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| 1,000,000 monks praying: Shawn Williams |
Leo Tolstoy is absolutely right. We truly cannot live happily without prayer.
Many of us miss the mark and the rewards of prayer, because we are not fully aware that deep, sincere, meaningful prayer is done in the silence. It's when you are able to reach to the core of your being and make a click, a connection to the center of you. It's when, according to Tolstoy, you begin to fly.
"We can and should live in our physical life, but as soon as an obstacle appears, we should spread our wings and start to fly."
Inside prayer lifts us to a greater understanding of what is before us, so we that even if the answer takes a long time, we build courage. wisdom and strength in the meantime, and eventually, are able to mount with wings of eagles:
" But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40: 31
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| Public prayers in some religions serve the common good and may help soothe the masses. |
Forcing people to pray, or praying without touching the inside of you, becomes "prayering."
This is described in Matthew 6:5.
"But when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily, I say unto you, They have their reward."
(North Carolina County commissioners sued for trying to make prayers official.))
Many people are taught at a young age to pray out loud, upon awakening and before bed. Eventually, though, we should outgrow this form of prayer. These audible morning and nighttime prayers were developed for the convenience of parents to make sure their kids were being obedient. At some point, these audible prayers exhaust their purpose, as our souls naturally guide us to go within. "We cannot get to know God by listening to stories about Him. You get to know Him only by following his law, which is written in the heart of every person."
-Leo Tolstoy"A little boy once went to bed and asked his nurse to pray for him and continue to play with his dolls while he slept. People have the same childish attitude toward God. They believe they can live bad lives, go to bed, and be prayed for by someone who will continue to play the game for them."
-Leo Tolstoy, Wise Thoughts of Everyday.
People may guide you on how to pray for yourself...and it may work for a time.
But the greatest prayer you can develop is your own silent, heart to heart, prayer, reaching silently for God without words.
When you recognize God as your source and supply, then you are in essence, praying, without saying a word.
When you're focused on God as your help in every need, you're praying, without saying a word.
As you recognize and focus on God, you begin to know that all things you do, achieve and desire come from the Source within.
You don't need to get down on your knees to pray, unless it has become so habitual that this is the only way you can touch the core of your being. Then, by all means get down on your knees to pray.
The main thing you should realize is that prayer is a personal and an inside job.
There is no right way to pray.
I repeat: there is no right way to pray!
Just as you are an individualized Soul on its journey on Earth, that is the same individualized inner work you need to do to connect with your Soul.
People may share how they pray with you, but trying to follow them may only lead you to frustration. Prayer simply is your conversation with God: It is private. It is personal. It is in your own voice.
Do you copy someone else's voice when you speak out loud? Do you try to imitate someone else when you talk about things that matter to you? Then, why in the world would you try to imitate someone else's way when you pray!
(In August, I shared three different preachers, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Joel Osteen, and Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith, who have completely different styles yet manage to connect Soulfully with each of us. If you didn't read that piece, please check it out.)
Esteemed Spiritual Teacher Marianne Williamson spoke on our greatest fear.
It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
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| President Barack Obama was a black-haired young man when he took office in 2009. Today, he is gray haired and the weight of the world is on his shoulders. God please bless and continue to be the leading force and guiding light in our president's life! |
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other
people won't feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest the glory of
God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people
permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.
—Marianne Williamson
I say now: "My greatest fear" is not so much that we differ, but that we all strive to be alike...not creating from our own Souls... but simply imitating and copying...that IS my biggest fear!
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| These Buddhist monks, notwithstanding: I do not want to wake up to a world of sameness! Photo Credit: BBC News |
So many of us seem to suggest in our behavior that we would lose our way, without copying what someone else is doing. We are so afraid to take our own risks, chances, on where we are being led by our Souls, that we look over to see what and how someone else is doing things, and we pattern their behavior and practices.
This is wrong!
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| Buddhism chooses unanimity so that monks can achieve focus on their inner prayer work and enlightenment. Sameness works in such an environment and for such a purpose. |
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The diversity of our world is what makes it more interesting. YOU are what makes the world interesting! Would God want each of us to turn out to be monks in training?
No. We all enter into the world with our special gifts. God wants us to use them. Even in monasteries and ministries, people who are called to a cloistered life find diversity among their ranks.
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| These young Buddhist monks are being prepared to keep the lights burning for so many of us who would walk the world in darkness. They are trained to seek Peace. We need their preparation and prayers. |
Our diversity, our uniqueness is what makes our world interesting, our life worth living. We fight hard to express our individuality, our uniqueness in public debates and forums, then give it up by secretly and silently copying how someone else does his/her walk through life.
God doesn't have ears to hear your prayers, neither does God have eyes to see your prayers. God does, however, feel your prayers, as you do when you make the "connection" and get that "knowing" feeling within. So, like a person who is blind, mute or is disabled in some way, you can choose to stand silently, sit silently and pray silently.
Admittedly, though, in some churches, the sweetest thing you will hear on a Sunday morning, is the prayer of the pastor: There is nothing sweeter than a heartfelt prayer from a good, solid preacher.
But after listening to the preacher, we go home. That's when we should: Pray Alone.
Or stay in the church. Pray alone. Or if in a group, reach inside you so the prayer touches your core. "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
"But when ye pray, use not van repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking."
Be not ye therefore like unto them..."- Matthew 6: 6-8
The "Our Father" is my sweetest prayer. I will never stop saying that prayer and enjoying and feeling it each time I say it, whether out loud, on my knees, or in silence.
I thank God for the people before me who created this prayer, as well as the 23rd, 27th, 30th,
46th, 51st and 91st Psalms. I thank God for them!
As a Unity student (Unity School of Christianity, Lee's Summmit, MO), I learned another prayer that serves me always and in all ways:
The Prayer of Faith,
by Hannah More Kohaus:
God is my help in every need;God does my every hunger feed;God walks beside me, guides my wayThrough every moment of this day.
I now am wise, I now am true,
Patient and kind, and loving, too;
All things I am, can do, and be,
Through Christ the Truth, that is in me.
God is my strength, unfailing, quick;
God is my all, I know no fear,
Since God and Love and Truth are here.
(Please also enjoy this same prayer, with some additions, as shared by Rev. Sallye Taylor: Prayer of Faith, As Shared by Rev. Sallye Taylor on youtube.com)
Whether we're praying or "prayering," we're seeking the same results: solutions and answers.
In attempting to reach a higher power for assistance, what you should be most concerned about is making a real connection to the Soul. Therein lie answers and solutions and the only true, and often fastest method, to lay your burdens down.
Namaste',
Che'
NOTE: Sometimes, we may find ourselves unable to pray for ourselves. That's when I recommend you reach out to others to pray with, or for, you. I have high respect and strongly recommend the following prayer lines:
Unity 24-Hour Prayer Line: 800-669-7729 (from United States) or 01-816-969-2000 (International); Unity is open 365 days a year, 24 hours, and Kenneth Hagin Miinistries, Tulsa, Oklahoma: 918-258-1588 ext.3 for prayer. This is open 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. CST, Monday through Friday.
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