Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 6, 7-15
Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This is how you are to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
To pray is to speak with the heart
1. Prayer. It is a strong point of this Lenten season. You have to take advantage of it to educate yourself in prayer. There are times when it seems that we baffle the Lord, but God sees and listens to the heart. Don’t reduce your prayer to mere requests. Prayer is more than asking, it is telling the Lord what is happening to you, what you’re going through and feeling, it is sharing your life with the Lord. Because God is your companion and the destination of your journey. Jesus is not an ATM that you just look for, put in your password, and take out what you need. God is a companion on the road who sticks with you through thick and thin.
2. Not just a lot of talking. I have mentioned this before, the difference between praying and saying a prayer. Prayer is a conversation with God from your heart and in your words. Saying a prayer is repeating prayers in a devotional or prayer book. Prayer can be mental or vocal. Keep God on your mind all day and every so often, speak or sing to Him. You can go quietly to your room or visit the Most Blessed Sacrament and talk to God, tell him what’s on your mind, what you’re feeling.
3. Our Father. It is the key prayer in our Christian life. It says it all. This is all you need. Just by saying “Father” we can begin that close and simple relationship that Jesus proposes to us. Today I invite you to say this prayer slowly and meditate each word to see if you really live by all its meaning. Choose one of the phrases of the prayer and reflect on it during the day. As for me, I am going to keep in my heart and try to deepen the phrase which says: “as we forgive those who offend us”. Do I forgive those who offend me? Am I within the “we” in as we forgive?
Remember that something good is on the way!
God bless you and keep you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
