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By Chris A. Quilpa
Your Turn

Let us not underestimate the power of prayer. It can move mountains. It can heal. It can make dreams come true. It can save lives. 

Pope Francis of the Catholic Church has declared 2024 the year of prayer “to rediscover the great value and absolute need for prayer, prayer in personal life, prayer in the life of the Church, prayer in the world.”

This is an opportunity for faithful believers to increase their prayer activity and make praying a regular routine to get closer or connect to God. Prayer increases our awareness that we are God’s children, always needing guidance and protection. 

Our private and direct communication with God can make a difference in our daily lives. Through the intercession or intervention of our guardian angels and holy saints, our prayer can be more effective, therapeutic, and preventive. If we’re troubled and in distress, we have only God our Father to turn to through our heartfelt, sincere prayer. 

Our loving God is omniscient, ever knowing what we’re going through. He’s waiting for us to open up our hearts and minds. By pouring out our inner selves to him, asking forgiveness, and for His Divine Mercy to help us overcome our daily challenges in life, we become His children. Helpless and hapless, like little children relying on their Mom/Dad or guardian for their needs, we turn to God, our Almighty Father, when there is no one else to turn to. 

When we pray, amazing things can happen. Miracles happen. Answer/s to our prayer may or may not happen instantly, but we have to be hopeful and patient. Ultimately, we’ll see the fruits of our devotion and dedication to prayer. When we pray, we can ask for the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ, our spiritual mother and patron saint of the Americas. Praying the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Mother of Perpetual Help is a good daily practice. 

The holy saints, who were once sinners, should serve as our role model when we pray. Because of their abiding faith, fervent prayers, a life of holiness and their heroic virtues, they’re called saints worthy of veneration and intercession. 

St. Teresa of Kolkata, aka Mother Teresa, said that prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our heart. “Prayer in action is love; love in action is service,” she said. St. Augustine said, “Pray as if everything depended on God. Work as if everything depended on you.” St. John Vianney said, “Prayer is the inner bath of love into which the soul plunges.”

Believe and trust in the love, divine grace, mercy, and goodness of God, our Almighty Father. 

It’s also a very good practice to pray for others besides ourselves. Praying for others, those who are sick, wounded, or dying, indicates that we are one human family caring and living for one another. Praying for others is one of the spiritual works of mercy we do as Christians, brothers and sisters in Christ.

A simple “Thank you, Jesus; thank you, Lord” prayer is all it takes to be grateful for being alive and well. Or, just silently pray, “Jesus, I trust in You. Amen.” 

I wish you a prayerful life. May God bless and keep us always.

CHRIS A. QUILPA, a retired U.S. Navy (Hospital Corpsman) veteran, lives in Suffolk. Email him at chris.a.quilpa@gmail.com.