Let’s be honest: prayer can be hard! In fact, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “Prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part. It always presupposes effort. The great figures of prayer of the Old Covenant before Christ, as well as the Mother of God, the saints, and He Himself, all teach us this: prayer is a battle” (No. 2725). It then addresses who the battle is against – namely, both ourselves and the enemy. I would also throw in the multitude of obligations and distractions that seem to face us day after day. In the midst of the battle, however, we have a sure means to victory: Our Lady and the holy Rosary. October is the month dedicated to the Rosary, and October 7 is specifically celebrated as the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Before our current celebration, October 7 was known as “Our Lady of Victory” because it commemorated the victory of the European Christian forces against the Turkish invaders in 1571 at the Battle of Lepanto. Pope St. Pius V was thoroughly convinced that it was through Our Lady’s intercession and the praying of the Rosary that the victory was secured. While we might not be facing a Turkish invasion in our day-to-day lives, I imagine all of us feel the daily threats that seek to rob us of our peace. Perhaps we think if we just get to one more thing on our to-do list, or if we can just get our lives in perfect order, then we will find our place of rest. I think Our Lady wants to conquer this kind of thinking as well. The beauty of the Rosary is precisely in its ordinariness. The ordinary prayers of the Rosary make it the perfect prayer for our rather ordinary lives. The Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be are among the first prayers we ever learned, and we know them by heart. The beads make it so that we don’t have to figure out a plan for our prayer. We can simply pick it up and say the prayers we already know.  One of the great temptations in our battle for prayer is to think it must be perfect. Another temptation is to think that our prayer must always be a kind of mountaintop experience where we find exhilaration or excitement. When this is the case, it is easy to give up the battle rather quickly. But Our Lady shows us another way. The mysteries of the Rosary focus on the whole of the life of Christ from His first days in Bethlehem and Nazareth all the way to His crucifixion and resurrection. In other words, they capture both the hidden and domestic life of Christ in the home, as well as the pinnacle events of the Paschal mystery. In other words, Mary shows us that the life of prayer is all-encompassing. It’s not simply intended for the highs and lows, but it is meant for every place in between. Practically, I recommend two ways to incorporate the Rosary into your daily life. First, begin small. If you don’t already have it as a daily practice, I would begin by simply saying a decade of the Rosary each day. After all, a decade a day keeps the devil away! Second, be consistent! This is the most important piece of the puzzle. If we can remain consistent in our prayer, it gives a channel for God’s grace to continually work in our lives. Inevitably, this will change us. Perhaps after a month or two of consistently praying a decade of the Rosary, we can then add another decade or two. Then maybe after a year or so, we can begin to pray a full Rosary every day. If you’re not perfect on the first try, or if you happen to miss a day or two, fear not! Ultimately, the Rosary is Our Lady’s school of prayer. Not only is she the perfect teacher, but she is also the most tender mother. She helps us in our weakness and always keeps us close to Jesus. Even if we feel like we are losing our own personal battle with prayer, we can be assured that she has already conquered. And as a good mother, her hand is always extended to help us get back up again. So grab your mother’s hand as you grab your beads, and trust that the victory is yours! Father Brian Isenbarger is pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Garrett. The post Finding Victory in the Rosary appeared first on Today's Catholic.