Need help with prayer!

[dizzy_dave]

I am 32 years old, a married man, with 4 kids. How do I pray? What do I pray, How long do I pray, when do I pray? What’s best Rosary, chaplets, bible, music, prayers, spiritual reading, novena’s, litany’s, MASS. I tried a lot and can’t settle on anything. I work 8-5 am M-F. I get up at 6am and do some kind of prayer till 6:45am , but I’m so tired I don’t focus enough and I feel like I’m not getting much out of it. I pray at night about 30 min before bed 10:30 - 11pm but then I feel like I’m taking time away from my wife. I’m having a hard time getting it all balanced God, Family, work, etc. Can anyone help? Thanks!

 

[baltobetsy]

You have a good schedule going - you just need to figure out what to do in your time slots. Here are my suggestions:

In the morning 45 minutes:

Morning offering - one minute
Rosary (the 5 decades suggested for the day) - 20 minutes
Scripture reading - 10 minutes
Mental prayer - 15 minutes of just talking things over with God

That’s 46 minutes - can you handle an extra 60 seconds in the morning?

In the nighttime 30 minutes:

Spiritual reading (non-scripture) - 15 minutes
Mental prayer - 10 minutes of talking and listening to God
Examination of conscience - 3 minutes - write it down in code
Act of contrition - 1 minute
Three Hail Marys for purity - 1 minute

Questions you may have:
Why less scripture reading than other reading?
Scripture is so much richer - a little goes a long way.
Why rosary in the morning?
So it doesn’t put you to sleep.
Why write down the examination of conscience?
So you remember for confession and can see your progress over time.
Why in code?
*You don’t live alone. *

Betsy

 

[diaconate]

Try this O Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God have mercy on me a sinner. You can say this at any time of day, any where, at any circumstance quitely or out loud.

Glory be to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever!

 

[jeffreedy789]

betsy had some good suggestions, and i’d certainly recommend doing something like that. but - don’t get burned out! it’s easy to try to overdo it, get behind, and then chuck it all. the most important thing is this: keep praying!

the Bible encourages us to pray without ceasing. no matter where you are or what you’re doing, just discuss it with God. learn to make your thinking a prayer, just by offering it to Him. you’ll be surprised, i think, how He’ll start interacting with you, right there in the car, or in the shower, or in the middle of your work. it’s pretty cool!

 

[asquared]

Less is more, choose what you can do, what seems to work best for you now, it is not necessary to do all those things you mentioned. It is better to choose one and be faithful, than to make an ambitious plan and stop praying because you can’t keep it up. We all need some private prayer time, but if you feel you are taking time away from your wife, pray together. Pray with your children at bedtime. It is what keeps your family strong. Have the evening prayer time be family time, then keep a little time for your own prayer before you turn in. Try to set out a longer time in the morning, but at least say the Our Father and morning offering with everyone at breakfast.

If daily Mass or daily visit with Jesus is not possible with your work schedule, a weekly holy hour outside of Mass, time spent in front of the Blessed Sacrament will really start you an another “growth spurt”. There, it is not what you say, but how well you listen.