Miracles: Healing for a Broken World

I refer to an occurrence that has been brought about by the Holy Spirit as a God-incident. Several God-incidents have come about in direct relation to my finding out about Miracles: Healing for a Broken World. When scanning the summaries of various books available to review, this one seemed most intriguing. Little did I know what an effect this book would have on me.
    
I know beyond a shadow of a doubt the Holy Spirit led me to this book in May for a myriad of reasons. I was very surprised when reading the author bio on the back cover to discover that Fr. Stefan Starzynski is a priest in a diocese near ours who is a Cursillo chaplain as well as an advocate for the unborn. I hadn’t known a thing about Fr. Stefan when I selected the book, and I certainly never dreamt he would live so close, be involved in Cursillo (as my husband and I have been since 2006), and also be a voice for the unborn (a ministry that’s very important to me).      In this well-written book, Fr. Stefan describes the miraculous cures, occurrences, and adventures God has brought about through faith, prayer, and openness to the Holy Spirit. On the day of his ordination, Fr. Stefan, through the power of the Holy Spirit, performed his first miraculous cure. He left his own ordination party to go pray for a baby who was in critical condition. His charism for healing and his dedication to following the promptings of the Holy Spirit have made him a blessing to many over the years.
    
Perhaps one of the most far-reaching miracles came about when a woman and her husband were told their baby would be born without lungs. Doctors suggested they abort him, but the parents refused. Fr. Stefan prayed with and for them. The parents got to spend an hour with their son who was indeed born without lungs before his little heart stopped beating. Many years later his memory lives on through the Paul Stefan Home for Expectant Mothers created in his honor, with the help of Fr. Stefan and the pro-life parents who turned their tragedy into hope for others.
    
Fr. Stefan has truly embraced and lived by the quote from Mother Angelica which appears on the dedication page of his book: “Unless you are willing to do the ridiculous, God will not do the miraculous.”
    
The first part of the book is written by Fr. Stefan. The second part is all testimonies written by the individuals who were healed or a family member (in the case of babies and children) who witnessed the healing Fr. Stefan tells about from his perspective in the first part.
    
Lord, help us be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, so that You are free to love and heal in and through us. Thank You for the example of people like Fr. Stefan who remind us that miracles occur and that healing is always possible through You. Amen.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book Reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Miracles - Healing for a Broken World. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest book review.