Making Prayer OUR Work

"The danger to avoid is that of making prayer to be a conjuring act. If we call on the Holy Name of Jesus, Jesus will come of His own free will. But if we think our calling causes Jesus to come, all we get is fantasy."


"Here we find how deeply we want to do the work of prayer which only God can do. Here we discover how deeply we wish to play God. It may look innocent enough. It is our human experience that we want to please people by doing nice things for them. If we ever find that we can offer nothing to someone whom we love, we may be so humiliated that we turn against that person. If we gain the obscure glimmer of wanting to want God, then we want the self-respect that comes with doing something for Him."


Br. Andrew Marr, O.S.B. from "The Paradox of Prayer" in Singing God's Praises p. 336,337