers of so many different colours, chasing butterflies, looking at the birds and watching the sunset near the ocean, and I felt God’s presence everywhere through the beauty and the perfection of His creation. I began to understand God’s love for me, and I believed I was part of a big plan, but I came to realize that it was up to me to find out the plan.

I pictured God as very loving and caring, and I could never understand why some

people would portray God as someone mean who liked to punish people and send them to hell. I remember clearly one time when I went to confession. It had been quite some time since I had gone, and I never felt too comfortable telling all my secrets to the priest, but at the time I thought it was something I had to do, and everyone I knew was doing it. I started by telling the priest some of the usual bad things kids do: I lied, I cheated, I swore, etc. Then he asked me a couple of questions: he wanted to know if I ever prayed, and I said no, because I assumed he meant praying the traditional way. He really got mad at me; he called me an animal, and said that God was very angry with me. He told me to go on my knees and say ten Hail Marys to pacify God. I didn’t know the words to Hail Mary, so I copied the people beside me and mumbled half of it, and I never went to another confession again.

I did continue to go to church sometimes though, but it seemed like they wanted

me to believe that God was always looking over my shoulder with a big stick in His hand ready to hit me every time I did something wrong. But I chose to believe in God my own way. When a problem would arise, and I didn’t know what to do about it, I would seek His help, and amazingly, my prayers were answered. I would ask for the heavy rain and lighting and thunder

to stop so that I could go home, and moments after I prayed, the skies would clear, and I would joyfully thank God for listening to me. I didn’t try to understand how prayer worked; all I knew was that it did, and that was enough for me. Those kinds of experiences really increased my faith.

One day after coming home from school, I found my home filled with sadness.

My mother was crying, and she gathered all six of us children into a room where my father was seriously ill. My father was telling us goodbye, because he didn’t think he would survive. There were a lot of tears and sadness in the house. I couldn’t stand to be there anymore, so I went outside and started to run. I cried out to my Heavenly Father and asked Him to please save my father and not let him die. My father ended up making it to the hospital and was operated on, and he is still alive this very day.

Another time I was playing football near a tall church building when I heard a huge noise behind me like a big explosion. I turned and saw that the whole front of the church building had just collapsed, missing me by about 6 or 7 metres. One person died that I can remember, because it was the wife of my next-door neighbour who happened to be passing by just at that moment. Was that just another coincidence that I was spared, or one more of God’s small miracles? God spared my life dozens of times! I should have been dead many times! I would frequently arrive home with a big gash on my head and bleeding all over the place because other boys and I had been fighting, throwing rocks at each other, etc. The hospital was like a second home for me, and I know now that God’s angels must have been very busy watching this one boy.

The neighbourhood I grew up in was a bit tough, and for quite a while I couldn’t

defend myself. I was often picked on by bigger kids and beaten up by bullies and kids in gangs. My two older brothers didn’t really do much to help me, and they usually weren’t around, so the only one I had to run to was God; He was my shield and my strength. I knew I couldn’t fight those kids, so I had to outsmart them so they wouldn’t be able to catch me. It was a continuous challenge, and I always had to be ready to run and to see the danger before it got too close.

There were two very bad boys, and every time I came out of school and got close

to home, they were waiting for me so they could beat me up. Eventually I thought of a plan: as soon as I spotted them, I would run around a building that was at the edge of a big field. At the same time, the two boys, along with some of their other friends, would go in different directions so that I would be caught in the middle. But to their surprise, no one could ever find me, because I would duck into a hiding place I had made. Sometimes I could even hear the boys right close me talking, but by a miracle, they would never find me! One of my hiding places was a meter-deep hole I had dug in the field with tall grass all around it. Another of my secret places was a little room I had made inside a big blackberry bush. I had cut branches on the inside of the bush with a pair of old scissors and placed cardboard on the ground, and I would use anything else I could find to make it nice. And no one would ever know I was in there, because from the outside it looked like an ordinary bush full of thorns. Sometimes I would go to my secret hiding spots just to rest, think and read.

