How often do you find that after several minutes of trying to pray, your mind has wandered to topics other than God? Do you grow angry with yourself and give up, or do you push on in those moments? Maybe God allows your mind to wander for a reason.

Pray

Heavenly Father,
Who revealed your love to the world
through the teaching of your son, who said,
“Let the children come to me.”
Let us embrace a childlike spirituality.
That, just as a loving father
listens to his child speak,
so, you, God, sometimes allow our minds to wander
during our prayer time so that you can listen
to what is on our minds and hearts.
May we view it as an opportunity
to present to you all that needs your love and grace in our lives.
Amen

Act

When you get distracted in prayer, ask God to send his grace so that his will be done in your spiritual life, and then let the Holy Spirit direct your prayer time however he chooses.

How often do we speak to the Holy Spirit? Do we expect the Holy Spirit to work in our lives just as the Son and the Father?

Pray

Holy Spirit,
Our bodies are your temple,
you graced us with your presence at our baptism and confirmation.
Yet, we still continue to seek you.
We ask for your assistance in our lives,
making us bold proclaimers of the Gospel.
Continue to lead us with your gifts,
so we might use them on our pilgrimage to our home in Heaven.
Amen

Act

Throughout the day, say a quick prayer to invite the Holy Spirit into whatever you are doing.

Do you ever catch yourself criticizing, cursing, or insulting yourself when you make a mistake, or something doesn’t go your way? Past wounds have a way of being an opening for the devil to whisper lies into our hearts and minds.

Pray

Merciful and loving Jesus, 
Please cover me with the precious blood 
that poured forth from your side at Calvary.
May it wash away the voice of Satan that condemns me, 
and heal the wounds through which he attacks me.  
Just as you gave your mother to us on the cross, 
ask her now to cover me in her mantle of protection
to guard against the lies of the enemy.
Amen

Act

When you find yourself in a habit of self-condemnation today, put yourself at the feet of Christ on the cross and allow him to speak over you instead.

Do you often find yourself saying and doing things that you know aren’t good for you? Things that will ultimately lead you away from Christ?

Pray

Heavenly Father,
Give me the grace to say no
to lower passions and the things of this world.
Lift my heart and mind to heavenly things
help me to offer penance, neglecting worldly desires.
In saying no to these temptations,
mold me to say no to sin.
I ask all of this so that I can say
Yes to you only, Lord.
Amen

Act

Find a simple act of self-denial today. Start small if you have to, and offer up the suffering to God so as to bring you closer to heaven.

Have you ever allowed God to use the ordinary circumstances of your day to direct your growth? The conversations you have at work, the interruptions from your children, the chores and responsibilities that feel like they’re just getting in the way of what you want to accomplish: They are all given by God’s providence for our holiness.

Pray

Loving Jesus,
who proclaimed,
“blessed are the meek,”
give me the grace to remain meek and humble
as you direct the course of my day.
Help me to see that the perceived interruptions
are truly your intervention in my life.
Change my heart to recognize
that a change in plans is an opportunity 
to say no to myself, and yes to you.
Amen

Act

Take time in a nightly examen to go over the day’s events to see how God is leading you more deeply in relationship with him through your everyday interactions.

God could be using desolation in your spiritual life to prepare you for something great on earth, but we know for sure that his ultimate plan is to use it as a means to bring us to heaven—something beyond our wildest imaginations, “What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9).

—from St. Anthony Messenger‘s “Your Prayer Life: Looking at the Bigger Picture“
by Martin J.P. Gianotti