There was a young man who lived a very sinful life. Yet every day he said a prayer to the Mother of God. One night he had a dream which made a great impression upon him.

He dreamed that he was on a journey, and was extremely hungry. Our Blessed Lady then appeared to him, surrounded by angels, and offered him some delicious food. But it was served on a very dirty dish. She said to him:

"Take this food and eat it."

But he answered that he couldn’t eat the food because the dish was not clean.

"Thus it is with your prayers," the Blessed Virgin replied, "They are good in themselves, but your heart is impure. For this reason your petitions are not acceptable in God’s sight."

At that moment the young man awoke. He never forgot that dream. He changed his ways and spent rest of his life living the way a Catholic should.

Our Lady is a very Loving and very Powerful Mother. This unfortunate young man said a little daily prayer to Her out of routine, with no desire to overcome his sins. And yet, those half-hearted prayers won the grace of a warning to change his life.

His heart was compared to a dirty dish not because he wasn’t perfect, but because he didn’t fight temptation, first in small sins and then in serious ones.

But our Blessed Mother is always there, ready to make our hearts not only clean, but beautiful. We have only to pray for Her help, doing our best to respond to the graces She gives us.