When I was a teenager, I would often jump from high cliffs into the deep ocean to

impress my friends, and I was also hoping some girl would like me for doing such “cool” things. One day I was with a group of friends spending a weekend at a cottage by the sea. The waves were 5 or 6 metres high and heavily smashing into the rocks where we were all standing watching. The wind was so strong, it would cause the salt water to shower all over us. Then out of the blue I decided to jump into the water. I must have thought it would be cool to do that, but as soon as I did it, I wished I hadn’t, because I hadn’t thought about how I would be able to climb up and make it safely back onto the rocks. The people standing and watching were yelling to me to swim far out into the open sea so that the waves would not throw me like a piece of wood onto the rocks. But I was already getting tired and finding it difficult to even stay afloat, and I knew that I wouldn’t last much longer that way, so I had to try to do all I could to swim quickly on top of a high wave and somehow reach the top of the rocks and grab onto them before the wave sucked me back again like a vacuum, pulling me under the water and scraping me along the razor-sharp rocks underneath. So when I saw the next wave coming up behind me, I began to swim as fast as I could. I was lifted so high that I felt like I was flying, and amazingly I

managed to find a rock and hold unto it. One can only wonder, was it just luck, or was Someone helping me all along?

I had some tough times during my childhood, but for the most part, I have very

beautiful memories of that time in my life. But I wanted so much to get back at the kids that used to pick on me to repay them for everything they had done to me, and as a child, it seemed like the day would never come that I would actually get big and strong and be unafraid. So when I became a teenager, I got to be known as the guy who would fight with anyone. At first I thought the guys I beat up deserved it, but the more I fought, the more it became part of me and my personality, and I couldn’t tell right from wrong anymore, I didn’t care whether someone deserved it or not, I would fight anyway. I believed that showing strength in that way would earn me respect and make girls love me, but instead I had only a few friends and no girls. So I started to realize that if I wanted to be happy and have friends, I had to change my tactics.

So by about the age of 18, I had stopped fighting, and I was desperately searching for truth. But at that time, I wasn’t interested in religion, church or God anymore. I believed in myself and what man was capable of doing. So I decided to read some psychology books to learn about the power of the mind. At that time, Freud was quite popular among the youth of the 70’s, but the more I read from his books, the more I came to the conclusion that this guy didn’t have much truth to offer; in fact I felt even worse than before. For a while, I dedicated myself to making money, but that too I found to be too draining on my spirit. Not that I ever got to be rich, but I looked up to my boss, who had sweat for 40 years in the same plumbing business making a name for himself, and he still didn’t look very happy to me.

My family is from Sicily, but one of my uncles had moved up north to Milan with

his family. One time he came down for a visit, and he was talking so big about life in the north and how easy it was to find jobs and all the money we could be making there, etc., etc. So, two weeks later, both my father and I quit our jobs – I had been working since I was 14 – and we moved to Milan. We were planning on setting things up so my mother and the rest of the family could follow later. We stayed with my uncle at first, and we both got jobs right away.

It was hard finding places to rent though, and we couldn’t find anywhere we could

stay. At that time the government had a housing project that was finished, and they were in the process of assigning apartments to families in need. But it was very hard to get approved, because there were thousands of people on the waiting list. A lot of people would just get tired of waiting and break in and occupy those premises illegally. So my father went and occupied one too, and he phoned my mother and told her to come and join us, because my father was hoping that if the official came and saw a large family, we would have a better chance of being allowed to stay.

So my mother and the rest of them came, but a week later, a huge police convoy

come up and threw everyone out in the street, hundreds of people out in the open sky with beds, tables, chairs, and everything all in piles, and no one knew what to do or where to go. I didn’t know what to make of it all. Everything looked so hopeless. But then, out of nowhere came some young communists wanting to help those families in need. I was very touched by their desire to want to help people. They found us a temporary place where we ended up staying for some time. It was an old, abandoned building, but at least we had a roof over our heads. They told us not to worry, that they would do their best to find us a really good place.

