I vividly remember getting the call from my divorce attorney telling me that my spouse was seeking full custody of our children. That shook me to my core and threw me into full-on crisis mode. I did not want to lose my children! Like any good Catholic, I began to storm heaven with my many prayers begging God to help me. And pray I did. I prayed rosaries, novenas, devotionals, everything I could think of. In my mind the more I prayed the better. Surely, I thought, praying all four mysteries of the rosary was better than just the daily mystery. A Divine Mercy chaplet morning, noon, and night was better than just one. And so this went on for several weeks. Then, one day, my attorney called. He asked me if I had put together the affidavits from my witnesses testifying to my ability to parent my children. I was now even more panicked. While I had been praying like crazy, I had failed to do much else.
When we are in crisis it is typical for us to fall on our knees and beg for God’s help. Most of us, me included, are not bashful to ask God for help. We are filled with hope that God will miraculously come to our rescue and put an end to our misery. But prayer is only half of the equation. God wants us to put our faith into action. We must pray and act. Certainly, prayer is an essential ingredient to living our life of faith. Yet, God gave us free will and many talents to use in conjunction with our prayers. We are co-workers with Christ, working together to fulfill His plan. So, if you are feeling overwhelmed, in crisis, or downright frustrated, keep praying. Just be sure you are getting busy working on your problems too. Jesus is a faithful partner who will magnify all your efforts and make them bear fruit.
You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by the works. – James 2:22
Originally posted 2014-06-11 06:00:53.
Thanks Vince,
Just joined here earlier this week. Right in the middle of divorce after a 38 year marriage and as you know this is one tough pill to swallow. I have tried to be a devote Catholic my entire life but this season has really putting me to the test for sure. I have found your message uplifting, positive and hopeful. I look forward to applying your message towards my healing but most importantly improving my relationship with my Heavenly Father.
Kind Regards, Mark Vinson
How I wish I had access to this site so long ago. Due to my profession and its mandatory time and effort demands, my lawyer felt that I had the proverbial “snowball’s chance in H***” of winning a restricted domicile suit during the divorce, and cautioned it was a waste of effort & time, AND he refused to proceed on it personally; BUT he was willing to work with a second attorney who would manage the custody aspect of the case. It was ultimately agreed that a third party “Guardian ad Litem” would evaluate and recommend to the court how the custody should be apportioned. Well, I won that issue, so my kids were available locally to allow me to participate in their upbringing. The point: Certainly much prayer is VERY helpful, but as this article/post by the author states, “prayer is only half the equation. We must act.” If loss of access is threatened, there are legal options to pursue; if you don’t, you will regret it your entire life, as will your children.