To some of us, prayer is an occasional impulse to which we respond when we are in trouble, to others it has become an indispensable life attitude. The importance of daily communication through prayer cannot be overestimated. No wonder it is mentioned over 250 times in Scripture.

Yet how do we find time for prayer amidst our hectic schedules? Or rather, is our life hectic precisely because we lack prayer, lack discernment of what is really important in life, fail to identify what really matters, or fail to engage in what is really necessary for our well-being and do away with superfluous energy-absorbing activities?

Daily prayer gives us the opportunity to share all aspects of our life with God. It is a relationship which we are called to develop with the divine and which will lead to a complete transformation of the way we think, act, and respond to life’s daily challenges.

Just as spending time alone with a loved one provides the opportunity to truly come to know that person, spending time alone with God is no different

As we draw near to God’s word in the Scripture, as we meditate and contemplate the living Christ in the blessed sacraments, as we surrender our sinful selves into the loving hands of a forgiving Father, we come to apprehend God’s unconditional love, a love that heals, a love that listens, a love that cares and a love that is ready to dispel a mysterious grace for all those who believe.

It is a call to share our joys and blessings with him as much as we share our sorrow and pain. As much as our heart yearns for God, God yearns for our heart and desires to share with us incredible blessings that we might otherwise have missed had we not reached out to him through prayer. As we read in Jeremiah 33:3: “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

Prayer gives us the chance to express our gratitude for the things He provides, which we often take for granted. It gives us the opportunity to develop a spiritual awareness through self-examination especially during this time of Lent, realising our complete dependence on divine providence rather than on our self-sufficient attitude. It makes us acknowledge who is really in control of our lives. Because he is sovereign over all, he deserves our worship and praise.

Just as spending time alone with a loved one provides the opportunity to truly come to know that person, spending time alone with God is no different. It is a profound and deep spiritual experience where we discover through Divine Grace, that which was before our eyes, but failed to see; that God knows the intimate details of our life, our hurts, our longings, our desires, our joys and our pain. As we develop more intimacy with God we cry out like the Psalmist 42:1: “As the deer thirsts for streams of water, so my soul thirst for you, my God.”

Prayer is “casting our cares on the Lord, for he will sustain us; he will never let the righteous be shaken” (Psalm 55:22).

People and prayer

Dr Mary Muscat
assistant lecturer in criminology

What importance do you give to personal prayer?

Prayer keeps me heart-centred and shifts me into ‘being’ rather than ‘doing’, especially since I combine traditional prayer with my own way of talking with God. If I don’t pray, I’m either head-based or materially-based, which risks making it repetitive and mechanical.

In the midst of a hectic life, how do you find time for prayer and reflection?

Keeping it short and frequent. It could be a five-minute focused intention at the office, a 15-minute prayer on a bus ride, or a walking meditation if I take the longer way.

What concrete benefits do you reap out of your prayer life? ​

The main benefit is that of being heart-based and therefore having access to a different kind of intelligence. I might be using logic and different intelligences in my work or throughout the day, but prayer is a different language and framework altogether. It’s actually a two-way process: reaping benefits from it by migrating from the head to the heart, and giving back compassion. It also keeps me connected to the bigger picture.

Reuben Cutajar
social worker

What importance do you give to personal prayer?

My work, lifestyle and daily life experiences gives me the privilege to stay, connect, share and reflect with unique, different persons. Personal prayer helps me in all this and is weaved into this fabric.

In the midst of a hectic life, how do you find time for prayer and reflection?

In my daily reading and sharing I am learning that life is not only about how many adventurous experiences I go through that really matters to feel the adrenaline rush that sometimes I strive for. It’s in the capability to discipline to hold myself to stay, to listen, to feel my breath and go in the adventurous journey within.

What concrete benefits do you reap out of your prayer life? ​

I have learnt to stay in the ‘here and now’, in the ‘being’ rather than ‘doing’, to be able to taste and digest life rather than rush through it. I have found a Christian community that accepts me as I am and lets me free to walk my internal journey in my pace. This is so heart-warming that it gives me more thirst to connect and build my personal relationship with God, the community, friends and my inner home.

Marvic Coletei
assistant house manager

What importance do you give to personal prayer?

Personal prayer means oxygen for me, so every morning when I am alone I have some prayer time to start the day with blessings.

In the midst of a hectic life, how do you find time for prayer and reflection?

It is not always that easy, but I am sure the Lord is moulding me into a better person. That is what I pray daily and I have the faith that He will do it. Prayer can be said in various ways. While I drive I love to sing and they say singing glory to God doubles the prayer power.

What concrete benefits do you reap out of your prayer life?

I can say that prayer has always been a part of my life and for this I am grateful to God for providing me with a mother of prayer and faith in our Lord Jesus. Now that I am mature, or almost, I can feel that prayer was always protecting me from the corrupt things in life. I am far from perfect, but looking at my past there were situations where I felt that someone else was in control of my life and this has left a peaceful impact in my life. Prayer was, is and remains in my heart.

• Gordon Vassallo is a spiritual counsellor.