Jon Patterson

When I came home to the Church on August 15, 2009, my Grandpa took me for a drive and said that I didn’t need to convert him because he wasn’t interested.

I remember sitting at the Tabernacle and asked the Lord to hear my prayer. I wanted my Grandpa to know Jesus. Years went by, and I kept my prayer for Grandpa in the quiet of my heart.

In 2016, Grandpa was diagnosed with a liver condition. To keep up his spirits, my wife and I went to his house one sunny Sunday afternoon and had a very special visit. At one point in the conversation, he began opening up about his early years.

He spoke about a time when he went to visit his father on the military base. When he was 19 years old he asked for his father, the man at the base replied saying, “I didn’t know that he had a son. He never spoke of you.” Telling us this story, my Grandpa’s eyes filled with tears.

“What a thing to carry all of these years.” He said. This burden weighed heavily on him.

Grandpa also shared a poem that he wrote in August 1989. My Grandpa didn’t write poetry. He said that he wrote the poem during one of the darkest moments of his life, suffering through serious depression, he drank himself to sleep. But one morning when he woke up, a poem was written, resting on his coffee table titled, “I Am A Tree”.

Grandpa had the poem with him and handed it to me. I began to carefully read it line by line. When I read the final line, I was taken aback. It read, “I am a tree that cares, and my name is Love.” In that moment, I asked Jesus within the depths of my soul, “Lord Jesus, is this You?” I was overwhelmed by God’s presence. I could not keep it inside. I looked up at my Grandpa and said to him, “Grandpa, do you know who this is?” He looked at me and nodded his head as tears began to flow down his face. You see, in the midst of one of my Grandpa’s darkest hours, Love was pursuing him. Love was there in the midst of it all. He was never going to let go.

A few weeks later, my Grandpa was admitted to the hospital. I immediately knew that I needed to visit him. As I drove for an hour, I prayed that God would be with me. I prayed that God would give me the words to speak to my Grandpa.

On one occasion, my father and I were together in my Grandpa’s hospital room. As I sat on the right side of his bed, my Grandpa looked at my dad and asked if the three of us could pray together as men. As I laid my hand on my Grandpa’s shoulder, we began to pray. Three generations of men gathered in prayer. The first thought that came to my mind was that all of hell must have trembled, and the thunderous applause of heaven must have been so great. In that moment, chains were broken. Freedom was found. As I drove home, I was overwhelmed by God moving in my family’s life. God had already done so much. And still, He was not done yet.

On another visit to the hospital, my dad told me that the doctor delivered the grave news that Grandpa was going to die. His liver was failing and time was running out. When I went into the room, I was terrified to speak to him about faith. But I knew that I needed to. I went close to his bed. “Grandpa, you are going to meet Jesus." I said, "I want you to be ready. Are you okay if I invite a Catholic priest to come and speak with you?” My Grandpa looked at me.

"I would like that very much." He replied.

I called one of my former classmates, Tom. We were friends studying at St. Augustine’s where I was completing my master’s in theology. He had since been ordained and was a parish priest nearby. When we spoke, he said that he would visit my Grandpa the next day.

The next day when we arrived at the hospital, I noticed that Father Tom was already in the room with my grandpa. I didn’t want to intrude, so we waited out in the hall. When Father Tom noticed us, he invited us in. As we sat down, my grandpa said to me, “Hey David.” I looked at him, and he said, “Catholic Church. Yes.” I was so awestruck I didn’t know if I was hearing him correctly. Father Tom told me that he spoke with my Grandpa, and he said that he wanted to be received into the Catholic Church. I immediately felt the presence of God.

The next day my Grandpa was going to be received into the Catholic Church. I wasn’t going to miss that moment for the world. After the priest heard my Grandpa’s confession, I was able to come into the room where I could witness him receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick and Holy Eucharist. As I walked into the room, I could see that my Grandpa was overwhelmed. I sat at his side and held his hand while he received all of the Sacraments. God was very present. I could feel His power as Grandpa was anointed with the Seal of the Holy Spirit. After receiving the Sacraments, I asked Grandpa how he felt. He said that he felt a lot of peace. He said, “It is about time that I did this.”

He told me that during his confession, he let go of a lot of things that he had been holding onto for so many years. My Grandpa experienced the Living Water. He experienced the peace of God. It was clear in his eyes. I don’t know how my Grandpa spent the rest of that night. But I know that he was telling others that he loves Jesus and was praying a lot. My Grandpa knew that he was loved. He knew that God was real. He knew that he was home.

Grandpa was received into the Catholic Church on Monday. It was Tuesday that he began to go downhill fast. My Grandpa was put on life support and was not responsive.

I wasn’t sure where the chapel was in the hospital, but I wanted to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet for him. I asked one of the nurses and she led me directly to the chapel. When I walked through the doors, I couldn’t believe my eyes. Immediately I recognized the wooden carving of a tree at the center of the room. To the left of the carving was a stained-glass window of Jesus as the Good Shepherd holding the lamb in His arms. To the right was another stained-glass window showing Jesus knocking at the door, with a lantern in His hands. As I left the chapel, I noticed a sign outside of the chaplain’s office. It read, “When it rains, look for rainbows. When it’s dark, look for stars.” When I returned to the family meeting room, my dad showed me a picture he searched for on his cell phone. The picture was of a full rainbow and a tree at the center. I told my dad that he needed to go for a walk with me. When he walked inside, he recognized the tree carving and broke into tears. In that moment, I held my dad. I think that my dad really knew that this was more than just a coincidence. God was showing us that He was right there in the midst of it all.

Later that week, I received a call saying that my Grandpa was very sick and I needed to come back to the hospital now. I was told that I should call Father Tom to ask if he could come to pray with my grandpa one last time. When he arrived, we went into the room where Grandpa lay, so sick and frail. He began to pray for my Grandpa, asking for all the saints in heaven to intercede for him. He anointed by Grandpa’s forehead and hand and read the Scriptures; from the Book of Revelation 21, where Jesus says, “I am making everything new!” When the priest finished praying the last rites, the doctor explained to us that his organs were failing and that there was nothing else they could do, and that they would welcome us into the room after they removed the life support. It was time for Grandpa to meet Jesus and go home.

I started praying the Rosary asking for Jesus and Mary to be present. The nurse then welcomed us into the room where we could be with Grandpa. We held his hand and told him that we loved him so much and that it was okay to go home. In that moment, my grandmother told me that I should sing to him. The only song I could think to sing was, “Be Not Afraid.” As I held my Grandpa’s hand, I prayed so hard that Jesus, Mary and all of the saints would bring him home to Heaven. I began to weep when I had an image of Jesus carrying my Grandpa in His arms. I can’t explain how much peace I experienced in that moment. As we stood around his bed, my Grandpa took his last breath at 9:02 p.m. on August 20, 2016. It was that exact moment that my Grandpa stepped into eternal life.

My Grandpa said yes to Jesus and His Church at one of his last moments on earth. My prayer is that you wouldn’t wait to open wide the doors to Christ. Do not be afraid. Never mind where you have wandered. Just come home. Love stands waiting for your return.