Then about a month later, a couple of young people, accompanied by a police

officer, came to see us. We were once again filled with fear, thinking that they had come to kick us out, but instead, they announced that we had been accepted by the

government as a family in need, and they were giving us a brand new 4-bedroom apartment, all for free. We were speechless and very grateful. Think of that: now we were set! And with both of us working, we could really make a lot of money! But God had a completely different plan…

I wanted to know more about those people and why they where doing what they

did, so I went to some of the communist meetings and listened to their ideas, and I thought to myself, “Maybe this is what I have been looking for. This may be the answer that will give meaning and direction to my life.” I liked the idea of sharing the wealth

equally, but what I realized later was that though there are similarities between communism and Christianity in that respect, what communism really says is, “All that you have is mine, and I’m going to take it from you by force,” whereas Christianity says, “All that is mine is yours, and I am going to share it with you because I love you because Jesus loves you.” Though I liked a lot of their ideas, I somehow knew in my heart that it wasn’t the real truth but more like a counterfeit of the truth. It was like a copy, and I needed to find the original.

Then one day, I was walking downtown feeling a bit discouraged and lonely and

burdened because of the questions that were on my mind, when someone stopped in front of me and handed me a piece of Christian literature and told me that Jesus loved me. It had never happened to me before that someone talked to me about God on the street, far away from a church building, so I felt sorry for the girl, thinking that something might be wrong with her head. She was sweet, though, and before I left, she took a piece of paper and quickly wrote something and gave to me. I was a bit curious to know what she wrote, and it turned out to be an address. I asked her what it was for, and she replied that I could come and visit if I wanted to. To be nice, I took it and said thank you, but I had no intention of ever visiting, and after I made sure she wasn’t looking, I threw the piece of paper away.

God was the last thing on my mind at that time. I felt that religion and church

were for people who were weak, and I thought that if I wanted to become somebody important and rich, I had to believe in myself and work hard at it. In my opinion, the days of miracles were long gone. I convinced myself that the little miracles that happened to me when I was a kid were all coincidences; I thought that I myself had thought up all the great ideas I had, and that I must have been very smart back then! But this proves that even when we turn our back on God for a time, He still faces us with open arms. And strangely, I had walked so far away only to end up where my journey had begun!

What happened later I can’t explain other than to say that I believe it was divine

intervention. A few weeks after that, two of my cousins and I found ourselves on the outskirts of town looking for a place to go dancing, but we ended up just wandering around, so we soon got tired of walking and were about to call it a night and go home, when we heard some music and singing. It didn’t sound much like disco music, but we decided to check it out anyway and see what it was all about. It turns out they were gospel songs, and it was a Christian coffee house. We went inside and were warmly received, and though I found it very interesting, my cousins didn’t share the same opinion as me, so before long we left. But I made sure to look at their street address — without letting my cousins see me, for fear of being teased by them — because I wanted to go back when I was alone. The strange thing was that as I looked at the address, I immediately remembered that it was the same address that the Christian girl had given me weeks before!

Now I really wanted to go there and meet them again, but the only problem was

that I was very shy. I managed to get to their doorstep, but I was too fearful to go in. The door was open, but I would go up and down the street trying to get enough courage to take this enormous step! It may seem a bit funny now, but I can tell you it wasn’t funny then! I would peek in a little to see if anyone would encourage me to come in. Then, after a while, the girl who had originally given me the piece of literature recognized me. She

must have seen me standing there for a while, but it had taken some time for her to finally figure out who I was. After she indicated for me to please come in, I went. It was easier than I thought. Everyone was very friendly, and I felt very comfortable talking with them.

But as soon as they started to talk to me about God and Jesus, I decided that I

wasn’t going to make it easy for them to win me over. I argued and argued, and contradicted everything they told me. When they said God created this beautiful world, I talked about evolution; when they spoke of peace, I spoke of war; when they spoke of love, I spoke of hate. I was quite sure that in a few minutes they would quit trying to talk to me, and I was quite surprised that that never happened. Actually, I really liked everything they told me, but I was too proud to let them know it. But I couldn’t help remembering about the loving God that I used to believe and trust in but whom I had forgotten about for so many years. But those people I met, with their words of wisdom and love, brought me close to Him once again. At the same time, though, because I had always had the impression that God was angry all the time, I was sure that He must be mad at me for having been so rebellious.

