St. Jude - When You Need Him to Do Something
Feast Day: October 28
Sometimes you have prayed every prayer you know.
You have tried to surrender.
You have waited.
You have asked God for help again and again.
And still, there is one situation in your life that desperately needs something to change.
This is when so many Catholics turn to St. Jude Thaddeus, Apostle of Jesus and patron of desperate and seemingly hopeless cases.
Your prayer does not have to be complicated.
Sometimes you simply need to say:
“St. Jude, I need you to do something.”
And then tell him exactly what it is.
St. Jude, I Need You to Do Something
Take a moment right now.
Stop thinking about how impossible the situation looks.
Stop trying to figure out exactly how God could solve it.
Instead, pray:
“St. Jude, I need you to do something.”
Then add your intention:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
Be specific.
“St. Jude, I need help with my marriage.”
“St. Jude, please pray for my child to return to the Faith.”
“St. Jude, I need help finding work.”
“St. Jude, please intercede for this illness.”
“St. Jude, I need this situation in my family to change.”
“St. Jude, I need help with this financial problem.”
“St. Jude, I don't even know what needs to happen anymore. Please take this to Jesus.”
You do not have to know the solution before you pray.
You only need to know Who does.
Why St. Jude?
St. Jude was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ.
For centuries he became particularly associated with desperate and difficult causes.
One traditional explanation is that Christians were hesitant to invoke him because his name—Judas in Scripture—was so easily confused with Judas Iscariot.
St. Jude Thaddeus was not the betrayer.
He was the faithful Apostle.
Over time, devotion to him became especially associated with those situations where everything else seemed to have failed.
That is why countless Catholics still turn to him when they find themselves saying:
“I don't know what else to do.”
What Is Your Impossible Intention?
Maybe you are praying for:
A seemingly impossible situation
Healing
Marriage or reconciliation
Someone's conversion
A child who has left the Faith
Employment
Financial help
Freedom from addiction
A family crisis
An important decision
A relationship that needs God's guidance
An obstacle that needs to be removed
A prayer you have carried for years
Something that seems to have no human solution
Bring it to St. Jude.
But remember:
St. Jude is the intercessor. God is the One Who gives the grace.
We do not ask St. Jude to replace Jesus.
We ask him:
“St. Jude, take this to Jesus with me.”
Watch: A Powerful Reminder to Call Upon St. Jude
Before watching, think of the one intention you most need St. Jude's intercession for.
Then say:
“St. Jude, I need you to do something.”
Name your intention.
Watch the video.
And afterward, instead of immediately returning to worry, pray:
“St. Jude, I have given you my intention. Please continue interceding for me before Our Lord.”
The Tradition of Thanking St. Jude
There is something particularly beautiful about devotion to St. Jude:
public thanksgiving.
For generations, people who believed they had received favors through his intercession placed little notices in newspapers, church bulletins, and Catholic publications:
“Thank you, St. Jude, for favors received.”
Think about that.
Behind every tiny notice was a story.
A family.
A problem.
A prayer.
A person who had reached a point where they needed help.
Not every prayer is answered exactly as requested, and these personal testimonies are not guarantees that a particular devotion will produce a particular result.
But they remind us that Christians have brought their desperate situations before God for generations.
And when grace comes, we should remember to say thank you.
Prayer: St. Jude, I Need You to Do Something
O glorious St. Jude,
faithful Apostle and friend of Jesus,
I come to thee with an intention
that feels too difficult for me to carry alone.
St. Jude, I need you to do something.
I especially ask thy intercession for:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
Thou seest what I cannot see.
Pray for me before Our Lord.
If a door needs to open,
ask God to open it.
If an obstacle needs to be removed,
ask Him to remove it.
If a heart needs to change,
pray for that heart.
If healing is needed,
ask for healing according to God's holy will.
If I need to change,
pray that God begins with me.
If there is something I must do,
help me recognize it.
And if I must continue waiting,
obtain for me the grace not to lose hope.
St. Jude, I do not know how everything will be resolved.
But Jesus does.
Take my intention to Him.
Help me pray with confidence
without demanding my own way.
Help me trust God's timing
without becoming discouraged.
And when my prayer is answered,
remind me to return and give thanks.
St. Jude, patron of desperate and seemingly hopeless cases, pray for me.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, I trust in Thee.
Amen.
Then Leave Room for God to Work
After you pray, resist the temptation to spend the next hour figuring out exactly how the answer must happen.
You asked.
St. Jude is praying with you.
Now do whatever reasonable thing God is asking of you today.
Make the phone call.
Apologize if necessary.
Apply for the job.
Go to the doctor.
Have the conversation.
Go to Confession.
Pray the Rosary.
Fulfill your duties.
Or, if there is genuinely nothing left for you to do:
wait.
Waiting can also be an act of faith.
When You Start Worrying Again
Say it again:
“St. Jude, I need you to do something.”
But this time add:
“And I trust Jesus to decide what that something should be.”
That second sentence changes everything.
Because devotion is not about forcing Heaven to follow our plan.
It is about confidently bringing Heaven our needs while surrendering ourselves to God's plan.
When Your Prayer Is Answered, Come Back
Do not allow answered prayer to make you forget the One you were praying to.
Come back.
Go to Mass in thanksgiving.
Light a candle.
Give something to charity.
Tell someone about God's goodness.
Have a Mass offered in thanksgiving.
And perhaps continue the old Catholic tradition by simply saying:
“Thank you, St. Jude, for favors received.”
Someone else may desperately need to hear your testimony.
Your answered prayer might become the reason another person decides not to give up on theirs.
Start Today
You do not need perfect words.
You do not need to understand how the situation will be resolved.
You do not need to see the entire road ahead.
Name the intention.
Ask for St. Jude's intercession.
Then place the outcome in the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
“St. Jude, I need you to do something.”
[Add your intention.]
“Please take this to Jesus. If it is according to His holy will, obtain this grace for me—and while I wait, help me trust Him.”
Then keep going.
Keep praying.
Keep hoping.
And when God answers, remember to come back and give thanks.
St. Jude Thaddeus, Apostle of Jesus, patron of desperate and seemingly hopeless cases, pray for us!
