Occasionally, something surprising happens. Most of the time, surprises seem to be of the kind that we would prefer pass us by. However, every now and then, there is a pleasant surprise. A tiny word of encouragement can make all the difference in the happiness of a day or it can provide the encouragement to complete a project. Today is one of those surprising days.
It has been many months since I posted Prayer for Beginners 2: Motives. Here we go again; off to complete the project simply because of a word of encouragement.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
The meaning of life is to grow in holiness and become a saint. As we grow to be saints, we must grow in our love of God. With the right disposition, to pray is an act of love. Prayer, in its simplicity, is talking with and being in the presence of God who loved us first. Methods of prayer are not essential to talking with our beloved. Yes, God wants to be and is our True Love.
REFLECTION
Peter Kreeft gave us ten reasons to pray. Perhaps the most important reason is that without prayer we cannot attain the meaning of life, the end purpose of our existence. What is the meaning of life? The answer to this question begins with three preliminary questions. (See Kreeft's book Because God is Real.)
The first question is, "Where did I come from?" If we came from matter alone, then we are just the product of a long series of random combinations. In effect, we are complex machines that are in the "on" mode now and will someday be in the "off" mode. What's more, being "on" of "off" doesn't matter any more than a refrigerator or a computer or an ape or a bear or the lights in one's home being on or off. However, if our origin is from God, if we were designed and desired and wanted, then we can be spiritual as our Designer is spirit. In fact, we believe that we were made in the image of God who is spirit.
The question, "What am I" becomes answerable. We came from spirit therefore we have a spirit, a soul. If this is so, that we are spirit and matter mixed all together, then what we are has an enormous dignity. We are not simply animated mud, we are God's design; we are His children!
Where are we going? God has revealed through Prophets He sent to Israel that our ultimate destiny is spiritual. Our Lord Jesus revealed fully that our destiny is to live forever with God in Heaven. The meaning of life is to become a Saint so that we are ready to live our ultimate destiny! This is why we pray! We pray so that we are in the presence of God as much as possible. We are changed by His presence and we become more and more perfect - like Him.
Becoming a saint is serious business, right? So, there must be special methods for praying. Wrong. We do not need special methods. Kreeft asks, "Can you talk to a friend?" If you can, you can pray. We can talk to God as a friend. We simply need to begin.
Some people think they must be a saint to pray. Kreeft reminds us that prayer is the way to become a saint!
Does this mean that "methods" are a hindrance to prayer? No, not for everyone. Some methods of prayer can be helpful. In any case, the aspect of speaking to a friend is critical. Speaking to the Lord God Almighty as a friend is not something we have a right to do. We received this privilege by virtue of Our Lord Jesus Christ reconciling us to Himself and to the Father. Jesus opened the way for friendship with God.
Prayer is love. We seek presence and intimacy with persons we love. God is a person. Actually, He is three persons with one divine nature. Love wants to communicate. Jesus gave us a structure for praying in the Lord's Prayer. The critical idea is this: we should speak with God who loved us while we were yet sinners.
St. Thomas More, Pray for us!
VVV
Soaking this in... trying to learn how to really pray.
Thank you...
You are the one who is so encouraging!
Every blessing as you too live a life of prayer...
All's grace,
Ann
Posted by: Ann Voskamp @ Holy Experience | Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 09:12 PM