Take Heart, My Friend, and Do Not Fear

If you are fearful or suffering in any way today, my friend, take heart; even the Saints experienced some degree of fear at times, often suffered greatly, and sometimes wondered why God allowed such misery. Yes, even St. Padre Pio sometimes complained about his constant pain caused by the ever-bleeding stigmata, the five wounds of Christ Crucified in Padre Pio's hands, feet, and side. One day, according to Dorothy M. Gaudiose, (author of Prophet of the People, a biography of St. Padre Pio), one of Padre Pio's fellow friars at the San Giovanni Monastery in Italy said to him, "Look what has come for you." He handed Padre Pio a small brown box. "A present from Switzerland, Padre Pio."
St. Pio, then thirty, opened the box and smiled as he pulled out a pair of soft, cloth shoes. "This is very thoughtful," he said to the friar.
"Yes," agreed the friar. He knew that the gift would help Padre Pio's swollen, stigmatized feet to hurt less when he walked.
When St. Pio arrived in his cell (the small room assigned to him which he used as his bedroom), he put on a pair of soft brown socks and then slid the new soft shoes over them. Indeed, they would help cushion his feet which were always swollen. Often he prayed that God would take away the visible stigmata and leave St. Pio only the pain, which he gladly bore for the salvation of souls. (See Colossians 1:24 and St. Paul's agreement with this philosophy.) You see, the visible stigmata brought fame to St. Padre Pio which he hated. He wanted to remain hidden in the monastery, praying and suffering for the salvation of souls. But God's will had to be done, and so the visible stigmata remained, and the crowds increased until they reached many thousands each year. By the time St. Padre Pio died, millions of people had traveled from all over the world to see Padre Pio; to hear his Mass; to confess their sins in his confessional; to ask for him to heal them, by God's grace; to see Padre Pio's ever-bleeding stigmata; and to receive his blessing.
Now, let us return to St. Pio's cell on that day in which he received the gift of cloth shoes: According to Dorothy Gaudiose, who worked for three years in Italy for St. Pio and who told me to write my first of many published book about St. Padre Pio (all by God's grace), that day when Padre Pio exited his cell wearing his new cloth shoes, he heard "a lot of commotion. ''They are coming by the thousands,' said a friar to him in the hallway. Padre Pio nodded. 'I know.' He began to look worried. 'Do you think it will get out of control?' The brother shrugged his shoulders. 'Some say it already is. The police are outside every day now, watching the crowds. Did you know that?' Padre Pio raised his eyebrows in surprise and reluctantly ventured on." (Prophet of the People, pages 59-61)
For fifty years St. Padre Pio bore the ever-bleeding wounds of Christ. And he always told everyone who suffered, who worried about loved ones, who feared the future, who suffered misery of any type, "Pray, hope, and don't worry." My dear friend, I hope you find comfort and peace by following his advice.
May God richly bless you. Amen!