“Prayer is a gift that we freely receive; dialoguing with Him in the Holy Spirit, who prays in us and allows us to address God, calling him Father, Dad, Abba”. – Pope Francis
Do you find it difficult to pray? Do you easily get distracted? Or perhaps, at times, prayer seems boring to you. This is something quite common in the prayer life of every Christian. In our world, the everyday hustle and bustle can make it challenging to find a moment of quiet and silence, both externally and internally, to engage in our prayer. The first thing to consider is that prayer is a loving dialogue between God the Father and His child, you.
Pope Francis has declared 2024 as the Year of Prayer, during which we are encouraged to become “Pilgrims of Hope” in anticipation of the 2025 Holy Year. This year presents an ideal opportunity to dedicate ourselves to both individual and collective prayer, allowing us to strengthen our relationship with God. By doing so, we can overcome distractions and discover the Father’s mercy and love, which is anything but dull.
Saint Augustine defines prayer as “the encounter of God’s thirst with ours.” Let’s make our prayer the meeting place where God thirsts for you, to know you more, to listen to you, and where your heart thirsts for God´s love.”
How do we make our prayer a place of encounter with God?
Here are some tips that could help you grow in your prayer life:
To begin, one should invoke the Holy Spirit.
Saint Paul tells us that “the Spirit helps us in our weakness” (Rom 8:26). Jesus tells his disciples that he will not leave them alone and will send his Spirit. Indeed, many times, we do not know how to pray, how to start, or what to say. The Holy Spirit is the one who reveals the presence of God in our prayers and our lives. Starting a prayer by inviting the Holy Spirit into your heart and prayer is a powerful way to begin. You can do this by blessing the Holy Spirit or simply saying “Holy Spirit, come!”
Find your place.
It’s important to find a peaceful place to pray, where you can enter into a state of inner silence. This place could be in your home, such as your living room, a garden, or your bedroom. Avoid areas with excessive external noise that may distract you from your prayer. Having a designated prayer space will also help you establish a routine and make it easier to incorporate prayer into your daily life.
Set your prayer time.
Choose a moment to pray. As we define moments for different activities throughout the day., defining a prayer schedule will help maintain consistency.
Use resources that help you enter into prayer.
Prayer is a dialogue between God the Father and us, His children. To enhance your prayer life, you can use various resources such as:
- The Bible, there is no better tool than the living Word of God. You can listen to our daily homilies here.
- Instrumental music or praise songs.
- Spiritual books.
- Educational material. You can subscribe to our virtual Pilgrimage of Prayer here.
Keep a spiritual journal.
Keep record. Write down the insights and highlights God gives you in prayer, your favorite passages, s, and motivational phrases that help us grow spiritually.
Prayer is exercised daily; be encouraged if you find it challenging to pray or easily get distracted. Prayer grows with willpower, time, and effort, always remembering that it is a gift we receive from God. In this Year of Prayer, let us ask God for the grace to teach us to pray. Let us pilgrimage in hope on the way to the 2025 Holy Year.
By Pamela Rocha
