If we want to deepen our own prayer life, we will eventually need to focus on perseverance, praying during the most difficult times in our lives.
Its relatively easy to pray during easy times, when we can feel God's grace fill our soul with joy and happiness.
Also, it can be somewhat easy to pray during the hard times, when we are struggling with something and continually turn to God for help.
One of the more difficult times to pray is when nothing happens in prayer, and we don't feel any consolation in our soul.
Through all of these periods in our lives, the key is perseverance.
Persevering in Love
The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights the need to "pray always" in its section entitled, "Persevering in Love":
"Pray constantly . . . always and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father." St. Paul adds, "Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance making supplication for all the saints." For "we have not been commanded to work, to keep watch and to fast constantly, but it has been laid down that we are to pray without ceasing." This tireless fervor can come only from love. Against our dullness and laziness, the battle of prayer is that of humble, trusting, and persevering love.
Remaining faithful to God in prayer is a primary way we can express our love of God.
It is similar to the way a husband and wife are faithful to each other "in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health."
Difficulties in our lives can tempt us to give-up on God and to stop praying. We may become frustrated by his "silence," and stop going to Church because we don't hear his voice clearly in prayer.
This is when our faith is tested and we are challenged to persevere, just as a husband and wife are challenged to remain faithful after the honeymoon phase has ended.
When all the warm and fuzzy feelings wear off, we are called to persevere in prayer, never stopping our prayer life when life gets difficult.
God loves us and waits for us to love him in return. He never said love would be easy.
It's up to us to persevere and love God with our whole heart, soul and strength.
