Prayer

Finding Hope Through Mary’s Motherly Care

Woman in cloak holding steaming cup on balcony overlooking city at sunset

It’s the week of the Sixth Sunday of Easter, the week following Mother’s Day. For those who may have missed last Sunday’s scripture, or for people who want to revisit the readings but with a Marian spin and a focus on motherhood and God’s blessings through motherly care I invite you to read on, or print it out to read at your bedside tonight or any night this week before you go to sleep.

Settling into prayer with Mary

Begin quietly, breathing slowly, and making the sign of the Cross.

“Lord Jesus, You promised, ‘I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.’ Tonight I come to You with Mary, Your Mother and mine, asking for light to see this day as she would see it, with a mother’s heart.”

Pause and imagine Mary simply standing beside you, as at the foot of the Cross, present, silent, attentive.

Step 1: Gratitude – Joy in the city, joy in Mary’s heart

Philip brought the Gospel to Samaria, and “there was great joy in that city.” Mary knew that joy first, when she received the Word in her womb and sang her Magnificat.

  • Where today did I glimpse that same Gospel joy—perhaps in a child’s smile, a word of encouragement, a meal shared, or a quiet moment of peace at home?
  • How did I experience Mary’s maternal care—maybe through my own mother, a spiritual mother, my spouse, or a woman who quietly “mothered” me with counsel, prayer, or simple presence?
  • What “Magnificat moments” did I live today: times when my soul, even briefly, “magnified the Lord” in gratitude?

Thank God for these graces and thank Mary for her hidden, ongoing motherhood in your life, as Mother of God and Mother of the Church.

Step 2: Presence – “I will not leave you orphans” and Mary’s motherhood

Jesus promises: “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” From the Cross He also said to the beloved disciple, “Behold, your mother,” giving Mary to the Church and to each disciple as mother.

  • Where today did I feel alone, overwhelmed, or “orphaned” in my heart—perhaps in parenting, work, marriage, or unresolved family tension?
  • In those moments, did I remember that I have not only a Savior but also a Mother in the order of grace, who intercedes, comforts, and protects?
  • Can I recall one moment today when I sensed quiet help, a soft strength, or a gentle nudge toward trust that might have been Mary’s maternal care at work?

Speak simply: “Jesus, thank You for not leaving me an orphan. Mary, Mother of the Church and my Mother, thank you for staying close, even when I forget You are there.”

Step 3: Love in action – Keeping the commandments with Mary’s “Yes”

Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Mary is the first disciple who lived this perfectly with her fiat: “Let it be done to me according to your word.”

  • Looking back over this day, where did I echo Mary’s “yes” in small ways—choosing patience over irritation, service over comfort, listening over distraction, especially within my family?
  • Where did I resist God’s will—through anger, selfishness, or indifference—especially toward those I am called to love most closely?
  • As I think of mothers and spiritual mothers, where did I see Mary’s style of love: attentive, persevering, quietly sacrificial, helping others closer to God?

Ask Mary: “Teach me, Mother, to keep Jesus’ commandments with your same humility and courage. Help my love become more concrete, especially at home.”

Step 4: Witness and hope – Mary, Mother of hope

Peter urges us to “always be ready to give an explanation… for your hope.” Mary stood at the Cross in a hope that did not deny suffering but trusted God’s promise beyond what she could see.

  • What kind of hope carried me today—hope grounded in Christ’s love, or in my own control, plans, and fears?
  • Did I speak or act today in a way that showed my family that God is truly present and trustworthy, even when things are difficult?
  • How have the mothers in my life, including Mary, taught me to hope: by their prayer, their endurance in trials, their forgiveness, or their quiet fidelity over many years?

Ask gently: “Mary, Mother of hope, lend me your heart, that I may stand firm in love and trust, especially in the places where my family story feels fragile or unresolved.”

Step 5: The Spirit’s anointing – Mary and the Advocate

Jesus promises the “Advocate… the Spirit of truth” who will be with us always. Mary received the Spirit at the Annunciation and prayed with the Church at Pentecost, welcoming the same Spirit for the whole Body of Christ.

  • Where in my vocation—mother, father, son, daughter, spouse, friend—do I most need the Holy Spirit’s help tonight?
  • What situation in my home needs a fresh Pentecost: reconciliation, courage for a hard conversation, guidance in parenting, healing of a wound?
  • Are there mothers, women, or families who especially need the Spirit’s consolation and strength, and whom Mary may be asking me to pray for or support?

