How God Worked Through My Battle Against COVID

How God Worked Through My Battle Against COVID

By Dave DiNuzzo Sr.

How many of the people that you know, that contracted COVID, are grateful that they got it? I know of no one, other than myself. I contracted COVID-19 and went on an intense and crazy journey. Watch this video interview of my discussion with Drew and Katie Taylor to hear more details. 

All Alone

When I first felt symptoms, I knew I had it. I was working in my classroom (I teach middle and high school Theology at our small-but-mighty Catholic school) late one Friday night. My stomach churned, my body began to ache, and then I started to shiver uncontrollably. I knew it. “Now what?”, I thought to myself as I sat at my desk convulsing. It came out of nowhere. And I was all alone. Who could see me shaking, or feeling nauseous? Who was there to feel my ever-increasing body temperature? Who was going to validate my symptoms? No one… I was all alone.

Being all alone was one of the strangest sensations during my battle, something I am not used to. Once I was admitted to the hospital, I was all alone. My wife and children couldn’t visit because of COVID restrictions. The priest wasn’t allowed in. Of course there were nurses, doctors, therapists, and cleaning staff, but they weren’t there “with” me. Thankfully, I had video calling capabilities with my family, but I was so out of breath that most of the calls consisted of me just sitting in silence, staring at the screen. Occasionally, my kids would come look through the windows of my hospital room.

Battling

The choice for me was very clear. I could either fall into a fearful depression, throw my hands up, complain, and quit, or I could realize that I wasn’t alone after all. I chose the second option, and began to rely on the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and on the Immaculate Heart of His Most Holy Mother, Mary. Over and over I repeated “O, Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee!” I prayed this countless times. Every time I would pray this prayer (which, traditionally is prayed three times in a row), I would follow up with a “Hail, Mary”. This was how I battled.

I unrelentingly believe in God’s grace. I was (Praise God!) in the state of grace when I went into the hospital. Can you imagine the fear and gut wrenching feeling had I been in the state of mortal sin?! Phew! Lord, have mercy! The fact that I had been living in sacramental grace truly structured my battle-ready approach and ability to fight through everything. 

I found myself in a mental space, ready for death, and being okay with it. It was really peaceful. I certainly didn’t want to die, but I was ready if it was His Will. So, during my battle, what I feel most privileged about was the fact that I wasn’t in any pain. I couldn’t breathe, but I wasn’t in pain. Most people who struggled through a 33-day COVID battle (25 days in the ICU) had it much worse than I did. I prayed fervently for them, especially those who literally were all alone. At one point, the man across the hall from me, most likely in his 80’s, was in a medically induced coma. When he finally came out of it, although still intubated, he never received one phone call, a video message, and obviously he had no visitors. My heart hurt for him, and others like him.

How God Worked

So, through it all, God proved again and again that He had my back! I was eventually transferred (via “flight for life” – crazy, I know!) to a Catholic hospital, received an anointing, and Jesus in the Most Holy Eucharist! (Thanks Fr. Ben!) God walked this journey with me and did so much to my heart that I am forever changed. I feel so united to Jesus’ Heart that I sincerely fear nothing. 

I was able to share my story, first through an unexpected Instagram Story that made its way all around the world (thank you to everyone who prayed for me!). Through this mini-viral clip, I heard from hundreds and hundreds of people that it positively impacted. They saw my faith during such an impossible time. I was blessed to be capable of demonstrating to them what trust and surrender really means. I take absolutely zero credit for this! God provided.

Wrap It Up, Dave!

As I continue to recover (I’m what they call a “COVID long-hauler and have a long road ahead), my life is pretty different. Physically, I’m different. I get extreme exhaustion, am consistently out of breath, have experienced weight gain and metabolic changes, and most of the time, I feel pretty lousy. None of that stops me. I can’t stop telling people about the most important thing in life… the Sacred Heart of Jesus. His Heart IS the Eucharist. His Heart IS life. His Heart IS the font of Divine Mercy. “O, Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee!”

This article is cross-posted from Catholic-Link. Please click to like, follow, and subscribe to their socials.

The TrueManhood Podcast Episode 9 – Porn Addiction: Part 1

In this episode on pornography, part 1, Dave DiNuzzo opens up about his porn addiction, and a bit of how he overcame it, what porn is, why it’s bad, and how to help ourselves and our kids. Watch for part 2 coming soon, and watch for the upcoming episode on “The 5 Step Plan.” TrueMan up!

