Le Forum Catholique

The prayer is usually associated with Eastern Catholicism or the Orthodox faiths, and it dates back to the early 4th-century monastic tradition. The prayer goes like this: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” The idea is to attach this short prayer to something we frequently do every day: using the stairs, standing up from or sitting into a chair, using your turn signal, filling a glass of water, or — more traditionally — taking a breath. Usually, your breathing does not require any focus or concentration; you do it unceasingly, to keep yourself physically alive. In order to follow the command of 1 Thessalonians and to keep yourself spiritually alive, attach this simple prayer to the breathing you do unceasingly day and night. Try this exercise: *inhale* “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,” *exhale* “have mercy on me, a sinner.” By using this prayer you are invoking the powerful name of Christ and thereby counteracting the horribly common abuses against His name, breathing in the grace of Christ and expelling sin, and building a habit of prayer and connection to God. We read in John 15:5, “I am the vine: you the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing.” We need to be connected to God like a branch to a vine, sending constant signals or signs of life, and the Jesus Prayer is one of the most ancient and effective ways to do so. I have personally tried numerous times to incorporate the Jesus prayer with my breathing and found it difficult. Then it dawned on me to attach it to a habit that is frequent, but not as frequent as breathing, and then work my way up. Is there a better habit to attach a prayer to than drinking coffee? With the astronomical number of people who consume coffee multiple times a day, it is the perfect daily activity to help form you in unceasing prayer. Therefore, I want to challenge you: every time you taste coffee, smell coffee, wait in line for coffee, talk about coffee, or even desire coffee, you should whisper the Jesus Prayer to yourself. If you can successfully build a habit of prayer that is as consistent and dedicated as your habit of coffee consumption, you will be well on your way to unceasing prayer, constant communion with God, and a clear path to sanctity. Frequent prayer and acknowledgment of God’s life in your soul has profound impacts on you by allowing for constant focus on higher things. All of the sudden, that co-worker becomes less annoying, and that curse word is easier to swallow because you have God on the brain; on your lips; and, more importantly, in your heart (the other name for the Jesus Prayer is the “Prayer of the Heart”).