But when they showed me the verse Romans 3:23, “All have sinned, and come

short of the glory of God,” it made me feel a lot better, because it made me realize that no one is perfect but that God always loves us anyway. Then I knew I was on the right path and would soon find all the answers I was looking for. I had tried different things that I thought would help me, but nothing else had, so I had nothing to lose. I prayed with them that night before leaving and I asked Jesus to come into my heart and change my life and make me a better person than I was.

I began to read the Scriptures and attend Bible classes taught by Christian

teachers. Days went by, then weeks, and God was pouring a lot of truth into my heart. I was reading the Bible that they gave me, and without even realizing it, I was changing inside. When I came home from work, instead of yelling at my mother because dinner wasn’t ready right on time, I would greet her with a kiss. If I didn’t like the food on the table, instead of throwing it aside, I would eat it anyway and pretend I liked it. Well, you can imagine how

shocked my mother was by this change! For me to try to help clean the house was unheard of! To make a mess of it, yes! If I had 20 pairs of pants, I would take them all out and try them on; if I had 20 sweaters, I would do the same, spending a lot of time looking at myself in the mirror and convincing myself I was handsome. But who do you think would clean the mess I had made? My mother did! God’s love, of course, is the greatest love of all, but next, I say, comes that of a mother.

My mother didn’t understand what was happening with me, and I’m not sure I

understood it myself. Usually people become afraid of what they don’t understand; it scares them, so most people don’t even want discuss it or think about it. But sooner or later I had to break the news to them, so I thought it was better sooner rather than later. I told them that I didn’t like the world the way it was, and that with God’s help, I was going to change it, starting with myself. I told them that I wasn’t interested in making a lot of money anymore, but I desired to love God and help other people instead. Well, I expected a big explosion once I explained my situation, and sure enough, there was. My father almost went crazy because of it, and I was afraid he would even get violent over the matter. My father had never been a reasonable man, and I could never discuss

things with him without him getting angry at me, so I felt really alone in this…except for God and my new friends.

Things became very uncomfortable for me at home, and I didn’t know exactly

what to do, because when I was with them, I had to do things their way. Legally I was an adult, so according to the law I could leave home, but that goes against the Italian culture, where we were taught to respect our parents’ wishes and to take care of them. I really loved my family and appreciated everything they did for me, and the last thing I wanted to do was hurt them. But I couldn’t ignore what I was experiencing, and I was confident that it would give new meaning and real purpose and direction to my life. I eventually decided I had no choice but to leave for a while until things calmed down.

My father was so angry at me that he didn’t want to stay in Milan anymore,

because he felt that Milan had “corrupted” me. He dropped his job, and they packed their bags and left everything behind, the free house and all. They all went back home to Sicily. They didn’t want anything more to do with Milan. Some people couldn’t understand why anyone would leave such a treasure as we had there. But I understand now. You see, the following year, my cousin who also lived in Milan, one of the ones I used to go dancing with, was found dead in the street of a drug overdose at 18 years old. As I remember it, he was a good kid and never had a problem with drugs, but the big city corrupted him, like so many other good kids. So even though it must have looked like a big loss for our family to have left it all behind, to have stayed could have cost them in other ways.

I remained in Milan and continued my walk of faith. Knowing Jesus intimately and

personally gave me so much joy and love that it is hard to put it into words. It seemed like I was in love with the entire world, and for the first time in my life, I felt really free — not free to do whatever I wanted, but free from all fear. I felt like I could meet a hungry lion and not be a bit afraid of it. I knew I didn’t have to be afraid of anything anymore, because God was with me and He had chosen me to do His work. I had His promises with me, which assured me that He loved me and that He would always care for me no matter what. And since I had made room in my mind and heart for good thoughts and positive ideas to come in, amazingly, little by little, my negative thoughts started to disappear. When you let the light in, the darkness will flee by itself. I had been reborn spiritually, and I was relearning everything from the beginning and discovering how to live life doing good and showing kindness to others and loving and trusting God.

