Question about prayer.

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hausofferni

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Not sure if this is the correct section, but At this point in time, for some reason, I don’t like prayer. At all. I still pray as some spiritual books I’m reading like the life of St Catherine, say that we should persevere in prayer during times of spiritual dryness, but this is like tough. I’m about to pray the rosary after writing this, and I spent about an hour wasting time and idling around just to not pray it. I wake up in the morning, and I just wanna get my morning prayers over with, and I feel so bad because I don’t mean to be this way, I wasn’t always is way, but I feel like since I’m trying to get closer to God, I don’t know. I dread when it’s 3 pm because I know it’s time to pray the chaplet of divine mercy, and I feel so bad for feeling this way. I just feel so dead, like while praying the chaplet I felt like I was carrying this huge load and I couldn’t even concentrate on the chaplet. Are my prayers still heard? I tell Our Lord that I don’t wanna pray and that I don’t feel like it, so that he knows that I’m still trying, same with Our Lady. Does God know I don’t mean to feel this way? Is it wrong that I’ve thought, “let me just pray to get it over with” when I know it’s something I should love. But it’s so weird because last week I prayed and i was fine! I felt THE LOVE after prayer. I honestly don’t know how the saints did it to pray for 12-15 hours at a time, one can only imagine. And it’s not like I wanna finish prayer just to go and shop or be on my phone, no, I finish praying and all I wanna do is read spiritual books, especially about the lives of the saints, or come onto Catholic answers. I don’t know what to do.
 
while I don’t have the answer, I myself have felt this way many times, even recently. I find sometimes that I am praying dead as well. Very dry spell of prayer.

I just keep praying and like you I tell Jesus I am suffering from not wanting to pray and ask him to give me a prayerful spirit. I also will make a point of praying simple prayers over and over to God silently, while driving or cooking or whatever. One simple one is “Come O’ Lord Jesus Come.” Or another is " O’ Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner". I will also recite prayers out loud sometimes in the quiet of my room when alone, Prayers I have learned through the years. Another thing I have done is to go to church and kneel in front of the Crucifix and pray the Our Father while looking at Jesus face.

I know that is not really an answer, but it is what I do when faced with these times in my prayer life.
 
Emmacat said:
while I don’t have the answer, I myself have felt this way many times, even recently. I find sometimes that I am praying dead as well. Very dry spell of prayer.

I just keep praying and like you I tell Jesus I am suffering from not wanting to pray and ask him to give me a prayerful spirit. I also will make a point of praying simple prayers over and over to God silently, while driving or cooking or whatever. One simple one is “Come O’ Lord Jesus Come.” Or another is " O’ Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner". I will also recite prayers out loud sometimes in the quiet of my room when alone, Prayers I have learned through the years. Another thing I have done is to go to church and kneel in front of the Crucifix and pray the Our Father while looking at Jesus face.

I know that is not really an answer, but it is what I do when faced with these times in my prayer life.
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Thank you so much for your advice 🙂
 
Emmacat said:
I just keep praying and like you I tell Jesus I am suffering from not wanting to pray and ask him to give me a prayerful spirit. I also will make a point of praying simple prayers over and over to God silently, while driving or cooking or whatever. One simple one is “Come O’ Lord Jesus Come.” Or another is " O’ Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner". I will also recite prayers out loud sometimes in the quiet of my room when alone, Prayers I have learned through the years. Another thing I have done is to go to church and kneel in front of the Crucifix and pray the Our Father while looking at Jesus face.

I know that is not really an answer, but it is what I do when faced with these times in my prayer life.
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great suggestions that we can all use 😃
 
hausofferni said:
Not sure if this is the correct section, but At this point in time, for some reason, I don’t like prayer. At all. I still pray as some spiritual books I’m reading like the life of St Catherine, say that we should persevere in prayer during times of spiritual dryness, but this is like tough. I’m about to pray the rosary after writing this, and I spent about an hour wasting time and idling around just to not pray it. I wake up in the morning, and I just wanna get my morning prayers over with, and I feel so bad because I don’t mean to be this way, I wasn’t always is way, but I feel like since I’m trying to get closer to God, I don’t know. I dread when it’s 3 pm because I know it’s time to pray the chaplet of divine mercy, and I feel so bad for feeling this way. I just feel so dead, like while praying the chaplet I felt like I was carrying this huge load and I couldn’t even concentrate on the chaplet. Are my prayers still heard? I tell Our Lord that I don’t wanna pray and that I don’t feel like it, so that he knows that I’m still trying, same with Our Lady. Does God know I don’t mean to feel this way? Is it wrong that I’ve thought, “let me just pray to get it over with” when I know it’s something I should love. But it’s so weird because last week I prayed and i was fine! I felt THE LOVE after prayer. I honestly don’t know how the saints did it to pray for 12-15 hours at a time, one can only imagine. And it’s not like I wanna finish prayer just to go and shop or be on my phone, no, I finish praying and all I wanna do is read spiritual books, especially about the lives of the saints, or come onto Catholic answers. I don’t know what to do.
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Our Lord Jesus Christ knows exactly how you feel. Perhaps just looking at a picture of Him and loving Him with your will is easier to do right now. Feelings do not count, it is your will. We do not have to rely on feelings. When we need feelings (consolations) the Lord will give them to us. We can mature spiritually when we pray as we can without consolations.
 
