Help Me Learn to Pray

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I wrote a PM yesterday to Catherine and I feel very blessed that she replied to me. She gave me courage to ask this question that I have been struggling with first a little about me:

I am a catechist for an 8th grade class. I would like to be a prayer warrior but I hate to admit it… I don’t think I know how to pray. I can pray the rosary. I know my prayers but I just don’t know if I can pray. I talk with God but still feel inadequate. I have been reading here at the forum, watching EWTN, listening to Catholic Radio just hoping that I can be influenced by all of these awesome people to help pray better. Maybe you can help?

Thanks so much in advance!
 
Well here is an idea, why not become a Prayer Warrior on the Catholic Answers Forums (these forums.) It is very easy, all you have to do is pray for the requests of others in the Prayer Intentions forum here.

To become an official CAF Prayer Warrior follow the directions here.

Learning to pray for others is a good step in spiritual growth I think.

Just a thought.
 
Thanks Stove,

I have done just that 🙂 I feel like I need the spiritual growth.
 
Hi Meximo and welcome to the Forums!

Don’t look at my membership title please, I am not that good with praying either and I am learning as well. About a year ago, my girlfriend introduced couple of praying cards she bought at a local Catholic bookstore. The prayers were beautiful and I liked them – they are so much more wonderful than my own praying. Though praying with your prayer is great but I have learned more how to pray from the prayers of different saints and books about them. I have learned more about praying for others and for God’s will.

I later went to the bookstore and get couple more books containing different novenas and devotions. They are helping me a lot.

One thing that I have learned this year is to pray for others besides myself. For past years and years, my prayers were always about me, me, and me, and what I wanted to have. During the time I was learning to use the books I have and visiting this website, I have started to think of others and include them in my daily praying.

Another thing is that I used to worry a lot after praying for a certain things. I am learning to pray and trust in the Lord for His great mercy.

I am learning from others how to include little prayers to my daily activities. Praying throughout the day keeps us closer to God and our thinking of Him. You can certainly say Our Father and/or Hail Mary when you walk out to the hallway, to the parking lot, or even to the restroom.

Whatever you pray, do not think it is either adequate or inadequate. Just start from some point and ask God to give you the love for praying.
 
Some suggestions a dear priest gives me often: schedule time for prayer; go to a quiet place; be open and patient; and remember when prayer is easy it’s God’s gift to us, when it’s difficult it’s our gift to God.
 
Meximo said:
I would like to be a prayer warrior but I hate to admit it… I don’t think I know how to pray. I can pray the rosary. I know my prayers but I just don’t know if I can pray. I talk with God but still feel inadequate. I have been reading here at the forum, watching EWTN, listening to Catholic Radio just hoping that I can be influenced by all of these awesome people to help pray better. Maybe you can help?
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I don’t think any of us really know how to pray. I’m coming to this conclusion more and more. I think learning to pray is an interior process over a long period of time. Don’t be embarrassed. A lot of us feel the same way about the 'not knowing how to pray. (Although in retrospect, perhaps I shouldn’t say none of us really know how-- the Holy Spirit leads many good souls into deep prayer, but quietly.)

Your feeling of inadequacy in prayer is actually a good thing; you desire God more than you have Him now. That’s what drives prayer, the desire to be united with God. Cultivate that desire. Better yet-- just pray.

If you want to try a different method of prayer, look up lectio divina. Thelma Hall wrote a good book on lectio divina (the praying of scripture), called “Too Deep for Words” which I highly recommend.

Whatever you do, the best way to learn about prayer is to submit yourself to the Holy Spirit, your interior Master and Guide, by constantly trying to pray.

-Rob
 
Prayer is simply to raise one’s heart and mind to God in whatever way one feels comfortable. It may be by reciting prayers or it may be by simply talking to God.
To learn how to pray, spend just one minute quietly every day and ask God to teach you to pray, couple this with a morning prayer and an evening prayer before and after the duties of the day. A final prayer before sleep at night. It is not the length of prayer that ‘counts’ rather it is the love/desire you bring to prayer when you do pray. Spend some time each week in spiritual reading. Have you read “The Autobiography of a Soul” written by St. Therese of Lisieux? Start with this if you have not read it. Attend Confession whenever you are able. When attending Mass, try to go to Communion with as much love as you can, speaking to Jesus in your heart after receiving. Do all this and you will be living a life of Prayer.
The Lord will show you all the rest - His time, His way.

