Pope Francis: in the ups and downs of life, make prayer your constant

King David is an example of being consistent in prayer, no matter what your life throws at you or what you do or do good, do Pope Francis during his general audience Wednesday.

Prayer "is able to ensure the relationship with God, who is the true companion of man's journey, amidst the many difficulties of life: good or bad," said the Pope on June 24.

“But always prayer: 'Thank you, Lord. I'm afraid, sir. Help me, Lord. Forgive me, Lord. "

Speaking in live streaming from the apostolic library, Francis continued his audience to speak on prayer with a reflection on the life of King David.

This was the pope's final general audience before the summer break in July.

David, he said, was "holy and sinner, persecuted and persecuted, victim and executioner, which is a contradiction. David was all of this together. And we too often have opposite traits in our life; in the plot of life, all men often sin inconsistently. "

But, the pope pointed out, the coherent "thread" in David's life was prayer.

“David the saint, pray; David the sinner prays; David the persecuted prays; David the persecutor prays; David the victim prays. Even David, the executioner, prays, "he said.

In the psalms, “David teaches us to bring everything in dialogue with God: joy as guilt, love as suffering, friendship as much as an illness. Everything can become a word addressed to the 'You' who always listens to us ”.

Pope Francis went on to explain that although David knew solitude and solitude in his life, through the power of prayer he was never alone.

"David's confidence is so great that when he was persecuted and had to flee, he didn't allow anyone to defend him," said the pope. David thought: "'If my God humiliates me in this way, he knows it, because the nobility of prayer leaves us in the hands of God. Those hands, wounds of love: the only safe hands we have. "

In his catechesis, Francis examined two characteristics of David's life and vocation: that he was a pastor and that he was a poet.

David "is a sensitive person who loves music and singing," said the pope. “The harp will always accompany him: sometimes to raise a hymn of joy to God (cf. 2 Samuel 6:16), other times to express a lament, or to confess his sin (cf. Psalm 51: 3). "

"His gaze captures, behind the unraveling of things, a greater mystery," he said, adding that "prayer comes from there: from the belief that life is not something that slips within us, but a surprising mystery, which it evokes poetry, music, gratitude, praise or lament, supplication in us. "

Francis explained that although David often did not live up to his job as a "good shepherd" and king, in the context of the history of salvation David is the "prophecy of another king, of whom he is only an announcement and a foreshadowing".

"Loved by God since he was a boy, he was chosen for a unique mission, which will play a central role in the history of the people of God and our own faith," he said.

In his greeting to Spanish speakers after his catechesis, Pope Francis noted the 7,4 magnitude earthquake that hit the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico on Tuesday, resulting in injuries and at least two deaths, as well as extensive damage.

“We pray for all of them. May the help of God and brothers give you strength and support. Brothers and sisters, I am very close to you, "he said.