Daily Retreat 10/21/07
2007 Oct 21 SUN: TWENTY-NINTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Ex 17: 8-13/ Ps 120(121): 1-2. 3-4. 5-6. 7-8/ 2 Tm 3: 14 – 4: 2/ Lk 18: 1-8
From today’s readings: “As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight.... Our help is from the Lord, who made Heaven and Earth.... Proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.... When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
Is Prayer Inconvenient?
It’s obvious that one of the most productive factories in Hell is the Excuse Mill! The devils slaving away there crank out excuses at an amazing rate, and they’ve got an incredibly efficient delivery system that's out of this world, so whenever you or I need an excuse (particularly the "prayer procrastination" brand), POOF! - there’s our excuse, all ready to go, and it doesn’t seem to cost us anything!
But it does! Not only potentially in the long run (that "little" matter of our eternal salvation), but also every single time we blow off prayer, we’re effectively turning down and depriving ourselves immediately of whatever grace God is offering us at that moment. And that adds up to an amazing amount of grace the soul has lost!
Yes, one of the most constant temptations in life is the demotion and dismissal of prayer. It seems there’s always something more pressing to do, or that it would be better to pray later when things are calmer, or there’s some other reason why NOW so seldom turns out to be the right time to pray. And we figure since God is patient, He won’t mind too much waiting for us, and waiting for us, and waiting for us....
Yet Moses lifted his arms in prayer for hours, growing physically tired at the exertion of praying, but still he did not stop; rather, he changed position by sitting down and welcoming the assistance of others in prayer. And his prayer brought victory! Then too, Paul insists one persist in prayer and proclamation, whether convenient or inconvenient. And Jesus clearly taught with parables and modeled with His own life an absolute commitment to prayer.
Those are certainly compelling reasons to pray, even when (and especially when!) it seems inconvenient. Fold your hands or lift up your arms in prayer many times throughout the day! Whether you’re sitting, standing, kneeling, lying down, or even hanging upside down - every posture can become a posture of prayer! By all means, welcome the assistance of others to help you pray....
It’s really only for the devils that prayer is truthfully inconvenient! In fact, for us, prayer could be defined as the greatest convenience of our life: a direct line to God, and an eternal lifeline, at that! Nothing could be more convenient! So it is prayer that makes us like Jesus, and prayer that fills us with the love of Jesus.
But, if that’s still not enough to get you praying as you know you ought to be, consider this: those who are the most frequent customers at the Excuse Mill generally can count on getting a job there - so pray, pray, PRAY that that won’t happen to you!
Ex 17: 8-13/ Ps 120(121): 1-2. 3-4. 5-6. 7-8/ 2 Tm 3: 14 – 4: 2/ Lk 18: 1-8
From today’s readings: “As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight.... Our help is from the Lord, who made Heaven and Earth.... Proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.... When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
Is Prayer Inconvenient?
It’s obvious that one of the most productive factories in Hell is the Excuse Mill! The devils slaving away there crank out excuses at an amazing rate, and they’ve got an incredibly efficient delivery system that's out of this world, so whenever you or I need an excuse (particularly the "prayer procrastination" brand), POOF! - there’s our excuse, all ready to go, and it doesn’t seem to cost us anything!
But it does! Not only potentially in the long run (that "little" matter of our eternal salvation), but also every single time we blow off prayer, we’re effectively turning down and depriving ourselves immediately of whatever grace God is offering us at that moment. And that adds up to an amazing amount of grace the soul has lost!
Yes, one of the most constant temptations in life is the demotion and dismissal of prayer. It seems there’s always something more pressing to do, or that it would be better to pray later when things are calmer, or there’s some other reason why NOW so seldom turns out to be the right time to pray. And we figure since God is patient, He won’t mind too much waiting for us, and waiting for us, and waiting for us....
Yet Moses lifted his arms in prayer for hours, growing physically tired at the exertion of praying, but still he did not stop; rather, he changed position by sitting down and welcoming the assistance of others in prayer. And his prayer brought victory! Then too, Paul insists one persist in prayer and proclamation, whether convenient or inconvenient. And Jesus clearly taught with parables and modeled with His own life an absolute commitment to prayer.
Those are certainly compelling reasons to pray, even when (and especially when!) it seems inconvenient. Fold your hands or lift up your arms in prayer many times throughout the day! Whether you’re sitting, standing, kneeling, lying down, or even hanging upside down - every posture can become a posture of prayer! By all means, welcome the assistance of others to help you pray....
It’s really only for the devils that prayer is truthfully inconvenient! In fact, for us, prayer could be defined as the greatest convenience of our life: a direct line to God, and an eternal lifeline, at that! Nothing could be more convenient! So it is prayer that makes us like Jesus, and prayer that fills us with the love of Jesus.
But, if that’s still not enough to get you praying as you know you ought to be, consider this: those who are the most frequent customers at the Excuse Mill generally can count on getting a job there - so pray, pray, PRAY that that won’t happen to you!
posted by FrPitstick | 10/19/2007
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