What Is
Prayer
By Katy
So many people are
hurting in the world. In fact the majority of the world's population is
suffering, either from illness, poverty, troubled relationships or any
number of other maladies that plague humanity in these critical times.
But here is the good news! It doesn't have to be that way! We have
enormous, unused power within us that is just waiting to be unleashed...
This power is commonly known as prayer.
There are many different kinds of prayer and many different ways to pray. Does
anyone ever ask you to pray for them? Or as some say: "send positive
vibes". Actually this might be more accurate and a more powerful
"prayer" than a more formal prayer. Did you know that your
thoughts can be prayers? The thoughts that you think all day long, whether
you are aware of it or not? Thoughts and words carry ENERGY and POWER.
They can be compared to electricity.
The Bible says, "pray without ceasing". Now how can anyone do that!!
But yes we can do that or Jesus would not have told us to. When I
was a child I asked a wise Christian lady how she prayed. She
was always telling me that she did a lot of praying. Seems like she
prayed for everybody and everything! She said, "Honey, I pray
all day long... my thoughts are my prayers." Her answer left an
impression on me. Since then I have read many books on prayer,
"mind" power, and positive thinking, and I realize that she was right.
It can be a life long "project" getting into the habit of
"praying" without ceasing. What are some steps you can take ?
Be aware of your thoughts. The real you inside (the "inner
witness") can observe the "thinking" part of you... the activity
of your brain, including the imagination, interpretations, reasonings, reactions, ponderings, wonderings and so on. When you catch yourself
THINKING or saying anything unkind, destructive or negative, immediately STOP
and substitute a kind and positive thought.
Then there are prayers of thanksgiving and praise. Someone was once asked how
they prayed. Their answer was that they never asked for anything, but gave
thanks for what they already had. And we all do already have everything we
need. We just need to REALIZE it and "claim" it. The Bible
says that faith is
the substance of things unseen.... the SUBSTANCE. Faith is
substance.... think on that.
Prayer is also and mainly communion with God. It is awareness of God's presence...
sustaining a higher consciousness as we go about our everyday lives. And prayer
is RECEIVING what we already have....what is already existent in the
unseen realm.
Prayer is too great a subject to cover in one short article. I wish I could
give you a "magic" formula. I hope I have given you a few things
to think about. Above all I urge you to pray. To pray any way you
can; in whatever way feels right and effective for you. Pray and keep on praying and
thinking "positive". Prayer is the mightiest force in the world.
Please educate yourself on this most important subject. Below are some
books that I highly recommend.
"Prayer, the Mightiest Force in the World", by Frank Laubach
"Pray and Grow Rich", by Catherine Ponder
"God's Transmitters", by Hannah Hurnard
"Praise Releases Faith", by Terry Law
"The Healing Path of Prayer", by Ron Roth
"All Things Are Possible With Prayer", by Charles Allen
And don't forget to be still and listen for your answers!
The prayer of St.
Francis
Lord, make me an
instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master, grant
that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that
we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Prayer Chain for
Peaceful Stability
by Patricia
Monroe
You
are a person with unique talents and spiritual gifts who can indeed make
positive, calming changes through peaceful means in the world today. All it will
require of you is affirmative prayers and thoughts.
With so much volatility imploding worldwide today concerning fearful economic
forecasts through news related reports, it has become imperative to counteract
this negative spiral. Because fear self-perpetuates, each time a pessimistic
report is presented in any form to the public, volatility increases as people
and businesses alike make reactive fear based choices to what seems to be an all
encompassing resonance of fear laden shock waves.
However, it is absolutely not necessary to despair because there is indeed
something we can do in these times of negative chaos. Each of us has within his
or her own uniquely created divinity to individually hold fast prayerful
intentions of stability. When we positively control our thoughts in order to
facilitate transforming, healing directives in the world, even at an individual
level it will make a difference. At a level of mass collectivity, the positive
difference will be even more profound. It will make a difference!
“When two or three are gathered….” Matt. 18:20
Advanced science today through the study of quantum theory is examining
resonance fields, meaning forms of energy that radiate outwardly from individual
thoughts and actions, made stronger and more far-reaching by the collective
effort. When a resonance field reaches a certain point in quality and quantity,
it becomes a morphic resonance field, thereby facilitating changes within the
universal population. Therefore, thoughts of stability, courage, and love
through peaceful efforts intended with world wide effectiveness done by many
individuals are not only possible, but probable when done with the intentions of
calming fears in the current world wide economic situation. When resonating from
a large group of people, they will indeed serve as a counter balance to the
current fear-laden instability.