Pray: “Come, Holy Spirit, through the heart of Mary. Anoint my family and every mother and spiritual mother. Let Your gifts blossom in our home.”

Step 6: Entrustment – Into Mary’s hands, into God’s heart

The psalm invites all the earth to “come and see the works of God” and “cry out to God with joy.” Mary magnifies these works and helps us see God’s hand in our ordinary days.

Gather your day and place it in Mary’s hands:

  • Offer her the bright moments: joys, successes, tenderness, and gratitude.
  • Offer her the dark and heavy moments: sins, failures, arguments, fears, and fatigue.
  • Offer her the people you carry: your mother, mothers you know, your spouse, children, parents, and any who feel alone or “orphaned.”

Then say: “Mary, Mother of the Church, carry these intentions to Jesus. Arrange the details I cannot fix and keep my heart close to His.”

Rest for a moment in quiet trust.

Marian closing prayer for the end of the day

Heavenly Father,
You have given us Mary as Mother of Your Son and Mother of the Church.
Through her, You show us a heart that listens, trusts, and loves without reserve.
On this Mother’s Day, I thank You for every gift of motherhood in my life—
for my own mother and all who have mothered me in faith,
for my spouse, for spiritual mothers, and for the quiet, hidden ways
You reveal Your tenderness through them.

Lord Jesus,
You promised, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you,”
and from the Cross You gave us Mary as our Mother.
Tonight I place myself and my family beneath her mantle.
Where there is fear, may she bring trust.
Where there is division, may she sow peace.
Where there is weariness in parenting or in daily responsibilities,
may she whisper to us the words she once spoke at Cana:
“Do whatever He tells you.”

Holy Spirit,
You overshadowed Mary so that the Word might take flesh,
and You descended upon the Church as she prayed in the upper room.
Through her intercession, come upon my home tonight.
Renew the hearts of mothers and fathers, of children and the elderly,
of the lonely, the grieving, and those who quietly carry heavy burdens.
Let Mary’s fiat echo in our hearts,
that we may welcome Your will with love and courage.

Mary, Mother of God, Mother of the Church, and my Mother,
I entrust to you this day that is ending:
my joys and my failures, my love and my lack of love,
my family, my worries, and my hopes.
Hold us close as we sleep.
Teach us tomorrow to listen more like you,
to serve more like you,
and to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus in all things.

Jesus, living Lord,
because You live, I too will live.
Through the prayer of Your Mother and ours,
draw my heart deeper into Yours
so that my home may become, little by little,
a place of Easter joy, of Marian tenderness,
and of the quiet, steady love of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Hail Mary…

Finding Your One True Priority in Life

Lately the word “priority” has been sticking with me. I learned that when it first entered English in the 1400s, it was singular—there was just one “priority,” the first and most important thing. Only in the 1900s did we start talking about “priorities,” as if we could have many “most important” things at the same time.
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As a Catholic, that little language shift makes me pause. If everything is a priority, then nothing really is—and for me, it raises the question: who or what actually comes first in my life? In my faith, God is meant to be that one priority, the One everything else flows from and returns to.
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Another word that has been on my heart is “consecrated,” which means something set apart, made holy, reserved for a special purpose. In Catholic theology, to be consecrated is to belong to God in a particular way, to be given over to Him in love. The ancient burnt offerings in the Old Testament were a symbol of this: something given completely, not partly, to God.
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Christians believe that Jesus is the “Lamb of God,” offered not as a thing, but as a living person who gives Himself totally for us, for our forgiveness and healing. In Jesus, God is not distant or abstract; He draws close and offers His whole self so that we can live in friendship and union with Him. Even if you do not share that belief, there is something moving about the idea of a love that holds nothing back.
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What encourages me is that God does not just give words, but also gives a language of actions, symbols, and even our everyday choices to communicate with us. The way we order our time, our energy, and our “one priority” becomes its own kind of prayer—a way of saying, “This is who I belong to, and this is what I’m living for.” That feels like good news in a scattered world: we are invited into a simpler, deeper center.
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A Scripture that captures this for me is Romans 12:1: “Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” It speaks of life, not destruction: offering our ordinary selves—work, family, struggles, hopes—as something set apart for good, for love, for God. Whether or not you share my faith, it is an invitation to ask: what is my one true priority, and what am I willing to give myself to, wholeheartedly, in love?

