Casting Nets. Chris Stewart
Perseverance.
We must RE-commit to our prayer life with Passion. Pray for an intense renewal in our own life and our own faith. The first step in the New Evangelization is a requirement on our part to continually be evangelized and renew our commitment to Christ. As Pope Francis exhorted:
I invite all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter them; I ask all of you to do this unfailingly each day. No one should think that this invitation is not meant for him or her, since “no one is excluded from the joy brought by the Lord.”14
If we have not made a firm commitment to daily personal prayer, then today must be that day. If we have a daily prayer life, then, can we take it to the next level? Can we get to daily Mass more often? Can we get to adoration more often? The New Evangelization will not be possible without this reNEWal in us.
During my (Chris’) senior in high school my mother received the devastating news that she had breast cancer. I still vividly remember my mother on her bed crying while she still held the phone that had delivered the message. Unfortunately, this was at a time in my life in which I did not take my faith seriously; I was not a good Catholic, not a good son, not even a good citizen. But this news shook me to the core. I remember praying for the first time in years. Even though my prayers were shallow and selfish, I believe it began to open my heart a little. Praise God, my mother has been cancer free for twenty years. When we come face to face with the serious crisis of a family member or a close friend, such as a cancer diagnosis or news of a bad car accident, our prayers become intensely serious. We will pray with every fiber of our being and with all our strength begging God to intervene.
This is a good thing; indeed our heavenly Father desires to hear all the petitions that weigh so heavily on our hearts, but do we pray for conversions with the same intensity and passion? While physical healings may not always be in the will of God, we can be certain that God wants all people to enjoy eternal life with Him. After all, the conversion of sinners is what causes joy in heaven (see Lk 15:7,10). Praying for conversions in others is truly loving them, whether for family, friends, neighbors, strangers, or our enemies. Pope Francis encourages us to pray for everyone: “We all have our likes and dislikes, and perhaps at this very moment we are angry with someone. At least let us say to the Lord: ‘Lord, I am angry with this person. I pray to you for him and for her.’ To pray for a person with whom I am irritated is a beautiful step forward in love, and an act of evangelization. Let us do it today! Let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of the ideal of fraternal love!”15 In the Bible, Jesus counsels us with this instruction: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Mt 5:44). The first step to the act of forgiveness is praying for them, which will lead us then to doing acts of charity for them.
Consider this example from my family’s (Chris’) experience. There was once a person in our neighborhood who didn’t like the barking of any dogs. We have a rat terrier who loves to bark with her high-pitched, annoying bark. Every time Teri would begin to bark, the neighbor would put a foghorn out the window and blare it. It became quite a contentious situation. My wife decided that for the feast of St. Thérèse of Lisieux—the Little Flower—she and the kids were going to hand out flowers with “God loves you” written on them throughout several neighborhoods. The kids went hesitantly to the door of this person and gave her a flower of love, and a miracle happened that day! She has never blown that foghorn since and actually called recently to say that our gate door was open and she was afraid Teri might get out. That is the power of prayer and action!
Pray for a heart like our Savior, a heart full of zeal and love for lost souls. Pray with intensity that Our Lord will open our eyes, ears, and lips to love others into the Kingdom. When this becomes our prayer it will be amazing how often we will begin to see opportunities to share the Good News. When I (Chris) was visiting a friend in San Diego, he was generous enough to take me—a guy raised in Kansas—surfing. (I am sure it was just for his own entertainment). After I had adequately embarrassed myself and we were done with the suffering, we enjoyed watching the sun set over the ocean while sitting around a small campfire on the beach. A young couple came on the beach looking for their own fire pit, but there were none left, so we invited them to join us. As the couple was gathering their wood, my friend, who has a passion for saving souls, led us in a quick prayer: “Father, if we can be an instrument for this couple to come to know You then let us be that instrument. Hail Mary, full of grace…” No exaggeration, within the first five minutes of the conversation we were talking about Christ and His Church with the couple. She was a non-practicing Catholic, and he was someone raised with no religion. I will never forget that prayer or conversation, or the example that my friend showed me for having a passion for saving souls (that friend went on to become a chastity speaker, reaching millions of souls across the world). Pray for passion to pray with passion to be the evangelist that brings souls to Christ to satisfy His passion.
We must RE-commit to our prayer life with Purpose. A prayer life that has purpose will demonstrate commitment. Faithfulness to a daily prayer time is essential. Do we give at least one percent of our day to the Lord? In a twenty-four-hour day, one percent is only fifteen minutes. Do we give the Lord the best time slots of our day or the leftovers? At our (Chris’) home we have what we call a “prayer chair.” It is well-worn, complete with foam falling out of its arms, but it is the first place that we begin every morning. My wife and I read the Scriptures in that chair every morning. Daily Scripture reading is so essential to our prayer life to allow Our Lord to speak to us through His Word. This kind of committed prayer life will make clear our purpose as evangelists.
We need to pray for, by name, those who we want to come into or come back into the Church. Do not be afraid to be specific. When I (Chris) was driving to visit a Methodist minister, who had become a good friend because of his influence on me during my years in college where he was the chaplain, I was praying a Rosary for him and our conversation. In my prayer I asked the Blessed Mother to allow me to ask him one question, then she could have the rest of the conversation. (I was so generous.) The one question I wanted to ask the minister was, “How is your prayer life going?” When I arrived at the small college we quickly caught up. “How are things going?” “How’s the family?” “How’s work going?” Then the Methodist minister asked me, “So, Chris, how is your prayer life going?” I picked myself up from the floor and proceeded to describe to him what was going on in my prayer life and where I would like to be. Then without me saying a word, he went on to describe his own prayer life and that was the entirety of the conversation. Purposeful prayer can change lives.
Be open to the Holy Spirit and ask the Spirit to suggest people to pray for, then pray for them regularly and watch for opportunities to encourage them with your words. We know people who carry a piece of paper with a list of names of those that they are praying for. Use your phone calendars to remind you when to send a text or call someone needing prayers that day. People, above all, want to be noticed and wanted. So, being mindful of what is important to others is key to purpose-filled prayer in action.
When our prayer has purpose it will make its way to every part of our day. If we are about to have a conversation in which sharing the Gospel could happen, then we need to pray before it. This could be a silent prayer on our own, or we could invite the other person to pray with us. When conversations about the Faith happen spontaneously then perhaps we can end with prayer, as Pope Francis encourages us:
If it seems prudent and if the circumstances are right, this fraternal and missionary encounter could end with a brief prayer related to the concerns which the person may have expressed. In this way they will have an experience of being listened to and understood; they will know that their particular situation has been placed before God, and that God’s word really speaks to their lives.16
Prayer can be simple encouragements to those around us. When an evangelist prays with purpose it can give purpose to our day, and then the lives around us might find their true purpose.
We must RE-commit to our prayer life with Perseverance. Never lose heart; always trust that the King of All Hearts will hear this prayer. As Pope Benedict XVI said, “It is never too late to touch the heart of another, nor is it ever in vain.”17