Daily Catholic Lectio. Thu, 26 February ‘26. Power of Prayer

Daily Catholic Lectio

Thu, 26 February ‘26

First Week of Lent, Thursday

Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25. Mt 7:7-12

Power of Prayer

“What can I do? I am weak.” This question arises from many hearts. When situations overwhelm us, when doors seem closed, when decisions are beyond our control, we feel small and powerless. Today’s Word of God teaches us that what we cannot do by strength, we can begin through prayer.

In the first reading, we encounter Queen Esther. Behind her prayer stands a crisis. A royal decree has been issued to destroy the Jewish people. A political conspiracy has gained the king’s approval. Human authority seems absolute. The machinery of power is already in motion.

Esther learns of this only through her kinsman Mordecai. She hesitates. To approach the king without being summoned could cost her life. She stands at a moment of human liminality — at the edge of her own capacity. She cannot control the decree. She cannot command the king. She cannot reverse the plot.

It is precisely here that prayer begins.

When we reach our limits, we raise our eyes to God. Prayer is born not from strength, but from the honest recognition of weakness. Esther removes her royal garments and stands before God in humility. She fasts. She asks her people to fast with her. She prays not as a queen, but as a daughter of Israel.

Prayer gives perspective. It reminds her — and us — that human authority is inferior to divine authority. Ministers may scheme, kings may sign decrees, structures may appear immovable. But above every throne stands God. History does not move only by human decisions; it moves under divine providence.

This does not mean passivity. Esther does not remain in prayer alone. Prayer gives her courage to act. She will go to the king. She will risk her life. Prayer does not replace responsibility; it strengthens it.

Another striking element in this narrative is that prayer is a community experience. Esther does not pray alone. She asks all the Jews in Susa to fast and pray with her. Even if prayer is personal, it is never isolated. When a community prays, faith is strengthened. We carry one another before God.

In our own lives, we may pray privately. But when the Church prays — in families, in parishes, in liturgy — something deeper happens. We realize we are not alone in our struggle. Prayer becomes communion.

The Gospel deepens this teaching. Jesus says: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened.”

At first, this seems to raise a question. Earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says that the Father knows what we need even before we ask. If God already knows, why should we ask?

There is no contradiction.

God knows our needs. But prayer is not primarily about informing God. It is about transforming us. When we ask, we become aware of what we truly need. When we seek, we clarify our desire. When we knock, we commit ourselves to movement.

Prayer connects us to God.

A child does not speak to the father because the father lacks information. The child speaks to enter into relationship. So too with us. Through prayer we align our will with God’s will. We open our interior door so that grace can act within us.

Jesus uses simple verbs: ask, seek, knock. These are not passive words. They imply engagement.

To ask is to recognize dependence.

To seek is to begin a journey.

To knock is to persevere.

Prayer, therefore, is not magic. It does not bypass effort. It energizes it. Esther prayed — and then she acted. We pray — and then we continue our work with renewed courage.

The power of prayer is not that it removes all difficulty. The power of prayer is that it gives hope, clarity, strength, and perseverance. It reminds us that when all external doors seem closed, the interior door to God is always open.

Today’s readings invite us to learn three lessons:

First, in our moments of limitation — when we say, “I can do no more” — that is precisely when we must seek God. We do what we can. Then we entrust what we cannot.

Second, though we invite God into our situation through prayer, God often acts through us. We cannot pray and remain inactive. Grace works through willing hands.

Third, we must grow in clarity. What do we truly seek? Without clarity, our seeking becomes confused. Prayer purifies desire.

As we continue this Lenten journey, let us rediscover the power of prayer — not as escape, but as encounter; not as weakness, but as strength; not as isolation, but as communion.

When we are weak, we pray.

When we pray, we are strengthened.

When we are strengthened, we act with courage.

And above every human authority, every decree, every fear, stands the faithful God — who hears, who guides, and who opens the door.

Fr Yesu Karunanidhi

Archdiocese of Madurai

Missionary of Mercy