
“From now on, I will
think of you as my apostles”
Jesus, Vol. 10, page 13
Lay apostles are key players in God’s plan to reclaim His
world. Our mission is to allow Jesus to flow through
us into the world, bringing His light to souls who live in darkness.
WHO CAN BE A LAY APOSTLE?
You can. All you have to do is say "yes" to God's
invitation to serve Him. Your religious education or affiliation
doesn't matter. Nor does anything you've done
in your past life. All that matters is your willingness to serve.
“Dear
servants of the returning King, you will not be sorry you
sacrificed for Me. During the whole of your eternity, you
will reap the rewards for having done so. In a time when
few understand the concept of sacrifice, you are giving of
yourselves, day after day, to bring about My goals. You are
serving Me and you are serving your fellow man. How many
can say that during these days?”
Jesus, Volume Ten, Page 39
WHAT DOES A LAY APOSTLE DO?
A lay apostle walks closely with Jesus throughout each day. The first
goal is the personal movement toward unity with Jesus. In other
words, we concentrate first on our own holiness and the perfection
of our own souls. We do this through our vocations as mothers, fathers,
priests, religious, single people, daughters, sons, sisters and brothers.
We serve Jesus through service to others. We learn to love Jesus
through loving others. We become united to
Jesus by treating others with His love and gentleness. We bring
kindness back to the world by behaving as though we lived in the
heavenly kingdom, which of course, we do.
Some souls pray a great deal, but do not love. This is not unity
to Christ. This is unity to prayer. But the goal of prayer is
unity with Christ.
Christ is love. Prayer brings us to love, to softer hearts,
to forgiveness and patient service to others.
Lay apostles seek to live this message of love and kindness.
Some apostles will be called to spread the Volumes.
Some apostles will be called to support the mission in prayer. Some
are called to suffer in obscurity,
with only Jesus as the witness to their soul’s constant progress.
Everyone will be called. Everyone is chosen to serve.
"Do not ask if you are called to serve.
Assume
you are called to serve. The fruits of this mission are magnificent
and will increase daily. Serve, My beloved apostles, serve." Jesus,
May 24, 2005
If you feel called to share this mission with
family, friends, or those around you, consider giving a presentation
in your local area. This type of grassroots effort has already
helped to spread the mission
around the world. Jesus will do all of the work. His Spirit will
open the hearts of those who are called to serve. You'll
find most people hungry for God's love. Offer to share a
copy of your Volumes or the other books, or keep a small quantity on hand just to
pass along to needy souls. Every time you speak of the
messages, you are as much an apostle as the original Twelve sent
by Jesus to bring His Word to villages and towns across Judea and
Galilee.
You can begin each day by praying the Allegiance
Prayer and the Morning Offering:
ALLEGIANCE PRAYER
Dear God in Heaven, I pledge my allegiance to You. I give You my
life, my work and my heart. In turn, give me the grace of obeying
Your every direction to the fullest extent.
MORNING OFFERING
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer You the
prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day for all the
intentions of Your Sacred Heart, in union with the Holy Sacrifice of
the Mass throughout the world, in reparation for my sins, and for
the intentions of the Holy Father. Amen.
WHAT ELSE CAN YOU DO?
1. Lead by example.
Read the Volumes and work on your spiritual life. Come close to
Christ through daily prayer, frequent attendance at Mass
and the Eucharist, monthly Confession,
weekly Adoration, participation in a prayer
group (if available), and reading the Scriptures.
2. Sow seeds.
Many lay apostles enjoy introducing their friends, relatives and
strangers to the Volumes. Talk about the effect they have had on
your life. Jesus says all you have to
do is open the door a crack and He will do the rest.
3. Be a pillar of calm and strength.
One of the many rewards of the Volumes is the amount of calm and
strength that pours into your soul as you read over the pages. When
you take these messages to heart, your priorities change. Things
that used to stress you out no longer do. A contagious air of calm
begins to emanate from you to those about you. In times of
trouble, be the oasis of peace that draws others to Jesus.
4. Choose your own level of involvement.
Your apostleship may be a strictly private one where you live
the mission in your heart, pursuing unity with Christ through your
vocation. On the other hand, you may want to become involved
in a more public way, working at the parish level, with DFOT
itself, or with groups you organize or join, sharing your
talents and services where God determines He needs them most. One of
the beautiful parts of this mission is that Jesus
is calling you to serve, in most cases, exactly where He has placed
you.
“All that you need
is yours. All of heaven, dear apostles, will be yours.”
Jesus, Volume Ten, Page 40
“Together we will do the
greatest things for heaven.”
Jesus, Volume Ten, Page 41