Learning to Live

When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, and the books, especially the scrolls.

2 Timothy 4:13 

Once again, this summer is drawing to a close, even though the heat shows no sign of letting up. Not everyone has had the chance to pack and unpack their bags, set off, and escape in search of cooler weather or simply to unwind. Needs and circumstances vary from family to family … September, however, brings most of us back into line, propelling us back into countless activities, both work-related and church-related. Those with children still of school age are grappling with textbooks and various school supplies. The carefree spirit and leisure of just a few days ago are already a distant memory, when once again we made plans and renewed our resolutions. Despite our best efforts, it seems we can never find time to devote to ourselves and to what is most dear to us. What about reading…? Personally, I haven’t let myself go without the company of a few books, to which others have been added along the way. I’ve made an effort to carve out time to let my soul breathe. With tragic lightheartedness, we keep saying we don’t have time to devote to prayer, relegating it to the role of Cinderella among our occupations and worries, despite the biblical exhortations: “Pray at all times, through the Spirit, with every kind of prayer and supplication; be watchful to this end with all perseverance” (Ephesians 6:18).

As long as we hide behind various excuses, we will never grow to the stature of Paul or that of Christ. If we acknowledge our limitations, we should strive to nurture the desire to learn and correct ourselves, just as the disciples did. In an unspecified place, while the Master is praying, they watch and perhaps join him in silence. They are drawn to him, because a man who prays—and truly prays—possesses and conveys something that is not of this world. So one of the disciples boldly summons the courage to ask: “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). When you approach the Master to ask Him something, you have grasped something extremely important; you have made His teaching your own. Let us not wait until we are in need to discover the power of prayer. Perhaps today that request can be yours. The disciple, who remains anonymous, does not ask to learn a method that guarantees certain answers. Rather, with those words, he is acknowledging his condition and the extreme need to start from scratch. Let us not be afraid to express all of our inadequacy—that sense of helplessness and, at the same time, of loneliness in the face of life’s challenges.

This is precisely why we need to immerse ourselves in reading, accompanied by prayer in our search for God, so that our superficial lives may discover the full joy of existence. No longer a fruitless attempt, but the certainty of listening to and dialoguing with the Heavenly Father. Christian prayer is therefore entering into Jesus’ dialogue with the Father. To pray is to desire, to listen, to believe, and to feel the Spirit of the Son—the Spirit who intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words, as Paul writes (Romans 8:26), coming to the aid of all our weaknesses. Let us learn to pray, asking Jesus to teach us, because prayer will never be an achievement, but only a divine gift. The time we manage to devote to it will not be wasted, because, as Augustine of Hippona said, “Whoever has learned to pray has learned to live.” Following Paul’s instructions to the Ephesians enables us to live according to the Father’s will, to resist the temptations of the one who “roams about like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8), to overcome every obstacle that seems insurmountable, and to face and defeat every giant that stands in our path, despite our limited abilities. Meanwhile, the Book par excellence will warm our hearts no matter what winter we find ourselves in.

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Weekly Reading Plan Bible #36

August 31, Psalms 132–134; 1 Corinthians 11:17–34

September 1, Psalms 135–136; 1 Corinthians 12

September 2, Psalms 137–139; 1 Corinthians 13

September 3,   Psalms 140–142; 1 Corinthians 14:1–20

September 4,   Psalms 143–145; 1 Corinthians 14:21–40

September 5,   Psalms 146–147; 1 Corinthians 15:1–28

September 6,   Psalms 148–150; 1 Corinthians 15:29–58