This is not a new concept at all. In troubled times over two thousand years ago,
Apostle Paul described it well in Phil 4: 6-8, 12-13. “…whatever is true,
whatever is honest, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good
report; if there is any virtue and if there is any praise, think about these
things.”
I invite you to participate any way you feel called, as often as you feel
necessary during the day for the weeks and months ahead through positive
visualization, prayer, and affirmation. Be the calming, loving stability you
wish to see in the world today. That is all that is necessary.
Together, we will indeed make a positive difference.
A large collective of people with similar intention will indeed bring balance to
these volatile times. It starts at the individual level, one person at a time.
It is most important that you participate. Thank you!
Anyway
by Mother
Teresa
People
are often unreasonable and self-centered.
Forgive them
anyway.
If you are kind,
People may
accuse you of ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.
If you are
honest, people may cheat you.
Be honest
anyway.
If you find
happiness, people may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.
The good you do
today, may be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Give the world
the best you have.
And it may never
be enough.
For you see, in
the end, it is between you and God.
It never was
between you and them anyway."
Prayer for the
Gifted
Lord, I am
grateful for all You've given me, for all the gifts that I have.
Help me
not to be critical or scornful of those with different gifts.
Help me
not to despair when it seems I've been given more than I can
deal with.
And guide me, so that I may use my gifts for the increase
of Your
glory. Amen.
The Lord's
Prayer
In the Language of the
Indian Sages
Our Father in
Heaven.............The Source of our Being
Holy be your
name.................Lead us from un-holiness to holiness
Your Kingdom
come.................... From fragmentation to wholeness
Your will be done
on earth as in heaven..............From conflict to harmony
Give us today our
daily bread....................From time to eternity
Forgive us our
sins as we forgive those who sin against us................. From sin to grace.
Do not bring us to
the test....................................From duality to unity
But deliver us
from evil...................................... From darkness to Light.
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"Now
you will feel no rain,
For
each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now
you will feel no cold,
For
each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now
there is no more loneliness,
for
each of you will be companion to the other..."
~traditional
Apache prayer
A Prayer
for Protection
"The Light
of God surrounds me,
The Love of God enfolds me,
The power of God protects me,
The presence of God watches over me.
Wherever I am, God is
And all is well."
Favorite
Quotes On Prayer
"The fundamental purpose of prayer, including
the prayer of petition, is not to get something from God, or to change God,
but to change ourselves. We pray in order to give ourselves to God."
Fr. Thomas Keating,
"One of the most imporant
things that any of us can do to help the world are to pray and meditate
consistently."
~ Marianne Williamson
"Prayer is something deeper
than words. It is present in the soul before it has been formulated into words.
And it abides in the soul after the last words of prayer have passed over our
lips. Prayer is an attitude of our hearts, an attitude of mind. Prayer is
a definite attitude of our hearts toward God, an attitude which He in heaven
immediately recognizes as prayer, as an appeal to His heart. Whether it takes
the form of words or not, does not mean anything to God, only to
ourselves."
O. Hallesby,
"But why is it that some people, even some who are good Christians and who
pray fervently, can't seem to make Romans 8:28 work in their lives, while for a
few others it seems to be easy and natural? The answer is in the fact that
the vehicle by which the Way is made know to man - the line that connects the
individual soul with the Great Pattern - is the *unconscious mind.* You
may 'say prayers' all day, but if it's all done on a purely cerebral level - in
other words, if the door to the unconscious is closed, it's going to be nearly
impossible for the perfect spiritual answer to get through to you. It's
like talking into a phone that's been disconnected. If you're going to
receive guidance, if you're going to learn to flow with the River, you're going
to have to learn to *open up the connection between your conscious and
unconscious mind.* That's the great secret. It's the door you have
to open. "Knock and it shall be opened unto you." (Luke
11:9).MarilynHelleberg,
""I like the expression 'resting in God.' When you pray with
all your heart, the Holy Spirit is in you, and as you continue to pray, the Holy
Spirit continues in you. You do not need to do anything else. As
long as the Holy Spirit is there, everything is fine. You are resting in God,
and God will work in you. For transformation to take place, you only need
to allow the Holy Spirit to stay in you. The Holy Spirit is the energy of
God that shines forth and shows you the way. You can see things deeply,
understand deeply and love deeply."
BlankThich Nhat
Hanh.
"If we are
sensitive to the Spirit of Christ within us He (She) will suggest what is to be
done at each moment in our relationship to God, ourselves, other people, and the
cosmos. When we listen to the movements of the Spirit rather than to our own
bright ideas and self-centered programs for happiness, the internal commentary
that normally sustains our emotional upsets comes to an end, enabling us to
accept difficult situations and people. The neutral zone that we provide allows
the Spirit to act."
(author unknown)
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