Ever feel overwhelmed trying to pray for everyone?

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? Former fundamentalist baptist problem? I have no idea. I feel like I can’t pray for everyone who needs it and it makes me depressed. Do y’all pray for everyone individually or like just pray for everyone who posts on a prayer board?

I have a bit of OCD too that am I “praying correctly” which comes from the olden days of my Protestantism.

Anyone else ever feel this?

Kat
 
I totally used to feel that way.

Then I came across something the Blessed Teresa of Calcutta said in a video I saw about her life: “To God, there is nothing small. The moment you have given it to God, it becomes infinite.”

Give everything to God – offer Him thanks for your next breath, for whatever health you have, for your loved ones, you job, your abilities… Offer Him your trust in moments when things aren’t going well. Offer Him your patient suffering when you are afflicted in body or mind. Offer Him your sorrow for your sins. Offer Him everything.

I will sometimes be specific – I offer this for Sarita, or Kenita. Other times I’m more general in my prayers – I offer this for all those for whom I have promised to pray; or I offer this for those who are suffering from loneliness, or for married couples who are considering divorce, etc.

God bless you!

Gertie
 
Yes! And it’s very annoying to my children as my intercessions at our family Rosary get longer and longer! So I am very much “encouraged” to shorten the list.

But then I wonder if I am really praying for each member of the family when I lump them all together… I also worry about people who have no one to pray for them so tend to start including them like this: For Mrs X, who has the flu, and for all the people in the world who have the flu.

I think Gertie has used Mother Theresa’s advice wisely by doing a bit of both, and by spreading her intentions out through the day, and the reminder that God is infinite, which reminds me of my limited-ness, which God understands.
 
I do not feel overwhelmed about trying to pray for everyone but I won’t deny being overwhelmed by the number of requests virtually everyday for drastic problems. The amount of need and suffering greatly affects me but I have turned it iver to our all knowing, all loving God. I am certain He picks up the slack of anything I miss.
 
Have trust and faith.

“God thank You that You are and WILL look after everyone!”

Just say;
“God, I take everyone into my daily offering of works and prayers.”

Don’t try to be God by praying for everything. That’s God’s job.

Simply hand it ALL over to God and be at PEACE.

God said; “Even if just one person prays -their whole household will be saved.”
Also; “Let it be done for you according to your faith.”
Believe it and God can act.

“Whatever you ask the Heavenly Father in My Name and believe you have received. He will give that to you.”
katpants said:
? Former fundamentalist baptist problem? I have no idea. I feel like I can’t pray for everyone who needs it and it makes me depressed. Do y’all pray for everyone individually or like just pray for everyone who posts on a prayer board?

I have a bit of OCD too that am I “praying correctly” which comes from the olden days of my Protestantism.

Anyone else ever feel this?

Kat
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katpants said:
? Former fundamentalist baptist problem? I have no idea. I feel like I can’t pray for everyone who needs it and it makes me depressed. Do y’all pray for everyone individually or like just pray for everyone who posts on a prayer board?

I have a bit of OCD too that am I “praying correctly” which comes from the olden days of my Protestantism.

Anyone else ever feel this?

Kat
Click to expand...
If you pray the Liturgy of the Hours, it is for the intentions of the entire Church. That is the easiest way around the conundrum!

And for the sake of thoroughness, it is also for the intention of those visibly in the Church, those imperfectly in the Church (Protestants), those implicitly in the Church, and those outside the Church, all of whom we would like to bring into the Church.

Otherwise you go nuts remembering who to pray for all the time!
 
I don’t really get overwhelmed about it. I just honestly forget their particular intentions. So I typically just say something like, “I pray for my family and friends and their intentions and for the intentions of those on CAF.” And not worry about it.
 
I pray for a number of people specifically when I can remember them, but I also tell Jesus that I have forgotten some at the moment, but intend to pray for them, too. I think He honors that.

JPII used to keep a bunch of scraps of paper in his priedieu and get them out and pray specfically for the intentions. I still don’t feel compelled, though, to do this, although it’s a nice practice.
 
Jesus said that you do not need many words. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (Matthew 6:7-8) So do not feel as though you must name every person or every intention.

