Growing up, I would hear stories of saints who would spend hours and hours with God in prayer. I would hear about how St. Padre Pio would wake up at 3:30 AM to prepare to celebrate Mass, pray for 2 hours, and how his Mass would last 3 HOURS! According to testimonies, it was because he was so united with Christ and he took the prayer of the Mass seriously.
I would hear these stories and feel despair because… that just wasn’t me. I couldn’t make myself pray for hours and hours on end.
Rather, I would feel guilt because I couldn’t go for more than 5 minutes (or less) in prayer without some sort of distraction.
For the longest time, I believed that I was the only one who struggled with this problem. Thankfully, hearing from fellow Catholics, including priests, allowed me to see that this isn’t just a “me” problem; it’s universal.
Why do I get distracted in my prayer?
The truth is, very few of us actually reach that level of concentrated, uninterrupted prayer in our everyday lives. (Unless, of course, you’re a religious nun, but even they face distractions in their daily prayer lives!)
Almost everyone will experience some distraction in their prayer; it’s part of our fallen human nature.
Even if we have the firm resolution of praying our mind may wander without us wanting.
Like Christ told the apostles when they fell asleep in the garden of Gethsemane, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Mark 14:38)
So what can we do? Is there any hope for us to become holy in our distracted prayer?
The answer is yes!
There are things that we can do to help our soul prepare for an encounter with God in prayer.
When I find myself overwhelmingly distracted in my prayer, I consider the following:
Did I create an environment of prayer?
Physically:
Am I in a place that encourages prayer or distractions? For example, am I in the adoration chapel of a church, or am I trying to have prayer time in a busy shopping center? Not that you cannot pray anywhere, but some environments naturally lead us to prayer more than others.
Another example, do you have religious images in your home that would help you get in a state of prayer? Maybe holding a rosary, a bible, or a crucifix will help you physically remember what you are doing: having a personal connection and conversation with God.
Are you in a prayerful position? Are you kneeling or sitting down comfortably? Or are you lying down in bed ready to fall asleep? How our bodies are positioned influences how our brains are disposed to certain activities. Being in a reverent position will help more in prayer than being in an active or super relaxed one.
Mentally:
Sometimes when I find myself distracted, it’s because I didn’t create a good mental environment for myself.
For example, was I scrolling on Instagram or TikTok right before entering prayer time?
Is there an unresolved problem or an argument that I need to ask forgiveness for? Christ says how anger can affect our prayer and how resolving the conflict in your life can help your prayer.
“Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5: 23-24)
What if I already created an environment for prayer and I still get distracted? What should I do?
Your distractions may actually serve you in your prayer!
How You Can Use Distractions In Prayer
Surrender
What if your distraction is something you keep worrying about?
How you will pay rent this month, that project that is building up pressure at work, that big test that you need to study for, what you will cook for dinner… You get the idea.
You can use these worries and preoccupations as an opportunity to offer them up to God and surrender everything to His Will.
God wants us to turn to Him in times of uncertainty:
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat [or drink], or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not more important than they?” (Matthew 6:25-26)
God is bigger than your problems; all you have to do is surrender them to Him and trust in His goodness.
Forgiveness
Maybe your distraction lies in a mistake you made.
Maybe you were short-tempered and screamed at your children. Maybe you slammed the door in your parents’ faces.
Either way, you feel a guilt that’s distracting you in prayer. You can use this guilt to ask God for forgiveness and seek His mercy, both in prayer and in Confession.
Prayer can help you process with God what you did wrong and get the courage to be able to seek forgiveness from Him and the people you wronged.
Intercession
Maybe while you’re in prayer, your brain can’t stop thinking of a friend, family member, coworker, celebrity, or stranger you saw in the street.
That might be the Holy Spirit inspiring you to pray for them!
As Christians and members of Christ’s church, we are called to pray for one another. (Praying for both the living and the dead is a Spiritual Work of Mercy.)
You never know what that person may be going through, and perhaps God is putting them in your mind because they need prayers.
Gratitude
Maybe your mind unwillingly keeps gravitating to that fun movie you just watched (maybe Spiderman…👀) or your favorite song.
What you can do during that moment is recognize that you are distracted and redirect the distraction back to God in gratitude. You can use it to thank God for the ability to enjoy that movie, song, (or anything else that is distracting you), and thank God for all the creative people behind it and intercede for their needs.
You can redirect any guilt you feel from the distraction to gratitude to God for being able to enjoy good things in this life.
These are just a few tips that have helped me use distractions to go back into a state of prayer. Hopefully these can serve you in your next moment of prayer!
Recommended Books On Prayer
Searching for and Maintaining Peace: A Small Treatise on Peace of Heart
The Rosary in a Year Prayer Guide
He Leadeth Me: An Extraordinary Testament of Faith
Personal Prayer: A Guide for Receiving the Father’s Love
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Image: Photo by Pouya Hajiebrahimi on Unsplash