As we close this reflection, please join me in prayer:

Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the one true priority and the Lamb of God, consecrated and given for our salvation.​
Teach us to set our hearts on You above all things.
Gather our scattered desires into a single yes to Your will.
Consecrate our minds, our work, our relationships, and our rest,
so that all we are and all we do may be set apart for Your glory.​
By Your Holy Spirit, make our lives a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing to the Father, our true and spiritual worship.​
Mary, Mother of God, and all the saints,
pray for us as we learn to live with one heart and one priority in Christ.​
Amen.

Daily Reflection: The Fallen

Cross on a hill

So, I’m on Day 54 of Asenscion’s Catechism in a Year Podcast, and it’s drawing me in. The most remarkable of the lessons in Catholicism is the dignity God gives to creation to have our own free will. In as much as He offers Himself for us to accept Him, we are also free to reject Him. That’s humans and angels as well. In today’s podcast, we discussed the fallen angels and their choices. The most salient lesson of this part of the Catechism deters anyone from praying for the fallen angels because there is nothing imperfect in God’s mercy – these creatures chose to reject God, and that is what they received.

Dearest Lord, in your wisdom you give your creation the freedom to choose our way in our lives. Still, you never give up in offering yourself for our salvation from sin. When we turn away from you, you are there to take us back – until the very last moment of our dying breath. Thank you for your graces. Let us never be apart from you, and when we fall may we always find our way back to you. Amen.

R.Pascual

We should never be afraid of the wickedness of the fallen angels; they are neither omnipresent nor omniscient. They, creations of God, have chosen their way of pride, hate, and envy. Even when we feel like we are victims of the forces of darkness, God can transform those encounters into a greater purpose. Keep praying for one another and have courage.

Riddle Me This

Unplugged Sessions:

Took a few tries to get this far:

First Verse; Can’t fight it, the dialogue of the lyrics are quite special to me.

 

What a moving song.  IT’s odd how looking at the words long enough wakes up something inside.  The recording posted before brought me to tears.  The lyrics reminds me that joy and sadness seem to cross at the same point I cry.  Whatever it was, just don’t bottle it up.  What a great way to think of how we share with children.  Cheer up!  Chin up!  Start looking for reminders like favorite things.

The Riddle by Five for Fighting

There was a man back in ’95
Whose heart ran out of summers
But before he died, I asked him
Wait, what’s the sense in life?
Come over me, Come over me

He said, “Son why you got to sing that tune?
Catch a Dylan song or some eclipse of the moon?
Let an angel swing and make you swoon
Then you will see, you will see”

Then he said, “Here’s a riddle for you
Find the answer: There’s a reason for the world
You and I”

Picked up my kid from school today
Did you learn anything? Cause in the world today
You can’t live in a castle far away
Now talk to me, come talk to me

He said, “Dad I’m big, but we’re smaller than small
In the scheme of things, well we’re nothing at all
Still every mother’s child sings a lonely song
So play with me, come play with me”

And hey Dad, here’s a riddle for you
Find the answer: There’s a reason for the world
You and I.

I said, “Son for all I’ve told you
When you get right down to the
Reason for the world who am I?”

There are secrets that we still have left to find
There have been mysteries from the beginning of time
There are answers we’re not wise enough to see
He said, You looking for a clue? I love you free

The batter swings and the summer flies
As I look into my angel’s eyes
A song plays on while the moon is hiding over me
Something comes over me

I guess we’re big and I guess we’re small
If you think about it man you know we got it all
‘Cause we’re all we got on this bouncing ball
And I love you free, I love you freely

Here’s a riddle for you
Find the answer: There’s a reason for the world
You and I

Read more at http://www.songlyrics.com/five-for-fighting/the-riddle-lyrics/#izCczTtu6022Sejd.99
Search by:  Yahoo, “the riddle five for fighting”

What is Prayer For?

[… eight years ago]  Read a great post that challenges readers to examine themselves and consider:

Do we pray to change God’s mind, or is it for some other reason?

