Prayer 101

Week one:  The Urgency of Praying
 
We begin this series by describing the urgency of prayer in our lives.  Our relationship with Jesus cannot be sustained without making a firm commitment to invest the effort and time necessary.  In our Faith 101 Series we described the process of conversion and surrender to Jesus as being ongoing.  It is our prayer that draws us to a deeper personal experience of Jesus and growth in that relationship.  

Prayer cannot just be a good intention, it must be a priority.   When we are in a crisis, it is the most natural thing in the world to pray—with urgency, and even desperation.  Nurturing a strong relationship with Jesus means that we develop the habit of prayer that is consistent “in good times and in bad”.  And, it means that we are familiar with different forms of prayer so we can use the appropriate “tools” to connect best with the Lord in any given situation in our lives.  For most Catholics, the basics learned as children—memorizing certain form prayers—are the extent of the instruction on prayer, and anything that develops later is by trial and error.  

The reality is, we need a plan: a plan for daily prayer, and a plan for what to do during that prayer time!  Without such a plan we easily get discouraged, and when it feels as if nothing is happening people with good intentions often quit praying altogether.  With a plan we have the structure in place to live our lives more deeply.  Apart from a meaningful and ongoing experience of Jesus, our lives are left with a toxic restlessness.  That discontent leads us to all kinds of misuse of the good things of life.  As we deepen our prayer life, we learn to embrace our lives in their entirety—living always against the reality of an “infinite horizon”:  eternal life.  

Living in a deep relationship with Jesus gradually displaces the anger and impatience that is so pervasive in our lives, and replaces them with the fruits of the Spirit:  joy, peace, gentleness, kindness, self control.  (Galatians 5:22)  And these qualities increasingly become present even in difficult times!  When our bodies are hungry our stomachs growl or we feel weak.  When our souls are hungry they too growl—and that growl shows itself in our actions of impatience, of anger, or of any kind of acting out in inappropriate ways.  Watch for these signs and you will know they are a clear invitation to a deeper prayer life and a deeper surrender to Jesus.

Prayer 101 will provide some tools for the journey!  It is an effort to equip us all to Know Jesus more personally, to Grow in that relationship, and then to be prepared to Go forth and make a difference in our world.  Next week we will be describing essential components of a strong prayer life.



Week 2:  Essential Components of Daily Prayer

There are certain components that are essential to a vibrant prayer life.  Each person has to discover how best to incorporate these components in a meaningful way in their own lives, and because we are each created differently, the way this is done will vary significantly.  Our Catholic tradition is rich and varied in different styles of prayer.  It is our hope to provide during this series an introduction and overview of these components.  Next year we will develop it more deeply in our “201” series.  Consider the following:

Thanksgiving.  Developing a habit of giving thanks to God for the blessings we receive is primary in our praying because it acknowledges that God is actively involved in all the details of our ordinary lives.  Grace before meals, quick prayers of thanks to God for blessings along the way, taking time at the end of the day to review the things for which we are grateful—and expressing thanks to God:  all of this fosters an attitude of gratitude, and a deeper relationship with Jesus.  All authentic holiness is fueled by gratitude.

Intercession.  Praying for others, for ourselves, and for world needs is an integral part of this relationship.  As members of the Body of Christ, God chooses to need us to assist in bringing about his plans.  To intercede is to “stand between”, to connect God with whomever or whatever we are praying about.  Taking time daily to pray for those especially entrusted to our care is part of this—our families, close friends, colleagues.  Offering to pray for individuals going thru difficult times can be a powerful source of solace and also of faith sharing.  We do this in different ways:  praying the rosary for an intention, offering up some voluntary or involuntary pain or discipline for that need, remembering that person at mass, or simply in your own words asking God to provide whatever is needed in the situation.  We are all “prayer warriors” praying on behalf of those around us, and ourselves, in our common pilgrimage towards Heaven.

Contrition.  Examining our consciences and expressing sorrow for the ways we have been less than the “best version of ourselves” is what contrition is all about.  Traditionally we do this as part of our night prayers, for many people simply reciting the “Act of Contrition”.  As with any valued relationship, whenever we slip up and do something offensive to a loved one, it is appropriate to immediately “fess up” and express sorrow.  As our ongoing dialog with God increases, it becomes the most natural thing in the world to offer a prayer like this:  “Oops, I just goofed.  I am so sorry for entering into that gossip.  Help me be more mindful”.  

Listening.  Next week’s session will be entirely on this theme.  Yes, we can hear God speak!   No, it is usually not the way we hear others speak!  Yes, He desires to communicate with us!  Yes, part of a vital prayer life is to take time to listen!  Stay tuned for next week’s message!

So what is a “daily minimum requirement” for prayer?  First, let me remind you that prayer is all about our relationship with Jesus.  Relationships that are important to us simply require a commitment of time and heart; it is the same with our relationship with Jesus. Author and speaker, Fr. Larry Richards says if we don’t pray 5 minutes a day we are pagans!  Create some quiet time each day and use it to give thanks, intercede, express sorrow, and listen.  




