Category: prayer

Kamala Harris is Not Our Friend

I didn’t get a flood of unsubscribe notifications from my last article regarding politics and the U.S. election. I’m going to try my luck again with another political post. There is a lot of hyperbole being thrown around in the media about the presidential candidates, almost entirely in favor of Kamala Harris. Now I haven’t been alive as long as many others, but we seem to be living in an age that matches Communist Soviet Union in terms of media bias. I want to cut through the media’s propaganda and show you all what Harris and the Democratic party really thinks of people of faith.

Historical Reasons for Hating the Faithful

Harris is no friend of Catholics. In fact, she doesn’t seem to know how to relate to anyone of faith. And it’s not just her, but the Democratic party and their media counterparts don’t know how to relate to people who earnestly practice their faith. The Democrats’ problem is that religion teaches that truth lies with something far greater than the government. Politicians hate nothing more than people appealing to a higher power that they cannot control. This is why politicians seek to limit or destroy religious institutions in a misguided attempt to hold a monopoly on what is considered good or evil.

Twisting, denigrating, and trying to destroy religion is as old as the Bible. The Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans all tried fighting God’s chosen people, the Israelites, and all failed. The Jewish and Christian faiths remain. But when was the last time you saw a house of worship for Baal or Zeus?

In modern history, attempts to destroy religion is clearly seen in Communism. One of the first institutions any communist regime tries to destroy is religion. Their system doesn’t work when it has to compete with moral truths and the innate dignity of human beings. Marx, Engels, and Stalin cannot compete with the logic and wisdom of St. Thomas Acquinas or St. John Paul II. And because they can’t compete on moral, ethical, or logical grounds, their only option is to destroy religion.

The Modern Assault on Spirituality

This attempt to destroy religion is taking place right now by the Democratic party. If you listen to Kamala Harris and see what she’s been doing for the past four years, you see a person who hates spiritual people, particularly Catholics. Remember that Harris

  • Didn’t attend a Catholic fundraising events that all presidential candidates have attended since 1984.
  • Claimed that a federal district court nominee was unfit to serve because he’s a member of the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic charity organization.
  • Spoke out against a Supreme Court decision in favor of a Christian baker essentially saying that the government should be able to compel people to act in violation of their religious views.
  • Sponsored the “Equality Act” which would render religious liberty protections guaranteed by the Constitution null and void.
  • In a recent interview, Harris declared she will remove any religious exemption when it comes to abortion.
  • Has introduced legislation mandating Catholic hospitals to perform abortions.
  • When an undercover reporter reported evidence of Planned Parenthood trafficking aborted body parts, she prosecuted the reporter, not Planned Parenthood.
  • The Biden/Harris DOJ has been actively prosecuting pro-life advocates and handing out multi-year prison sentences for protesting outside abortion clinics.
  • Since the repeal of Roe vs. Wade, there have been 300+ attacks on churches throughout the country with no response from the Biden/Harris administration.
  • The Biden/Harris FBI has been circulating memos labelling Catholics as possible terrorists.
  • The FBI came heavily armed to raid and arrest Mark Houck because he got into an altercation with a pro-abortion activist and was trying to protect his young son.
  • Let’s not forget our Jewish friends who have been harassed, denied entry, and attacked by pro-Palestinian protestors who have been allowed free reign to create chaos.

Does Harris sound like someone who is a friend of Catholics and religious people? The media is throwing around the word “fascist” lately in every newscast with no context for what it actually means. Fascism advocates for a centralized, authoritarian government led by a dictator, where the state has absolute power. Fascists often suppress opposition through censorship, propaganda, and violence. Look at Harris’ behavior and ask yourself who the real fascist is. And this doesn’t end at Catholics. This behavior will extend to anyone who doesn’t follow the administration lockstep.

I think many people have the impression that today’s Democratic party is the same one of Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, or even Barack Obama. It is not! This is not a party that wants to honor the laws, Constitution, and foundations of America. They want to tear it down and remake the country into one that has malleable and flexible foundations that they can manipulate as they see fit. Their one rule is that there should be no rules.

