On the 7/27 reflection, commenter Patrick shares how he wrestled with prayer…and how prayer ended up winning!
I gave up prayer as a young teenager. I never got an answer! Nothing got sorted, so I tried the alternatives—”my way, I can do it”—quick fix techniques, listening to the voices [of] many other “influencers.” Years later in a bit of a heap but also with a lot of experience and some maturity I figured when all else fails why not try the impossible. Patience not being one of my virtues, I thought maybe I was a little hasty throwing prayer out the window. So I began to pray about things and gave it time. I learned not to set parameters for God to operate within, like setting my terms and conditions on how I wanted the prayer answered. Eventually things started to happen. Solutions, ideas, options I could never have conceived presented themselves. And they worked. Mostly they involved me, changing me, or more correctly allowing God to change me: my attitude, outlook, expectations, relationships. Today’s readings recommend persistence. I highly recommend it too. Prayer works, but leave the how to God, just persist and do what the answer to your prayer tells you to do. Be still and wait on the Lord.
