Distractions and Prayer

Have you ever had a hard time praying or maybe even staying focused at mass? Distractions are everywhere; no matter where you go. Now do not let this discourage you. I mean sure you have distractions, and your mind wanders, but taking little steps, and asking God for the graces to help you with prayer in life will make a big difference no matter how hard it is for you. Let us start by asking the question what is prayer exactly? Prayer is dialogue or communication with God. Now what is prayer NOT? Prayer is not saying, and repeating prayers. Now do not get me wrong here saying those kinds of prayer is awesome, and I love it too, but  we need to talk and communicate with God as well. You see when you pray (communicate with God) you put your heart into it, and if you are just saying and repeating prayers your heart can be a thousand miles away, and your mind on others things. How can you put your heart into your prayer? Well here are 5 actions you can take while praying: first is thanksgiving, which is thanking God for everything he has done for you; second is intercession, asking God to answer your petitions; third is repentance, telling God you are sorry for your sins, and asking him for forgiveness;  fourth is listening to God, whether its in scripture or it is in the silence of your heart; and finally fifth is praise and worship, singing songs, and expressing to God your love and gratitude, which can be done in many ways. 

I want to talk about praise and worship for a second. Let's say you have a favorite sports team. What do you do? Well you go to their games, watch their games on TV, Keep track of the stats, and players, and so on. Right? You tailgate at games, or have jerseys, and signatures, and praise them. Now I am not saying this a bad thing, but what I am trying to get at is this: We give so much praise to people who are sports players, or actors, or celebrities, it isn't bad, (as long as it doesn't get to out of whack) but what about our Savior the one who saved us all, and suffered for our sins, when he didn't have to? Are we giving Him the praise that is due to him? So just think about that next time you go to adoration or mass or watch a game, or your favorite show on TV. Am I giving Jesus the praise due to him, when he was killed for all our sins? We are all Imperfect, and we won't get it right all the time, but taking little steps towards prayer and praising Jesus is all we need.

So ask God today to reveal to you how much more praise you should be giving Him, and communicate with him about everything, and anything because he is there and wants to create a relationship with You. He knows us better than we know ourselves, and he knows what is best for us. He is just waiting for us to pray, and open our hearts to his will, his graces, and his gifts. Thank You Lord for showing us the right path, and guiding us in the right direction! Help us to be your light, and to praise you forever and for always.

God Bless,
Sarah