Comments on: Five second prayer

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 01:45:00 +0000

hehe, exactly. Sometimes those “5 second prayers” are the best ones too. God knows we can get busy in our lives and just simply looking up from our work to say “thank you” has to make Him smile ^_^

By: Jet Three

Jet Three — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:58:00 +0000

Ay, Shakespeare’s Cobbler, I agree. Thanks ever so much, Jennifer! You’re truly inspiring, and may God bless you always! Pray for me.

By: Cathy

Cathy — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 22:48:00 +0000

Love this honest post! Thanks.

By: Shakespeare's Cobbler

Shakespeare's Cobbler — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 22:39:00 +0000

This is a wonderful idea also for all of us cradle Catholics who spent too much time for eighteen years busying about their own things and never learned that whole intimacy with God thing they kept hearing about. 8^) Thanks!

By: Bender

Bender — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 06:16:00 +0000

Another fairly easy way is simply to buy some CDs of hymns or gregorian chant, and play those throughout the day. Just like you might find yourself singing along with regular music on the radio or a CD, you’ll slip into singing with the hymns or chants, and thus praying, if your heart is so disposed.

We are coming up to Christmas-time, and everytime you sing along with a Christmas music CD, it can be an occasion for prayer.

By: Bender

Bender — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 06:01:00 +0000

Then there are the kind of prayers that can be sung or chanted over and over. The benefit here is that many of the Psalms have already been set to a particular chant, and the musical aspect can help you to repeat the refrain/response over and over throughout the day. There are also some hymns/songs from the Taize community which are usually fairly short, to be repeated over and over.

While other aspects of Eastern religions are obviously troublesome, the concept of a mantra can be well appropriated and applied to Christian prayer. Of course, some of these short songs/chants/mantra-prayers are more memorable than others.

But some others are like those catchy little tunes and jingles that get stuck in your head and you find yourself humming and repeating all day long.

Besides, when you sing/chant, you are praying twice.

By: Becky

Becky — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 00:13:00 +0000

When Christ taught his disciples to pray the format covers everything — addressing God and acknowledging His place in heaven, glorifying His name, desiring the Kingdom and for His work to be done here to the degree that the angels do it in heaven, request for needs, forgiveness for our shortcomings and our forgiveness of slights by others, guidance, help in trouble, eternal praise, glory and honor — succinctly, and quite quickly. It only took me about 15 seconds to read thoughtfully, and personalizing it, rather than rattling it off by memory, doesn’t take any longer. We can pray longer, and often when our hearts or minds are burdened for something or someone, the words spill forth, but it’s not necessary to drag everything out that can be presented in moments. Better to be offering up heartfelt breaths of prayer throughout the day than burdening yourself with guilt over a wandering attention span. To “pray constantly” is to have a running conversation with God, whenever the thought occurs to you.

By: aimee

aimee — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 16:55:00 +0000

Oh, and I should ask, regarding your spiritual dry spell, have you ever read St. John of the Cross, Ascent of Mt. Carmel and Dark Night of the Soul? If not, it might be helpful. What you describe in the development of your prayer life is actually the normal, classic progress of prayer: from effort, to ease and honeymoon with God - and then to dryness and darkness.

The reason why is God is entering more deeply into your soul, to work more deeply in forming, and purifying, your soul in ways you cannot even tell. It's a very important stage of prayer, but most people don't know it and so give up trying to pray when it happens. And then they cease to grow.

It's important not to give up, but to just keep your eyes on Christ and make your prayers anyway, even if they feel completely dry and empty. They're not. As St. John of the Cross explains it, that is the best prayer of all - because then we are not relying on feelings or sweetness, but on God alone, in the darkness of pure faith. And that, in time, will lead to other wonderful things . . .

But you need to read St. John of the Cross, if you haven’t already. You can pick up the two smaller works I mentioned individually, or just get The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross, in a single volume published by ICS. That’s my favorite. God bless you!

By: Roz

Roz — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 16:45:00 +0000

You authenticity is refreshing and powerful. Thanks.

Something I’ve found helpful in dealing with distraction — a huge problem for me — has been to immediately (when I notice it) tell God that I see I’m distracted but I’d rather be with him, so would he please help draw me toward himself?

Even to focus on God takes grace, so I just ask for more.

By: Aimee

Aimee — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 16:26:00 +0000

This is great, Jennifer. And it shows that God is leading you in His ways - because what you discovered is actually a part of the long prayer tradition of the Church, to offer the briefest of prayers when one is busy or unable to pray (they're formally called "ejaculatory" prayers, no kidding), even a single exclamation like "I love you, Jesus!" It is the love expressed, not the time spent, that matters most to God.

Mother Teresa asked her nuns, who were very busy caring for the poor and the sick, to do brief, spontaneous prayers throughout the day, and many saints recommend it as well, as a way of developing the ability to "pray without ceasing."

But to "pray without ceasing" is not just to babble words all day long. When we pray, God draws near us, and soon enters into us in response to our love. Then prayer becomes communion, God's presence in us in a constant communion of love, and, on occasion, when needed or desired, words of love, thanksgiving, petition, or supplication.

Great post. Thanks!