Why We Need to Pray the Rosary

As I write this article and see just a fraction of what a Harris administration might do, I realize that we are at war. As much as I would love more people to achieve sainthood, I would really like to not live through times of persecution and martyrdom. Our Mother Mary is Queen of Victory. The Rosary is the weapon of victory. Take it out and pray it every day! We will need the spiritual strength to persevere through times of persecution or the strength to prevent it (probably just slow it down) by rejecting the Democrats radical agenda with our votes.

“Give Me My Weapon”

catholicexchange.com

The well-known, loved, and admired 50-year stigmatic, Saint Padre Pio, was known to have demanded for something that may have shocked the listener: “Give me my weapon!” Why would such a prayerful, …

How Boredom Leads to a Better Life

I read this post on DesiringGod.org about why God introduced boredom into His divine plan. He explains:

Boredom is the relentless experience of not finding satisfaction in this world. Something starts out being exciting, satisfying, but soon we weary of it and we need something else.

I think that is God’s design in this universal experience of boredom: to point us to the origin of everything interesting, to the world where no one will ever be bored again — God’s presence through Jesus Christ.

If I understand this article correctly, boredom is God’s way of telling us to try some other way to find satisfaction in our lives. The cycle of trying something new, getting bored, and trying something else eventually brings us closer to God. If we never got bored, we would just be content with the status quo and never have a drive to strive for something more like finding a deeper relationship with God.

I’m working hard to make the most of the boring moments of my life. Or rather, I want to be aware enough to know when I’m trying to satisfy my boredom in unfulfilling ways. Like empty calories in a diet, my boredom is telling me that I need to find something more substantial in my life. Here are some ways to make the most of boring situations.

Embrace Doing Nothing

Your body needs rest, including your brain. We all need a little down time where we aren’t actively doing something. It’s not easy when there are so many ways to spend our attention. Like starting a new exercise routine or a diet, you have to start small when it comes to quiet time. Now that the weather is nice, I try to sip my morning cup of coffee outside in the back yard. No screens, no podcasts, no exercising — just me alone with my thoughts. These sessions only last 3-5 minutes before my urge to “be productive” becomes too powerful to resist. But, taking a few minutes to center myself does have a positive impact on my day.

Hold Conversations

One aspect that is lost in our age of streaming video and smartphones is conversation. When you’re feeling bored, try having a conversation with someone whether that be your kids, spouse, siblings, or friends. This has the added benefit that you now have multiple people no longer isolated in front of their screens. It also helps forge a tighter connection between people. I’ve heard repeatedly that you can’t evangelize strangers. By talking with people, you introduce opportunities for evangelization.

Pray

Often, boredom may be God’s way of telling you to get in touch with Him in prayer. I know there are so many times when I’m feeling bored, and I reach for my smartphone when I should really reach for my Rosary or a Bible. I think of how much time I spend in front of devices and how relatively little time I spend with God.

We so often operate in “Martha Mode.” If you recall in John’s Gospel, Martha was hosting Jesus and was busy handling all the details of the event. Her sister, Mary, sat and listened to Jesus. Martha was upset feeling that Mary wasn’t spending her time wisely when there was so much work to be done. We so often act like Martha — how can we rest and relax when there is so much to do? But there will always be things to do. We can’t perpetually push out spending time with Jesus in prayer because there is work to be done. That will lead to us increasing our boredom because we aren’t filling our time with the ultimate source of satisfaction — Jesus Christ.

Don’t Multitask

I’m still working on taking advantage of boredom. I often continue to “doom scroll” before going to bed or watch one more pointless video clip. But one thing I’m really trying to cut back on is multitasking. If you look at the modern family (mine included), you will see us eating dinner with our heads down in books, magazines, and phones. I’m working at being present and focused on whatever the event is. If I’m watching sports, then I’m watching sports. If I’m talking to someone, I’m talking to someone! It’s better to have a single good experience than try to cram in three superficial experiences by multitasking.

