
Prayer is my connection to peace and eventual clarity. It is my plug-in to the Source.
It's not that prayer is a means to get what we want, rather it is a way to gently shape our interior lives, which impacts our external lives. It's a way to come into deep relationship with a loving God.
This is a prayer I say when I am feeling calm:
“Let me keep listening to you, God. Let me hear your thoughts and words that are much more comforting and clear than any thoughts or words I create on my own. Let me hear your sweet voice of clarity. Every time I start to stray, obsess, or ruminate about worries, concerns, or issues that may not be resolved in the way that I expect or in my timing, please bring me back to you and your loving guidance. Thank you for the abundance and blessings in my life. Bless and heal us.”
This is a prayer I say when I am upset:
“Where are you God? Where have you been? Why would a loving God allow all of this? You must not be as all powerful as people say you are because an all-powerful God would make things automatically better for those who are suffering so much. I don't understand. Who are you really?”
The latter is a painful but honest prayer. It is a prayer that leads me to further exploration of who God actually is. Often, it leads me back to biblical verses such as “For God is not the author of confusion but of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33 KJV), or "The Lord is on my side...I will not fear" (Psalms 118:6 KJV). Ahhh...the Lord is on my side -- not easy to remember sometimes.
While there are many things I don't know, what I do know -- as a result of prayerful and soul-searching times -- is that God is love, and this love is available to all of us at any time. Prayer leads me right back to this fact.
I remember seeing the video story of a man who was 70 years of age, and for the first time he was entering the first grade – yes, the first grade. He looked into the camera and said:
“My mother’s prayer has finally been answered – I am going to get an education.”
I thought, now that is faith. How many years did that mother's prayer take before it was answered? Yet there he was, getting his education and starting out in the first grade at 70 years of age.
Fantastic.
We will never fully understand the mystery of prayer.
Do you pray? If so, keep praying dear ones, no matter your style of prayer, the words you choose, your level of experience in praying, whether joyful or discouraged, or whether you pray alone or with others. Don't worry about the outcome of your prayers. Just keep praying.
If you haven't prayed you might try it. Persistent and honest prayer will change your life. Prayer helps change our lives for the better as we find our true center.
Has prayer helped you? How do you pray? Please let us know in the comments below. We would love to hear from yoU!
(Written by Jane Hart, copyright 2014)