MARIAN TIMES

How and What
do We Pray?
Elsy
Mathew
elsymathew23@gmail.com
Prayer is the language of a man burdened with a sense of need. It is the voice of the beggar,
conscious of his poverty, asking of another the things he needs
--E.M. Bounds
Tony and Melwyn were
childhood friends but they
were parted by circumstances
and went to different places for
seeking their fortunes. One day they
happened to meet each other after
twenty-five years in London while
attending a business conference. They
recognized each other and thought of
reviving sweet childhood memories.
They took a room in a posh hotel
and went on conversing till late
night. Of course, they had a lot of
experience to share. Now it was too
late and drowsiness overtook them.
Melwyn said to Tony, “Please give me
sometime, I have to say my prayers
before I go to bed.” He sat on his bed
with closed eyes and just said loudly,
“Ditto.” Tony was surprised and
asked, “What kind of prayer is this?
I have heard many kind of prayers,
but “ditto?” This is something strange
and absolutely new.” Melwyn said, “I
say a prayer only once in a year, on
New Year ’s Day. “What is the point of
repeating the same prayer every day?
So I say “ditto,” God must understand.
We all expect God to understand
our needs. We like to take short
cuts and ready-made solutions to
everything around us in the hightech
era of the twenty-first century.
People complain about lack of time
as an excuse for everything. But the
real reason is not shortage of time but
mere laziness. Prayer is an activity
by which we get connected to the
Supreme Power. When we pray we
never hear “all lines in this route are
busy, please pray after sometime”
from the other end. It is either that
our lines are getting busy or that we
take it for granted that God must
understand.
Prayer is not only worship; it
is also an invisible emanation of
man’s worshipping spirit—the most
powerful form of energy that one
can generate. The influence of prayer
on the human mind and body is as
demonstrable as that of secreting
glands. Its results can be measured in
terms of increased physical buoyancy,
greater intellectual vigour, moral
stamina, and a deeper understanding
of the realities underlying human
relationships. If you make a habit of
sincere prayer, your life will be very
noticeably and profoundly altered.
Marian Times Page # 7