Author's note. This is Part 2 of the StarGazer article of  5 December 2023, Guidelines on the Power of Prayer, extracted from my archives. You may request the prayer poster versions, i.e., with dramatic photos, at eastwindreplyctr@gmail.com. Read Part 1 first if you missed it — https://tribune.net.ph/2023/12/a-prayer-primer/

This is translated into text from a video of a homily of a certain Fr. Joe. This guy related to Fr. Joe that he went jogging one morning in a neighborhood he was unfamiliar with. He saw an ambulance. He asked himself if he should stop to help. He told Fr. Joe that he was not a doctor and did not know the person. So he just kept on jogging and whispered a quick Hail Mary for that person.

He forgot all about the incident, and a week later, he was jogging again in the same neighborhood. A woman called out to him, "Hey, you. Hey, sir." He ignored the woman and kept jogging. The woman said, "You were the jogger." He replied, "Me?" She answered, "Yes, you. You saved my life."

He replied, "You must be mistaken, ma'am. We don't know each other. I'm not from this neighborhood." She said, "I recognize your face. Last week, I had a stroke and was rushed to the hospital in Pittsburgh. I was on the hospital bed, dying. I knew I was dying. Jesus appeared to me and held out his hand, and your face was on the palm of his hand. I recognized you. Jesus told me that I was about to die, but because of the prayer of this man, you shall live."

There is no such thing as an unanswered prayer. He hears your prayer, whether you pray hard sincerely or say a passing casual Hail Mary, as the jogger did. Never be discouraged. Believe in the power of your prayer.

288 Flowers as prayers. Flowers you buy outside the church as an offering are a form of wordless prayer, where you ask the Lord to guide you through the battles you are waging in the world outside the church.

257B Prayers for priests. Behind each priest, there is a demon fighting for his fall. If we have the language to criticize them, we must have twice as much to pray for them. St. Therese of Avila.

243 Prayer before the Crucifix. (Gain a plenary indulgence when you say this prayer after receiving Holy Communion.) Look down upon me, good and gentle Jesus, while before Your face I humbly kneel, and with all the fervor of my soul, I pray and beseech You to fix deep in my heart lively sentiments of Faith, Hope, and Charity, true sorrow for my sins, and a fervent purpose of amendment. While I contemplate with great love and tender pity Your five wounds, having before my eyes the words Your prophet David said of You, my Jesus, "They have pierced My hands and My feet. They have numbered all My bones." Say one Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be for the intentions of the Pope.

130B Prayer for Inner Peace. Lord, grant me Your gift of inner peace. When people scream, makes me whisper. When people hurt, make me forgive. When people grab, make me give. When people destroy, make me build. When the traffic stresses, calm me. Teach me Your love amidst hatred, Your gentleness amidst cruelty, Your serenity amidst chaos, Your wisdom amidst confusion. This I ask through the intercession of Your Mother Mary. Amen.

210 Prayer for China and World Peace. Our Lady Mediatrix of All Grace, we pray to you to ask your divine Son Jesus for the conversion of China to bring peace to Asia and the world, a conversion not to Catholicism but to have goodwill rather than dominance in dealing with poor nations, and to reduce its military stance in the South China Sea. When St. Pope John Paull II consecrated Russia to your Immaculate Heart, you brought us peace, even if just momentarily. The Iron Curtain and Berlin Wall crumbled, and the Russian Empire splintered. Gorbachev opened the Russian and Ukrainian churches, and an era of global peace ensued. Do the same for us in Asia, dear Lady Mediatrix. In Jesus's name. Amen. Three Hail Marys for China and world peace.

eastwindreplyctr@gmail.com