Let us break it down to basics! What is prayer?

I find prayer to be a means to communicate with God, to encounter His grace and love and ultimately an aid to transform my life. As Catholics, we believe prayer to be absolutely crucial in our faith journey and a practice to nurture our relationship with God. As per the Catechism of the Catholic Church, prayer is a means to lift up our heart and minds to God, to thank Him and ask for His graces and forgiveness for our body and souls.

I completely understand that some days prayers can feel like such a chore! Who wants to sit around for ages talking to… what seems like, to yourself? However, in prayer, you are never alone, but in the presence of God. It is like being around someone you love; you do not need to have a back-and-forth conversation to enjoy being in the company of the other person. When my husband and I go for a walk, we do not always talk (well I do, since I am a talker), but I know he is listening even if he does not always respond.

Ultimately, that is where we want to get when we pray. Just a quiet moment in the presence of God.

Having said that, I have compiled a list of some of my daily prayers. Again, I am no where close to being perfect in saying these daily, and I do miss the odd day but what matters is making the effort.

The Guardian Angel prayer – this is one of my all-time favourites. I say this everywhere… Literally! I say this in the morning when I wake up, when I sit in the car to go somewhere and at night. I think I also say this at random times during the day. This is also one of the prayers I say with my 10-month-old.

The Hail Mary – I say three of these before bed; something I have begun more recently. It is known as ‘The Three Hail Mary Novena’ which is an old tradition in the Catholic Church, to pray three Hail Mary’s in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

St. Michael Prayer – this is another one I say morning and night and on a car ride going somewhere.

The Rosary – I have said the rosary my whole life with family. Of more recent years I have dwindled a bit, leaving my husband to recite it for our family, however we have begun praying it together again.

Now these prayers are some of the ones I say during the day and by no means telling you that you should say all of these too. It is just an insight of my daily prayer life. Remember, prayer is a personal conversation with God, and it is never too late to begin your prayer journey.

“And whatever you ask in Prayer, you will receive, if you have Faith.”

Matthew 21:22