Prayer – Page 2 – True North Missionaries Journal

Never too Late

I was sitting next to a dad with 2 kids one was a girl aged around 5 and the other was a little boy aged between 1-2 years old. The dad ordered a cup of coffee and 2 cookies. The older sister took one cookie and started eating while the dad handed the other cookie to the toddler. After a few minutes the older sister said, “We forgot to pray!” The dad replied, “It’s okay, let’s just continue to eat.” The daughter replied again, “It’s not too late to pray.” The dad just said, “OK” Then she continued on with eyes closed, “Dear God thank you for dad and mom and dad’s coffee and our cookies, amen!”

I did not mean to listen to how the conversation went but the girl was just loud and I was just seated a foot away from them, literally next table to me.

Yes she was right – It’s not too late to pray!

There are instances in my life that I choose to take things in my own hands especially the everyday small matters. I was walking to my bus stop when I realized that I didn’t have enough time to get there. Still I continued on walking, I uttered a prayer to God asking if He can delay the arrival of the bus so I can get on it. I was surprised that I got there in time for the bus. I waited for a minute then the bus came.

How much more in bigger, serious matters? Prayer is never too late to pray.

“Lord you are God of time. Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow is in your hands. Teach to choose to prayer as my first option and if I forget to pray or offer my everyday matters remind me still the prayer will always be the best option at any point in time.”

Prayer of Surrender and Generosity

Years ago when I was in despair, a sister in Christ, Catherine Quinto (now a nun), sent me two prayers that became very dear to me, even to this day. I hope these prayers help you as much as they have helped me.

Both are by St. Ignatius of Loyola.

Prayer of Surrender

Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess You have given me: I surrender it all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough, and will desire nothing more.

Prayer of Generosity

Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve you as you deserve; to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to toil and not to seek for rest, to labor and not to ask for reward, save that of knowing that I do your will.

Amen.

Crown of Creation

This past weekend I attended ‘Princess Diaries‘ that Toronto SFC hosted for all the sisters. I was excited to just be a participant and not have to worry about serving. But then a week before the event, Renee, the GTA West Head asked me if I could lead the Praisefest for Saturday night. And you know what happened that whole week before the event? PANIC.

I was so mentally drained from trying to figure out the dynamics of a worship, the order of the songs, the prayers that go before the songs, the appropriate songs, the transitions, and everything else in between. On Friday morning I reached some point of mental desperation and just exasperatedly told God that he really should have chosen someone else.

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To understand this more let’s look at the three desires planted in every woman’s heart:

a) the desire to be romanced
b) the desire to play an irreplaceable role in an adventure
c) the desire to unveil beauty

Those desires are often misunderstood which is why a lot of sisters end up broken. We turn to the wrong sources to fill the void. I myself sought those desires out in multiple people, ~~men~~ boys who had no other agenda other than to fulfill their own desires.

Fifteen minutes before the session ended (New Heartbeats) He granted me the grace and wisdom to finally see all the pieces come together. And when it finally sank in, I could not contain the peace, joy and love that was pouring out of my own heart!

He said,

“My dearest Therese. These desires are not something to be afraid of. Do not deny yourself these desires because each one will lead you closer to me. Do you not already know that every movement in your heart is known to me? I fashioned that very thing that beats inside of you. Unite it with my sacred heart and will understand better the plans I have for you, as woman.”

THE DESIRE TO BE ROMANCED, I placed in you so that you will come to me in Adoration. I will embrace every part of you in the silence. Come to me, and I will pour myself out to you. Do not be afraid to glance out at me for I long to look out at your face. Each time you come, the heavens rejoice. This is where you belong, this is where you are meant to be- here with me. My beloved I have waited for you and you are finally here! Have FAITH that I am here.

THE DESIRE TO PLAY AN IRREPLACEABLE ROLE, I placed in you so that you will come to the House of Worship and receive me in the Holy Eucharist. Come to me exactly as you are. You say to me, Lord but I am broken, battered, shattered. And His reply: “But I NEED YOU. YES, YOU.” From the moment you receive me on your tongue you become the ultimate living tabernacle and you are NO longer broken, battered, shattered. I pour out my Holy Spirit within you, and my love which is far more precious than gold will bind you back together. There will always be HOPE.

THE DESIRE TO UNVEIL BEAUTY, I placed in you so that you will come to me in Confession. No sin you’ve committed, no sin that you are committing, no sin that you will commit can ever be too much for my cross. Nothing is more beautiful than a woman who humbles herself and acknowledges her weaknesses and limitations. All those layers you choose to hide behind, the masks you choose to wear around you will all be washed away. In every single instance, you come out as clean and pure just as I intended for you to be. I meet you with nothing but LOVE.

Wow. Praise the Lord. I could not contain myself in that tiny little seat. The Lord fulfilled ALL THOSE DESIRES in me within the past 24hrs! He granted me my trinity run; Adoration at Our Lady of Lourdes the night before, Confession before the last session, and Eucharist shortly after. The Lord loved me so much that He made straight my paths right before I stood before my sisters with a heart that was now READY AND WILLING.

“You, eternal trinity, are a deep sea. The more I enter you, the more I discover, and the more I discover, the more I seek you.”- St. Catherine of Siena

Amen.

The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic 1/4 – Prayer

According to Matthew Kelly, the four signs of a dynamic catholic are Prayer, Study, Generosity, and Evangelization. I haven’t read the book yet but I’d like to share some of my personal reflections on the four signs. In this blog I will focus on Prayer and will share my reflections on Study, Generosity, and Evangelization on subsequent blogs.

