New Shoes Were Made for Walking...and Maybe for Praying

After much anticipation, my new walking shoes arrived, and let me tell you... it was well worth the wait! Today alone, I have gone on three walks in my brand new Saucony shoes. I am obsessed! If you have been a faithful reader for a while now, you know how much I love walking, and finding the perfect fit of shoes is crucial. 

New walking shoes, same favorite walking companion.

I am feeling particularly grateful for these new shoes because my old pair was incredibly worn out. After any sort of substantial distance, my feet were sore. Worn-down shoes make it challenging to go the distance I desire to go! 

Ironically, this is how I have been feeling about prayer lately. I have been using the same books/reading material during prayer for the last few months, but lately, my stamina for prayer has been minimal. My new shoes got me thinking that maybe it's time to include new content in my prayer routine. 

I don't consider myself an expert on prayer, but I do recognize when my prayer starts to feel dull or unproductive. I have been struggling to remain in prayer for more than a few minutes. When my eyes gloss over the words or I am almost forcing myself to find inspiration, I know it's time to jazz things up! And so I decided, it’s okay to put my current book away (even through I am only halfway through it) and return to it later. 

As I placed the old book on the shelf, I casually asked the Holy Spirit to inspire the next book I chose. After all, it is impossible to attain holiness by our own power; we must rely on the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. My gaze landed upon "In the School of the Holy Spirit" by Jacques Philippe, a book I read years ago but felt it was time to revisit. As I opened it, I was struck by quote after quote, leaving me deeply consoled! Thank you, Holy Spirit!

"We should fight, not to attain holiness as a result of our own efforts, but to let God act in us without putting up any resistance against him; we should fight to open ourselves as fully as possible to his grace, which sanctifies us." - Jaques Philippe, In the School of the Holy Spirit

As I mentioned, I'm currently reading 'In the School of the Holy Spirit' and I'm really loving it! However, I'd love to hear from you. If you feel inspired, please comment below and share which spiritual book or Bible verse you've been using in prayer lately. Your recommendation could be the voice the Holy Spirit wants to use to inspire someone else.

Pope Saint John Paul II said, “Man becomes an image of God not so much in the moment of solitude as in the moment of communion.” This quote is a beautiful reminder of our spiritual need for community. Thank you for being a part of our Catholic Country Chronicles community!

Until next time, your sister in Christ,

Abby

P.S. I promised a good friend that I would compile a list of some of my favorite Bible verses. You can find that list, along with other Catholic Country Chronicle prayer printables, here.