Thoughts on Prayer

In his book Catching Fire Becoming Flame:  A Guide for Spiritual Transformation, Father Albert Haase addresses our spiritual relationship with God.  On pages 46-47, Father Haase writes about two of the most common concerns regarding prayer.

"Dryness in prayer is a sign that something is happening.  There is a common misconception that if prayer becomes dry, boring, dissatisfying, or meaningless, we are doing something wrong.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Dryness is always an indication that our prayer techniques are flaming out as God takes over and teaches us new ways to communicate.  When we are not getting anything out of prayer, it's important that we continue to remain faithful to it.  Just showing up every day and going through the motions is a bold act of fidelity that is blessed by God." (page 46)

"The goal of prayer is not a mind free of distractions but a surrendered heart of love.  Every time I (Father Haase) pray , I have distractions.  My mind seems stoked with green wood that crackles, hisses, pops, and shoots sparks everywhere.  My attention follows those sparks and I become discouraged as I struggle to rid myself of the distractions; to make matters worse, the very effort to rid myself of them becomes another distraction!  Distractions are not as bad as you may think; they can be great teachers in the spiritual life.  They sometimes indicate what we are really passionate about and invested in.  They might also point out areas where we tend to throw water on the kindling.  In both cases, distractions can tell us exactly where are are and become the topics for our heart-to-heart conversation with him by whom we know ourselves to be loved.  The aim of prayer is not the attainment of some Zen-like, thoughtless state of consciousness.  Its fundamental aim is a heart-to-heart conversation in which we learn openness to the call and challenge of the Spirit to lovingly serve our neighbor." (page 46-47)

In these words, Father Haase provides us words of encouragement.  Dryness sometimes happens in prayer and distractions can point us in the direction we need to take in prayer.  Simply put, whatever comes our way, the important thing is that we pray.

God's blessings!  Father Schuster