When it comes down to it, we all just need to slow down. The world isn’t going to come to an end when we don’t look at a screen for an hour. We don’t have to cram 36 hours of tasks into a 24-hour period. Sometimes, it’s okay to take a little break and allow a little boredom into our lives. God is better able to reach us when we’re still.

Simplify Your Life With God’s Help

The Busy Life

Ironically, I’ve been too busy to write about the beauty of simple living. I read this article about a book that explains the joys that come out of simplifying our lives. But every time I start writing a reflection on it, I get distracted by something else requiring my attention. In the course of writing this article, I’ve been asked to help my son with a computer program, and the other with a Lego build. I needed to create a lineup for my youth soccer game and get involved in countless other responsibilities.

A College Student Reflects on Simplicity

Have you ever noticed that your home often reflects your spiritual and mental state? Why is this? Is our soul’s health really manifested in the space we live in? In her new book, The Little Way of Living with Less: Learning to Let Go with the Little Flower, Laraine Bennett reflects on and answers th…

I walk a fine balance. I see the value of keeping life simple and try to adhere to that principle. I want to focus on those things that are truly important and keep me and others connected to God. That includes daily Rosary prayer, attending Mass, learning the faith, and always including God in everything I do.

At the same time, I participate in many activities because I believe in the principle of “if not me, who?” Basically, many things don’t happen if people don’t volunteer and get involved. I can’t depend on organizations and events happening if I don’t step up and play a part. AYSO needs a coach? I’m in. Does my parish need help with their live streaming? You can count on me. But being involved in parish life, family life, school life, and activities isn’t exactly a simple life.

Priorities

I read about how we need to think of life as a constant river of responsibilities. Picture a physical river. No matter how many buckets and how much time you have, you’ll never be able to collect all the water in a river. The same goes with life — there’s always something to do. And sometimes, we just need to let certain things pass by and not dwell on missing them. But how do we know what to focus on in our never-ending stream of responsibilities?

Autofocus: The Productivity System That Treats Your To-Do List Like a River

In one of the emails Oliver Burkeman, author of Time Management for Mortals, sent out to his subscribers, he talked about how we typically treat our to-do lists like buckets that we need to empty every day. The problem, Burkeman observes, is that the to-do list is a bucket that never entirely empti…

I believe simplicity is found through prioritization. Inversely, it’s the lack of prioritization that leads to complications, anxiety, and unhappiness. Complexity is found when the foundation of our day is not God, but a football game, TV show, or video game. Even essential responsibilities like work, housekeeping, family, and community become more complicated when they, not God, are the priority. As I said in my recent Rosary talk, our lives need to be anchored in God’s truth if we are to have any real, meaningful happiness. Otherwise, we’re like a leaf tossed about in the storm.

Letting God Prioritize Your Day

Let’s take my typical day. I wake up and need to get my boys ready for school. I then need to go to work where people have many expectations of me. I then have some sort of responsibility in the evening whether it be coaching, a parish meeting, or just housework. I can’t do that on my own. It’s too much. I need help.

Prayer becomes my secret ingredient. I pray the Rosary in the morning, spend some time in Church after dropping my boys off at school, and sprinkle in the Liturgy of the Hours throughout the day. In those prayers, I put my day in God’s hands to do with it as He wills. I can’t pause my life. I’m going to spend every hour of every day doing something (even if it’s doing nothing). But rather than worry about how I’m going to spend that time, I ask God for help. And that makes all the difference.

Simplicity ultimately comes from trusting God. He will help you figure out what endeavors are worth your efforts. He will tell you what events are truly worth worrying about and which ones you can let go of. But God is more than a divine day planner. All paths to true happiness lead to Him. Like an efficient driving route, God helps us strip away all those “wrong turns” in life that cause so much undue anxiety, hardship, and frustration.

Ending the Day with Meditative Prayer

Stuck in a Rut

As you may have noticed, I haven’t written many new articles lately. While I strive to write one article each week, lately they’ve come out every three weeks. I’ve run into a bit of writer’s block; I just can’t find topics to write about. I usually read articles that inspire me. But I haven’t come across anything that spurs me to write.