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The TrueManhood Podcast Episode 3 – The Devil’s Top 5 Lies

The TrueManhood Podcast, brought to you by TrueManhood Men’s Ministry, in Episode 3, will examine what we believe are the Devil’s Top 5 Lies to win souls. Lie #1: Pornography. #2: Decay of Marriage/Okay of Divorce. #3: Abortion/Contraception. #4: Gender Agenda. #5: Atheism/Secular Humanism

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Bought with a Price

I am profoundly excited to bring you a great anti-pornography resource, a revised edition of a Pastoral Letter from Bishop Paul Loverde from the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia.  This pastoral letter originally came out eight years ago, but has been reissued because of the severe and overwhelming need.  “Bought with a Price” – Every Man’s Duty to Protect Himself and His Family from a Pornographic Culture.  It includes a new foreword from anti-porn leader, Matt Fradd.

The intended re-release of this letter is March 19, 2014 – the Feast of St. Joseph, patron saint of fathers.  I highly encourage everyone to read this letter and put what you read into action.

“Today’s father must protect himself and his children from the relentless assault of an increasingly pornographic culture; moreover, mothers share this sacred task.  Every home now stands in the pathway of this attack on our children’s innocence and purity.  If we are not vigilant, our sons and daughters will pay a steep and heartrending price.” p.6

Fathers – it is critical that we work to protect ourselves and our families from the evils of pornography.  First, ourselves, and then those around us and under our care. 

In a future post, I will write on the topic of “helping parents protect their children from the internet” – a talk that I give about the harms of the internet and how to practically handle the situation.  One of the most important aspects of this topic is to have conversations with our children.  If you think that your child isn’t or won’t be affected by pornography, you are wrong.  If your children have internet accessible devices and you don’t know that they can (and probably do) access pornography, you are naïve.  How then do you handle this?  You talk about it!  And it’s never too early to talk about it… when done properly, prudently, and age-appropriately.  (Note: the average age of first exposure to pornography in America is now 8 years old and dropping rapidly!)

Do you expect your child to understand mathematics on their own, with no instruction?  What about anatomy, biology, history?  Certainly not.  The old adage, “having the sex talk” is a misnomer, implying that parents should only speak to their children one time about sex.  Simply check a box and it’s handled.  This does not work.  We should instruct our children on a properly ordered understanding of sexuality, and instruct them often.  I start imparting knowledge on the topic very early with my children… even before they can truly understand.  It sets the tone, and creates a solid foundation for them to grow upon.  As each child gets older, the topic broadens, the seriousness increases, and the formation I desire heavily to provide to my children is strengthened. 

Take the time and read this pastoral letter from Bishop Loverde, then act on it!

TrueMan up!

Porn Shop Shuts Down Near Buffalo, NY

Lots of people ask us if we believe that we can make a difference with our protests of sexually oriented businesses.  We always answer “Of course!”  When we’re out there, it’s easy to question our effectiveness, but we do make a difference.  The Catholic men’s group in Buffalo, NY knows this well, too.  They call themselves The Men of Jesus Christ.  I suggest you check out their website.  Here’s a recent story from them about a porn shop they were instrumental in shutting down.

Now this isn’t news from the Wall Street Journal, but for us in this small town of Kenmore NY, it is a tremendous victory.  I am talking about the Village Books and News adult shop located in one of the most densely populated family areas in Buffalo.  It is a full fledged porn shop and has been in the town for over 30 years.  Indecency laws have been passed to ban pornography shops in the town, but since this the shop was established before the laws were passed, they were grandfathered in, and has remained the eye-sore of the community.  The other day as I was passing by I noticed that the neon sign that says “Adult Video” has been turned off for the first time in 30 years, and a sign that says the store is closed.  A shop that was open 24 hours a day is now gone.

The last time people protested the establishment was in the days of its inception back in the late 70’s and since then it has been tucked in a plaza that most people don’t pay attention to, not because they feel it isn’t harmful, but because it has been there for so long, and its reign has finally come to an end.

It wasn’t until a couple years ago when a couple of us guys decided to pray out there on a weekly basis when a revival began, and it was met with a fight.  We decided to engage in prayer and nothing else in front the place.  Peaceful and prayerful.  We were met with the police threatening arrest, to people screaming and shouting at us, to engaging conversation from people wondering what we were doing.  This one time we were praying as we usually do, and a guy was walking toward us.  When he passed us, there was no eye contact, no conversation, and he planted himself right next to us and started praying with us. When we finished, he kept on his way.  It was simply an amazing act of the Holy Spirit.  It is difficult though.  There was a time when a couple of girls were passing by and asked us what we were doing. We told them and they were shocked, only because they felt there there is nothing wrong with it. After a long conversation. the one girl admitted that her father had a huge porn addiction and went on to explain how that affected her as a female and her relationships with other men.  It was touching, but at the same time devastating.

