Prayer Plan of Life
Most of us struggle to follow through on our commitments. Whether it’s a New Year’s Resolution or a new diet or that promise we made to keep up with a friend, we are often forgetful, fickle, and feckless. Yet even the promise to do something is already a step in the right direction. It acknowledges that there’s something helpful we should be doing or something unhelpful we should stop doing. Even if we fall down at times, the promise helps us get back up again.
How many of us have a prayer plan, a guide (preferably written to keep us honest) of what we will pray, where, and how often? Without making a promise to ourselves or God, we are unlikely to ever improve that relationship by staying in communication with him. Just as our priorities are measured by the things on our credit card balance or our calendars, so prayer as a priority must be measured in some way. If our prayer is totally dependent on our mood and external circumstances, then this hectic world we live in will always give us an excuse not to pray. We can always be too tired or too busy to sit down for some time alone with God. Habits and plans, on the other hand, can anchor us to God in helpful ways that will benefit the rest of our day.
So how would you organize a prayer plan? Start with different increments of time. There are some activities that you should do every day, others that you should include weekly or monthly or quarterly or even yearly. Daily prayers could include the morning offering (offering your day to God, look online for examples), going through the ACTS prayer (Adoration, Contrition, Thanksgiving, Supplication), reading Scripture, praying the Rosary, making an examination of conscience, or another helpful devotion. Less frequent prayers include weekly attendance at Mass, but also a decision to stop by church sometime during the week for some extra prayer. Confession on a monthly or quarterly basis anchors us to God’s grace. Another helpful exercise is a review of graces. In this exercise, we spend some time reviewing the given time period (week, month, quarter, year) and asking where God was most present. Did you notice this presence at the time? What challenged you in your faith during this time period? More occasional prayers and devotions could also include a pilgrimage to a spiritual site as close as this Archdiocese (next up is the Cathedral on July 24th) or as far away as Italy (Fall 2026, stay tuned for dates).
Ultimately, there are very few hard and fast rules for a prayer plan, just like there are many diets and exercise routines. The important part is to commit to something, write it down, and stick to it to the best of your ability. I’m always happy to help you work on your own plan of life if you ask! Doing so will ensure James’ promise in his letter: “let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”