I’m in a bit of a rut. I think we can all relate — we want to accomplish so much but we lack the energy to work on them. Instead, we fall into our patterns of work, relax, sleep, repeat. And usually, that relaxation time is spent on low-quality entertainment such as vegging on streaming video. For example, I know I should be working on my next book (yes, I do have another Rosary book in the works). But after a long day of work, I often can’t muster up the energy to write.

Why Streaming Videos?

Now that I acknowledge this shortcoming, what am I going to do about it? I’m a solutions person — I always want to fix things that aren’t working. How am I going to fix the wasted weeknights? First, I need to identify why I turn to watch videos as mental comfort food:

  1. They are familiar and comforting
  2. They are relaxing and regenerative
  3. They are easy to jump into
  4. I can set how much time I want to spend watching them

A Better Alternative

Are there other, higher-quality activities that can meet these same characteristics? Of course! Otherwise, why would I be telling you all of this? I should integrate prayer into my evening routine. The Rosary is familiar, relaxing, comforting, and regenerative. And it’s definitely a better use of my time than watching YouTube videos.

I realize that I tend to front-load my daily prayer. I wake up early to pray the Rosary and read Scripture and the Catechism. But then I go through a busy workday and home life without much prayer and meditation. I should end the day the same way I start it — with God. Starting now, I’m going to spend time in contemplative prayer when the house quiets down.

I’m not saying that I’m going to completely stop watching videos. After all, there are some good movies and shows worth watching. We need rest and relaxation in non-sinful activities. But I’m going to better diversify those activities by mixing in more quality time with God.

What about you? Do you have any low-quality relaxation routines that need adjustment? Try adding more prayer. Let me know how that works for you.

Rosary Prayer Resources for the Month of May

Naturally, in this month of May, we should turn our attention towards Rosary prayer. In our current situation, Rosary prayer takes on an even more important role. While skeptics will balk at what I’m about to say, our Rosary prayers and intentions are as essential as masks, ventilators, disinfectant, and a revived economy. Much like how all the masks and ventilators are keeping people alive and safe physically, our prayers are keeping us safe and strong spiritually. And what good is physical health without spiritual strength? We need both.

I’ve linked prayers that Pope Francis has asked us to pray at the end of every Rosary. Mary has always been a powerful intercessor throughout the ages. She loves to bring us closer to her Son, Jesus Christ. And what better way to show that love than bringing peace and comfort in times of distress.

The Vatican published a free ebook with prayers and homilies for difficult times. Naturally, anything papal isn’t going to be a light read. But please try reading a few pages every day this month in conjunction with the Rosary and additional prayers. Because a world united in prayer can’t be miserable and hopeless no matter what virus or situation we find ourselves in. The world has always been a tough place but the one constant through the ages is people finding peace and ultimately joy through God’s grace.

https://www.vaticannews.va/content/dam/lev/forti-nella-tribolazione/pdf/eng/strong-in-tribulation.-20042020.pdf

Get More from Rosary Prayer by Praying in a Church

While earnest prayer is good no matter the location, praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament is particularly beneficial. But why is that the case? After all, if God is everywhere and hears our prayers, why should we make an extra effort to go into a church and pray or attend Eucharistic adoration? In his book, Transforming Your Life Through the Eucharist, Fr. John Kane explores this great mystery and majesty of the Blessed Sacrament. An excerpt was published on Catholic Exchange titled Why We Pray Before the Blessed Sacrament. A word of warning, this is not a light read. Fr. Kane’s words are dense and packed full of ideas. It would be to your benefit to read this article a few times. You may even want to read a small section and meditate on it.

In the Holy Eucharist, Christ is not only the food of our souls, but also the companion of our exile. The human heart yearns for the sweet consciousness of companionship. The Divine Presence in the tabernacle fully satisfies this natural longing, for God alone can fill the heart.

Christ fulfills His promise of continued companionship by laying hold of this universal law of His own implanting in our nature. In the Blessed Sacrament, through the unmistakable signs of our Lord’s nearness, we experience the most thorough enjoyment of His companionship.

