Prayer Life — There Will Be Dry Spells

…there will be DRY SPELLS!

Happy Monday Dear Ones,

When you think of your heart healing, what do you see? It’s funny, I googled “healing hearts” and there were so many images, but this one to the left is what I feel like my heart looks like. It’s patched, and cracked and worn, but red and has light around it. God is healing me! Thank you Lord.

I have prayed my whole life, as long as I can remember. I have lived through things that I pray most people don’t experience. I’m one tough cookie. But I have a fatal flaw… ok, a couple.

Before I point out my flaws and talk about Dry Spells in Prayer life… I wanted to say this…

It is not enough to say to a person who walks through tragedy, loss, a move across the ocean (read: this is also about me) “Pray About It”. It’s like telling a Catholic person they should go to Mass and receive the Eucharist. DUH! Right? WE KNOW!

Yes – people mean well, they do. But most of us have prayed all our lives. The thing is, we must be effective in our prayers. We must allow ourselves the chance to listen to God. We must take a step back from things (read: also people) that cause us to sin, and regroup so we can focus on the message. In short, we must keep walking through the desert of the dry spell when it seems like God has forsaken us, is not listening to or communicating with us in any way. These are the times he is most effective in teaching us.

This brings me to yesterday’s Gospel — The Gospel of St. Luke, Chapter 12: 32-48. Bottom line – we don’t know when our time will come. We have to be ready for it. We have to live our lives the right way, and love our families/friends and even enemies. Did you just hit that brick wall with me? Sigh ENEMIES. I have to love them too? YES! Yes you do. Welcome to my fatal flaw. I’m sick of ugly people that cross my path. SICK of the judgment. SICK of them. Thanks for listening. God doesn’t care that I am sick of them. He needs me to see something in this. He needs me to pray for them and learn from them. (Is being too dramatic a FLAW?)

God never promised us that life would be easy. Those of us who are faithful struggle as much or perhaps more than those who are not. Because when we can see the truth, we know what we are supposed to do – AND we all have a conscience. We always feel bad when we FAIL. And we fail. Don’t we? We condemn ourselves as not good enough; not thin enough, smart enough; not worthy of friendship; or even not a good enough Catholic…. (MAJOR FLAW). I hope it’s not just me (also a flaw).

I really feel like I am in a prolonged dry spell where my prayers, seemed unanswered. To make it worse, here in Italy, I have come across many who are only kind/helpful to people they perceive to be in authority. The rest of us are just in their way to perceived glory. It’s both sad and overwhelming at times to never be good enough for people like that. But I know this… I am in a DRY SPELL because I am not listening (FLAW). But I heard him recently, and I have learned this:

I have to stop letting other people’s perception of me define me. God made me. And their opinions don’t matter. They can’t. I am supposed to ONLY rely on and listen to God. THIS IS MY ITALIAN LESSON. I am ready to “get it” and move past it so I can stop driving myself crazy to be good enough for everyone else, when all I really need to concentrate on is God and His Love, and His Guidance and the good people HE placed in my life to love me – in spite of my flaws, because they are HIS people and they are MY people.

Let me turn now to a wise Priest’s words from the Magnificat. Words that I hope help you understand that we can’t ever stop trying to hear God’s words and on God’s Plan for our lives.

What I read in this Meditation of the day is perseverance, silence, indomitable spirit — in short, blind faith, is what gets us through these dry spells. If you are in a Dry Spell, YOU are not alone. Keep Walking towards God. I am here with you because God needs us to see and feel others walk through things so that we can see and feel HIM in those of us lucky enough to be His Vessels.

Dear Lord,
Help me be a good enough person to acknowledge my flaws and help others not feel so alone. Help me listen when I don’t want to hear. Help me focus on what is important – YOU!
AMEN!

I hope in some way this post helped you. I want to face my flaws and acknowledge my dry spells so I can conquer my humanity through Him.

Praying for you all!
And if you want me to pray specifically for an intention, leave me a comment.
Love, Hugs & Blessings,

Lady Em