Part 2, Chapter 1
Have you ever used superglue? Well I have, and yes it is true that you can glue your fingers together. Thankfully, I didn’t need to do much to get them apart, it could have been much worse. Glue, is a wonderful invention if we use it on surfaces that it was intended for and how it was intended to be used. I have even had superglue put on a cut to close it up, which was much better than having stiches. Even though glue is great, it only lasts for so long and sometimes it needs to be reapplied especially in harsh conditions.
Well prayer is a lot like glue! It keeps us stuck to God. Every day, because we live in harsh conditions that keep pulling us away from God, we need to reapply our glue. Prayer allows us to be connected to God continuously. But when we don’t reapply our daily glue (bread), we pull ourselves away from God. That is why prayer is so very important to our lives, without we are on our own. “So if we remain faithful to the Savior in meditation, listening to his words, watching his actions and intentions, we shall learn in time, through his grace, to speak, act and will like himself” (Introduction to the Devout Life, 37). Because when we are stuck with the Lord, we see things the way He does. When our hearts beat with His, we are able to love like He does. This is why prayer is so vital to our lives. This is why God gives us the grace and desire to pray so that we can know Him because we are constantly with Him.
Today, St. Francis De Sales calls us to prayer using meditation or what is also called mental prayer, or contemplation. “Give an hour every day to meditation before lunch; if you can, let it be early in the morning, when your mind will be less burdened, and fresh after the night’s rest” (Introduction to the Devout Life, 38). He says an hour so that we can have this time with the Lord, so that we can learn to rest in Him. Prayer allows for us to see with God’s own eyes. Do not be afraid to pray each day for an hour using meditation.