Fr. John Kane

My daily routine involves stopping by a church after dropping my kids off at school in the morning. There, I pray the Rosary, read the daily readings and other prayers. It’s hard to explain, but I feel so much better praying the Rosary in church than at home. I think Fr. Kane nails down why. The Blessed Sacrament is Jesus! Naturally, of course, we will feel more comforted and satisfied praying in Jesus’ presence.

I highly encourage you to take up the practice of making time to pray in a quiet church in front of the tabernacle. It’s a great practice that acts as a prayer multiplier. It helps center your day around Jesus. Honestly, the days when I can’t make it to church to pray are days where I feel a bit “off” because I haven’t grounded myself praying in Jesus’ presence. Give this practice a try and see for yourself how beneficial it is.

Rosary Prayer as a Process

When I look around my house, I see all sorts of bins filled to the top with toys and games. They belong to my boys and they’ve accumulated them over years of Christmases and birthdays. And besides the initial week or two of excitement, many of them go untouched for months. My thought is that because most of their toys are gifts, they don’t have any real emotional investment in them. But God help me if I throw one of their drawings or worksheets into the recycle bin. I’ve had to empty entire trash bins looking for my son’s random stick figure drawing or worksheet.

My little parenthood story outlines a greater insight into human behavior. We tend to value things more as we invest more in them. That could be an investment of time, money, memories, emotional energy, etc. What about our faith? Does the value of our faith increase the more time we spend in prayer? I certainly believe it does. And I’m sure those of you who pray the Rosary daily will attest to that as well. God designed faith as a process that we work on our entire lives.

Why does God choose to make our faith a multi-step process and not something more instantaneous? Why did Jesus heal certain people one at a time and not the entire world in one fell swoop? Or why do miracles come to a few and not to everyone who requests them? Like anything important, there’s value in the process. Things that are just given to us with no effort on our part aren’t as valuable as the things we work hard for.

When we make an effort to develop our faith, it becomes more valuable. Jesus didn’t come into this world to just give away faith. He knew that people wouldn’t value it if He did. Instead, He showed the benefits that came from having a deeper faith almost as a way of encouraging people to work harder at it. Remember, God gave us free will to choose whether to follow Him or not. But that’s not a binary decision. We also have the freedom to choose how much effort we want to put into our relationship with God. Hopefully, through Jesus’ teachings and example, we know that it’s important to invest in our faith development because it’s worth it.

In his article, No Soul is Too Far Gone, Francis Chan writes this about the power of perseverant prayer when he talked about praying for 30 years for the conversion of his childhood friend. Not only did the target of the prayers benefit when he was eventually baptized, but so did the person doing the praying as his faith must have grown through 30 years of prayers and intentions.

There is tremendous power in perseverant prayer. God is not like us; he is not bothered by his children asking for the same thing over and over. He is pleased by the faith demonstrated when we pray and pray for someone to be saved.

When we understand the consequences of rejecting Christ, and we are filled with love for another human being, persistent prayer should be the natural response. To this day, I still have questions about how the decreed will of God meshes with the effectiveness of my persistent prayers. For now, I’m more than content to obey and pray. Though I’m still uncertain how it works, I have seen it work. Meditate with me on Luke 18, trust the words of Christ, and then pray with sincerity and expectation.

Looking at the Rosary, I think about the Fourth Joyful Mystery — The Presentation in the Temple. I think of Saint Simeon, a pious man whom the Holy Spirit promised would see the Messiah before his death. And while it doesn’t say how long he waited, I always picture it being many years. In that time he must have prayed regularly building up his faith in God’s promise. How much stronger was Saint Simeon from a lifetime of devout prayer than if God had immediately fulfilled His promise?

In the eyes of God, even the oldest and wisest are like infants. We must seem like babies whenever God hears us complain about why He’s not answering our prayers. What we do not see or understand is that He does hear us and answers our prayers. But it’s according to His plan, not ours. It’s by His timeline, not ours. We must understand that we often need time to grow and mature in our faith. And when we put in that time and effort, we see that God answers our prayers in a manner far better than if we would have received it immediately.

