Nothing

Yesterday, I was sitting in the adoration chapel as I do every Sunday. As I seem to be a creature of habit, I pulled out my rosary, my novena booklet to Mary, Chaplet of Divine Mercy (the full prayer) and a small book that I've been reading for the last few weeks, and put them all aside.  When I arrive in there, on Sundays, I just sit in the peace of the chapel and let it envelope me like a warm, receptive, blanket that eases the tensions and uplifts the soul. It is during this time, which can be anywhere from 5 to 45 minutes, I think of the people that I have promised to pray for, those that need prayer, my friends, my fellow adorers and my family. I think of my own needs too and then I get to the business of praying for all.

Yesterday, though, I found myself unable to ask God for anything for myself. The only thing I could say, and I said it out loud as I was alone in the chapel, was,

"I want for nothing."

That's right. He has already given me everything I could possibly need. With more surety, and clarity, I repeated it, and then I got down on my knees and thanked Him for every single blessing He has bestowed on me; both those that I know and those that I don't know.

Recently, I got into a discussion with someone on LinkedIn about the march for women that happened in January in the United States. The one that started the thread asked what we thought was lacking as far as women are concerned. The majority of women posted what they felt was an important issue, with most saying equal pay or health care. Being the rabble rouser that I am, instead, I posted that I thought women had it "pretty darned good" in this country. We do. A few people didn't agree with me. That's okay; they are entitled to their opinion. My opinion? They need to learn about the rest of the world out there.

1.3 billion people do not have access to electricity.
663 million people do not have access to clean water
2.4 billion people do not have access to basic toilets
7.2 billion people do not have access to basic medical care
1 billion people live with a daily income of $1.25 or less
2.2 billion live on a daily income of $2.00 or less.
33 million people, worldwide, are uprooted from their homes of which 12 million are asylum seekers and 21 million internally displaced people ( living in tents in their own countries)
200 million girls and women alive today have been mutilated
700 million women, alive today, were married under the age of 18; 250 million of those women were married before the age of 15
510 million women are illiterate, worldwide
81 years old ~ the life expectancy of a woman in the United States.
44 years old ~ the life expectancy of a woman in Afghanistan and Zimbabwe.

If people open their eyes and learn about what the world is like to millions of people maybe they will see that yeah, we do have it pretty darned good. The poorest people in this country would be considered wealthy in many areas of the world.

Count your blessings.


*Statistics are from the W.H.O., the U.N. and SOS USA.

Daily Prayer

"Grace" by Eric Enstrom

Statistics show that Christian women pray daily more often then men at a difference of 61% to 51%. That is taking 53 countries into consideration. On average, Jewish men of Israel pray more than women at 34% vs 20%. In the U.S. and other countries, Jewish men and women daily prayer schedules are about the same at 71% and 72%. In the vast majority of countries surveyed, 34 out of 40, Muslim men and women prayed about the same amount of time, however, the men are more likely to attend weekly or daily service.

On average, the Jewish people pray 3 times a day. Shacharit (Morning service) varies by day:
Monday and Thursday mornings around 45 minutes
Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday around 30 minutes
Minchah (Afternoon service) about 15 minutes
Ma'ariv (Evening service) about 20 minutes 

Muslims pray 5 times a day for about 7 minutes each time, but prepare for each appointed time as well.

Catholics are called to pray several times throughout a day.  Some of the prayers they may say are morning Lauds, prayer before and after meals, The Rosary and Chaplet of the Divine Mercy at 3:00 P.M. daily, Act of Contrition and evening prayer. If one was to say all of these prayers the average amount of time spent in prayer, daily, would be a little over an hour. The average amount of time spent in prayer, for the majority of people that associate themselves as Catholics, is 5 minutes a day. That's just heartbreaking.

55% of Americans say they pray every day. 21% said they pray weekly or monthly. 23% said they do not pray at all or rarely do. People over 65 are more likely to pray than those under 30 with a whopping difference of 65% to 41%.

Fascinating isn't it? Statistics also show that people are more likely to pray in a crisis, then when things are going smoothly. 

As Lent is fast approaching for the Christians around the world, I think it is time for all of us to take an inventory of our daily prayer life. The world is in a sad state of affairs and, quite frankly, I am really sick from the hatred. I am sure that you are too. Prayer brings an inner peace and a centering to people, or at least I find it does with me. If you think that you do not have time in your daily life to pray, think again. I used to pray to and from work. You can do it while exercising (take your earbuds out or get an app with the rosary.) You can do it while doing your dishes or cleaning up after the kids. You can pray standing in line at the supermarket, riding in a cab, bus, subway, during your lunch break. Be creative in finding ways you can incorporate it into your own life. 

At 3:00 P.M. Every day, stop and take 3 seconds to close your eyes and say, "Jesus, I trust in you." (I mean that 3 seconds in the literal sense). I might add that if radical groups are spending more time in prayer than you are, you really may want to reconnect with God and increase your time spent with Him every day. You cannot fight evil intent without the presence of God in your life.

We have some beautiful Catholic and Christian prayers on our Prayer Page if you need some assistance in getting started and learning the prayers. The link is:  https://gloryglorygifts.com/the-prayer-page

Have a beautiful week.

Peace,
Mare

**Statistics are from various Pew Research Center articles.