May the Lord give you peace and blessings in the Holy Spirit.
It is 19th June 2025. We reflect on 2 Corinthians 11:1–11 and Matthew 6:7–15.
His Holiness Pope Francis reminded us, “Prayer is what opens the door to the Holy Spirit, which is what inspires us to go forward.”
Are we praying rightly? What makes our prayer truly fruitful?
Today, the world spins with novelty. We chase after the new—whether in food, fashion, philosophy, theology, or even styles of prayer. But amidst this clamor for the novel, we pause to ask: Prayer is not a performance, nor is it mere repetition. Prayer is the training of the soul, a surrender into the current of God’s will. It is the awareness of His presence, the discernment of His desires, the embracing of the Gospel path.
St. Teresa of Avila “Prayer is an act of love; words are not needed. Even if sickness distracts from thoughts, all that is needed is the will to love.”
St. Paul, in his fatherly affection, laments over the Corinthians—not out of anger but of holy sorrow. Though they are drawn to new messages and novel forms of worship, he does not condemn them, but calls them back to the simplicity and power of the Gospel.
To encounter the depths of God’s love, we must not only pray—we must also forgive. Not reluctantly, not conditionally, but wholeheartedly. It is not the length or eloquence of our prayers that moves God’s heart, but the sincerity of our repentance and the depth of our forgiveness. For God listens to those who pray in faith and love.
As St. Cyprian once exclaimed, “When we call God ‘Father’, we ought to act like sons and daughters of God, so that as we are pleased to have God as our Father, so God will be pleased with us.”
Jesus taught us the Our Father not for endless repetition, but to enter into the mystery of God as Father—a loving, present, and forgiving Father. This is the heart of all prayer: to receive love from the Father and to radiate that love to others.
Let us then pray not only with words, but with hearts that forgive, heal, and bless. For in forgiving the hearts of others, we prepare our own hearts to receive the full benefit of prayer.
Have a lovely day. God bless you and may your prayer be your strength and solace.