Make Rosary Prayer a High Priority

Many of us, including myself, often think we are too busy to pray. We may understand the value of prayer and enjoy praying and yet we too often find ourselves bogged down in day-to-day responsibilities (and let’s be honest, leisure) that we don’t pray as much as we want or should. I know that my goal of a rosary chaplet and scripture reading every day often goes only partially filled.

Cardinal Beniamino Stella, when addressing seminarians, had this to say about prayer:

One hour each day is necessary, a time for the Lord, to allow oneself to be encountered by Him and to grow in His friendship . . . The time that we dedicate to the Lord in prayer, in meditation, and in a personal encounter, is never lost time.” “On the contrary, the more generous we are with those times offered to God, the more we will be able to go to brothers with a pastor’s heart and as precious instruments of the Father’s tenderness.

And yet, I think many of us do see prayer as lost time. It may not be consciously, but what we put ahead of prayer does reveal the priority we put on it. For example, what was I doing right before writing this article? I was watching clips from The Simpsons on Youtube. And while downtime after a busy day is important, was rewatching a Tree House of Horror episode really more important than Rosary prayer or Bible reading?  If actions speak louder than words, then my actions are saying that I don’t always put a high value on prayer.

Also, note that Cardinal Beniamino Stella is talking specifically about meditative prayer.  Not all of us have time to sit quietly for an hour and meditate. However, there are other ways to integrate prayer into your day.  For example, look at St. Therese’s Little Way as a means of incorporating God and reflecting on your relationship with Him in everything you do:

Catholics would do well to imitate St. Therese’s Little Way if they want to be happy in this life, as well as happy in the next.  That “Little Way” consists of simplicity in life, prayer from the heart to Jesus, total trust in God as our Loving Father (not a stern judge), being a true child of God our Father rather than doing our own thing, seeking God’s will in our everyday activities, doing everything for the love of Jesus with humility, being kind to people we can’t stand, and a sincere desire to be with Jesus forever rather than to be in this world.

Let’s look at the Rosary and what it says about prayer.  Prayer was obviously important to Jesus.  In the First Sorrowful Mystery, Jesus turned to God at His darkest hour to find strength.  What did the disciples do after witnessing Jesus’ Ascension into Heaven?  They went to the temple and praised God (Luke 24:53).  Look at Saint Simeon and Anna in the Fourth Joyful Mystery who spent their time in the temple praying and praising God.  Prayer surrounds Jesus in these Rosary mysteries and hence we need to surround ourselves in prayer if we are to have a deep and meaningful relationship with God.

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Getting Mary’s Help in this New Year

Happy New Year!  Usually, my first post of the year is about how we should not make “praying more” a new year’s resolution because making something a new year’s resolution almost guarantees failure.  However, this year I’m going to take a different tone based on the homily I heard last Sunday on the feast of the Solemnity of Mary.

At my parish, Father Tony talked about the importance of asking Mary for help with all the challenges and concerns in our lives.  He iterated the Church’s teaching that Mary will clarify and amplify your intentions before her son, Jesus Christ, and act as your mediator.  You may only have a vague notion of what you want or need but Mary will help you better understand those needs and help you present them to Jesus.

That homily got me thinking about new year’s resolutions.  What if they don’t fail because they are often rather vague promises made on a somewhat arbitrary day on a calendar?  Instead, maybe new year’s resolutions do not stick because people try to accomplish them on their own without any help.  Maybe we should ask Mary for her assistance in trying to accomplish our resolution.  After all, she desperately wants to help all of us achieve true happiness by eventually living in God’s Kingdom of Heaven.

But how will Mary help me lose weight?  How will Mary help me earn $10k in the stock market?  Does she really care about helping you achieve any non-spiritual goals?  Probably not.  And maybe she wants us to take a hint.  If certain goals are not a priority to Mary, maybe they shouldn’t be a priority for us either.  Like I said earlier, part of Mary’s intercession is to clarify what we truly need.  Finding a meaningful resolution is just as important as following through on one.

Yes, but will it buy you true happiness?

