Keeping Prayer Habit?

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For example, what I mean is, I pray the Rosary and LOTH. How do I keep this habit on days where I’m really busy? I love to pray but things get in the way of my time with God very often.
 
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Here is a big secret! Everyone has lapses now and again and without intent. Jesus told us that we shouldn’t ignore our oxen if it fell into a ditch on the Sabbeth. In essence He was telling us that some things have precedence over other things. You do what you can as you are able. Your heart-felt intent is a prayer, too. That you try to keep a schedual of habitual prayer, I think, is well noted by the Lord.
Peter fell asleep in the garden even after Jesus asked the apostles to stay awake and pray with Him. He wasn’t condemned for falling asleep. Instead Jesus woke them, gave them a little ‘what for’ and returned to His prayers.

Here is what you can do if you miss your sheduald prayers or habit of prayers. When you have a little extra time or inspiration to do so, offer another prayer or act of kindness or charity. Don’t let prayer habit become a ‘habit.’ or a daily rote. Sometimes the very simplest prayers are the very best.
 
Don’t sweat the small stuff. I’m a Lay Dominican and I remember worrying about this very thing. Even St Dominic gave permission for brothers to be excused saying an Office if they had other things to do which had to be done. Very sensible.
 
Try setting an alarm on your phone. At the very least it will remind you to take a break from what you’re doing…and ideally it will remind you to pray.
 
St. Benedict said that monks unable to come to choir for legitimate reasons and with the abbot’s permission, are to do the best they can to satisfy their obligation where they are. It’s one reason why, from Tuesday to Saturday, the Gradual psalms are used every day at the three daytime hours in the Monasric Breviary. They are short, and easily memorized and could be recited by heart by monks working in the fields.

Most of us aren’t bound to say the entire Liturgy of the Hours, and it’s fine to do the best we can to observe the hour. In our Oblate manual, there is a very short office built around Psalm 116 which is only two verses long. It is easily memorized and can be recited from memory in two or three minutes if one is unable to pray a full Office.

Otherwise, an Our Father or some other short prayer can be said silently or aloud depending on circumstances. As we are not bound, God will appreciate the effort!

We also need to be careful not to turn our prayer life into an occasion for scrupularity. If your child or elderly parent requires attention at the same time as an Office, your duty to that person comes first, and it’s ok to postpone or omit the Office. The duty becomes the prayer, and prayer should never be an excuse to avoid an urgent duty.
 
If you are legitimately busy then maybe you should limit your prayer time. Sometimes the prayer schedule is a weekly schedule rather than a daily schedule.
 
Exactly! I usually ask myself if the reason I miss an office is worthy of it. In other words, if I miss saying the Evening Prayer because I’m participating in a family activity I don’t worry; if I miss Evening Prayer because I was watching TV, I feel bad.

Also, I find establishing a routine to be a big help. I’m much more consistent in my prayer life Monday through Friday than I am on the weekends!
 
mr.p said:
For example, what I mean is, I pray the Rosary and LOTH. How do I keep this habit on days where I’m really busy? I love to pray but things get in the way of my time with God very often.
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Keep a journal specifically tailored to prayer, the way people sometimes keep journals explicitly to record dreams in order to induce lucidity, or a journal specifically for dieting, etc.

My routine is:
Daily morning prayers: Memorare, Angel of God, St Michael Prayer, Golden Arrow prayer, Eternal Rest, a prayer of thanksgiving, and whatever petitions I want to add.
And then the 5 mysteries of the Rosary for the day.

If you repeat the exercise enough times it will get to the point that if you don’t do it, you will automatically remember that you’ve forgotten to do something before lunch.

It is said that it will take roughly 40 days for this to sink in to the point that you will notice if you don’t do what you usually do, although this can vary greatly. It took me a lot longer than 40 days since my consistency was really sloppy, but eventually it began to stick.
 
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OraLabora said:
We also need to be careful not to turn our prayer life into an occasion for scrupularity.
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I definitely agree. Or, as my spiritual director has put it, don’t make prayer just another item on your “to do” list.

At the same time, one of the difficulties I have is that I can get immersed in something and completely lose track of time. This is where it would be helpful to live in a monastery and hear the bell call people for prayer! Instead I use my phone to remind me to take a break.
 
I can completely relate to the problem!

When I’m at home, I’ve programmed the Offices into my computer’s calendar. The “alarm” is recordings of the bells at Solesmes (from some of their CDs). A first bell 15 minutes out to remind me an Office is coming, a shorter one at 5 minutes, and one at the exact start time. I also move mid-day prayer around if needed. For example if going out on a long bike ride, I’ll say it at 9 am before leaving (Terce), if not, then at noon (Sext). I tried synching my phone to it but it’s more of a distraction as I cannot always say an hour at exactly the same time at at home.

The best is when I’m working at the abbey, just follow along with the community.

When traveling or on vacation, I find I can get easily distracted and miss an Hour.
 
For interruptions of the Rosary, our guardian angel will gladly complete it for us.
 
For interruptions of the rosary I just find a stopping place and try to pick up were I left off.
 
Find an early routine if you can; I did the Rosary M-F in my car in a parking lot before the Physical Training at 0630. I was in the military for 23 years. I also have the monthly Magnificat which contains all readings and mass parts, and abbreviated morning and evening prayer and more. It is a monthly pocket magazine which is great for spiritual enrichment .
 
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