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Question: |
My question is about family prayer time. For the past 2 years or so, we have been having family prayer time in the evenings. We've tried several different approaches: praying only 1 decade of the Rosary, the chaplet of Divine Mercy, praying the entire Rosary, Evening Prayer, and praying for friends and family members. We have a binder with big prints of the mysteries of the Rosary for the children to look at while we pray to help them to focus on the mystery. Our 3-year-old and 1-year-old are usually playing quietly during prayer time or cuddling with someone, and we are okay with this. Our problem is that our 6-year-old very rarely participates in the prayer time. She knows the prayers of the Rosary by heart, but if we take turns leading the Rosary, she'll often say that she doesn't want to, or mumble the prayers so no one else can hear them. At times we have demanded that she participate, but this really shatters the peaceful atmosphere of prayer time and turns it into a wrenching experience for everyone. Should I be concerned about her lack of interest and do you have any suggestions for gently encouraging her to pray with us? |
Answer: |
Dear Mom,
How beautiful to entrust your dear family to the peace and the complete power of prayer. You are beginning a life long habit that will not only enrich and nourish your dear children but you are restoring and storing up resources for them each time you lead them in prayer. Praise God. Isn't it amazing that something so simple can be so powerful! Yet this is exactly how we know that the inspiration to pray with our families is from the Lord.
I like to think that in each human there is a place of safety . . . a keep. As we pray we provide the keep with a storehouse of supplies that will be needed in times of danger or in times of sorrow or confusion. Each prayer I utter for my children I imagine the Lord using it to fortify the keep in their spirit. No prayer is ever wasted.
Do you think that maybe your little girl could resent (just a bit) that her two younger siblings do not have to pray as such? I may be off the mark here but it is the first thought that came to mind. If this is the case, would it be possible for you to allow her to color while she listened to you are your husband pray. She could color from a religious coloring book. There are even coloring books available that are themed for the mysteries of the rosary. Keep the coloring book up except for prayer time. Each picture she finishes could go into a special binder (use a page protector and purchase an inexpensive 3 ring binder from Wal-Mart). You could display the binder in the opened position for viewing during the rosary. This would be her unique 'big girl' contribution to your family altar.
I agree with the logic of not forcing her to pray. We want to make prayer time a cozy comforting time that brings the entire family into a peaceful place of complete safety . . . a keep. Here in this quiet keep of the Lord's tender embrace we are relieved of the worries, anxieties, and the concerns of day to day matters. We are able to sense, (even though it is dimly apparent) a small foretaste of Heaven.
Make sure that you are praying aloud for each of the children during the rosary. I bet you are already doing this. I sense in you a mommy of great love and tender emotion who has a heart for her children. When my 3 year old granddaughter visits she too putters around the living room while we pray. However the minute she hears her name mentioned, she looks up and becomes attentive to what we are saying. As soon as we finish the decade dedicated to her and her mom, dad, and baby sister, she returns to her puttering.
Go forward and take joy in the power of prayer. Jesus wants our families to be devoted to prayer and therefore He will bless whatever effort we make to bring our families to Him through prayer. I believe this with all my heart and have had enough evidence in the truth of prayer to confirm my belief. God is so good and works with us where we are to bring us to Him.
Your children and husband have in you the Proverbs woman. What a blessing!
Let us pray together a Hail Mary for the intentions of all those who are suffering. St. Monica, pray for us.
Sending out a prayer, Rita Munn |
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