First, apologies for not posting last week. I’m not sure where that week went. It just came and then was gone! This last Sunday, I spoke at the CMC Sunday’s Miracles Service. I shared the difference between prayer and meditation. I’d like to share with you a little about prayer and also a format for prayer that I learned from a dear friend that I would like to offer to you.
First, what is prayer? A Course in Miracles says:
“…the only meaningful prayer is for forgiveness because those who have been forgiven have everything. Once forgiveness has been accepted, prayer in the usual sense becomes utterly meaningless. Essentially a prayer for forgiveness is nothing more than a request that we may be able to recognize something we already have.” (OrEd.Tx.3.56,60).
Prayer is not an attempt to get God to do something for me, nor should it be to whine about things not being how I want them to be. Rather, prayer is so that we “may be able to recognize something we already have.” Many religions call this affirmative prayer - affirming the truth. When you ask God for things, you are affirming that you are lacking and whatever you hold in your consciousness, the Universe will give you - it says “Yes!” to whatever it is that you want at your deepest level (which may or may not match what you think or say that you want)
So, here is the acronym to support you in working with affirmative prayer: GODS prayer!
G: Gratitude - Give thanks for the things in your life. That can be your work, your friends, family, your commitment to your spiritual path, and even as simple as breathing, being able to speak, being conscious, etc. This will elevate your vibration and bring you more towards the mindset of Spirit that all things are for your good.
O: Offer it up - Offer those things to God/Spirit that no longer serve you. Place them on the altar and allow Spirit to burn those from your life. This can be relationships, thoughts, feelings, habits… anything that is seeming to be a barrier in your life to knowing yourself as one with Love and recognize that these things may be in your life for a reason. So you are “offering them” but you are not forcing them out of your life. Be gentle with yourself and allow Spirit to do the heavy work.
D: Declare the truth - Make a declaration of the things that are True (with a capital “T”). God provides all of your needs. All things are planned for your good. All relationships are supporting you in learning to forgive. God is amazing. You are a Child of God. You are perfect, whole and complete. Allow yourself to feel into the statements that feel best to you.
S: Share the blessing with all - We are all one. We are Spirit and as we heal, everyone else heals. So we “share the blessing” with everyone to remind ourselves of this and to send Love to all beings.
Gratitude, Offer, Declare and Share. It’s clean, it’s easy and have fun with it! I’d love to hear your experience with this. And also I’d encourage you to watch this video where I talk about prayer and meditation, including the GODS prayer. Love to you!