Day 345: Animated by Prayer (2691-2699)

• It’s Day 345!!

• PLACES FAVORABLE FOR PRAYER

• We are getting so close to the end

• Where can we pray?

• CHAPTER THREE: THE LIFE OF PRAYER

• Paragraph 2697 says, “Prayer is the life of the new heart. It ought to animate us at every moment. But we tend to forget him who is our life and our all. This is why the Fathers of the spiritual life in the Deuteronomic and prophetic traditions insist that prayer is a remembrance of God often awakened by the memory of the heart: ‘We must remember God more often than we draw breath.’ But we cannot pray ‘at all times’ if we do not pray at specific times, consciously willing it. These are the special times of Christian prayer, both in intensity and duration.”

• Today we are getting both practical teaching on prayer as well as words that speak right to our heart

• We tend to put God on the shelf 

• So if we are going to have a life of prayer, we must remember God more often than we draw breath

• Let’s pray!!

Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, we give you praise. Thank you so much for bringing us to this day. We thank you for being with us every step along the way, every time we pressed play. Lord God, we call upon the name of your Son, Jesus Christ. We ask for your Holy Spirit to come into our hearts and to help us love you and love our neighbor the way you deserve, the way our neighbor deserves, the way you command us to love our neighbor. And also illuminate our minds that we can know you more clearly, and with courage follow you more closely. We give this day to you. We consecrate it to you. We consecrate every moment, every breath, every heartbeat to you, for your glory and for the salvation of the world. We make this prayer in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen”

• So there we have it!!

• We can pray in any place

• We can pray while we are shopping

• We can pray when we are cooking our meals

• We can pray when we are out for  a walk

• We can pray ANYWHERE

• AND YET…

• There are privileged places for prayer

• Paragraph 2691 says, “The church, the house of God, is the proper place for the liturgical prayer of the parish community. It is also the privileged place for adoration of the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. The choice of a favorable place is not a matter of indifference for true prayer. -For personal prayer, this can be a ‘prayer corner’ with the Sacred Scriptures and icons, in order to be there, in secret, before our Father. In a Christian family, this kind of little oratory fosters prayer in common. -In regions where monasteries exist, the vocation of these communities is to further the participation of the faithful in the Liturgy of the Hours and to provide necessary solitude for more intense personal prayer. -Pilgrimages evoke our earthly journey toward heaven and are traditionally very special occasions for renewal in prayer. For pilgrims seeking living water, shrines are special places for living the forms of Christian prayer ‘in Church.’”

• We can’t always get to the church every time we pray

• Is there a place in your home that could be your “prayer corner”?

• Could you sanctify this place by having your Sacred Scriptures and images and icons there?

• The pilgrimage is a microcosm of your life

• Because there is a destination and a journey to get there

• Everything that happens in your life happens in a pilgrimage

• You get tired

• You get cranky

• You have highs and lows

• You get to rest

• You have moments of intense joy and moments of intense grief

• CHAPTER THREE: THE LIFE OF PRAYER

• Paragraph 2697 says, “Prayer is the life of the new heart. It ought to animate us at every moment. But we tend to forget him who is our life and our all. This is why the Fathers of the spiritual life in the Deuteronomic and prophetic traditions insist that prayer is a remembrance of God often awakened by the memory of the heart: ‘We must remember God more often than we draw breath.’ But we cannot pray ‘at all times’ if we do not pray at specific times, consciously willing it. These are the special times of Christian prayer, both in intensity and duration.”

• After 345 days we have this routine

• We get in our car, go for a walk, and listen to Catechism in a Year

• We fill our hearts and minds with thoughts of God

• We are constantly reminded of the goodness of God and the reality of God and the presence of God, and the love of God, and what we owe to God, and what He has given us access to

• WE NEED TO BE REMINDED OF THIS!!

• We will be done with Catechism in a Year in 21 days 

• Then what will take this time that we have dedicated to the Lord for 365 days?

• We have to plan now

• For the last 345 days when we pressed play, we have been reminded of God’s love for us

• We have been reminded that God is REAL

• We have been reminded that our lives are not our own

• And we need to be reminded so consistently because we forget so quickly

• St. Gregory of Nanzianzus says, “WE MUST REMEMBER GOD MORE OFTEN THAN WE DRAW BREATH!!”

• It’s wonderful to make our work our prayer and to pray as we go

• Keep doing that

• Keep offering up your work as your prayer

• Keep praying as you walk

• Keep praying as you go

• BUT…

• We cannot pray at all times if we do not pray at specific times

• Paragraph 2699 says, “The Lord leads all persons by paths and in ways pleasing to him, and each believer responds according to his heart’s resolve and the personal expressions of his prayer. However, Christian Tradition has retained three major expressions of prayer: vocal, meditative, and contemplative. They have one basic trait in common: composure of heart. This vigilance in keeping the Word and dwelling in the presence of God makes these three expressions intense times in the life of prayer.”

• “Composure of heart” means being vigilant

• We must allow the Lord to draw us deeper and deeper into relationship with Him

• When you press STOP today, pray this: “Ok, God, I have just heard your call to pray, your call upon my life to remember you regularly. In 20 days from now, what will I do so that I can remember you and don’t forget you amidst the busyness of life, and don't forget you amidst the distractions of life, amidst the noise of life? Oh God, help me to remember you now and always.”

• Fr. Mike is praying FOR YOU!!

• Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!

• I cannot WAIT…