Prayer do we need prayer to day?  Why should we pray? Does anyone hear us? Would I get on without prayer?

(Article below  from Lay Dominican Newsletter 2015  – by John O’Brien)

Prayer do we need prayer to day? The world seems to suggest to us that we do not need prayer. We are all self sufficient.  We can procure what we want under our own steam. We don’t want handouts.   My own feeling is we need something to guide us on our day to day living. I feel sometimes I am living or should I say existing. I am running from one set of problems to another.  I get up in the morning breakfast into the car and away to spend some time trying to earn a few extra bob to help provide a few extras to make life more bearable. Lunch time comes eat it up quick I need to be back home to cut the grass or some other job that I think is important. Home and sit in front of the telly dose off. Wake up do the jobs tea time.  More telly and away to bed.

As you can see I am retired.  As a Lay Dominican I decided I would try to add prayer to my life.  So I started to say Morning Prayer at first found it difficult – these psalms did not seem to have any reference to my life.  With constant repetition certain words started to bring thoughts into my mind – Lord come to my aid – yes I did need some one come to my aid.  I needed help to solve a problem.  What was I going to do with  “so and so” who was giving me hassle and my mind would go off trying to find a solution to my problem.  But on reflection “so and so” had a point and maybe I should look at seeing my problem from their point of view.  Maybe I am a bit naive but is this not prayer – I am asking for aid  – The Lord puts into my mind a charitable thought that I should consider the other persons point of view.

I meet “so and so” and instead been full of my own importance in trying to get my point across I encourage “so and so” ‘s  point of view but also point out in love my point of view.  What happens we both reflect and neither of us sticks to our original point of view because we see good and bad points in each others points of view  and we come up with a better solution that we both agree to. But was my “distraction” not really a prayer.

I think I have answered all my above question “Why should we pray?” Yes to get answers to the day to day problems of life.  “Does anyone hear us?” yes the Lord hears us and prompts us to do the right thing.  “Would we get on without prayer?” I don’t think so, prayer can make us look at our lives and review where we are.

John O’Brien St Martin de Porres Chapter