James Martin, SJ, shares ideas for “How Even the Busiest People Can Find Time to Pray” in a recent article for Crux. When we think we’re too busy to pray, part of the problem is our attitude, writes Martin:
Often we have unrealistic expectations about how much time we will spend in prayer. Busy people usually like to get a lot “done.” So we frequently set goals that are out of line with what we are realistically able to do.
To be blunt, many people assume that if they’re not praying for an hour a day then it’s not worth it. Or they assume that if they’re not praying every single day there’s no point. “Why even bother?” they think.
So first, try being reasonable. Start with ten minutes in the morning or evening. Surely you can spare that for the Creator of the Universe! It needn’t be anything more than that, to begin with. You don’t run a marathon before you’ve run around the block.
Martin suggests the Examen as one quick way to pray. To incorporate the Examen in your life, try some of the resources on our Examen page or the new Reimagining the Examen app.
