Is it possible to pray too much?

[VeronicaM]

I ask God for about 50 things in a typical day.

When I do my daily workout, I ask Him to help me finish it. When I cook a meal, I ask God to help the meal turn out well. When I start reading a new book, I ask Him to help me understand it and have the discipline to get through it.

Do you think that, at a certain point, it may be too much? Can you ever pray too much?

 

[Incomplete]

I don’t know that it’s possible to pray too much, especially if praying for help in all things is showing your trust in Him. Can I also assume, though, that you also pray in ways other than asking for things?

 

[bardegaulois]

Do you do other than present a laundry list of petitions to the Divine? If no, then I can’t say you pray too much, but that your prayer life could be improved.

I would think the only way that one could ever pray too much would be if the other obligations of their state in life are not being met due to the amount of time spent in prayer, e.g., a parent being unavailable to children, a workmen skipping out on his job to pray, etc. If one truly does wish to pray so much, an order with a charism of perpetual prayer might be well worth looking into.

 

[JL2011]

That doesn’t mean that you pray too much. It just means that you’re looking for God, His help and His guidance in everything, and that’s a really good thing, because you’re showing Him your absolute dependence on Him, and you’re acknowledging that even in the smallest of your activities, such as reading, you need Him.

 

[The_Scott]

My advice? Make sure you’re paying attention to the prayers. Don’t just say them without any thought or concentration. Don’t repeat yourself like a robot.

God bless.

Scott

 

[Aelred_Minor]

What you describe sounds like a beautiful awareness of your dependency on God.

As others have hinted at, the problem is not praying too much (impossible), but possibly praying in too limited a way. Don’t cull your prayers of petition, but set time aside for other forms of prayer as well.

It could also be possible to neglect one’s duties in life due to excessive time spent in certain kinds of prayer, but this does not sound like it’s the problem, and if it was, the solution would not be to simply pray less but to pray in different ways (and, perhaps, depending on the circumstances like if you are single, to ask if God may be calling you to a vocation in which you can devote more time to the forms of prayer you feel called to but lack the time for in your current state of life).

 

[edithsteinrocks]

I ask God for about 50 things in a typical day.

When I do my daily workout, I ask Him to help me finish it. When I cook a meal, I ask God to help the meal turn out well. When I start reading a new book, I ask Him to help me understand it and have the discipline to get through it.

Do you think that, at a certain point, it may be too much? Can you ever pray too much?

Well… I don’t know. My gut instinct is saying that yes, it is possible to pray too much, as in “too much of a good thing,” etc. etc. Chances are that if you’re asking yourself this question, you’re starting to think you’re praying too much.

As bardegaulois said, if your prayer is disrupting other areas of your life, i.e. minding children, then yes, that is probably too much prayer.

On the other hand, one can strive to make one’s entire life a living prayer. That doesn’t mean spending literally every waking second praying, but rather aligning all of one’s life with God’s will. Sorry, I realize that’s an extremely philosophical answer. I can’t help it - I think too much.

 

[meltzerboy]

I ask God for about 50 things in a typical day.

When I do my daily workout, I ask Him to help me finish it. When I cook a meal, I ask God to help the meal turn out well. When I start reading a new book, I ask Him to help me understand it and have the discipline to get through it.

Do you think that, at a certain point, it may be too much? Can you ever pray too much?

I would only ask if you ever pray for others as well as yourself.

 

[ConstantineTG]

The objective of the Jesus Prayer is to transform your life into the prayer. So if every minute, every second, every breath is a prayer, can you possibly pray more?

 

[Hecares]

My spiritual director told me that our whole oife should be prayer. Everything we do should be an offering to God.

What I saw alluded to in other possts, but not spelled out is something you probably already know, but I’m going to repeat it to see if I remember. There are three kinds of prayer. The kind you described is prayer of petition… I think the other two are called prayers of gratitude and prayers of adoration. I’m pretty sure the Catholic Catechism lists them.

I believe what you have described is a beautiful expression of your belief that you depend on God for everything. God bless you.

 

[nanacat]

There are three kinds of prayer. The kind you described is prayer of petition… I think the other two are called prayers of gratitude and prayers of adoration.

I was taught that too, but that it all should be contained in EVERY prayer: adoration, praise, thanksgiving–and then petition.

(That being said, it was pouring buckets today, and didn’t I get caught in it, and I prayed to God to get me a parking place closer to the supermarket entrance. )

 

[Robert_Sock]

I believe it was Saint Theresa of Avila who once said something to the effect that we must all come down from our spiritual ladders from time to time to do the work of God, even if it means the risk of falling into sin. For example, saving the souls of others, even if it involves the risk of sin, is a noble and charitable act!

 

[Mark1124]

No, it is impossible to pray too much. St. Paul taught us to “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). However, it is wrong to fail to complete your duties because you’re spending all day on your knees, or to fail to praise and thank God because you’re too busy asking Him for things, etc.

 

[puzzleannie]

I ask God for about 50 things in a typical day.

When I do my daily workout, I ask Him to help me finish it. When I cook a meal, I ask God to help the meal turn out well. When I start reading a new book, I ask Him to help me understand it and have the discipline to get through it.

Do you think that, at a certain point, it may be too much? Can you ever pray too much?

of course not, since Paul tells us to pray always. This type of prayer is that advocated by Brother Lawrence, the practice of the presence of God, simply chatting with God about what is going on in your day.

but we do have to balance the prayers of asking with the prayers of praise, thanksgiving, and contrition.

