We continue to listen to Jesus’ comments about prayer in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has a deep confidence in the action of God the Father in his life and invites us to live in that same confidence. Jesus’ prayer is active, persistent and constant. He uses active verbs to describe prayer: ask, seek, knock. He assures us that there will be a response. This time of Lent is proper for deepening our relationship with God. To do that we need to take some action to respond to God’s love in our life. That involves rescheduling and reorientating our lives, our priorities and actions. Persistence in prayer and our dedication to our relationship with God is important. Persistence and action are the basis of conversion. How many good and healthy practices do we have in our Catholic tradition? Yet we do not dedicate time and energy to them. We think, like so many in our culture – been there; done that; I already know how that goes.
Along with the need for action and persistence, Jesus also speaks about the attitude of God as a caring father. God is a loving father beyond our expectations, imagination, and hopes. The Father is already there in our lives and already knows what we need. He is providing exactly what we need. Sin is just wandering away from the Father. We look for things and goods that we really do not need and that do not provide lasting joy. The pursuit of that independence and happiness separates us from God, the real source of life and joy. Prayer is a persistent return to live in the confidence of having a heavenly Father who loves at our sides.
The last indication in the Gospel today is: Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. That is a natural outcome of living in persistent prayer that unites us with our loving Father. How could we center our lives on others, if we did not have our lives centered on the presence of a loving Father in our lives. Persistent prayer moves us to renounce ourselves and center our lives in the Father and on service to others.
How much more will your heavenly Father give good things
to those who ask him.
Image: CANVA 22JAN2026 AI generated.