My children, you have been taught by many good teachers, including John, a set form of prayer: “O Father, cleanse us from sin, show us your glory, reveal your love, and let your spirit sanctify our hearts forevermore, Amen!” And while this serves as a good example for the masses, I tell you it was never intended to be the ultimate expression of your own souls.
True prayer is an entirely personal and spontaneous act, a living communion of the soul with the Spirit of the Father. It is the sincere and earnest expression of sonship and the profound feeling of fellowship with the Universal Father. Prayer is not a set formula or a ritualistic repetition; it is the breath of the soul. When inspired by the indwelling Spirit, it becomes a co-operative enterprise for spiritual growth, leading to the highest form of worship. The highest ideal of prayer is the sincere reaching heavenward for the attainment of your divinely implanted ideals.
And you must be persistent in this sacred communion, for persistence is the key to ascending the spiritual path. If one of you has a neighbor and you go to him at midnight, saying, “Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, for a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him,” and if your neighbor answers from within, “Do not trouble me; the door is now shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot rise to give you bread,” I tell you that because of your importunity, he will get up and give you as many loaves as you need. If persistence can win favors from a reluctant human, how much more shall your persistence in the spirit win the bread of life from the willing hands of your Father in heaven. Therefore, I say to you: Ask, and it shall be given; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened. For every one who asks receives; and he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door of spiritual salvation will be opened.
Think, too, of yourselves as fathers. If your son asks you for a loaf, would you give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, would you give him a watersnake, even if he foolishly desired it? No. You, being mortal, know how to give good and appropriate gifts to your children, answering not in the terms of their faulty petitions, but in accordance with your own parental wisdom. How much more shall your heavenly Father, being perfect in wisdom and love, give the Spirit and all other blessings to those who ask him? I say to you, men ought always to pray and not to become discouraged.
Let me also share with you the story of a certain judge who lived in a wicked city. This judge feared not God nor had he respect for man. In that same city was a needy widow who came repeatedly to this unjust judge, saying, “Protect me from my adversary!” For a time, he would not give ear to her, but eventually, he said to himself: “Though I fear not God nor have regard for man, yet because this widow continually troubles me, I will see that she is vindicated, lest she wear me out by her persistent coming.”
I tell you these stories to encourage you to persist in praying, not to suggest that your petitions will change the character of the just and righteous Father above. Your persistence is not to win favor with God; rather, it is to change your own earth attitude and to enlarge your soul’s capacity for spiritual receptivity. It is a persistent expression of faith.
And know this: when you pray, you exercise so little faith. Genuine faith will remove mountains of material difficulty which may chance to lie in the path of your soul’s expansion and spiritual progress.
The Father’s love is not a fickle thing to be swayed by a plea. You do not come to him to change his mind, for his plan for you and for all creation is already perfect and good. Your prayer is not a demand for a cosmic favor, but an opportunity to align your will with his perfect will. Do not come with a list of wants as if you were bartering with a merchant. Come instead with the attitude of a trusting child, open and ready to receive whatever your loving parent knows you need.
The Father gives you what you require for your spiritual growth, not always what your finite mind may desire. You may pray for riches, but he may give you poverty that you might learn humility. You may pray for health, but he may give you strength of spirit to endure sickness. The answer to every sincere prayer is an embrace, an influx of grace, and the precise aid you require for your soul’s progression on the pathway to Paradise.
Therefore, do not mistake unanswered prayer for a lack of love. The Father never fails to answer; the answer is often a silence of divine wisdom, a gentle redirection of your spirit to the greater truth. The prayer of true faith says, "I will be what you desire me to be," not "Give me what I desire to have." True prayer is a surrender of your will, not an assertion of it. It is the sincere declaration of, “Thy will be done,” and the joyful acceptance of whatever follows.
Beyond the prayer of petition is the prayer of worship. When you have asked for all you think you need, and all that is needful for your brothers, let your soul ascend in simple praise. The highest form of prayer is not to ask, but to adore. It is a state of mind where your being is filled with the recognition of the Father's perfection and the love he has for you.
You can speak to him in quiet words, but you can also pray without a sound, with no spoken thought. Your spirit can commune with the Spirit within. This is the most personal and profound form of prayer, a silent meeting of a soul with the fragment of the Divine that indwells it. It is the homegoing of the mortal mind into the peaceful presence of the Father's spirit.
Let not your prayer be a passive act. It is not an escape from responsibility or a substitute for labor. You are partners with the Father in the work of the universe. Prayer provides you with the vision and the power, but it is your hands that must do the work. Go forth from your communion with the spirit, renewed and inspired to live the truths you have contemplated.
Pray for your enemies and for those who persecute you. Pray for the strength to forgive. It is easier to pray for a friend than it is for one who has wronged you. But I say to you, the prayer you offer for a soul you find difficult to love is the prayer that cleanses your own heart and purifies your own intentions. It is in these prayers of love that your soul expands most greatly.
Make prayer a habit, a constant communication. Let it be a refuge in times of trouble and a song of gratitude in times of joy. Your Father is always present, always listening, and always responding to the sincere attitudes of your soul. Do not confine your prayers to specific hours or places; rather, let your entire life become a living prayer.
The fruits of this prayerful life are immeasurable. You will find an inner peace that the world cannot take away. You will gain strength to endure all trials and tribulations. Your mind will gain clarity, and your soul will grow in grace and wisdom. You will know the joy of true sonship, and you will become a living channel for the Father’s love to flow into the world.
Let your faith guide you, your love inspire you, and your prayer sustain you. Your Father is with you, now and always. Go in peace.
Michael of Nebadon
