. Standing secure on the solid rock of faith happens when we pray. As St. Mark points out in the first chapter of his gospel, even Jesus had to pray. If Jesus who was the Son of God found a need for prayer, how much the more should we make sure that prayer is not a sometime thing, but an essential part of our life. The way the gospel text describes the prayer of Jesus provides the criteria of solid rock prayer. The passage begins with a when. “Rising very early before dawn… he prayed.” Jesus had to make time in his schedule that was specifically dedicated to prayer. He certainly had many important things to do, many tasks to accomplish: sermons to preach, lessons to teach, miracles to perform. After all, he was saving the world. Nonetheless, in the midst of his busy-ness he created a special time for prayer. We have to do the same. We might pray before dawn, like Jesus. It might be in the afternoon before everyone gets home from work. It might be before you go to bed. Whenever it is, a sacred, set apart time is a necessary component of solid rock prayer. The text continues with a how: “Jesus left and went off… where he prayed.” There is something vital about “going off,” about being focused on God exclusively that is crucial to a life of prayer. We need one-on-one time with God. Maybe an analogy with marriage would illustrate this point. Even though a married couple live together, they still need to go off by themselves periodically. They need to make the effort to be present to one another and say the “I love yous” that are at the heart of their relationship. Yes, certainly we are in the presence of God at all times and it is good to weave God into our day. But we also need to make a particular space which is dedicated to God particularly because the nature of a relationship demands it. St. Mark concludes with a where: it was in “a deserted place where [Jesus] prayed.” As human beings with bodies having a particular spot for prayer is important. Maybe we can’t go to a deserted place but there might be a corner in the bed room where we pray. Or a particular chair that looks out on God’s creation is prayerful. Maybe a spot in the yard or at a park is sacred for you. For each person it will be different. But having a specific piece of holy ground promotes solid rock prayer. When you hit rock bottom, you know just where to go.
