“Above All, Hold on to Love”
was the motto of the
Family Vacation Plus in Wagrain, Austria.
Like a common thread, the motto ran through the days—through the impulses, prayer times and the sharing sessions. This was particularly impressive during an evening discussion in which the couples told each other how they experience God, who is steadfast in his love, and accompanies them.
THE POWER OF PRAYER
A young mother related: We have a star child—a girl who died immediately after birth– and, therefore, we were fearful during the next pregnancy. In fact, we received some really bad news again: We were told that our child would have severe brain damage, a heart defect, and that initial complications had already been identified. The doctors told us that when the child was born, surgery would be needed for the heart defect. In the case of our star child, the same organs, the heart and brain, were also affected.
When our daughter was born – thank God – without brain damage, “only” the heart operation had to be survived. We were barely able to do anything and took refuge in prayer. Many friends and our families joined us in prayer and we felt so carried by prayer that our trust in God’s good guidance grew within us. We were also able to leave our little daughter in the hands of the doctors with such confidence that we were amazed ourselves. Our little girl was so calm and relaxed during the whole thing that even the nurses and doctors were very surprised. Today, she is our little power woman who keeps us and others on our toes every day. God has carried us through this time and the power of prayer has become a lasting experience for us.
A LIFE BEFORE UND A LIFE AFTER
One man shared:
For me there is life before and after 2016. As a child and teenager, I lived with my grandparents and often argued with my grandpa. In 2016, my grandfather had cancer for the second time. It became apparent he had entered the last phase of his life. I asked him if he would like to speak to a priest and he vehemently declined. My grandfather was not religious and was also very hostile to anything religious. I noticed how my relationship to my grandfather changed from within. The old aggression toward him was gone. The weaker he became, the more open he became for God so that I could teach him the Our Father.
And something that I never thought would be possible for me happened. I could tell my grandfather that I was sorry for everything I had done to hurt him and that was wrong. Basically, I didn’t really know how to do this, because everything was always swept under the carpet. But today I attribute the fact that I was able to do this to the Rosary, which I only got to know as an adult and prayed intensively before my grandfather died. I gathered my courage and asked my grandfather if he would like yet to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation. He had never done this and didn’t know how to do it, but he agreed. My grandmother told me that after receiving the sacrament he said: Now it’s much easier for me, now I can die. Two days later, he was unresponsive. Shortly after that he died. For all of us his death—although painful—was a happy moment.
DON’T GIVE UP
The husband of the couple accompanying the conference told us:
For several years I worked as a wood specialist in a company which required me to attend numerous trade shows. My hours of work were so intense that I had to leave the house while my family was asleep and I only came back in the evening when everyone was already in bed. At this time we already had our first child and my wife was pregnant with our second child. I asked myself how this could continue. My marriage and my family had no future with this job.
There’s a timber construction company near us that I’d never really noticed. But suddenly I had the inner inspiration to simply apply for a job there. It was an unsolicited application on my part because the company had not advertised any vacancies. I received a rejection pretty much straight away. Inwardly, I knew I had to apply there again, and I prayed for support, so to speak. I redesigned my application and submitted it again. What I hardly dared to believe really happened: I was invited to a job interview and have now been working in this company for 11 years. I experienced that God really led me out of a dead end and into a new horizon.
Life stories are stories of God’s love.
This became clear during the gathering on that evening. The couples were inspired by their life stories and were united more deeply in their relationship to God and with each other.
