The first reading tells us that God took Abram outside, showed him all the stars in the sky promising him as many descendants. God had a conversation with Abram, that is prayer.

The Psalm gives an example of King David’s prayer in the face of danger: 

St Paul in the second reading reminds the Catholics in Philippi that their citizenship is in Heaven, so not to focus on simply earthly things, but instead to focus on God.  That is prayer.

Finally in the Gospel Jesus leads His three closest Apostles up to the summit of Mt Tabor. There He gives them a lesson in prayer. Jesus enters into prayer to the Father, fusing in the Divine Will, He is transfigured before them and the Apostles get a glimpse of His glorified state.

We could ask ourselves, is our prayer life in good shape? Are our hearts set completely on our treasure in Heaven or are we still focusing on earthly goals.  

King Philip II, father of Alexander the Great, was king of Macedonia in the fourth century BC. Philippi was named after him. When he was at the height of his power, the king received an ambassador, from the renowned city of Athens in Greece. During the dinner, the ambassador described to the King the incomparable greatness and wealth of Athens. He talked about the beauty of its buildings and its general achievements in learning and culture. The non-stop flow of visitors from all corners of the world. The king listened in silence, greatly impressed. Then he said: 

Heaven is our Athens, but infinitely more worthy of giving up everything else, in order to gain it. As St Paul said: 

The Transfiguration is like a movie trailer of that future glory. We live a very busy and noisy world, so many Christians just try and squeeze in prayer where they can and forget about making an appointment with God each day and giving quality time to the Lord. God wants us to get to know Him and to talk to us in the depths of the heart. The Church has always recommended mental prayer or Christian mediation and contemplation. This is a wonderful way of encountering the Lord on a deeper level. One method is “Lectio Divina” There is good article on this at: https://www.goodcatholic.com/how-to-do-lectio-divina/ There are three basic steps. 1. Find a quiet place, ideally in a Church or Adoration Chapel. Sit in an upright position, relax the body and take the Scriptures. Read a passage slowly (e.g., Sunday’s Gospel). When a word or sentence strikes you, put the Scriptures down and close your eyes, ruminate (chew) the word. 2. As you reflect on the word or sentence it will go from your head to your heart. 3. The final step is to respond by applying it to your life and decide to really live the word of God. You can keep those words in your mind for the whole week. Eventually this method can lead to acquired contemplation and a far deeper experience of the Lord.

Mental prayer cannot live together with mortal sin. The more you enter into mental prayer, the more focused you will be throughout the day and when you attend Mass and Confession.  In addition, you will be more aware of God speaking to you in creation, the sun, the stars, the perfume of a flower etc because you will be more God focused.  Jesus longs for us to enter deeply into union with Him, to die to our selfish human will, which is the cause of all sin and unhappiness and to allow Him to reign freely in us with His Will. This was the state Adam and Eve were in before the Fall, and this is what Jesus would like to restore to us again. For more information please click on this link: https://www.servantofgodluisapiccarreta.com/divine-will