Establishing a prayer routine and balancing it with other responsibilities

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robtax

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I’m trying to develop a regular prayer life. I’m trying to do the liturgy of the hours but I find that I can’t keep up with it. Sometimes its due to my hectic schedule but other times I forget or I just don’t do it. I also get nervous when I hear that I should do the rosary daily and the list goes on as to what I’m suppossed to do daily. I was wondering what you guys do in regards to balancing your life with faith, work family etc?
 
I think each person needs to develop their own personal devotions. If you have certain prayers you like, focus on those. You don’t have to pray all of the prayers that others do. And trying to find an hour or 2 (or more) to do all of the devotions that you’re “supposed” to do each day can be extremely difficult.

I would suggest that you start with something small and slowly add in additional prayers. If you’re having trouble doing the LOTH maybe you could just focus on morning & evening or maybe just 1. Then once you’ve got that down to a routine try adding another one. If you try and jump in and do everything you’re setting yourself up for a flop.
 
I agree with tkdnick. Start with one or two and commit to these. In my experience, Lauds and Compline are the easiest to start with. The Office presented in the Magnificat magazine is the briefest that I know of, and unless you are under an obligation to pray another version (such as by being a priest or religious) then this may be a good option for you.

Another suggestion is to say “small” prayers throughout the day, such as saying Paters and Aves at each of the little hours and the Angelus at noon. The nice thing about this practice is that it orients one to God frequently throughout the day, without the need for carrying a breviary about. A digital watch with multiple alarm settings is, for the absent minded such as myself, a real help here.

Lastly, consider carrying your rosary with you everywhere you go. While it may be preferable to say all 5 (or 15 or 20) decades in one sitting, I’d suggest that it’s better to say it in pieces than not at all.
 
Where your treasure is, that’s where your heart will be.

Prayer joins you with your treasure, Jesus Christ.

How can you miss it?

Jim
 
I agree with those who suggest starting small. I do like the Magnificat (magazine) morning and evening prayers. They are short and simple and the monthly booklet is small enough to easily fit in a purse or pocket.

I take my Rosary when I go out for my lunch time walk. I can usually get 3 decades in. I hope to expand that time, both for more exercise and so that I can finish all 5 decades.

God does know our intentions, but there are enough ways to get in prayer, that we should not excuse ourselves if we don’t do any.
robtax said:
I’m trying to develop a regular prayer life. I’m trying to do the liturgy of the hours but I find that I can’t keep up with it. Sometimes its due to my hectic schedule but other times I forget or I just don’t do it. I also get nervous when I hear that I should do the rosary daily and the list goes on as to what I’m suppossed to do daily. I was wondering what you guys do in regards to balancing your life with faith, work family etc?
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I rememebr when I joined Opus Dei first, I thought that I would never be able to fit the ‘norms’ into my already busy day.

The first step I know I took was to make up my mind to be serious about it. I am not saying that you are not serious about your desire but you need to become serious about the prayer plan you want to make up.

Since we are folks of the world, it is perfectly ok to pray your daily Rosary, maybe on the way home from work in your car or on any daily journey you do that takes longer than 20 mins.

You may have to decide to get up earlier to fit in morning prayer or make an active decision to maybe skip TV for 20 mins in the evening to do your evening prayer. You may decide to pay a 5 minute lunchtime visit to the Blessed Sacrament each and every day at a nearby Church.

You will not have a regular and disciplined prayer like if you do not make serious decisions like the examples above.

Start small; get two things going regularly for about a month or two. Then add another devotion and work on the three. Then another and so on until you have covered all you wish to do in one day.

Make a 3 minute examination of conscience every night going over how well you persevered during the day that is not ending. Make a resolution to the Lord to try harder tomorrow with His help and His abundant Grace.

What is required is perseverance and determination. Don’t go hard on yourself if it doesn’t come together at first. Be patient. Day after day begin again. Let the morning bring with it great hope that this day you are going to succeed. If you don’t, make a resolution that night to try again tomorrow and so on and so on. Treat each day as a new beginning.

