Alignment

Prayers to the Source

“I once read in an essay on Buddhism that 'nothing is so fragile as action without prayer.' Prayer aligns our internal energies with truth in a way that mere action cannot.”

                                 Marianne Williamson (Illuminata)

In her chapter titled 'Ladders to God,' Williamson refers to prayer as God's gift to us, the key to God's house. I don't know about you, but I have strayed away from daily prayer and am trying to get back to putting that awareness into my everyday life. Prayer for me is not so much a communication from me to God 'out there' as it is an internal communion with the Higher Self. Prayer is aligning my energies with that part of me that is God. It is saying to that part, 'be with me today; guide my actions and my words; show me the way.' Prayer is bringing into awareness, and acknowledging, that I can choose to operate from my ego-self, or I can come from my Higher Self. If I am operating from the ego, I cannot help but be self-serving. If I operate from the Higher Self, I can be open to whatever life brings without the shield of ego-defense.

Sometimes, my prayer is simply, 'tell me what to say,' or 'don't let me botch this.' I remember my mother, when she was stressed beyond her capacity to deal, saying 'give me strength.' I wonder now whether that was a prayer, or just her way of expressing utter frustration. Maybe it was both. I wonder why I sometimes let prayer slip from my life. Even scientific research has proven that prayer makes a difference. Sick people for whom others are praying recover more quickly, have less pain, and spend less time in hospital than those for whom no prayers are said. A deep sense of faith in something greater than ourselves, no matter what name we give it, is fundamental to life satisfaction, to relationships that love and support, and to overall happiness. So why is it so hard to keep that in focus?

Simply this: we have been taught to be self-sufficient in most aspects of life. We have been taught to do our own thing, and take care of ourselves, be our own best friend. It's a teaching that has clay feet, unfortunately. We need the love and support of others, and we need to believe that there is something greater than ourselves in this universe, and we need to trust that that Greater Something cares about us. When we pray, we are in communion with the Source. And that does 'give us strength.'

                                    In the spirit,

                                         Jane