Deacon Tom Writes,
Prayer In Action
Francis Cardinal Spellman gave us a unique perspective on
prayer when he wrote, “Pray as if
everything depended upon God and work as if everything depended upon you.” In
today’s readings we see Moses and the woman plaintiff working very hard to get
the results they wanted. Prayer is very much a part of the solution. But as we
read today, so is being active in pursuing the desired outcome.
We know that God wants us to pray because Jesus was a man
of prayer. The gospels tell us that Jesus often went off early in the morning
and prayed. It was through his prayer life that Jesus was able to know what God
asked of him and formulate what his response would be. Jesus’ prayers animated
all his thoughts and actions.
It is this understanding of Jesus and his ministry that
gives rise to Cardinal Spellman’s insight calling us to prayer inspired action.
This is a very practical example for anyone trying to live the gospel message. How
else can we do what Jesus asks us to do? Can we truly expect to love our
enemies if we are not prepared to take some steps toward bringing about a
peaceful resolution? Do we think
that we can merely say a prayer that someone we have hurt will forgive us and,
zap, everything will be all right? Or pray for the hungry in the hopes that others will feed them? I seriously doubt it. Forgiveness,
reconciliation, peace making, changes in our attitudes and behaviors, all the
real activities of spiritual maturity, take both much prayer and much work. That
is probably why St. Paul said to “Pray
without ceasing”, and why we have the “spiritual exercises” of St Ignatius,
to encourage us to pray and work for a Godly balance in our lives. This will
enable us to discover God’s priorities for us this day and to discover his
Presence in ourselves, in others, and in everything around us while keeping us
from being overwhelmed by it all.
Central to our faith and essential to our spiritual
growth and maturity is the constant need to maintain a proper balance of prayer
and action in our lives. Doing so will deepen our relationship with our Lord who
desires our constant love and who seeks to be our life long companion.
Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom
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