Perseverance in Prayer- July 17, 2026

Greetings,

If you find prayer rather burdensome or difficult, or you just find yourself frustrated because you don’t know what you’re doing, rejoice! You are in good company.

In my youth, I always thought priests were these spiritual gurus who were experts of deep prayer.  Imagine my frustration when I got ordained and still had no idea what I was doing…some could argue that 11 years in I still don’t know what I’m doing. But I think that therein lies the beauty – no one knows what they’re doing. That’s why we need to have such a good relationship with the Holy Spirit, because as St. Paul tells us this weekend, “we do not know how to pray as we ought.”

You’ll have noticed Paul says “we,” not “you.” Which means that even St. Paul, a master of being in relationship with the Lord, is stuck sometimes. More contemporary saints, like John of the Cross, Ignatius of Loyola, and Therese of Lisieux, also struggled hard with prayer, but through that struggle they became known for their piety and prayerful demeanor. If you read anything they have written, it is full of frustrations with the spiritual life. The struggle is part and parcel with the Christian lifestyle.

A relationship with the Holy Spirit is essential to a life of prayer, because “we do not know how to pray as we ought” due to our own human weakness and the sinful environment in which we live. He has to teach us! And once we learn some method or something comes to us that boosts our prayer life, we can share that with others on their journey, as they are probably experiencing the same thing. When people come to me for prayer advice, any advice I give comes either from the Holy Spirit directly in my own prayer, or indirectly through others who have given me the advice. Though honestly, sometimes I just have to shrug and say, “good luck.”

If you are struggling to pray, you’re in good company. Ask the Holy Spirit for help. Discern if you’re in desolation. Ask others for ideas on what has worked for them. But above all, have the humility to know that “we do not know how to pray as we ought” and that we need the Divine Assistance to make any meaningful headway. Holy Spirit, teach us how to pray! Amen!

God Bless!

Fr. Stoley