The apostles watched Jesus praying in some deserted place, and after He finished, they asked him, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). Jesus teaches them the words of the “Our Father.” We call it the Lord’s Prayer because Jesus taught it to us, not because it was how He prayed to the Father. Jesus’ own words of prayer are rarely reported in the Gospels. We have a few to ponder: at the return of the disciples (Luke 10:21-22), at Lazarus’ tomb (John 11:41-42), at the Last Supper (John 17:1:26), in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:39, 42); and on the cross (Luke 23:34).
What do these snippets of prayer teach us? That Jesus’ prayer life was centered on praising, thanking, interceding, and obeying the Father. He praises the Father for listening to Him and for revealing Himself through Him. He asks the Father to consecrate us and unite us in the love of the Trinity. He proclaims His willingness to do the will of the Father in complete obedience. Jesus asks the Father to forgive sinners and grant mercy.
Jesus also gives instruction about prayer. In the Sermon on the Mount, found in chapters five through seven of St. Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus tells us to stay humble and to use the simple words Jesus gives us, not making a show of our own erudite phrasing and pious practices. Prayer requires enduring perseverance. We don’t insert our prayers into God’s heavenly vending machine, receive our request and move on. No. Prayer is not about changing God’s mind to match our assessment of what’s best for us and others. Prayer is about realignment of the human heart so that we can place our trust and hope in God’s plan—thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Jesus commands us to pray for our enemies and for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44). How much of our prayer time is actually focused on doing this? I suspect most of us fill our prayer time with requests for blessings for ourselves and those we love. There’s nothing wrong with asking God for what is good, but do we also do what Jesus commands us? Do we pray for our enemies and those who persecute us? Perhaps you are in the enviable position to proclaim, “Well, I don’t really have enemies that I know of.” Being a Catholic-Christian, however, means you have plenty of enemies who mock, demean, belittle and reject our Lord Jesus Christ. Do you pray for them? Do you pray for the militant Jihadist, the haughty atheist, the enslaved Satanist and all those who would seek your demise and destruction if they had the chance? If you do think of the enemies of Christ, do you do so with charity and compassion for their salvation or do you pray with a smug, self-congratulatory “at least I am not like these sinners” kind of prayer?
Jesus also warned us to pray about the End Times and the closing of the age—we are to pray concerning our endurance and courage (Luke 21:36). Do we long for and seek Jesus’ return or are we so caught up in the things of this world that we shudder at the thought of losing it all when Jesus’ Kingdom comes? Are we actively praying for the wisdom and prudence we need to recognize the choices put before us? Are we preparing ourselves for the courage and faith it will take to hold fast and cling to the Rock when evil rages about us and the wages of sin are dispensed?
Before going off to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus tells His three closest Apostles to pray that they would not enter into temptation (Matthew 26:41). Prayer can draw our attention away from what tempts us to sin—but only if we are truly praying (paying attention) to God rather than wasting our prayer time in a delicious, extensive and idolatrous examination of the temptation itself. Jesus asks us to pray about what tempts us to sin because without the grace of God, we cannot resist temptation—but with God, all things are possible and we can achieve the impossible (Matthew 19:26). Praying about what tempts us is an effort to wrench our heart and mind away from lesser things toward the greatest Good—God Himself. This takes effort and willpower, especially at first, because our tastes and values are warped by the sins we commit.
I remember reading about a study of monkeys in Asia who were exposed to the junk food of tourists. They quickly developed a taste for these non-nutritious goodies and refused to collect the food in the wild that would sustain them. They sickened and even died, growing malnourished and weakened by the false food they gorged upon even while the good food that would help them flourish remained untasted. The babies learned eating habits from the adults, and the entire colony was in peril of starvation even while eating more calories than they needed!
Sin and vice can be like that for us humans! As we taste the ‘forbidden fruit’ of prideful self-exaltation (which is the root of all sin), we lose our taste for what is good and true and beautiful. We eat what fails to satisfy and grow sick inside on a diet of junk food for the soul. When we recognize our poor spiritual health—manifested in restlessness, lack of purpose, hopelessness, isolation or despair—we strive to consume even more of the “sin food” that is sickening us. Until we turn away and go through the hard work of restoring our taste for God, our consumption of the world’s junk puts our souls in peril.