hausofferni said:
Not sure if this is the correct section, but At this point in time, for some reason, I don’t like prayer. At all. I still pray as some spiritual books I’m reading like the life of St Catherine, say that we should persevere in prayer during times of spiritual dryness, but this is like tough. I’m about to pray the rosary after writing this, and I spent about an hour wasting time and idling around just to not pray it. I wake up in the morning, and I just wanna get my morning prayers over with, and I feel so bad because I don’t mean to be this way, I wasn’t always is way, but I feel like since I’m trying to get closer to God, I don’t know. I dread when it’s 3 pm because I know it’s time to pray the chaplet of divine mercy, and I feel so bad for feeling this way. I just feel so dead, like while praying the chaplet I felt like I was carrying this huge load and I couldn’t even concentrate on the chaplet. Are my prayers still heard? I tell Our Lord that I don’t wanna pray and that I don’t feel like it, so that he knows that I’m still trying, same with Our Lady. Does God know I don’t mean to feel this way? Is it wrong that I’ve thought, “let me just pray to get it over with” when I know it’s something I should love. But it’s so weird because last week I prayed and i was fine! I felt THE LOVE after prayer. I honestly don’t know how the saints did it to pray for 12-15 hours at a time, one can only imagine. And it’s not like I wanna finish prayer just to go and shop or be on my phone, no, I finish praying and all I wanna do is read spiritual books, especially about the lives of the saints, or come onto Catholic answers. I don’t know what to do.
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Let’s make a pact. I’ll carry you on my shoulders and pray for you daily and your intentions asking the Lord to listen to us both and you add me in with your daily prayers when you do feel like it, so there won’t be a time when you’re not praying… and me, either… 🙂 I feel for you and sometimes feel the same as you, but usually it all works out for the good in the end and I know God loves me much more than I could ever love Him and that makes me cry… to feel such love as that!
 
Dorothy said:
Our Lord Jesus Christ knows exactly how you feel. Perhaps just looking at a picture of Him and loving Him with your will is easier to do right now. Feelings do not count, it is your will. We do not have to rely on feelings. When we need feelings (consolations) the Lord will give them to us. We can mature spiritually when we pray as we can without consolations.
Click to expand...
You know the only time I can say my mind is ever completely blank is sometimes when I am sitting in the quiet church on my knees with my eyes closed. Those times I feel very loved and taken care of. I never have looked at it as prayer though, because I am not saying anything.
 
Emmacat said:
You know the only time I can say my mind is ever completely blank is sometimes when I am sitting in the quiet church on my knees with my eyes closed. Those times I feel very loved and taken care of. I never have looked at it as prayer though, because I am not saying anything.
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Sitting in the Presence of the Lord is prayer! A wonderful blessing.
 
Do you practice mental prayer? There are books on this. We need both vocal prayer (written prayers) and mental prayer (meditation, contemplation, ‘talking’ to God). Sometimes vocal prayer can be wearisome if we have not acquired a spirit of recollection through both vocal and mental prayer. Mental prayer is necessary for this. The only way to get through that dryness is by persevering in prayer and eventually it becomes a real joy. But instead of seeking that joy, just seek to be faithful. The best way to advance in mental prayer, according to Fr Thomas Dubay, is generosity with God. 🙂
 
Monica4316 said:
Do you practice mental prayer? There are books on this. We need both vocal prayer (written prayers) and mental prayer (meditation, contemplation, ‘talking’ to God). Sometimes vocal prayer can be wearisome if we have not acquired a spirit of recollection through both vocal and mental prayer. Mental prayer is necessary for this. The only way to get through that dryness is by persevering in prayer and eventually it becomes a real joy. But instead of seeking that joy, just seek to be faithful. The best way to advance in mental prayer, according to Fr Thomas Dubay, is generosity with God. 🙂
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Mental? How or what does it consist of, if you don’t mind me asking?
 
petra22 said:
Let’s make a pact. I’ll carry you on my shoulders and pray for you daily and your intentions asking the Lord to listen to us both and you add me in with your daily prayers when you do feel like it, so there won’t be a time when you’re not praying… and me, either… 🙂 I feel for you and sometimes feel the same as you, but usually it all works out for the good in the end and I know God loves me much more than I could ever love Him and that makes me cry… to feel such love as that!
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Thank you
 
“Time spent faithfully every day in mental prayer that is poor, arid, distracted, and relatively short is worth more, and will be infinitely more fruitful for our progress, than long, ardent spells of mental pray from time to time, when circumstances make it easy. It is faithfulness alone that enables the life of prayer to bear wonderful fruit. We pray not to find self-fulfillment or self-satisfaction, but to please God because he asks us to. Patiently endure the times of aridity that God will certainly send to purify our love for him.”

St. Therese of Lisieux
 
fred_conty said:
“Time spent faithfully every day in mental prayer that is poor, arid, distracted, and relatively short is worth more, and will be infinitely more fruitful for our progress, than long, ardent spells of mental pray from time to time, when circumstances make it easy. It is faithfulness alone that enables the life of prayer to bear wonderful fruit. We pray not to find self-fulfillment or self-satisfaction, but to please God because he asks us to. Patiently endure the times of aridity that God will certainly send to purify our love for him.”

St. Therese of Lisieux
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Thank you for this! And if you don’t mind me asking where did you get this quotation from?
 
hausofferni said:
Thank you for this! And if you don’t mind me asking where did you get this quotation from?
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We have a church library and I believe it was in one of the biographies, but I don’t know for sure. But I do know it was from her. I wish I could be more help. She has a way of putting things that make complicated ideas easy and this subject was one of them.

"Do not hide your face from me: whenever I am troubled, turn to me and hear me. "
Psalm 101
 
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