 

[AlanFromWichita]

I think the other posters have given excellent advice.

Along the lines of praying to the extent that you neglect other duties within your vocation/occupation, also I have heard some compelling talks on becoming a “slave” to prayer regimens. I’ve seen it happen with people I know who have set themselves lofty goals for certain pray regimens, such as a pledge to themselves or others to complete the Divine Office, plus 15 decades of the Rosary, plus several other prayers daily, on top of their other responsibilities to their families and others. For one reason or other, they occasionally could not get it all done, and felt like failures, became depressed, and even went to confession over it before receiving Communion. IMO they were setting themselves up for failure by making promises they couldn’t keep – as if they could predict the future. I don’t see that the OP refers to this sort of bondage, but I’ve seen it happen to people very close and dear to me.

As others stated, there are prayers other than petition prayer. There are also different “expressions” of prayer, described in CCC 2700-2724 as vocal prayer, meditative prayer, and contemplative prayer, and Christians are called to go beyond vocal and meditative and into true union with God, which is attained through the gift of contemplation – which cannot be earned but one can “invite” by silent prayers. I say “called” primarily because of the use of the word “should” in 2708:

CCC 2708:
Meditation engages thought, imagination, emotion, and desire. This mobilization of faculties is necessary in order to deepen our convictions of faith, prompt the conversion of our heart, and strengthen our will to follow Christ. Christian prayer tries above all to meditate on the mysteries of Christ, as in lectio divina or the rosary. This form of prayerful reflection is of great value, but Christian prayer should go further: to the knowledge of the love of the Lord Jesus, to union with him.

Alan

 

[Monica4316]

I ask God for about 50 things in a typical day.

When I do my daily workout, I ask Him to help me finish it. When I cook a meal, I ask God to help the meal turn out well. When I start reading a new book, I ask Him to help me understand it and have the discipline to get through it.

Do you think that, at a certain point, it may be too much? Can you ever pray too much?

Scripture says “pray always” of course, we should not pray in such a way that we have no time to do our duties, unless we have a contemplative vocation and live in a convent where we pray for most of the day. But you can pray before, after, and during your duties, offering them to God, that is great and pleasing to Him it’s a way of sanctifying your whole day, like the Morning Offering.

God bless!

 

[knotanes]

I wish I prayed so much As others, all I would say is that it’s good to remember others while you’re at it. Other than that… I wish I were so good about praying for the seemingly insignificant things. Your reliance on God is reassuring…to me anyway.

 

[ready]

I ask God for about 50 things in a typical day.

When I do my daily workout, I ask Him to help me finish it. When I cook a meal, I ask God to help the meal turn out well. When I start reading a new book, I ask Him to help me understand it and have the discipline to get through it.

Do you think that, at a certain point, it may be too much? Can you ever pray too much?

In the Bible it says we should pray ceaselesly.

 

[handmaidenByzC]

I cannot believe I found this active post. I just joined, and I am struggling with this. I feel helplessly drawn daily to the Divine Liturgy, the Eucharist, any always to prayer. I stay up very late, unable to stop. My prayer at this time is reading scripture, studying the lives of the saints, studying ancient tradition of our Church Fathers, and just spending time in thought about my love of God and desire to be united.

I am not a convert. I discerned a religious vocation for three years, lived near my beloved community for a year. (next to my First Communion, it was the happiest time in my life, all was wonderful…I was about to enter, everyone was so very, very supportive and loving, everyone shared my excitement and anticipation). Then suddenly I fell seriously ill. My vocation was then not accepted because it was felt that I was not strong enough for the rigors of religious life. I am VERY occasionally in touch with the community…but did accept my rejection. This was about 14 years ago.

I recovered after about two years. I went back to work. I sang in the choir of a beautiful cathedral, where I met another amazing order. They were a new order and had begun with many older vocations, then began to attract many, many young vocations. As time went by, I thought I would inquire. They were very kind…but felt that my age of early forties was now too old for their entrance. They also felt that my calling was perhaps in the world…as I am a medical professional…and they mostly contemplative in nature.

So now I am in my late forties.

I do manage the most important duties of my life (my job, my sick father). BUT, I do neglect the many smaller and tedious …duties, often getting very behind in mail, errands, etc.

I do not know how to manage this. Soon, I will have to take a new position in which I will at best be able to attend divine liturgy twice a week…and have no exposure to my eastern church.

I DO comprehend that LIFE IS A PRAYER, THAT SMALL DUTIES ARE PRAYERS, THAT THE CHURCH IS EVERYWHERE AND IN ALL THINGS, but I still cannot contain the draw…

Can you help me? Though I know it pleases God for me to spend so much time with him in my present ways, He may desire for me to make my prayer different. How do I do this when it is not my heart’s desire, but may be God’s desire. How do I let go from this and grab on to HIM somewhere else?

God Bless You,
Unworthy Handmaiden

 

[AlanFromWichita]

They also felt that my calling was perhaps in the world…as I am a medical professional…and they mostly contemplative in nature.

Maybe they were right, but one can engage in contemplative prayer practices while still having an active life. The CCC 2700-2724 talks about the different expressions of prayer, and says in 2708 essentially that a prayer life “should” go to the point of true union with God, which is the contemplation we seek by engaging these prayer forms. The difference is, we just don’t get to do it all day because we have other things to do.

I don’t know what to say about the things that are drawing you, as I get pretty focused on activities that I like or seem to benefit from, not the least of which is posting on this website.

Alan