Anam Cara

A Prayer Is Never Wasted

Prayer is never wasted. It always brings transformation. When you really want something and you do not receive it, you tend to believe that your prayer was not answered. Such prayer has a powerful intentionality; and it is true that at times your prayer is not answered in this direct way. You do not receive what you long for. Unknown to you, that prayer has secretly worked on another aspect of the situation and effected a transfiguration which may become visible only at a later stage. Unknown to you, prayer is always at the service of destiny. Your days and ways are never simply as they appear on the surface. Human vision is always limited and selective, and you never see the whole picture. The Providence that weaves your days sees the greater horizon and knows what your life needs in order for you to come fully to birth as the person you are called to be. Prayer refines you, so that you may become worthy of your possibility and destiny. The irony of being here is that sometimes it is precisely what you want to avoid that brings you further towards creativity and compassion. The intensity of rejection is the index of need.