A seminarian was meeting for the first time with a wise, holy priest who was to be his spiritual director. He inquired about the seminarian’s current prayer life. What were his practices? How much time did he devote to prayer? How did he think it was going?
The seminarian started with the obvious, his participation in daily Mass and the parts of the Liturgy of the Hours that were prayed every day in common at the seminary. He added that he tried to meditate daily for half an hour on a passage from Sacred Scripture. He said he made it a point, too, to make a morning offering daily before he got out of bed, and to pray the Rosary every day as well. Also, he was accustomed to reciting certain prayers for his family and friends, for special intentions and for the poor souls in purgatory. And he had a personal litany he prayed every day to his favorite saints. Finally, he tried to get in some spiritual reading on a daily basis. Unfortunately, he added, he often fell short on time since he had to spend many hours a day on his studies, as well as tend to other duties he had at the seminary. His prayer life, he admitted, was not going nearly as well as he had hoped.
After listening attentively to the idealistic priest-in-the-making, the kind spiritual director said, “Son, I commend you for your endeavors, but it sounds like you’re trying too hard to get your prayer in rather than getting into your prayer.”
Trying to get your prayer in instead of getting into your prayer. Biting off more than you can chew. That was the seminarian’s pitfall, and it is often our pitfall, too, when we set out to improve our prayer life in Lent.
It is best to focus on quality rather than quantity when it comes to establishing a Lenten prayer regime. Perhaps take one prayer daily and pray it very slowly and reverently, lingering on certain words or phrases, and reflecting on them. The same thing could be done using a few verses from the Bible, especially the words of Jesus and the psalms.
Since Jesus gave us the Our Father as a model for our prayer, it is probably the best place to begin. Here are some thoughts for getting into this particular prayer.
“Our Father who art in heaven.” Whose father? OUR Father. MY Father. The 18th century deists saw God as creator, but not as father. They called him “the Great Clockmaker,” an impersonal craftsman, who, once finished creating his work, sets it aside and forgets about it. It is not so with our personal Father-God, who has made us in his own image and likeness and then sustains us in being every moment of our life. Our Father loves his children. He supports them, protects them, and wants them to prosper.
“Hallowed be thy name.” The name of God is all-holy. It is so sacred that Jews, from time, immemorial never say it out loud. The name of Jesus, the Son of God, is all-holy, too. Thus, Saint Paul said, “At the name of Jesus, every knee must bend in heaven, on earth, and under the earth.” (Phil 2:10)
Therefore, I should learn to cringe at the abuse of the divine names from my mouth and the mouths of others. And I should ask God to help me bite my tongue when I am about to slip up. I want to remember always to hold those names in great awe and to speak them with unfailing reverence.
“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” “Thy will be done.” “Let it be done to me according to your word.”(Lk 1:38) It was the prayer of the Blessed Virgin Mary when the angel Gabriel announced that God had chosen her to be the Mother of His Son.
I ask God to help me remember to put the fulfillment of his will at the forefront of all my prayers for myself, for others, and for the whole world. Of course, it goes without saying that whether I pray for the fulfillment of God’s will or not, it is surely going to be accomplished. But if I can learn to pray expressly for the inevitable, then everything else in my life will fall into its proper place. Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus can help me when I consider what she said about that: “When I pray, I get everything I want because I want what God wants.”
“Give us this day our daily bread.” Throughout the ages, bread has been considered the most basic life-sustaining substance in almost every culture. It is called “the staff of life” because it supports human life just as surely as a staff in Jesus’ day supported the one who walked with it.
In the broader sense, bread refers to all our material and spiritual needs, which we pray God will grant in ample measure. Of course, it is important to distinguish between wants and needs. I must remember that my generous Lord may not give me everything I want, but will surely provide me with everything I need.
“Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Nothing is hidden from the mind of God, who knows the catalogue of my sins before I begin to put them all into words. But let me confess them over again to the priest who has the power to absolve them through the words of Jesus himself (Jn 20:22-23). That shows I accuse myself of my sins; I alone admit ownership of them. And surely, by naming them without dissimulation to the one who stands in the person of Christ, I can begin to gain mastery over them. In doing so, I hope to increase my love above all for my merciful Father in heaven.
I need to remember, too, that God gives me the right to ask him to forgive my sins only to the extent that I am willing to forgive those who have offended me in some way. This often gives me trouble. But God can help me get over it by making me aware that forgiveness is not so much a matter of the heart as it is of the will.
Forgiveness does not have to be something that I feel, but rather something that I will. So, for the love of God, I will everything that is good for my enemies. This, I know, takes practice.
“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” This is our prayer to God not to let us enter into temptation and succumb to it. “God is faithful and will not let you be tried beyond your strength, but with the trial, he will also provide a way out so that you may be able to bear it.” (1Cor 10:13)
I am aware of my worse temptations, and I know they often come unexpectedly, even at the most inopportune time. But I am also aware of the times when they are likely to occur; so I ask for the grace to avoid those situations.
Because of the fallen state of creation, we are subject to the sinful allurements of the world, the flesh and the devil. At the same time, we rejoice that where sin abounded, grace has abounded all the more. (Rom 5:20)
Amen. So be it! Amen.
May our determination and effort to get into our prayer more deeply invigorate our works of fasting and almsgiving and help make this our best Lent ever!
Father Edward Kolla is a retired priest of the Diocese.
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