How to stay focus?

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w_stewart

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When I pray the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Prayer and even during the Mass, I could hardly sustain my focus. My mind wanders and daydreams. I am afraid my prayers are unacceptable to God because of lack of focus and concentration.

I need help. Please help me how to stay focus while praying. Thanks in advance.
 
w_stewart said:
When I pray the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Prayer and even during the Mass, I could hardly sustain my focus. My mind wanders and daydreams. I am afraid my prayers are unacceptable to God because of lack of focus and concentration.

I need help. Please help me how to stay focus while praying. Thanks in advance.
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I know that a totally distracted mind during prayer time (or at Mass) can be terribly distressing, but there is no need to be so if you do not want to be distracted. Very often the more distressed one becomes about distractions, the more they will increase - so try not to let yourself become distressed about matters as very often one just cannot control the mind at these times which seems to go racing off on its own sort of tangent. These are known as “involuntary distractions” and there is nothing sinful about them since you are not deliberately entertaining them. Rather each time you become aware you are distracted, just gently bring your mind back to The Lord without distress and talk to Him, or simply pick up your devotion or where things are in the Mass again…and again and again if distractions continue. The Lord knows that you are not entertaining deliberate distractions during prayer or The Mass.
A distracted mind can have many reasons - stress or something in the physiology at a particular time or perhaps spiritual dryness which can have a few causes including our own failings…or no obvious reason at all. But try not to be blaming yourself unless and until you are able to talk with a priest or spiritual director about your current state…it can take wise and insightful discerning in a spiritually objective manner to nut out whether dryness is involuntary or due to some failing of our own. And again, to be in any way sinful, we need to be doing something quite deliberately…and sometimes we can have some problematic spiritual failing creating problems in prayer or attending at Mass without being consciously aware of the actual failing. I hope I am not making this too complex!

Have a talk with Father about this in Confession if you do not have a spiritual director or spiritual companion…although if you know how to contact a spiritual director/companion it would be a good move to seek one out, as good direction is invaluable in the spiritual life.

Blessings and regards…Barb:)
 
w_stewart said:
I need help. Please help me how to stay focus while praying. Thanks in advance.
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just keep praying
when your mind wanders, blow those thoughts away as you would a buzzing fly, and keep praying. Return to the prayer as often as this happens. God is pleased with you no matter how you pray. Just keep praying. If you have committed to this period of time (as long as the commitment is reasonable), keep the commitment–even during times when prayer becomes difficult or impossible–give the 15 or 30 or 60 minutes of your time to God. if you can be in front of the Blessed Sacrament, wonderful. If you can’t pray in the quiet of your room. If you can’t do that, pray wherever you are. Just keep praying.
 
I have just noticed your signature from St. Teresa of Avila. St. Teresa suffered for a long time with distractions during prayer.

This may help you from “Abandonment to Divine Providence” by Jean Pierre de Caussade
ccel.org/ccel/decaussade/abandonment.iii_1.iv.html?highlight=distractions#highlight
In order that prayer may have all its merit it is sufficient to make it with virtual attention which is nothing more than an intention to pray well formed before beginning, and this, no distraction even though voluntary can recall. So you can say the Office quite well while at the same time enduring continual involuntary %between%distractions, as the trouble caused by these distractions is the best proof that the wish to pray well is heartfelt; it is also a sign that the wish is genuine. Therefore this wish makes the prayer a good and true prayer. Although hidden from the soul, on account of the trouble occasioned by 102these distractions the good intention, nevertheless, exists and is not hidden from the sight of God who gives us a double grace, first in hearing our prayers as He does all prayers rightly made, and then in concealing this from us in order that we may be mortified in everything, and on all occasions.
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But I really do think that the way to go is to speak with a priest about your difficulties either in Confession or by making an appointment. I am hoping that you may know how to get in touch with a spiritual director which would be the very best move possible.
My very very strong inclination after prayer is to really doubt that your distractions are due to any failing of your own and even any involuntary failing…rather that you need to understand how to deal with distractions/suffer them.
I am afraid my prayers are unacceptable to God because of lack of focus and concentration.
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Do rest assured that your prayers are very pleasing indeed to God, simply because your heartfelt desire is to pray well and to honor Him.

