Ways to Improve Your Prayer Life

#1  BE YOURSELF 

God created you‐the you that you are today, not yesterday or tomorrow‐to be a praying person.  You were created to dialogue with God.  He welcomes your conversation. How do you feel?  Talk to God about that.  If you're angry with God, say so.  God can take it.  There is nothing new here- just looks at some of the psalms and see the range of feelings expressed.  Or the prophet Jeremiah who said "You duped me, Lord, and I let myself be duped." (20:7)  Or Jesus on the cross: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mt 27:46)  Prayer is not the exchange of information.  It is intimacy.  Sharing feelings is very intimate.

#2  BE DISCIPLINED 

Prayer takes practice!! You must be faithful to prayer.  Anything that is accomplished must be done over and over again. 

#3  LEARN TO MEDITATE 

No one can progress in the spiritual life without learning to meditate.  In meditation you are merely thinking about God.  Meditation is supposed to move the heart to God. 

#4  GET A BOOK 

If progress in the spiritual life means learning to meditate, and meditation is the placing of thoughts before the mind in order to raise the heart to God, then we are going to need some help!  Read Scripture, a good spiritual book, or an inspiring novel with a good message. 

#5  IF IT WORKS, DO IT! 

If you find that it works, do it.  Listening to good music, walking in nature, sitting in a chair with a candle lit – whatever brings you to the presence of God, do it.  If you pray better in the morning or in the evening ‐ make that your time for prayer. 

#6  MAKE YOUR PRAYER FRUITFUL THROUGH MORAL LIVING 

The spiritual and moral lives are one.  One who prays will not gossip…  One who prays will not lie and cheat…  One who prays will not destroy their neighbor’s reputation.  Prayer makes your life fruitful.   

#7  DON’T JUDGE PRAYER BY FEELINGS 

The single goal of prayer is to bring us in closer union with God.  In prayer, we are seeking God – not a feeling.  Often times prayer will give us a good feeling – a feeling of peace.   But we cannot rely on that feeling – for that will become our reward.  There is only one criterion for evaluation of prayer:  How we live our life.   

#8  DON’T PLOT YOUR PRAYER’S PROGRESS 

In today’s world, we like to measure our success by how we improve and progress each year according to society’s standards.  Prayer doesn’t have a tape measure type of evaluation.   The evaluation of a prayer experience never lies within the experience itself.  It lies in the kind, caring, and compassionate life that comes from that prayer. 

#9  PRAYER IS ALSO THE WORK OF THE CHURCH 

Prayer is more than just our solitary search for God.  It is also communal prayer, such as the Liturgy (mass), the Liturgy of the Hours, Word and Communion services, and other prayer services.  God is present when the Church gathers for communal prayer. 

#10  SOMETIMES, JUST SIT 

Take some moments each and every day to just sit in God’s presence.  Let God work through you.  Listen to God in the quiet of your soul. Remember that prayer takes all shapes and forms.  It takes place in the ordinary moments of our lives: the prayer of a mother nursing her sick child; a husband praying for the recovery of his ailing wife; the farmer praying as he goes up and down the fields that he is plowing; the person that just sits in the presence of God. 

PRAYER CAN TAKE PLACE ANYWHERE AT ANY TIME!

We need silence to be alone with God, to speak to him, to listen to him, to ponder his words deep in our hearts.  We need to be alone with God in silence to be renewed and transformed.

-St. Teresa of Calcutta