Finding Time to Pray

Our Priest is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. He was asked by the Priest Chaplin at the local hospital to work with a young family. The family is having problems and went to the priest for help; neither parent had a religious upbringing. They have three young children, the oldest is five. The children have never been exposed to prayer. Father decided to teach the children a simple prayer. 

He instructed the children to pray, one, two, three, four, five. The prayer the children were to learn was to make the sign of the cross and then clasp their hands in prayer. One - touch the forehead, two - touch the chest, three touch the left shoulder, four touch the right shoulder, and on five clasp your hands in prayer. It was a simple prayer but more than they had ever prayed.

In our lives we often have a similar dilemma. We have a hard time praying. Most of the time, God's presence in our lives is not dramatic, sensational, or impossible to ignore. Because of this, it becomes easy to push our prayer lives to the back of our daily activities. We get religious waywardness; forgetting to pray. They don’t have the time. Forgetting the importance of daily prayer, people forget how to to pray. Unlike the children who never knew how to pray, some Christians loose sight of their need for prayer and begin an get into a habit of spiritual unfaithfulness. 

James 4:8 (NABRE) “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands . . . and purify your hearts, you of two minds”

The Christian tradition has three types of prayer; Vocal prayer, Meditation, and Contemplative prayer. (CCC 2721)

How do we improve our prayer life.  Here are a few ideas; one method is no more effective than the other. The only one that will be effective is the one you do. Short prayers can open our hearts to the grace needed to be aware of God’s presence in our life. Short but sincere prayers can be only few words:

• “Here I am Lord.”
• “Lord, thank you for your presence.”
• “Give me wisdom/insight.”
• “Do not let our hearts be troubled.”
• “Jesus, I trust in you.”

Meister Eckhart, philosopher, priest and mystic, said that if you only prayed “Thank you” that would be enough. I like to think that I offer every breath I take as a prayer of thanksgiving and praise to God, offering my whole self to his service.

If we look for time to pray we will never find it, so we need to make time to offer prayers. At work, use the moments between meetings, before and after phone calls, on the way to and from coffee breaks or lunch, before you go to work or leave for home as a time for prayer and reflection.

It is also important to take time several times a day to do an examination of conscious and take moments to reflect on your daily activities. These are times of brief contemplative prayer. During a coffee break, reflect on what has happened up until that time in the day. Have you done anything to wrong another person? Have you honored God in your thoughts and deeds? What has happened and how is God present in that experience?

If you are looking at the things in your calendar that has passed or is upcoming take the time to pray over each event, meeting or appointment.  Pray for the people involved or touched by that time or event. Ask for the grace to realized God in each moment of your life.

Psalm 46:11 (NABRE) “Be still and know that I am God!"

A time for meditation can be found before you get out of the car when you get home, stop and meditate on your day. What are you grateful for? Who are you grateful for? Does a coworker or friend need prayer? Realize the moments of God’s grace in the day.

Finally, in the quiet time before bed, pray to Jesus Christ.  Ask for forgiveness for the times when you failed to love God and your neighbor.  Thank God for all the gifts he has given you and be quiet and listen for his voice. 

Like little children, prayers must be offered in a purity that is earnest and from the heart.

Pray constantly, (1 Thess 5:17). It is always possible to pray. It is even a vital necessity. Prayer and Christian life are inseparable. (CCC 2757)