At that time, I wanted so much to do some travelling, and because of my positive

outlook, which was the result of my new-found beliefs, everything seemed so easy to do all of a sudden. I went and saw so many places and talked to so many people and shared my faith with them. I had such wonderful friends, people I knew I could really trust. Later on, I decided to move to Florence,

because I met a very sweet Christian family who offered me a job on their farm. There we made wine and olive oil and raised livestock. They also had the place set up as a retreat centre for missionaries and volunteer workers who would come to get some rest and quiet time before returning to their work in the big and noisy cities. I was allowed to work on the farm part time while also studying the Bible and talking to the other guests and learning whatever I could from them. On that farm, I was happier than I had ever been in my life. Being there helped me to build a strong, solid foundation of faith and a true understanding of God’s love. Well, it seems like I came to know a bit too much to be

able to keep my mouth shut, and a desire grew in my heart to share my beliefs and the joy that they brought me with everyone I met.

One day, a good friend of mine, Cristiano, and I met three tourist girls from

Germany. At first they were a bit surprised that we talked to them about Jesus and His love, but then they started to become more interested, and they ended up spending almost their entire vacation visiting us on the farm. By the time they left to go home, one of them, named Christine, had fallen in love with me, and I with her, so it was very difficult for us to say goodbye to each other. We communicated by mail for a few months, then at Christmas time, Cristiano and I decided to surprise her and her friends by showing up in their town.

At that time, you needed a visa to cross a border, because in Italy it was

mandatory for men to do a year of military service before you were allowed to travel outside the country, and since I hadn’t done my military service yet, I knew it was almost impossible that the government would give me a week visa to go to Germany. The official where I applied for my visa didn’t know why I hadn’t done my service yet, because I was already past the age when a person is usually called. I don’t know either why they never called me, but I guess somehow they had forgotten about me. So the visa officer refused to give me the visa and told me to contact the army in the town where I was born as soon as possible. But there was only one thing on my mind at that moment, and that was to see my girlfriend as soon as possible, so I decided that when I went to the

military base, I would ask them for special permission to get an immediate visa. I went to the base in Sicily, but they told me I had to go where my current residence was, which was Florence.

By this time, I wasn’t the shy guy I used to be; my spiritual experience had

changed me into a bold lion. So I walked into the army base and asked to see a captain. The soldier that I was talking to asked me what my reason was for wanting to see a captain. I explained to the soldier how badly in love I was with this girl, and I could not wait one more day to see her, so I had to see the captain to give me approval in writing for me to leave the country for a week. I didn’t know what to expect from this soldier after I gave him my reasons. It looked for a moment like he was just turning me away, but then I noticed a little smirk on his face that he was trying to hide from me, and he said, “Sure, wait a minute.” Then he went and talked to some other soldiers nearby, and everyone started cracking up laughing. They asked me what the girl looked like and if I happened to have a photo of her to show them. I realized that they wanted to get a good laugh out of the whole situation, but I didn’t care. I figured that if being humbled would give me a chance to get what I wanted, it was worth it.

So I met the lieutenant first and explained my situation, and of course all the

people who were nearby were still laughing. The lieutenant sent me to the captain, saying it was he who could decide about the visa. Again I gave my little speech to the captain — by then I really knew it by heart — and even though the other guys were laughing before I even began to say a word to him, I think that they were also touched by my desire and insistence on accomplishing my mission. At least the captain looked a bit more serious than the other guys I had talked to, and it seemed like he was really going to help me, but in order to do so, he had to get the approval of a colonel. So all of sudden no one was laughing anymore! Things were going the right direction! The

colonel really liked me, and he gave me permission to get the visa! I said thank you and shook his hand, and I said, “Thank you, everyone!” and shook everyone else’s hand too! Then I caught the first train going to Germany. Faith has taught me that anything is possible if I believe.

