Prayer and Love

Ave Maria!  Yesterday in his Wednesday General Audience, Pope Francis stressed how important it is for families to pray.  His message applies to all of us because prayer really is the breath of the soul. Without it, we not only falter, we collapse and utterly fail.

"In our continuing catechesis on the family, today we reflect on the importance of devoting time to prayer.  We all know how important prayer is, yet it seems so difficult to find time for it.  Perhaps we need to ask if we truly love God, as he asks us to, with all our heart, and all our mind and all our strength.  For the heart of prayer is the love of God, the source of our life, who constantly 'caresses' us with his own love. 

"A heart filled with the love of God can make even a silent thought or a small gesture of devotion a moment of prayer.  The Holy Spirit teaches us to pray, to call God our Father, and to grow daily in his love.  Our families need to ask for the gift of the Spirit!  Through prayer, even in the busiest times, we give time back to God, we find the peace that comes from appreciating the important things, and we encounter the joy of God’s unexpected gifts.  Through daily prayer may our homes become, like the house of Martha and Mary, places where Jesus always finds a warm welcome."

Dear Lord, help me to love You truly enough to make time to pray!  Amen.