It’s hard work to redevelop a taste and hunger for holiness! At first, it might appear bland and unpalatable and boring. We have to work through this period as we wean our soul off of the junk food of sin and vice. After a while, we realize that our tastes are changing, being restored. What is good and holy captivates us. What is nourishing and healthy attracts us. We hunger for the things of God and not the things of this world. We find ourselves flourishing with vigor and vitality—able to meet the challenges of life with creativity, peace and joy.
How does this “spiritual cleansing diet” proceed? Through prayer—true prayer that reaches out to God, seeking His presence in order to honor and worship Him. Jesus demonstrates this kind of intimate, flourishing relationship with the Father in his lengthy periods of prayer. The Gospels speak of Jesus praying throughout the night before important events or after challenging days (see Luke 6:12). Before Jesus inaugurates his public ministry, He spends 40 days fasting and praying in the desert (see Matthew 4:1-11). Jesus’ great work of redemption, of drawing all people into a covenant relationship with God, only proceeds from the foundation of His prayer. Prayer isn’t the pause before the real action, it is the real action—the greatest kind of action. Prayer is the action of the heart and mind and will being oriented to God. Once the compass heading of the spirit is correct, the “ship” of the body can travel with confidence toward the goal.
We can view our own prayer life in the same way. Rather than trying to fit in a time to pray after all the real work of the day is done, why not begin with setting aside time for prayer? Put it in your calendar and set alerts on your phone to remind you to pause for prayer. It’s great to send up short little prayers to God throughout the day, but I also encourage you to devote a lengthy chunk of time to prayer—to really praying in a conversation with God rather than settling for frequent “hello’s” as you race on to the “important” stuff.
What is Jesus’ most important lesson on prayer for His disciples? That He is with us. That we pray in Christ. That we are never abandoned because Jesus is truly Emmanuel, God with us. Now that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit into the world and into the souls of all who confess Him Lord, we do not pray to a God remote and distant, cold and calculating. We pray to the God who is seeking us in the most intimate corners of our very selves—a God who delights to dwell with us, who draws us further into His own life, and who desires our salvation so much that He paid the price owed by our sinfulness. Prayer is the attitude and the decision to “open the door” to the God who is knocking—and to allow God to enter into our lives and make of us what He wills. Abandonment. Engagement. Trust. All rooted in God’s love for us—a deep and abiding love that respects our unique identity and seeks our greatest good.
How does a Christian pray? With child-like love! Talking to the Father with the same delight, lack of self-regard, and enthusiasm as a little child speaking to a beloved parent. Jesus pleads with us to turn and become like little children so that we can receive the gift of the Kingdom—so that we can inherit all that the Father wishes to give to His beloved children (see Matthew 18:3-4). What is distinctive about little children? They are completely willing to accept gifts. In all my years of parenting and showering gifts on children (whether my own or other people’s), I have never had a child protest, “Oh no! I don’t need anything, please don’t bring me a gift! I just can’t accept a gift from you!” No! Children readily and eagerly receive all the gifts offered them. We grown-ups manage to turn gift-giving into a challenge, a competition or a power-play. We grown ups muse about relative value, the reciprocity demanded of us, or the unspoken message of the gift. We evaluate, measure and judge gifts. We groan at having too much stuff yet at the same time we get offended when someone doesn’t give us enough or as much as they gave someone else. We grown ups have stopped accepting gifts as gifts. We bring in attitudes of entitlement or popularity, value judgments and social demands.
Jesus desires more for us! He wants us to return to our child-like receptivity for the gift—especially for the gift of a relationship with Him. Prayer is turning away from the false and deadly attitude of the worldy grown-up and embracing the life-giving attitude of being a child of God. Prayer isn’t complicated when we allow God to be the one who leads the dance of the conversation—we’re His children and, as St. Therese of Lisieux noted, parents seem to love their children just as much when they are sleeping as when they are awake. If all your prayer can be right now is a silent, trusting “snuggle” into the arms of your heavenly Father, know that you will be pleasing God immensely. His heart will throb and overflow with compassionate, tender love for you—and He will lead you to a deeper and more vibrant relationship with Him when you are ready. He is infinitely patient. He could hold you all day, He will hold you your entire life. He will, in the end, pick you up and carry you to heaven—and, in fact, that’s the only way any of us will get there. That’s what prayer prepares us for.
Flourish Catholic 