“I don’t know how to pray.”

I hear those words on occasion.  God desires to connect with us in our innermost being, in what we call “prayer,” but sometimes we just don’t know if our prayer life is where it should be.  And because of that, we wonder if we are “doing it right.”

There is not one correct way “to pray.”  But, the Holy Spirit wants us to pray.  For some, it is traditional prayers; for others, it is contemplative prayer; or spiritual reading, or the use of Sacred Scripture followed by reflection.  God invites each of us to discover how HE wants us to pray.

This past Christmas we gave out Matthew Kelly’s newest book, “I Heard God Laugh.”  In it, he once again stresses the importance of developing a habit of prayer.  That, for many, is the first hurdle:  simply getting into this “habit” or routine of prayer.

We are offering a very different type of Lenten series this year.  It is being announced now so that you can prepare for it and get it on your schedule so that you can participate in it.  The series will be based on 7 steps of Matthew Kelly’s “Prayer Process.”  The series will be designed in such a way that you can either join us “live” or fit it into your daily routine as your schedule allows.  Our goal with this series is to respond to this desire to learn how to pray, to help you develop a daily habit of prayer, and hopefully to enhance whatever your prayer life already is.

Members of the parish staff will be offering short video presentations on “I Heard God Laugh” from February 22 – 26 as an introduction to the prayer series. 

They will cover the book according to its sections:

Part 1:  The Unexpected Life
Part 2:  My Spiritual Journey
Part 3:  Life’s Essential Habit
Part 4:  Six Powerful Spiritual Lessons
Part 5:  The God Who Gave Us Laughter

So, it is best if you read the book, and even highlight those parts that speak to you.  Free copies of the book are available in the narthex of the Church, or by calling the parish office.

On March 1, for 21 days in a row, we will livestream a daily prayer session (Why 21 days?  You’ll find the answer in the book!)  These live sessions will last for 10 minutes and will begin at 9 PM each day.  You will be led through each of the steps of the Prayer Process.  While these sessions will offer mostly 10 minutes of silence after the introduction of that day’s prayer theme, it will be the Holy Spirit speaking into the depths of your being and leading this “series” for you personally.  Then, for those whose schedules will not allow for a daily meeting at this time, we will immediately post the livestream for on-demand viewing.

Not sure this is for you?  Give it a try!  In the least, read this wonderful book.  We will keep you updated via our social communications platforms about the introductory videos.  Again, all of this will be available online for whenever the Holy Spirit nudges you to try something like this, especially if you have ever said, “I don’t know how to pray.”