We should indeed pray instead for what we need… and the wisdom to understand what was given before us instead. What God gives us in response to our prayers is not always what we expect. Nor should it ever be…

I used to think that I knew what I needed, and only had to ask.  IT’s different now.  It’s hard to trust, but that is more important for me.  Trust in God, that all needed is here as He knew it before I came to be. [RP 3/28/2017]

 

A simple example is once I prayed very hard to God for deliverance from a challenging emotional condition. Instead of directly granting me a cure, he sent me a response through my parish pastor. When on a visit, I confided my plea for help and instead of addressing the issue altogether, he simply suggested to pursue a parish ministry to quell the ache inside.

At the time I thought he was being callous and insensitive for not listening to my story or my complaints, but now I realize that it wasn’t my pastor’s response that needed correction… it was my attitude that needed broadening. God was calling me to a mission – to find healing in the ministry to other parishioners in the form of teaching. And that was what I did for a year after that initial meeting. I adopted the role as a catechism teacher for junior high students at our church.

Sharing my faith and answering the calling to witness Christ before an audience of teenagers brought me strength, resolve and healing that I could only recognize in hindsight several years later. I can say with confidence now that I have experienced the healing I had prayed so hard for – but only when I was finally able to open my eyes to what God had unfolded before my life’s journey.

 

The Prayer of Jabez – Revisited

Read a review and a new perspective on the book “The Prayer of Jabez”. I too feel uneasy with the unbalanced nature of the book’s suggestions. It (the book and its testimonials) seems to indicate that faith is fueled by constant challenges to God to fulfill one’s prayers based on rote prayer and formula. It also inflates expectations that these prayers will always be positively answered… In truth we cannot even begin to assume an understanding of God’s wisdom nor can we expect Him to respond to prayers in the same way that a “genie” in a bottle grants wishes to passerby.

“Wilkinson (the author of The Prayer of Jabez) asserts that praying Jabez’s prayer leads to a life of incredible blessing and ever-increasing ministry opportunities-a life that sounds almost like a fairy-tale. However, little reference is ever made to the reality of genuine difficulties in life, and the necessity of sincere prayer to face those difficulties in a God-honoring way.” I think the review article raises a good point in that ministry for God is rarely a 123-formula approach to success…  there are hardships and also setbacks because it is not the will or the might of the person that answers prayers… but the will and grace of God Himself.

I appreciated the commentary that: Scripture, however, points to the importance of learning to live a life fixed on pleasing God in all the little details in life-attitudes, thoughts, words, and behavior. In the “mundane” aspects of life, God is also there.

There are basic tenets of the Prayer of Jabez that I do see as useful: the demonstration of humility, dependence and expectation of blessing are all good things to model in one’s prayer and pursuit of worship. Overall, good lessons are to be learned from Jabez’s shortly documented, but meaningful life story. Continue to pray for God’s blessings. May all of you find balance in things that you do and the life that you have chosen to pursue.

Good Morning Lord

Woke up inspired today. I have this feeling to pray and read the Word like nothing before. It’s like I’m on fire to reconnect with the Lord this morning.

Good Morning, Lord. I am here again today. But I feel an energy like never before and I wanted to start pouring it first in praise and love for you. I know I have been absent for a little while – my prayers seemingly get shorter and shorter each day until they became merely a rushed word or two before I fell asleep or a mumbled phrase of thanks while I scarfed down my meals in a hurried rush. Even my moments of prayer in mass seemed hurried and distracted as I stumbled through my daily list of tasks as I sit through my Sunday day of worship. I see now, by letting those other distractions into my life, it is easy to come up with excuses not to pray or not to focus on your Word.

Dear Jesus, you chastised the hypocrites of your times as they stumbled through life under the mantle of goodness but yet failed to do the works that would exemplify their true devotion to you and your teachings. Forgive me for putting you on “hold” when in fact, every day should begin -and- end with you. Help me to build a stronger relationship with you and through you may I learn compassion, charity, patience and love. Help me to let go of the material things and their pursuit so that I may bring myself back… centered on God and readily listening for His will for me. I ask this in Jesus’s holy name. Amen.