Don’t be discouraged at our lack of drive or at how the flesh rebels against prayer. Ignore it and tune into the call of the Spirit.

Over time you will be amazed at how time multiplies and at how you are fitting so much prayer into your ‘busy’ work and family life.

God bless you on your journey!
 
robtax said:
I’m trying to develop a regular prayer life. I’m trying to do the liturgy of the hours but I find that I can’t keep up with it. Sometimes its due to my hectic schedule but other times I forget or I just don’t do it. I also get nervous when I hear that I should do the rosary daily and the list goes on as to what I’m suppossed to do daily. I was wondering what you guys do in regards to balancing your life with faith, work family etc?
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better to promise little and be faithful than to promise a lot and fail. Set an expectation you can live with, and be faithful to that devotion for at least a few months before you add anything else. If you start out on fire to attend daily Mass, pray LOTH and a complete rosary and chaplet every day, you will surely fail. Instead make an unbreakable commitment to Sunday Mass, with a little time before or after before the Blessed Sacrament, even the time it takes for the ministers and ushers to stop banging around and the parking lot to clear out. Commit to a simple morning and evening prayer–OF, HM, GB, morning offering in the am, as you are dressing or showering, or dedicated time to prayer if you have the 5 minutes this takes, or even at the breakfast table with the family–ideal. Grace before meals, and before bed OF, HM, GB and act of contrition, again alone, with the kids, or turn the TV off 1/2 hour early.

When you are eager to do more, examine your day for wasted time and use it. The rosary while waiting in line or on hold (I can’t do it driving, I would kill somebody), keep a devotional like Magnificat, Word Among Us, One Bread One Body in the car or your purse, backpack or brief case. 5-10 minutes with the daily readings can do wonders, giving you a thought or word of God to carry with you throughout the day. I usually do this while waiting for my food at lunch or dinner on a work day. I plan for quiet time in the chapel but if emergencies arise it does not happen, but at least I am at home in the Word that day.

Examine time-wasters in your life and slowly cut them down–worthless or detrimental TV and web time, conversations with toxic people, etc. Time Management for Catholics, by Dave Durand is an excellent guide and a must for serious Catholics.

I combine rosary, chaplet and stations with exercise, otherwise I could get neither the walking or prayer I need. At Curves they have some praise and worship CDs they will put on for our group that meets in the morning, which are great, sweatin’ with the choir. I also like to have praise and worship music on when I do housework (nobody is around to hear me wailing, and when I am with my grandkids they love it–Granma Ohio just prays with us but you sing and dance, Grandma, we like it).
 
Sr_Sally said:
I take my Rosary when I go out for my lunch time walk. I can usually get 3 decades in. I hope to expand that time, both for more exercise and so that I can finish all 5 decades.
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Sr Sally,

I do the same. By just walking from garage to work, from work to church and vice versa, I can finish a rosary per day. 🙂
 
puzzleannie said:
I combine rosary, chaplet and stations with exercise, otherwise I could get neither the walking or prayer I need.
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Do you find that this allows you adequate reflection on the mysteries. I find I have a much harder time focusing on the prayers when I try to combine them with something else like exercise or driving.
 
I say the rosary while walking, and yes, the combination makes both better. The repetition and beads of the rosary or chaplet is an aide to prayer, as the saints knew, precisely because it does engage the body and mind with the spirit. I can’t say the rosary while driving because I can’t meditate and keep my mind on road at the same time. But the treadmill or something else repetetive is great.
 
robtax said:
I also get nervous when I hear that I should do the rosary daily and the list goes on as to what I’m suppossed to do daily. I was wondering what you guys do in regards to balancing your life with faith, work family etc?
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I pray in the morning, first one up. If I try praying at night, I fall
asleep every time. It is a nice way to fall asleep though…:o
 
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