In the spirit of including Mary in helping me throughout my life in all important matters, not just a single new years resolution, I’m going to try to remember to add the Memorare prayer to my daily routine.  I invite you to do the same.

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help or sought your intercession, was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto you, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother. To you I come, before you I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word incarnate, despise not my petitions, but, in your mercy, hear and answer me.
Amen.

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Building Your Spiritual Emergency Fund One Prayer at a Time

2015 has started out rough for me.  I have a car that is failing its smog check (okay, that’s trivial but still annoying).  Our old water heater broke and flooded the walls, insulation, and floors of the surrounding rooms.  I am going through my annual January cold (seriously, I think the cold virus is pro-choice because it hits me every year around the Walk for Life).  And my parent company announced that they are shutting down my office as part of a downsizing effort.  That’s just my immediate family’s issues on top of the usual difficulties of raising children.  I then have to pile on the challenges various members of my extended family face as well.  And yet, while I would have every reason to freak out, I’m strangely at calm with my situation right now.  Why?

I think a lot of my calm and acceptance of my situation comes from me praying the rosary regularly.  I’m not saying this to brag or to somehow come across as being holier than others.  I’m saying this as a testament to the power of prayer.  You really have to think of routine prayer as building a spiritual “rainy day” fund.  Financial experts are always saying that you should save money in an emergency fund for unexpected expenses.  So prayer is the emergency fund for your soul.

I know many of us turn to prayer mostly when times get tough.  But that is like only starting to save money after the car broke down or the floors are already flooded.  Not having reserves makes a difficult situation even harder.  So if you don’t have those spiritual reserves to dip in to, turning to prayer for the first time in an emergency almost adds to the burden instead of relieves it.

First there’s the logistical hurdles.  Prayer is frustrating when you haven’t practiced it because it will be hard to get into that state of mind where you are calm and relaxed enough to have a truly open heart to the Holy Spirit.  You’ll be fumbling over words and thoughts instead of getting into the zone and being receptive to how God is leading you.  Second, spirituality accumulates like water in a well — the more you pray the deeper that well becomes.  Sometimes you really just need that large gulp of grace to get you through a difficult situation.  But if you haven’t prayed regularly, you are dipping into a shallow spiritual well that won’t give you the grace you need.

It’s never too late to start building your spiritual emergency fund.  All it takes is five free minutes and a rosary (or your fingers if you don’t have a rosary).  It starts with a single Our Father or Hail Mary or just a free form meditation.  In finance, there is the idea of compounding interest and exponential returns.  You can start with a very small amount of money and over time it can grow to a large amount through compounding.  The same goes with prayer.  Building your spiritual emergency fund can start with a small amount of prayer but if you regularly invest some time here and there, those small prayer moments start to add up to one large pool of grace.

This leads me to the Fifth Glorious Mystery of the rosary, Mary’s Coronation as Queen of Heaven.  She’s the one that compounds our prayers into something more substantial.  There is a reason why Mary is known as the Mediatrix of Grace.  She’s takes our prayers and intentions and places them before her son, Jesus Christ, after she’s cleaned them up and clarified them.  Remember, Mary has a particularly interesting role as being both human like us and going through the human experience but also being singled out as a purified vessel for the Son of God.  So it makes sense that she has the unique role in Heaven of hearing our intentions and, in a way, translating them and amplifying them to God.  Like a good mother, she understands all our little faults of being human.  It doesn’t matter how ineloquent or small your request is, Mary Queen of Heaven will act as your intermediary, your advocate, and your broker in Heaven.

Crowning of the Virgin by Rubens, early 17th c...
Crowning of the Virgin by Rubens, early 17th century (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Again, no matter how small your spiritual emergency fund may be, start building it up with a prayer here and a prayer there.  When you pray the rosary, don’t think of it as a daunting task of 53 Hail Marys, 6 Our Fathers, and a several other prayers.  Just focus on one prayer at a time for however much time you have.  Mary and the Holy Spirit will take it from there.  And over time, you will have that deep well of faith to dip into when times get tough or to give to others who need it in their time of need.