How do I get more out of my prayer life?

  • Thread starter Thread starter dizzy_dave
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
Gilbert Keith:
Now I am waking up in the middle of the night. I think God is giving me a sign that even if I’m not ready to talk, He is, and He will not be denied.
Click to expand...
Sometimes when this happens to me, I think maybe God is asking me to pray for someone. Often a friend or family member comes to mind. If not, I offer prayers for whoever is in most need of God’s mercy and grace at that time.
 
What about little prayers, just something to turn your mind to God in a particular time… “Lord you are my Lord I have no good apart from you” simle easy and effective. You can say whatever you want, but you get my point.
 
Consider going to a spiritual director. You can contact your diocese for a list of spiritual directors in your area. Not all priests are capable of spiritual direction. In fact many of the trained spiritual directors are deacons, nuns, brothers etc…not only priests are able to be spiritual directors but they have the added advantage of being able to listen to your confession and giving absolution as part of their direction.They are specifically trained for this area of ministry. Pray, Pray and pray always.
 
Gilbert Keith:
I have let my prayer life slide somewhat. Now I am waking up in the middle of the night. I think God is giving me a sign that even if I’m not ready to talk, He is, and He will not be denied.
Click to expand...
Hmm… I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night too, wide awake, at either 3:40 or 4:30… maybe Someone is trying to tell me something… :hmmm:
 
Is spiritual reading considered prayer?, or reading say the catechism? Thanks.
 
I have heard that Spiritual reading is indeed a form of prayer. I have found that the spiritual reading practise Lecio Divina is vital to my understand and knowing God better. It’s wonderful little times when I gather myself together, quiet down and sit at the feet of Jesus. The things He has taught me is increadable!
 
In response to a posting about Prayer life sliding…

I have been having difficulties praying lately, and I notice changes within myself b/c I am not praying. I am tense and very restless. I can’t seem to settle down and focus on anything, esp. spiritual. Worried, I went to my priest and he told me to just offer small prayers like “Hey God, I love you!” or " Glory be to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen."

Since taking his advice, I have been able to keep my prayer life going to some degree and not let it slide, and I am finding that I am less restless now, and that I want to spend more and more time with Him in prayer.
 
40.png
dizzy_dave:
Is spiritual reading considered prayer?, or reading say the catechism? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Dear friend

It most certainly is! To read a piece Sacred Scripture prayerfully and slowly is to mediatate and to meditate is to pray.

You may like to read the writings of Saints, read pieces of Sacred Scripture, spiritual writings such as the Pope’s encyclicals, the Catechism etc etc

Once you have sat or knelt to read, keeping you back straight, pray to the Holy Spirit to enlighten you and help you discern, you may like to just use your own words to invoke and invite the Holy Spirit or you may like to use this prayer…

‘Come Holy Spirit fill the hearts of the faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit, O Lord, and they shall be created and you shall renew the face of the earth. Let us pray : God, who has taught the hearts of the faithful by the Light of the Holy Spirit, grant that by the gifts of the same Spirit, we may be always truly wise and ever rejoice in His consolation. Amen’

Meditation always deepens faith and deepens prayer. You will find you will have many things to thank and praise the Lord for, may things to be sorrowful for and many things to petiton for all as a result of meditating.

Your need to ‘get more out of your prayer life’ is really a need to develop it as your spirituality and faith grow. God makes a certain dissatisfaction occur in a person from time to time in order for them to be led into deeper prayer. Remember to maintain your own prayer of your own words with the Lord and turn to Him frequently in the course of your mediataion to seek His Wisdom. Afterall we meditate upon the Lord to become closer to Him in understanding and in faith. Also maintain any devotions you have such as the Rosary and I would urge you to pray the Rosary as it is also a meditation on the life of Christ and is Scripturally and Christ centered.

You may also like to remember God frequently throughout the day, this too is prayer, it is called the Prayer of Recollection. In frequent remembering of God, God is invited into our whole day and in tis way our whole day becomes prayer, when we do this we see how living a prayer in the Presence of God changes how we live our day…a lovely deepening of prayer and you will ‘get’ much out of this.

Just as a house is built we do not cast away the foundations in preference of building, this is foolish, therefore we do not cast away the foundations of our prayer that led us to develop, but we include it and build upon it without abandonment of it.

God Bless you and much love and peace to you

Teresa
 
I heard Mother Nadine Brown on EWTN recently give the most wonderful new (to me) idea of praying.

She does intercessory prayers. This is my understanding of what she said. If I am wrong, please correct me.

We pray best when we have our heart in it the most. Therefore, if we wake up cranky then we know what it must be like to have an anger problem. Pray to God that he relieves the anger problem in whoever needs it. “There is a soul out there struggling with anger, dear Lord, like I am right now. Please, please give him/her a sense of peace. Help that soul to release everything to you, O Lord.”

Something like that.

Last night I had an incredible sense of hopelessness sweep over me. I thought about all those souls who live without knowing God. I felt so sad so I used that to pray for a soul out there who is experiencing life without God. That sense of hopelessness left me sometime later but it was used from the bottom of my heart for someone who needed it.

Isn’t that wonderful? Wow! We can use all of our experiences during the day for another soul going through the same thing but maybe on a grander scale.

Now, Mother Nadine Brown went into a lot more depth but this is what I’m using right now.

Sue
 
And in paraphrasing St. Josemaria Escriva, make your life a prayer to God. Dedicate each and every thought and action to God, wherever you are and whenever.

Of course, easier said than done, yet a worthy goal.

:blessyou:
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top