Nora Browne - You Can Pray!: Meditations for Teens

YOU CAN PRAY!

Meditations for Teens

NORA BROWNE

Copyright 2013 by Nora Browne. All rights reserved.

Published by Scepter Publishers, P.O. Box 1391, New Rochelle, NY 10802, www.scepterpublishers.org.

The total or partial reproduction of this book is not permitted, nor is its transmission by any form or by any means either electronic, mechanic, photocopy or other methods without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Scripture texts from the New and Old Testaments are taken from The Holy Bible Revised Standard Catholic Edition 1965 and 1966 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States. All rights reserved. All copyrighted material is used by permission of the copyright owner. No part of it may be reproduced without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

ISBN: 978-1-59417-184-0

Printed in the United States of America

May you seek Christ, may you find
Christ, may you love Christ.

ST. JOSEMARA ESCRIV

CONTENTS

I KNOW IT CAN BE HARD TO PRAY at times because even though you know you are speaking with God, you may wonder, is he really listening? I can assure you he is extremely interested in everything you say and in everything you ask for.

I became very aware of this recently when I was having some trouble at work, and I didnt know what to do. I just put the whole issue into Gods hands and asked him to sort it out for me because I just couldnt do it myself. I said to him very plainly, Please sort this problem out for me because I dont know what to do, and that was it. No long prayers, just a simple plea, in my own simple words. I was actually astounded when, a few days later, the problem sorted itself out, and has not returned since. So have faithGod wants us to ask him for things, and although that is not the only kind of prayer there is, it is a good place to start.

To pray is really quite easy: we just need to realize that God is near and that he is ready to listen to us whenever we want to talk to him.

However, at times this can take a bit of effort; we may have decided to pray and nothing occurs to us, or we dont know how to start or what to talk about. If you find yourself in that situation, this little book may help you to begin. It might give you some ideas about how to talk to God, your Father in heaven.

I hope that this book helps you to pray. Not just to pray using prayers from a prayer book, or saying the prayers you learned when you were younger (although it is good to say them daily), but to pray by talking to our Lord, using your own words, talking to him about the things that are in your mind and that matter to you.

USING THIS BOOK

The way to use this book is to read each point slowly, think about it, and see how it applies to you and your situation, and whether it suggests to you any improvements you can make in your everyday life or your spiritual life. If you find yourself thinking, Well, yes, I do that, or No, I dont do that, or Sometimes I behave like that, you can talk this over with our Lord and ask for his help to improve in one way or another.

The first step is to begin well, and this means making a good act of faithto tell God that you know he is there. You could say something like O my God I really believe you are here with me. Help me to pray well. The best place to pray is in a church, in front of Jesus in the tabernacle. But if you cant go there, then any place will do (as long as it is quiet and youll be reasonably free of interruptions and distractions), because God sees and hears us always and everywhere.

When you have decided what you want to pray about, picture Jesus right next to you, happy to listen to what you have to say and eager also to talk to you. Its not just your imagination; he really is! But dont expect to hear his voice. Usually he speaks to us just by putting good thoughts and ideas into our minds.

When Jesus was on earth, many people went to him to ask his advice. One of these people was a man called Nicodemus who came to Jesus by night, as we read in St. Johns Gospel. Nicodemus opened his heart to our Lord and told him all his hopes and fears. Jesus spoke words of wisdom and goodness to him, and he went away thoughtful and at peace.

We too can talk with Jesus often, every day, and we too will come away thoughtful and at peace.

Lord, you spent time talking to Nicodemus, helping him to understand the mysteries of God. I too want to learn the value of conversation with you, so make me ready to listen as Nicodemus was. Help me to be ready and willing to listen to what you say because I know that it is what you want for me. Teach me to want to do your will.

You may have never thought about how good it is to pray. Maybe it just reminds you of going to church, or of the days in religion class when you may have been told to join your hands and close your eyes.

Jesus, help me to see that you want me to pray, that you want me to talk to you, and that you and I can chat at any time of day, in any place, and about anything I want.

We tend to take so much for granted, and to feel we have a right to so many things. One of our greatest gifts from God is our guardian angel, but we hardly think of him at all, and so we do not ask him for help, when he could be such a support. But from now on we will remember our guardian angel every day, and we will thank him for all the favors he does for us, and all the protection he gives us, even though we are quite unaware of it.

You might complain that you pray for things and dont get them, and so you think theres no point at all in praying. Well, to start with, prayer is not just a matter of asking for things. Secondly, God does listen to you and answer prayers, although sometimes the answer might be No because what you are asking for would not be good for you. Or God might simply be saying Not yet, because he wants you to pray a bit harder or for a longer time to see if you are really convinced about what you want. If you are the type of person who stops praying because you dont immediately get what you think you should get, then you are acting a bit like a spoiled child who has a tantrum whenever he is told No. Would you give in to a spoiled child? So, keep going and dont give up praying. God is listening and you will receive what is best.

Aspirations are short sentences, a few words that we say to God or to our Lady or St. Joseph or some other saint. You can say aspirations during the day as you go up or down a staircase, as you open or close doors, as you walk along the street. It is a wonderful way of being close to God, and since you say them in your heart, nobody else notices that you are praying, only God and whoever else you are saying them to.

Aspirations are a great help for staying aware of Gods presence, and they can also be a good support for us in trying to live our Christian life well. Try to get into the habit of saying many each day.

If we say aspirations to our Lady, she will help us in our spiritual lives. She will, in other words, help us be close to her son, Jesus.

Holy Mary, our refuge and strength, pray for us.
Immaculate Heart of Mary, help us in our needs.

Try not to forget your prayers, even when youre very tired. Say them before you get into bed. Otherwise theres the danger that you will fall asleep and leave them out altogether.

Jesus, I will find a few moments to pray every evening; help me not to give up on that too easily.

It is very good to say vocal prayersthe Our Father, the Hail Mary, etc.but make sure you say them well, with your heart as well as with your lips.

You say you dont see any need for prayerits for children and old peopleand anyway you dont know how to pray. Well, dont you talk to your friends about all sorts of things, important and not? If you share your thoughts with your friends, then if you try, you can share your thoughts with our Lord because hes your best friend.