A commonplace excuse for why people do not pray is they “don’t have time.” Taken at face value, some might imagine it plausible but, honestly, probed a little harder, the excuse often collapses for the rationalization it is.

September 19 is the anniversary of Our Lady’s appearance at La Salette to two French children in 1846. La Salette is a lesser known Marian apparition although, in New England, the La Salette Fathers played an important role in parish life. La Salette’s message is relatively simple: keeping the Lord’s Day, foregoing swearing, prayer. Among Our Lady’s reminders, she asked whether the children prayed well, to which they honestly admitted, “Not very well, Madame.” Her reply is instructive for those who “lack time”: You must be sure to say them well morning and evening. When you cannot do better, say at least an Our Father and a Hail Mary; but when you have time, say more. (For more on La Salette, see here.)

Let’s be honest: How much time does an Our Father and a Hail Mary take? Do you want to go to heaven? What are you going to do for eternity if you don’t have 90 seconds twice a day to talk to its Principals?

“Time management” is a huge cottage industry, especially in the business world. A piece of advice one often hears in those circles is that if something can be done in two minutes or less, do it. You waste more time thinking about doing such things than doing them. You waste even more time thinking about how to reschedule them. Nike’s trademark is also good prayer advice: “Just do it!”

If, after just doing it, you discover you still have thinking time, ask yourself: “Why did that effort encounter resistance?” What — or who — didn’t want me to pray? Was it my own indifference or sloth? Does it say something about my priorities? Does it suggest that God has to compete with other things for my attention? In other words, should I perhaps also pray for piety, the Gift of the Holy Spirit that recognizes who God is, who I am, and what should be the relationship between us? Or was it a temptation not to pray from somewhere (or someone) else? If the latter, why might he not have wanted that prayer to happen? What is it about this prayer or about prayer in general that “your opponent, the devil” (1 Pt 5:8) finds dangerous (to his interests, not yours)? What worst-laid plans of snakes and men might go awry, be diverted or derailed by that prayer?

If we simply prayed when we had the inspiration — if we “just did it” — we might find we pray a lot more than if we waste time figuring out (i.e., rationalizing) how to “fit” the activity into our “busy schedules.” Two observations: (1) “Planning” is often a bigger time suck than just doing; and (2) that inspiration is God’s voice. Remember a basic principle of Catholic theology of grace: whatever good we do originates first in God. (If that was not true, we wouldn’t need the grace Christ won for us — we could save ourselves). It is God who moves us to consider the good. That movement is not coercive; God respects our freedom. But it does affirm that whatever good a human being does is a divine-human partnership. So, “if today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts” (Ps 95:7-8). And we can harden those hearts not only by cold rejection but also by “putting off to some indefinite tomorrow” what you can do today.

There is adequate precedent for such spontaneous prayer. Catholics once upon a time called them “ejaculations.” The fact that people today might connect that term with sex points to a significant loss in spiritual understanding and practice. “Ejaculations” were quick and spontaneous prayers, e.g., “My God, I love you!” “My Jesus, mercy!” “Oh God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” These are opportunities to connect with God in the course of the moment, to invite the Transcendent into the situation of the moment, to ask for help or express gratitude or praise. “My God, I love you!” is a quite adequate prayer.

So, let’s “just do it!” That expression, too, has become a double entendre — Nike rescued it from a sexual connotation by making it exercise advice. Rather than ponder, quibble, and debate what and when to fit in exercise, Nike exhorted people to “just do it” (obviously after putting on Nike shoes)! But it is also good advice as, so often, the “scheduling” excuse becomes a way to avoid physical exercise.

In the same way, we avoid spiritual exercise — which is what prayer is. That’s why, “if today you hear His Voice,” then JUST DO IT!