Barb:)
 
Meximo said:
I wrote a PM yesterday to Catherine and I feel very blessed that she replied to me. She gave me courage to ask this question that I have been struggling with first a little about me:

I am a catechist for an 8th grade class. I would like to be a prayer warrior but I hate to admit it… I don’t think I know how to pray. I can pray the rosary. I know my prayers but I just don’t know if I can pray. I talk with God but still feel inadequate. I have been reading here at the forum, watching EWTN, listening to Catholic Radio just hoping that I can be influenced by all of these awesome people to help pray better. Maybe you can help?

Thanks so much in advance!
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Hello Meximo,
Welcome to the forums.

Ask and you will receive! That’s just what you did and look at the great responses so far! 🙂 It works the same for your prayers. Keep in mind that the Lord already knows what your needs are, all you need to do is humble yourself before Him and ask.

Jesus was asked the very same question by his apostles and he taught them the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father). My advice to you is is to begin with this same prayer and then keep silent for a few moments and let the Holy Spirit do His work.

We are all inadequate that’s why we all need prayer. 🙂
 
I just want to say thank you to everyone that responded. I feel so very blessed that y’all answered. I will definitely be praying for y’all.

Thanks again!
 
Yes, welcome to the forums.

Have you read the section in the Catechism of the Catholic Church on Prayer? It is beautiful written, and tells of God’s promise that we will learn to pray if we ask.

Please read it, you’ve inspired me to read it again.

:hug3:
 
vatican.va/archive/catechism/p4s1.htm

vatican.va/archive/catechism/ccc_toc.htm ( scroll down to the bottom and here you’ll find all the sections on prayer)

Here is the link to Prayer in the Catechism as the previous poster mentioned and it is beautiful and good to meditate on.

I think if you humbly approach the Holy Spirit and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you how to pray and if you follow the ways in which the Holy Spirit leads you in prayer you’ll be following your path in Christ Jesus.

In the Living prayer of my life
 
Indeed, welcome to these Forums!👍 Thank you for your prayers and will be keeping you in mine…Barb:)
 
Try praying this way:
First, you must make a firm resolution to pray daily.

Second, you must not judge the quality of your prayer by how it feels. Judge it rather by the effect it has on your moral life and on the deepening love you have for the liturgy.

Third, you must be willing to labor patiently in the vineyard of the Lord (your soul) and leave to Him the time of His Visitation.

If you abide by these three principles, you will make rapid progress in
the spiritual life.

Now, as to the mode of prayer:
  1. Start with 15 minutes with the intent of conquering the initial hills surrounding Mount Carmel: within a year of faithful prayer, you should be able to pray 1 hour a day.
  2. Always begin by praising the Most Holy Trinity, starting with the Father, than the Son and then the Holy Spirit. Take your time and do not be hasty.
  3. Ask your guardian angel to pray for you and ask the Blessed Virgin Mary to place her Mantle of Love around you. Finally, implore St. Joseph to teach you how to pray.
  4. Do an examination of conscience. This should not last more than 5 minutes. Ask God’s forgiveness and make a firm resolution to go to confession every two weeks to help you change your ways.
  5. Now that you have given Glory to God, asked Heaven to assist you and examined yourself in the light of the Holy Spirit and made a firm purpose of amendment, you are fit to open Scripture and read a passage. I recommend you pick a gospel and read through from start to finish. In each case, put yourself in the scene and ask simple questions: where am I? Who am I siding with? Do I understand what Jesus is saying? How does this apply to me? Use any other question and interrogation to stay in this mode. Should God grants you this Grace, much good will come from it and you will see the virtues grow.
  6. Leave the rest to the Lord. He will call you to the Supernatural contemplative State according to His Will.
  7. Should you face distractions or aridity (inability to think, to imagine or to pray), do not be disturbed by either. Simply say, “I am an unprofitable servant, I have done only my duty.” Do not leave your post, do not stop fighting. Much depends on that.
God Bless
Naji (speaker of qorbono.com).
 
How do you learn to pray the piano? By playing the piano.

How do you learn to pray? By praying, obviously, and prayer itself will teach you how to pray. (See WAY OF A PILGRIM about this.)

But it sounds to me like you’ve gotten the idea pretty well: rosary, talking with God, saying your Latin prayers you know…
 
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