I did not know for sure at first, but life gives us a chance to see for ourselves that miracles do happen every day.

After that I did do my military service, and I saw that as an opportunity to get

some spiritual rest and time for myself and to study the Bible some more. People would see me reading this big book and would ask me questions. I was very proud of my faith, because I knew that God had the answers everyone was looking for. There were about thirty soldiers sleeping in the same dormitory as me, and often someone would ask me to say a prayer out loud before we went to sleep. Some of the soldiers would ridicule me, but many came to respect me. One night, a group of the guys came back late from a party, and almost all of them were very sick and throwing up. One of them came and got me out of bed and said, “Please, Joseph, come. We need you to do something to help us.” I said, “What do you want me to do? I’m not a doctor,” and he said, ”Pray for us! Ask Jesus to help us!” So I prayed for them, one after the other, for their healing, and one by one they all fell asleep.

Later on I had to change bases and go to another city. I received a promotion

and was able to take a lot of free time and have time off for visiting outside the base as well. Everything didn’t always go smoothly though. There was one guy who would come by and challenge and threaten me, saying he would beat me and do this and that to me while I was sleeping! He never actually touched me; he would just threaten me. One time it got so bad that I just wanted to punch him and let him have it once and for all, but the Lord helped me to control myself. I didn’t feel the kind of anger I used to have in the past. And the next time this guy came along and tried his usual tricks, surprisingly, a new guy slowly approached us, and he looked the guy in the eyes and said, “That’s the last time you come to this place. If you ever do, then you’d better watch it,” and I never saw the guy again. So God took care of me!

After I finished my military service, I wasn’t sure exactly what to do. My heart’s desire was to do something to help other people and become a missionary, but it wasn’t an easy decision to make. I wasn’t 100% sure I had the courage and strength to actually do it. Then one day while working at my job, for a moment I blacked out, and the strangest thing happened to me: I saw a vision of a building’s roof collapsing, and then I saw my father in a hospital bed asking for me. The whole thing lasted just a few seconds, but that same day, I received a phone call from my mother urging me to please come home because my father had been in accident and was seriously hurt! So I packed a few things and was on my way home. It was a relief to hear that my father was going to be OK, but I was dumbfounded to hear that what happened to my dad was exactly what I had seen in my vision. The Lord boosted my faith with that experience, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God was real and alive and that He could take care of me. So right then and there, I decided I was ready to give my life to Him.

Previously, I had really loved money, and my greatest ambition in life was to

become someone rich and important. But finding words of truth and learning of a love that never ends meant much more to me than anything the world had to offer. I decided

at that point that I would love God with all of my heart and make acquiring spiritual riches my greatest ambition and desire in life, helping to build up a treasure that would last in the hearts of others and in my heart as well.

I am grateful beyond words for the life I have lived, for truly I feel that I have

received more from life than I could ever deserve. My heart is satisfied, and my soul rejoices because I found my God and Saviour. I have discovered that all of the pain and suffering and troubles and hardships we go through in life are not enough to prevent anyone from finding true joy and peace. Life is not bad, and God did not put us here to punish us. On the contrary, life is beautiful! We may have difficulties, but it is like going to school: our struggles help us to learn in order to enlighten us and get us ready for the next stage!

Sometimes I wonder, “Why me?” Why did I happen to discover this great spiritual treasure? I don’t know the answer to that question. Perhaps it was only chance, that I happened to be in the right place at the right time and did what I thought I should be Anything Is Possible If You Believe

doing. Or was it destiny? And did I choose God, or did He choose me?

And why did I end up meeting so many wonderful people, travelling to Asia and

many other places, and have so many other amazing things happen to me? (To be continued…)

Please feel free to write to us at:

[email protected] You may also request: the booklet Thoughts on Relationships

as well as this booklet, Anything Is Possible If You Believe

anything is possible if you believe · anything is possible if you believe you can change your...

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