My iPad Prayer Book

For Christmas, I received a gift that has totally changed my prayer life. I didn’t expect this; I thought I would use it for email and blog reading and electronic books.

As it turns out, though, my iPad has revolutionized my prayer time in a season of life that I can only call chaotic.

I use the Divine Office app for either Morning Prayer, Night Prayer, or sometimes even both. I use Notes to keep a running list of those special intentions I want to remember when I pray my morning rosary.

And my morning rosary? It might be an audio rosary thanks to Rosary Army (which isn’t an app at all—it’s more like using my iPad as a radio), or it might be iRosary, the Scriptural Rosary, or the Holy Rosary with Audio (which is the only app I’ve found so far that has audio AND visual).

Though I’d like to say I do this every morning, I only really get to it three mornings a week, but thanks to iMissal, I can reflect on the coming Sunday’s Mass readings with or without audio.

Often—at least once a month—I feel myself compelled to pray a novena for some special intention. I need look no further than iPieta or Prayer 2000+ for great selection and even ideas of which saint to entrust with my petitions.

I find myself not reading books that much on my iPad, which is how I had expected to mostly use it. Maybe that’s because my reading pile—the real books, that is—is so big right now.

For me, at lest in this season of my life, my iPad has been a blessing for my prayer life, combing my gadgetlove with a real coming closer.

Do you have an electronic way to foster your prayer life? Share your favorite apps (Apple or others) in the comments and we’ll try to round them up in a future column!