Livin’ on a Prayer

By Amber Cerveny

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.” ~ Luke 1:46-56

Hands-down, I have the world’s greatest grandpa; I call him “Papa.” I could tell stories for hours, but my opening sentence sums it up nicely. In the last 12 months, Papa has had multiple heart attacks, open-heart surgery, colon cancer, and surgery. This week I texted my friend to tell her that Papa was once again in the hospital due to another heart attack. My friend responded by saying she would pray, but she wished she could do more to help. To which I replied, praying is everything!

After all that has happened, he is, essentially, living on a prayer!

I love Bon Jovi’s song, Livin’ on a Prayer, but instead of focusing on the beauty of being sustained by prayer, many days, I end up focusing on being only halfway there. I have convinced myself that if I try harder, work more, strive to achieve more, or just accomplish more tasks, I will be “all the way there.” I get caught up in what I can’t do and quickly forget that nobody can do everything. Failures tend to feel multiplied when you think everything is within your control.

Today’s daily readings are about Hannah and Mary, two women living on a prayer. Take a moment to read Hannah’s story. Hannah wanted children so much. Her heart ached; she cried in misery and prayed to the Lord to take pity on her and give her a child. Hannah felt she was halfway there with a husband who loved her but had no children. With deep faith, she understood God could do anything, so she cried out to God in prayer.

Without things like achieving a particular level of wealth, our health, or the ability to have children, we can feel like we are only halfway there. Our challenges are opportunities for us to acknowledge that we need God. When we pray, we create the opportunity to grow the virtues Mary and Hannah possessed. With prayer, we increase our patience, our faith, our hope, and our perseverance —accepting that on our own, we will only ever be halfway there. The good news is, God can take our hand and reassure us that we will make it all the way there when we are livin’ on a prayer.

Prayer

My soul longs to proclaim the greatness of the Lord in my life. My soul longs to accept the truth that I am all the way because I am loved beyond measure by the Father who sent His only begotten Son to save me. My soul longs to understand that living on prayer is the best way to live.