Imagine all your prayers, including those you are not immediately mindful of, as being gathered in a huge sack. You can only see the things near the top — those are the intentions you are mindful of — but you know every prayer you want to pray is in the sack. It’s all in there. Gather it all up and offer it to God.

You could pray as I do sometimes… In the Mass at my parish, the last of the Prayers of the Faithful is something like “For the intentions we hold in the recesses of our heart,” after which the lector pauses for a time which is NEVER LONG ENOUGH! How can I mentally recite my wishes for my family and myself, and the community, the church, and the world? Therefore, what I have begun to do at that time is to pray “Lord, you know what I desire, for my family and myself. For these, and for the secret prayers of all those present…” Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer!
 
katpants said:
? Former fundamentalist baptist problem? I have no idea. I feel like I can’t pray for everyone who needs it and it makes me depressed. Do y’all pray for everyone individually or like just pray for everyone who posts on a prayer board?

I have a bit of OCD too that am I “praying correctly” which comes from the olden days of my Protestantism.

Anyone else ever feel this?

Kat
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Yes, it becomes overwhelming at times.
I write down every name of the sick, which is not too long…but the list of deceased has expanded to over 200 in 25 years. I try to pray mentioning every name in my nightly prayers before going to bed but since it takes about 25 min., I am trying to group the names according to family, friends & places I visit & get requests. If I start falling asleep, ,I’ll ask God to include all the people I had to omit.
 
katpants said:
? Former fundamentalist baptist problem? I have no idea. I feel like I can’t pray for everyone who needs it and it makes me depressed. Do y’all pray for everyone individually or like just pray for everyone who posts on a prayer board?

I have a bit of OCD too that am I “praying correctly” which comes from the olden days of my Protestantism.

Anyone else ever feel this?

Kat
Click to expand...
I generally pray a General prayer like “for all the intentions of forum members” or something like that.

I generally reserve specific prayer for friends family and people I encounter that need it.
 
Beautiful thoughts and wonderful suggestions here. Thank you to everyone who’s posted – I’ve gotten a lot out of this thread so far! – ahd thanks, Kat, for starting it 🙂
 
Well, I figure when I pray the Hail Mary, I’m praying for lots of people when I pray “pray for us sinners.”

Likewise for other prayers that mention “us” and “we” and so forth. For example, in the Our Father.
 
There is a long list of people that I pray for specifically, but I also pray for ‘everyone else whom I have prayed for, sinners everywhere including myself, and all of mankind’. Also, if I read about someone who needs prayers, I ask our Lord to add that person to my prayer list permanently, even if I don’t mention their name specifically. Once prayed for, always prayed for. This helps me to cover a lot of ground.
 
When I pray my daily rosary, before I begin I go through a mental list of those I want to offer it for…then, as I pray if someone else comes into my mind I imagine the rosary as a big lasso and bring that person inside it, along with everyone else. I call all my usual people I pray for my “Cloud of Witnesses”…family, the sick I know, special souls that may be in Purgatory, etc. Sometimes a person will come to mind that I hadn’t thought about in a long time…I figure they must need the prayers, and bring them into my rosary! I have no problem with “lumping together” people, ex: “All the members of the Rosary Confraternity, those on the church prayer list, the CA forum posters who have asked for prayer.” God is so powerful…He isn’t constrained like we are with our time and memory issues! He knows our hearts.

When I am reading the forums or get an email from the parish prayer chain, I do stop and take a moment right then to say a prayer for whomever has asked for it. Then I know I have specifically prayed for them/their intention, and don’t forget (which I totally would, if I left it for later!).
 
I add this line to all my prayers (including the LotH):

I pray for all those in need of prayer and all those who have no one to pray for them.

I figure that covers most of the bases…
 
mountee said:
I do not feel overwhelmed about trying to pray for everyone but I won’t deny being overwhelmed by the number of requests virtually everyday for drastic problems. The amount of need and suffering greatly affects me but I have turned it iver to our all knowing, all loving God. I am certain He picks up the slack of anything I miss.
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Thank you for this. I have similar experiences.
 
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