Week 3:  Listening to God

All relationships to be healthy require both talking and listening.  It has been said often that there is a reason why we have two ears and only one mouth!  All too often in our praying we do all the talking and no listening.  We have not been taught how to listen to God.  Listening to God requires a different way of tuning in, and usually it requires us to enter into what is often called the “classroom of silence”.  Too much noise, activity and frenzy in our lives tends to keep us from hearing the way He speaks.  And, when we try to quiet ourselves down, we are so often barraged by distracting thoughts that it is even harder to hear how God is speaking to us!  Take heart; there is hope!

The primary way in which we experience God speaking to us is through reading the Bible, the writings of the Saints, or the writings of other solid spiritual mentors.  The challenge is to get out of our head and into our hearts.  This is what I mean and this is how it is often suggested that we do this.  After settling down into a “quiet time” (remember last week’s suggestions for essentials in praying),  read a passage, a paragraph, or a chapter.  Then ponder what message this passage is speaking to you personally.  Ask questions like, “What is this telling me about God?  What could God be telling me through this passage?  How does this relate to my life and current circumstances?”  Finally respond with your own words of thanksgiving, sorrow, deeper surrender or whatever seems appropriate.  In time this becomes the most natural thing in the world and a kind of dialog with God results.  An easy way to do this is with the daily and Sunday mass readings.  They can be easily found on the USCCB website (usccb.org).  This kind of meditation (often called “lectio”) is a time-proven way of deepening our experience of God in our praying.

Contemplation is not a kind of prayer reserved just for saints.  Unlike the meditation process described above, contemplation involves no reading, thinking or dialog with God.  It is simply a profound awareness of God’s presence and a deep sense of his love and our love for him.  This is not something we can produce by any method or technique.  Moments of contemplation are gifts from God, requiring only an openness on our part and a deep commitment to live our lives consistent with the Gospel message.  In these moments nothing else is needed.  

Finally, if we listen deeply, we can often “hear” God speaking through the events in our lives.  Often our immediate response when we are in the midst of really difficult or tragic times is to ask “Why is this happening?”  More fruitful is to ask “What would you like me to do (or learn) in this situation?”  Often the “Why?” questions just end in frustration and silence, where as the “What?” questions can lead us to a deeper dialog with God—and openness to his working in our lives and speaking thru these events. Taking time to regularly be quiet and sincerely seek God’s voice brings amazing clarity to our lives.  Listen carefully for God is eager to speak!




Week 4:  Praying the Mass

This week I want to focus specifically on how we can better “pray” the mass.  It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking, “gee, I am not getting anything out of the mass, why do I even bother”.  (I know that never happens here at Holy Trinity!)  Let me give you a different way to approach our participation in mass and the expectations we have.

Here’s an analogy that rings true to me.  Think of the mass as being like an orchestra or a band.  Now consider the roles—of the conductor, the musicians, and audience.  Where we tend to get it backwards is when we think of those in the pews as the audience—the recipients, observers of the program.  Instead, the audience of the mass is GOD!  We all are the “performers”, giving thanks through music, prayer, praise, reflection.  In this context it is not at all about what we get out of the mass, but what we bring to it and put into it that matters.  See the difference?  My role as pastor is to coordinate the efforts of everyone involved as we give our very best to the Lord.   

The analogy holds up in another aspect as well.  No group worth listening to performs without practicing.  Our practice is our preparation:  our daily praying, interceding, efforts to love our neighbor, and our struggle to create a world of justice.  More directly, our practice includes getting ready for mass, being on time (come early and the parking is easier!), reading the Scripture readings ahead of time, identifying the intentions we want to pray for, and being ready to surrender our lives more deeply to God.  The word “liturgy” means literally the “work of the people”.  Get it?

Two clarifications.  First, coming together for the Mass is not intended to be our “quiet time”; it is our community time.  Quiet time for reflection and prayer is crucial in our ongoing prayer life as we have talked about in this series, but you will likely be forever frustrated if you expect to find that immediately before or after any of our masses.  Mass is not for a bunch of isolated individuals to come and have their “me and Jesus” time, it is precisely for the community to gather and unite in giving honor to God.  That said, of course we want to be respectful in the church so that it remains a place of prayerfulness.

Secondly, a word about distractions.  I have never, ever presided at a mass where I have not been distracted at some time or other!  You have heard me use the phrase “zone out” to describe this.  What I do work at is concentrating on what I am praying, and when I do drift off, I gently but insistently pull myself back.  Yes, this takes effort.  Back to my analogy about the orchestra, many of you know I was a professional musician for 5 years before becoming a priest.  I can tell you playing at that level required a great deal of concentration and focus.  I am committed to bringing at least the same level of effort into my praying the mass—and encourage you to do so as well.  Remember, you are not the audience; God is the one for whom we do this!