Pray Each Day

Spend some time (5-10 minutes) each day, preferably in the morning, in some kind of prayer. Open your heart to God and listen. It will take some experimentation to find what “format” works for you. You can meditate, or read and reflect on the Bible, or say a traditional prayer, or you can try using a devotional or prayer book (available in book stores and on-line).

Find what is meaningful for you…it may take several tries. And realize that you will not be perfect in this – you will miss days here and there or have to adjust your schedule. Don’t beat yourself up or make this another failed and discarded resolution. Start again.

Prayer is one way of centering yourself, of connecting with your spirituality, and setting the stage for how you want to interact throughout the day. It doesn’t have to be formal or ritual-based – you can just talk freely to God just as you would talk to a friend.

I tried for many years to do this, but without much success. I would start for a few days but then life would interrupt and I would put it aside. I have stacks of Devotional Books (they have a paragraph or Bible verse to read and ponder), Bible study books, books on the Catholic Church’s teachings (my religion of choice), and prayer books. None of those worked for me!! And so I gave up (only to repeat the process in a few months or years). Then I found a format that I like. I have committed to spending time in the morning on most days – I find that this helps me to remain calm when things go wrong, and to appreciate all the little things that actually go right each day.