Let us always desire the happy life from the Lord God and always pray
for it. We turn our mind to the task of
prayer at appointed hours, since that desire grows lukewarm, from our
involvement in other concerns and occupations.
We remind ourselves through the words of prayer to focus our attention
on the object of our desire; otherwise, the desire that began to grow lukewarm,
may grow chill all together, and may be totally extinguished unless it is
repeatedly stirred into flame.
Therefore, when the
Apostle says: Let your petitions become
known before God, this should not be taken in the sense that they are in
fact becoming known to God who certainly knew them even before they were made,
but that they are becoming known to us before God through submission and not
before men through boasting.
Since this is the
case, it is not wrong or useless to pray even for a long time when there is the
opportunity. To spend much time in
prayer is to knock with a persistent and holy fervor at the door of the one who
we beseech. For it is even written in
reference to the Lord himself that he spent the night in prayer and that he
prayed at great length. Was he not
giving us an example by this? In time, he
prays when it is appropriate; and in eternity, he hears our prayers with the
Father. (Saint Augustine, bishop)
Consider, one of
the many reasons those in Monasteries practice The Liturgy of the Hours, is to remind themselves to pray
always. When the bell rings for prayer,
the monastic stops his/her work immediately and heads to the chapel for
prayer. Consider the Muslim. The cleric sings the call to prayer, and all
stop, and bow to God and complete their prayers. When I was in the library on campus, a young
woman came and said, "Is it okay?"
I didn't know what she meant, but said yes. She lay down her pray carpet, knelt, bowed
and said her prayers. Who among us would
do likewise? The least we can do is say
our morning and bedtime prayers. When we
drive we can ask for blessings on the neighborhoods we pass, or say a requiescat in pace when we pass a
cemetery. Praying at all times for the
sick, or those who have lost a loved one, or for the soul of a loved one or
friend, this is something we can all do, whether in a monastery, a library, in
the car, or at home. kvs
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