Dear Friends,
“The Principle of Prayer.”
Whether we realize it or not, spiritual principles govern our lives. When we understand this and mindfully work with these principles in our day-to-day living, it makes all the difference.
There is Something deep within us; living us; waiting to be recognized, and always ready to guide and direct. We need to listen. It is a voice of silent Love, Peace, and Wisdom, and much of the time, living the way we do, involved so often at the surface of life, we do not hear IT. IT never leaves us or forsakes us—in fact IT cannot, for we are extensions of IT. This is true for each and every one on the planet.
In Spirit we all have the same rights and this cuts across gender, tribe, nationality, religion and tradition. What we are all challenged to do, is recognize the spiritual nature of Life, in, as, and through—this is the Omnipresence of God. We can only move forward in our respective ways when we understand the Oneness of Life.
There is a current running through us; the current of Life. We do not live ourselves—we are lived. When realized, we might then ask: “What more do I pray for, what more do I need?” In his book, “The Altitude of Prayer,” Joel Goldsmith states the following: “To live by prayer means to reach a state of consciousness where we come into conscious oneness with the Presence, that Inner Source, and live without taking thought, without struggle, and without striving. Prayer is undoubtedly the highest way of life there is.”
Do we not find though, that it is often human need that turns us to God? There is a drought so we pray for rain; there is physical challenge and we pray for healing. The daily challenges in the form of unemployment etc., also turn us God-ward in prayer. This is through a want or a need. Here comes the principle: when we are praying for something—some end result, something to be fixed; our focus (belief) is on that need. In a sense then, we get what we pray for … more of what we believe or hold to be true. For example, if we are praying for money—our belief is on the lack of it. Is our belief at the moment on the drought we are experiencing here in the Eastern Cape?
Over the years (and currently) there have been prayers for world peace. Yet Jesus said that the kingdom is not of this world, but to be found within every individual. In your consciousness and mine. So persistent prayer is not going to work if within us there is the idea of lack and war and other atrocities. We do not deny what is happening, yet we need to be part of the solution. Prayers have nothing to do with enlisting God’s assistance in living a better human life. The purpose of prayer is to know God, and experience the Inner Presence.
Many times our focus is on the four-letter word, NEED. We lose sight of our spiritual heritage as we are swamped with what seems to be missing and the need for whatever it is, dominates. Paul gave the Thessalonians the directive to pray without ceasing; seemingly impossible from a human standpoint. Yet we are already doing that because every thought is a “prayer” going out from us. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.
We are dealing with spiritual principle here and there is a corresponding, inevitable response to what we hold as true, in consciousness. We remind ourselves that everything in the manifest world comes forth from the invisible. It is in our moments of stillness; in the Silence, that we let go of any need on the human level, and recognize and accept and experience the Presence!
In Closing…….
According to the mystical tradition, mortal mind goes to sleep in the divine mind, passing in this way from an earthly to a heavenly state. Through the cultivation of knowledge and the practice of good works, we enlarge in understanding. Upon the crest of the world, whether it be Moab, Golgotha, or Himavat, there is that supreme moment when the wisdom of man surrenders to the grace of God. This is the instant that changes the world. Time returns to eternity; the part is united with the whole; the spark is one again with the flame.
As man ascends physically through the levels of growth and culture recognized by anthropologists, so he rises spiritually through the mysteries of the hierarchy as described in the writings of seers and saints. Materially he grows in darkness toward the source of universal light.
Paraphrased from The Mystical Christ—Manly P. Hall
Bountiful Blessings
Mallory
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