1. PRAYER

Of course this is number one. Prayer has to be the most important aspect of a Christian. Prayer is our communication with the Lord and the way of being in constant communion with Him. St. Therese of Lisieux said, “For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.” Benedict XVI also reminds us that “the Fathers of the Church say that prayer, properly understood, is nothing other than becoming a longing for God.” I think what’s important to get from this is that prayer is not complicated. It is simply becoming a longing for God.

Included in prayer is fasting and alms-giving, both which are meant to direct our heart and mind to God. When we fast, it is not about looking gloomy and making sure everyone knows we’re fasting. It’s about getting rid of all of that self-love and focusing on God’s love, which fills us with joy. Also, we shouldn’t boast about our giving alms, whether it be materially, morally, or spiritually. The Lord tells us “when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Mt 6:3). Again, it’s all about the Lord. It’s all about being more intimate with Him and yearning for His reward and His approval. We should want to please only Him.

We also can achieve intimacy with the Lord through reading of the Scriptures. This is also where we are fed the bread of life. The Lord speaks His Truth and His Word to us through the Sacred Scriptures, and we truly encounter Jesus in it. St. Jerome aptly put it, “ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ.”

Availing the Sacraments is another essential way of prayer. If praying is like drinking from the fountain of mercy and grace then participating in the Sacraments is like swimming in an ocean (even this metaphor is lacking ). It is God’s way of pouring upon us His graces in super abundance.

Prayer is our starting point and the entire journey. A dynamic Catholic is one who never stops longing for the Lord, and who points his desire for love to God’s agape love for it to be completely satisfied. Our source and strength to do anything good and pleasing for the Lord can only come from a life of prayer.

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.” –John 15:4

3/52: Balance

There is so much to be thankful for, I’m sure I don’t have to present the laundry list of blessings we all receive on a daily basis! What I will comment on is how we often we tend to complain and stress over them. I am guilty of this =(

Maybe we’re feeling overwhelmed. Maybe we’re doubting our capabilities. Maybe things are piling up and we’re beginning to get anxious about all that is expected of us. We spend so much time worrying about the tasks as opposed to doing them that we get lost in the mix. How can we even begin to serve our Lord, if already at the start we’re hindered?

I’ve come to be reminded that BALANCE is key. If we are at an imbalance in our lives, how do we plan on tackling all of our tasks and responsibilities? How can we properly share our Lord’s message? How can we remain firm and steadfast to win the race?

More important than reevaluating our priorities is PRAYER! Prayer is what offsets all those tasks we have to take care of. And if we’ve got a lot of things to do then that also means we’ve got a lot of praying to do! It is through prayer that we receive the graces to handle such things, that allows us to centre ourselves in Christ, and gives us the freedom to rest in the Lord after a long day’s work. Prayer, both, grounds us in our faith but it also motivates us into action!

Mother Teresa once said,

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”

Let us balance our lives with prayer and realize how much of a blessing each day is. Let us be good stewards of our time, talent and treasure and make the most of each day for our Lord. Let us not bog ourselves down with worry or anxiety or complaint and realize our Lord walks with us daily, therefore is with us every step of the way. Let us begin…

Realistically

I met a brother during my recent trip to LA last month. I gave a talk for CFC-Youth San Diego and I was introduced to this joyful brother named Jayson Adams. Jayson is your typical CFC-Youth, happily spending his summer hanging out with his friends and serving the Lord through CFC-Youth. However, one thing that Jayson experiences that we don’t is that he has two rare forms of cancer. Not one, but two.

Now, I’m known to be critical (at times hyper-critical) of the things I do see and experience whether it be something positive or negative. I would still see something negative from something that is really positive. But the way Jayson lives his life is something that really slaps me in the face – yes a slap (or two, three, and then some) in the face of a missionary.

From a blog by his family of his journey – http://walkwithjayson.blogspot.com.au/ – Jayson shares from a recent Youth Camp a question that we might and most probably ask if we were in his situation.

He asked the question why.

But he asks something more. He asks why was he surviving?

Now when I face problems whether it be the big problems in life or the #firstworldproblems, that should never be a problem in the first place, I would usually make a big deal out of it and act as if the world would end if it wasn’t resolved quickly. At times be quick to announce that indeed #thestruggleisreal.

However, Jayson faces a real life-threatening problem, and asks for the source, of him still being able to enjoy the graces and blessings in his life. He focuses on God’s love. As I reflect on this, his point of view is not optimism but rather a realistic point of view. Allow me to explain.

A quick search of optimism on google yields this definition “hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something.” It based on a possibility of something positive in the future. Totally not the case for Jayson.

To be Christian is to believe, to experience, and to be transformed by the Love of God that is constantly and unconditionally at work in our lives. Jayson sees this perfectly in his own “struggle”. His is grounded, raised and is in fact very much living in the reality of God, Who is Love.

If I am then to be a Christian – the root of my missionary call – then I should be realistically looking and living in His love. His love gives meaning and purpose to my life. Ergo, I should see grace and blessings abound even amidst the trials and tribulations.

Yes, easier said than done. But at least knowing this, is a step in the right direction.

The thought of my pain, my homelessness, is bitter poison. I think of it constantly, and my spirit is depressed. Yet hope returns when I remember this one thing: The Lord’s unfailing love and mercy still continue. Fresh as the morning, as sure as the sunrise. The Lord is all I have, and so in Him I put my hope. – Lamentations 3:19-24

Lord, allow me to see everything for what it is – a product of your Love.

St. Jude Thaddeus, pray for Jayson Adams. Amen.

**This reflection is also posted on my personal blog at kevinmuico.com

Stay

Your voice speaks to me
Your words, eternal life
My heart, empty and free
You fill me with Your light

In the stillness You are near
Absent noisy sounds
Your whisper, ever clear
Your grace in me abounds

Lead me, Lord, in the Truth
Guide me through the narrow way
Consume me, Jesus, in all of You
Holy Spirit, stay