St. Bernadette Soubirous was born in France on January 7, 1844, and died on this date in 1879.
You probably know the story of the six months during which the Blessed Virgin appeared to Bernadette, a sickly, functionally illiterate fourteen year old. The girl’s witness never wavered, no matter how often or how long authorities questioned her. Millions have visited Lourdes since, in gratitude for or in search of cures.
And what happened to Bernadette after those six months? She eventually joined a convent. She didn’t even leave to attend the opening of the Lourdes basilica. That part of her life was over. She was canonized not for her Marian encounters, but for her general obedience, faithfulness, and prayer life in the following twenty-one years.
St. Bernadette said: “The Blessed Virgin chose me only because I was the most ignorant.”
Do you ever feel like saying, “Who, me? Sure you have the right person?” when God calls on you to serve? Spend some time today contemplating how you can emulate St. Bernadette’s example.
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