I have a tendency to think we were doing good out there, but when it comes down to it, it was God’s will that lead the way. I cannot help to think that it was prayer that led to the shutdown of this joint, and it was difficult, to say the least to keep it going.  In Buffalo, when its cold, well, its COLD.  And during prayer we got in the habit of kneeling as we sung the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, which needless to say was not pleasant to listen to when you hear voices like ours.  We know it had an effect though.  There was a night when we started singing, and the clerk as he heard us, would increase the volume of a movie playing in the shop.  As he raised the volume inside, we raised the volume outside. You just knew there was a spiritual battle taking place.  We would start with the St. Michael prayer and then entrust the closing of this place to Mary, a living sign of purity, the real Woman, followed by a rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.  It was our Mother that guided the closing of this place.  It is Her that is leading this mission.

I want to simply conclude that anyone reading this can make a difference in your area.  All you need to do is say YES!  Say yes to going to a place to pray in public even if it makes you feel incredibly uncomfortable.  Christ knows that, and all He asks is for you to be His vessel and He will do the rest. Christ has allowed us to be disciples in His mission and He is calling you too!  You just need to answer the call.  Three guys joined together in prayer in front of multiple indecent shops and this is what God has brought from it:
1) We prayed out in the warmth and the cold for such a long time, and this book shop shuts down after over 30 years.
2) We prayed once outside of the hamburg strip club, the place shuts down a few weeks later
3) We prayed and acted on the pornographic building with a cover sign facing all traffic of a major turnpike, the sign was removed within 2 weeks after the owner said it would never come down.
4) Family Video has yet to get a tenant to their building, which is the cornerstone to them staying economically viable.
This was achieved with a small number of guys. You men reading this can do the same.  What if there were 10 guys?  What if there were 20 guys?  What if there were 100 guys? What of there were teams scattered around the city protesting these places?  We could change an entire community!

You are being called as men to organize and shut these places down, which includes porn shops, strip clubs, and abortion clinics.  If you have not been out, get motivated to change this culture, and in return God will take care of the rest. We will be engaging in more battles to come so stay tuned to the site.  Stay strong brothers and God Bless

The Fight – Clear and Present Danger

I write about “The Fight” a good bit on this site.  I urge men everywhere to realize that we are in a battle for souls.  Most of the time, the battle is spiritual – fighting demons, spiritual unrest and concupiscence.  Sometimes, however, the battle is physical.  In this video, the persecution of Christians shows us that the battle is a clear and present danger.  The persecution of Christians in America is far from as brutal as these persecutions of Christians by Muslims in Nigeria, but still real.  In no way am I attempting to compare the two forms of persecution – clearly, the are different.  However, there’s nothing to say that they can’t become as real in America as they are in other parts of the world.

If you can’t view the video, click HERE for the link.

Men, we MUST first learn what it means to be a man, then jump into action!  We are called to action!  Without TrueMen who step up, lead and fight, mankind will continue to suffer.  We cannot sit around and wait for this sort of hatred to permeate our culture any more.  Step up and do something!  How, you ask?  How can I possibly help these poor, defenseless people in Africa?  Start at home, so that it doesn’t happen here.  I’ve been known to joke on occasion about a “Muslim Invasion”, that I want to be armed and ready to respond to this sort of thing.  It’s not funny any more.  How ready are you if this were to happy in the US?

A note about the traffic on my site: in February 2010, my site was visited by people living in 36 various foreign countries.  6 of those 36 countries were African countries.  This is more real for them than me.

Are You Fighting?

Men,

Are you fighting?  Are you ready for battle?  Have you been training?  When temptations come your way, are you ready for war?

If you haven’t read through the page (above) titled “Fighting Porn” I urge you to read it and put it into action.  If you’ve read it, re-read it.  Another day gone by without training and a battle mission is another day you will be held in slavery to the grave evils of pornography and masturbation.  These are mortal sins, meaning that they cut off the life of grace from the Father.  These grave evils will ruin your life, and every single relationship you have in the future.  Don’ wait, stand up and fight.

Don’t try to kid yourself.  Stop justifying your actions.  You can achieve freedom from pornography and masturbation – I am a walking testimony to this fact.  Never stop fighting, never let your guard down.  There is a way out, you must actively work towards it and allow God’s grace to fill your heart, your mind, your life.  You can do it!  Go, and do it!

If you need assistance with your plan, or how to figure out your plan, or how to start accountability with your brother(s), or any other assistance, please email me at proveritasspeakers@gmail.com.

Man up!

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