Prayer Can Change Our Lives

The Russian Orthodox liken prayer to entering the cave of a tiger—the experience is uncontrollable. Risk is involved and yet, too, a certain level of trust. Prayer that leads to real participation in the mystery of Christ, or we might say, prayer that allows the mystery of Christ to change our lives, is a high-risk enterprise—an uncontrollable experience. Yet, the power of God’s grace is such that one who, like Francis of Assisi, is able to trust God sufficiently can enter into the “cave” of the heart, the place where Incarnation takes place, and be transformed into the triumph of love. 

—from the book Franciscan Prayer
by Ilia Delio, OSF