The Prayer of Jabez

I recently picked up a Christian devotional entitled “The Prayer of Jabez” and I was overwhelmed with the sheer enthusiasm of its message. This devotional sparked a whole series of books, devotionals and publications all centered around a little-known man from the Bible. He wasn’t anyone as famous or well known as David or Noah; in fact, this man: Jabez is only mentioned once in the Bible and then only for two sentences. But what he has to say in prayer has phoenomenal impact and meaning on our life as God-fearing (revering) individuals. In fact, Jabez’s prayer has inspired me to write a series of articles on exactly what he has to say and how it can help you build your relationship with God.

From the first book of Chronicles:

Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.” Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request. (1 Chronicles 4:9-10, NIV)

The prayer goes so quickly, you almost miss it. Truly, this is one gem that anyone can fit into their schedule in just 10 minutes. As a recap, Jabez did something remarkable in prayer that changed his life compared to the rest of the people referenced and mentioned in the same chapter. Jabez’s four requests:

  1. “Please bless me indeed!”
  2. “Please enlarge my territory!”
  3. “Please put Your hand on me!”
  4. “Please keep me from evil!”

And God granted his requests to him… The book, “The Prayer of Jabez” by Bruce Wilkinson tells of testimonials and anecdotes of answered prayers and requests just by changing one’s mindset to think and act along the lines of this four part prayer. Without giving away too much about the book itself, I’d like to share a series of blog articles just about Jabez’s prayer and ways to interpret its meaningfulness in our lives as Christians.

As a little background, back in the times of the ancient Hebrews (about 1200 B.C.) Jabez was born to the tribe of Judah… the same tribe that David and Jesus came from later… in Bible times, a person’s name defined his future. For example, Solomon means “peace,” and sure enough, he became the first king of Israel to reign without going to war. As history would have it, Jabez’s entry into the world was not the most auspicious one. Jabez bore a heavy burden with his name, meaning “pain” – what kind of future would be in store for him with an awful name like that?

Jabez was desperate. He was already predestined by his culture to have a miserable, poor, simple life… perhaps his family and tribe even treated him as such. In his desperation, instead of lamenting his situation or cursing his mother’s cruelty, he began to pray to God in earnest and he starts by asking for His blessing.

The devotional made a good point that the Biblical sense of “blessing” isn’t the watered down, every day expression we use when people sneeze… we ask God to bless everything: our parents, our day at work, the food we eat; however in the Biblical meaning, to request a “blessing” is to ask for a “supernatural” favor.

When we ask for God’s blessing, we’re not asking for more of what we could get for ourselves. We’re sincerely asking for the kind of good things only God has the power to know about or give. That’s why the Bible says, “The Lord’s blessing is our greatest wealth. All our work adds nothing to it!” (Proverbs 10:22, TLB)

The Lord has many blessings to bear upon each of us as well. But the catch is, we have to ask. If you’ve never prayed and asked God for His blessings, you’ve missed out on a gift that keeps giving, and giving, and gving. Don’t miss out on this opportunity of your lifetime! As the Bible says:

You do not have because you do not ask. The Bible also says (James 4:2) Ask, promised Jesus, and it will be given to you… What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bead, will give him a stone? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:7,9,11)

And that’s the catch. there is no limit to God’s blessings in our lives. They are only limited by us and our forgetfulness or ignorance to ask, not by His resources, his power or willingness to give.

A Show of Enthusiasm

In one of my recent article readings, I stumbled across a challenging comment: “How can we come to know the Lord and his saving power and NOT be overwhelmed with enthusiasm and passion?”

Of course, for those who feel lukewarm or less than “overwelmed” it isn’t a mandate to contrive such a level of passion but instead it is a challenge to consider if we have truly listened to God’s message through Christ. The Bible speaks of “…harden not your hearts…” so that we may receive God’s word openly. There was also the parable of the farmer sowing seeds into the ground… the hardened soil received the seed, but the seeds could not penetrate and grow into the toughened soil. Have you become jaded, cynical and hardened to receive the message of Christ?

Sometimes we hear, but really do not “hear” what is being shared with us. The same goes with God’s word.

In a blog post about spiritual desire, the writer quotes E.M. Bounds, an early 20th century Methodist minister and devotional writer who says: “There can be no true praying without desire…” There must be some motivation or desire to send up our words and intentions to God… in addition to the gesture of prayer. Through completely devoting yourself to whatever period of time you’ve given to prayer, you can develop a very powerful and meaningful focus in your life. Make yourself fully mindful of your senses, mindset, thoughts, intentions, and true passion (desire) for the practice of prayer.