PETITION

Asking God for Help

I. Please, God
Petition
comes from the Latin petitio, meaning request, refers to a type of prayer asking or requesting God to provide what we need materially or spiritually

Do these prayers sound familiar?

Please, God, take care of my mommy & daddy & dont let them get in a car accident. God, please make my brother quit bothering me. Dear God, help me pass this test. God, let me make the team; Id give anything for it!

Please, God, help me know what to say when I have to face this guy who scares me.

Why should we tell God our needs?

God desires a

God wants us to

We recognize our

 Prayers in the official liturgy usually end with the phrase in Jesus name or through Jesus Christ.

For Reflection
When you were a child, what kinds of needs did you pray for?

What personal needs do you, or could you, pray to God about now?

II. How Does God Answer Prayers

Does it seem that God is ignoring you? Does God not answer your prayers? Prayer is answered in many ways. We know from Jesus words God hears our prayers, but not every prayer in the human heart is consistent with Gods will.

 God knows what is best for us!

How that happens & will happen is not always obvious to us.
Gods action in the world is not restricted to our own notions of what it should be.

For Reflection
Do you believe God answers prayers?

If so, in what ways have you experienced Gods answers?

Gods Will & Human Freedom

God works with human beings & their freedom. If God cancelled out peoples freedom, then God would not be God, & people would not be human. Gods will happens through human beings who freely choose & take action.

 Human beings are NOT completely or nearly in touch with Gods heart. At times we deceive ourselves about what is good for us. We cannot possibly:
know all that God knows, see all that God sees, love as God loves.

Closer to Gods Heart

 However, we can grow closer to JESUS.

Through:
praying, reflecting on Jesus life & message, meeting Jesus in the sacraments, & uniting our everyday life with Jesus

Over time we can become closer to Jesus.

 If we are open, then Gods grace will fill us & transform us little by little.

Jesus said to his disciples, If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you (John 15:7).

Discernment: Seeking Gods Will in Decisions

Discernment
comes from the Latin meaning, to distinguish or sift, refers to the process of evaluating & seeking direction or available options that God would want

St. John Baptist de La Salle, outlined steps which can help us when we try to seek Gods will.

 Acknowledge that Jesus

Who, what, where, when, why & how

Listen to Jesus After you have

If you need

 Spend more

Decide

If things go

Its Okay to Ask Why

Why did I flunk the test even though I studied so hard?

Why cant I get anyone to go out with me?

Why did my father die?

 God NEVER wills our pain! Acknowledge the mystery of suffering & place ourselves in the hands of God.
God ultimately will bring forth goodness & life even from the most painful circumstances.

For Reflection

Have you ever felt like crying, Why, God? over some suffering or injustice you could not make sense of? Did you tell God how you felt?

III. Loving Others Through Intercessory Prayer

Prayer of Intercession
comes from the Latin intercedere, meaning to intervene or to go between, refers to prayers of petition Though Christ is the primary intercessor or advocate before God the Father, intercessory prayers may be said by any person praying for a good purpose.

Praying for Our Enemies

You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:43-44).

 We can pray to understand the person with Gods own heart:

What makes this person act as she does? What experiences might have caused this? What is the person afraid of? How is this person who hurt me also hurt inside?

 The world of people & situations we can pray for is wide open because no person or concern is outside the love & care of God.

For Reflection
Focus on a person with whom you have had a conflict. Try praying for that person with God in your heart.

 Saint

IV. The Communion of Saints

from the Latin sanctus, meaning holy or consecrated refers to those people who have been officially recognized as saints through canonization by the Church & so are worthy of imitation & veneration

 Communion of Saints

the bond which unites the living (any person who is trying to live a Christian life) & dead saints.

Catholics believe not only those we personally knew, but all those who have died in Gods grace are somehow present to us, rooting for us.

For Reflection
Do you love someone who has died & who still seems present to you? Think of some people who died in the distant or recent past & who are like a great cheering squad for all humanity.

Trusting God Always

Prayers of petition/ intercession to trying to control life more effectively by getting God on our side.

Discerning Gods will to having certainty & assurance our actions will pay off.

 Asking God for help is about

trusting God & growing in the ways of God

not controlling God or trying to bargain with God.