The Better Part - Intentional Living for Christian Moms with a Bible-Loving Catholic Mama Jenna Scott

For the last episode of this series, Marci Combo and I discuss what prayer looks like for each of us. We answer a couple of questions that listeners have asked about: how our relationships with each person of the Holy Trinity (God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) work in our prayer lives, and what our daily prayer routines tend to look like.



We also touch on topics that haven't yet been discussed in this series including: the sacraments, praise and worship, the value of friends who are like-minded in faith, parts in our lives where prayer has been more difficult, and more! We hope you enjoy this candid conversation!



After this episode, The Better Part will be taking a break! Keep subscribed to this podcast, and look forward to the next series coming up in a couple of months. Follow @thebetterpartpod on Instagram to be kept up-to-date on when and what that series will be! Can't wait to see you then!



Please share your feedback for future episodes and series through this form: https://forms.gle/Wb1svgcskrxQaCoP8

Join in for a rosary that follows along with verses from God's Holy Word! The rosary is a beautiful, effective prayer that allows you to meditate on "mysteries" while repeating rote prayers.

If you've never prayed the rosary, check out this thorough and helpful page from Hallow. It gives an explanation of what the rosary is, why we pray it, and how to pray it.
https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/#why

For more scriptural rosaries, check out Kate and Mike, Catholic Crusade on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/track/2kswYgBvPQMOvzn4Z3Yi5Q?si=CjBIpjhhTXmsN6o6x-adjg&context=spotify%3Aplaylist%3A5uz4hhJ2QYtsIJ7Xf4pb32

Lastly, if you'd like to give feedback for the next series of this podcast, please fill out this form:
https://forms.gle/Wb1svgcskrxQaCoP8

Whether we show up nice and neat or as a big ol' mess, God is 100% present to us! Reflect about how He loves us despite our mess and then join in for another led meditation.



This meditation comes from the book An Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales. It prompts you to consider how you were created fully by God and not by your own doing. The world would have gone on without you, but God deemed to create you out of love for this time in particular. In gratitude, we offer our praise and thanks to Him and apologize for when we forget this fact!



This amazing book has more wonderful meditations as well as simple, short chapters that can prompt your heart toward God. I receive absolutely nothing if you buy this book, I just truly think it is wonderful! Check it out here: https://a.co/d/fSr2kp5

Let's talk about Lent and then meditate on scripture together! This episode uses imaginative prayer, which is a beautiful way to dive deeper into a narrative passage of the Bible and pick up on details you may have missed in a simple reading.



If you want to do more imaginative prayer on your own and would like a guide, check out this website:

https://campusministry.nd.edu/pray/ways-to-pray/imaginative-prayer-with-scripture/



Sometimes this type of imaginative prayer is called Lectio Divina, but there is also another form of Lectio Divina where you read a part of scripture several times and allow it to affect you deeper each time. This can be used with passages that aren't necessarily narrative, like Psalms, verses from epistles of the New Testament, or other verses from the Bible. If you'd like some directions on how to do this type of meditation, check out this link:

https://campusministry.nd.edu/pray/ways-to-pray/lectio-divina/



If you like led meditations on scripture, check out the Pray as You Go Podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/podcast-pray-as-you-go/id1447749598

This episode goes through some of St. Ignatius' Rules for Spiritual Discernment. This is huge for understanding God's voice and voices of evil spirits in your life. Sometimes feeling God's presence and understanding his voice is easy and sometimes it is really hard! Sometimes our prayer feels fueling, refreshing, and like deep communion with God, and sometimes prayer feels dry and like we are just wandering along.



In his rules for discernment of spirits, St. Ignatius helps us understand 1) how God's voice sounds depending on our spiritual state (AKA how much sin or virtue rules our lives), 2) what to do when God doesn't feel near, and 3) what to do when we are feeling particularly close to God and living on a spiritual high.



Listen in to hear the basics of these rules for discernment and then check out the written rules here:

https://scepterpublishers.org/blogs/scepter-blog-corner/14-rules-for-the-discernment-of-spirits-by-st-ignatius-of-loyola

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, prayer is just hard. Sometimes it is due to logistical difficulties. If that is you, go back and check out the "Prayer: Practicals" and "Prayer: Troubleshooting & Tips" episodes.



But sometimes, it's just hard because of stuff we are going through in our personal lives. Major financial difficulties, depression, difficult diagnoses, and more can all affect our every day state, and this can be a huge barrier to prayer. Though we may have nothing to say to God, or seemingly nothing to offer Him, God is no further away. In fact, He has the tendency to come in closer to the broken hearted, the hungry, the lowly. Whether you are feeling His presence or not, know that you are HIS and He has not forgotten you.



If you are struggling to find anything to say to God, that is OK. I encourage you to (1.) find a guided prayer to lead you through. Continue to attempt daily prayer as an anchor in your life. Putting yourself in His word daily will remind you of truth and will help you remember His presence. (2.) Try to see how He is working in your life through little blessings and miracles. And (3.) remind yourself of the truth. You are His beloved. He will never forsake you. Psalm 139 can remind you that you are always His.



If you know of someone in a tough state, share this episode with them! They may need some encouragement that God is still there, even if they aren't able to be fully present with Him.



Prayer: Practicals - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/SpjjOLXXLGb



Prayer: Troubleshooting & Tips - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/AcYPZewLtGb