God bless you and keep you close…regards…Barb:)
 
If your mind wanders often during prayer, try looking at what it is wandering to, what you are thinking about, and make it an occassion of prayer.

A lot of folk battle their distractions so strongly that they really don’t pray as they should.
I would like to suggest an alternative method for dealing with distractions in prayer.

I like to think of ‘good’ distractions as occassions when we are being prompted to pray for a special intention, whether the intention is known to us or not. The Spirit is moving and is encouraging you to offer prayer for some particular purpose. Let me explain further:

If you are thinking of / being distracted by thoughts of people you know or people about you, then pray for them and offer that particular Hail Mary or other prayer you are reciting for their present needs and intentions. If you are thinking of personal situations, or situations others are worrying about, then offer that prayer you are on for God’s will in that situation.

See sometimes, I am convinced, that our distractions are really ‘elbows’ from the Holy Spirit, prompting us to ask God to intervene in that situation or in that persons life we are thinking about.

Of course there can be evil distractions too, we use that occassion to pray that they will leave us. If you take my advice, you will see that if you use your distractions as occassions for prayer, the evil one will flee outraged that his plan to keep you from God has in fact brought you closer to Him.

And remember that if 30 mins of prayer seems to be too much, give the Lord 45 mins.😉
 
Thanks for this post, this helps me a lot.
Whenever I felt like praying during the day, I take advantage to it so I pray wherever I am at since praying at night before going to sleep or in the morning is so hard for me. Sometimes there are distractions like you were thinking of other staff and so it’s good to give time until you are focus but when you are sleepy it’s so hard to wait for prayer to come. That is why it is like a battle you have to overcome and this isn’t easy. It happens also that when it seems so difficult I try to “pray by faith”. Like you, I failed a lot and then feel so bad about it.

Thanks to your question and all those who answer.
 
I have another question. Is it a requirement to kneel when I pray the Rosary, Divine Mercy, etc?
 
w_stewart said:
When I pray the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Prayer and even during the Mass, I could hardly sustain my focus. My mind wanders and daydreams. I am afraid my prayers are unacceptable to God because of lack of focus and concentration.

I need help. Please help me how to stay focus while praying. Thanks in advance.
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I think everybody experiences distraction from time to time. I know I do, and I see a lot of folks sleeping in Mass, and doing other things. It’s human.
 
w_stewart said:
When I pray the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Prayer and even during the Mass, I could hardly sustain my focus. My mind wanders and daydreams. I am afraid my prayers are unacceptable to God because of lack of focus and concentration.

I need help. Please help me how to stay focus while praying. Thanks in advance.
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Sorry got to ask you this, hope you don’t mind.
You have the same name family name as mine (Stewart)and my first name starts with W, I just had to mention.
Godbless
 
Hi “ws” 👋 I sometimes have trouble concentrating, too… because I’m a caregiver. So, I use beautiful color pictures of the Mysterys of the Rosary… when I pray. It really helps me focus… to be able to SEE each Mystery. I have a set, that I can place on a desk or chair. But this internet Rosary site… has also been very helpful to me. I hope it will help you, as well.

rosary-center.org/howto.htm

(P.S. While kneeling during prayer is probably the most reverent posture… I don’t think it is absolutely required. I think your attitude, during prayer is the most important thing. I usually “walk” my Rosary… and sit or kneel my “Chaplet of Divine Mercy”). God bless.
 
littleone said:
Sorry got to ask you this, hope you don’t mind.
You have the same name family name as mine (Stewart)and my first name starts with W, I just had to mention.
Godbless
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Purely coincidental. Wayne Stewart is the name I gave to my nephew, But Stewart is not our last name.
 
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