Redefining Prayer

I hope everyone had a fabulous Mother’s Day!  (Whether you raise your own or are part of the “village” that raises others’ children)  I had a truly amazing day spending quality time with my husband, the boys, and my parents.  I have SO much to be grateful for!

One of the most memorable parts of my day came at the end of the night when the boys were asleep and the house was quiet.  I had an assignment for a spiritual development course I am taking and it required having a partner.  It was an hour and a half long meditation and reflection “workshop”.  My husband agreed to do it with me.  Normally I would have read through the workshop outline ahead of time and maybe even listened to the meditations in advance just so I would know what I was getting him into, but I had been so busy and didn’t make time to do that, so I was forced to just go with the flow.  I’m so glad I did.

I began by giving him some more background on what we’ve been learning about, and spent a little time walking him through each of the 5 elements of the prayer technique we were introduced to a couple weeks ago.  The technique is designed to help you move from praying to God as “Santa Claus in the sky” who will magically grant all of your wishes if you just ask enough, but rather using prayer to align your mind back with the spiritual qualities of God (which are your nature).  Removing all of your internal blocks to seeing the divinity in everyone and everything, AND so you can remember that all of the qualities of God are already available within you (love, peace, wholeness, abundance, joy, compassion, etc.).

The workshop consisted of four guided meditations (approximately 10 minutes each) and breaks in between for readings, journaling, and to answer some specific reflection questions about the meditations.  The first one began with this reading:

Ernest Holmes said that we must “enter the silence”.  The silence is within us, not in the outer world; it is up to us to find the silence and experience it.  It is in the silence of our being that we come to recognize the distinction between the forms, or physical wants and needs in our lives, and the ultimate purpose and meaning for our lives.  Thus we free ourselves to treat [or, as most say, pray] for that which will bring us peace, joy, love, harmony, true prosperity, etc. 

It was so good to meditate together again (we used to do this a few years ago – pre-babies :-)) and just “be”.  The entire workshop was really powerful for both of us, but the third meditation in particular is what had the most profound impact on me (and I believe my husband as well).  This meditation was focused on realizing what it is that we really want.  So often we have desires, but we don’t ask ourselves what it is that we hope to experience from having that which we desire.  So, we are disappointed when we finally get the new home or the relationship we’ve been praying for because we’re still not happy.  The issue is that we didn’t assess what it is that we really want…to experience love…to feel secure…to have peace…etc.  Most times we will not be happy once we get the material things we want because they are cover ups for a deeper desire of our hearts.

“We are moved away from an empowering relationship with God when we go for the form without assessing the experience or qualities of life we are also seeking” ~Ernest Holmes

So, the third meditation asked that you and your partner take turns and ask each other three questions over and over for three minutes:  What do you really want?  What form do you see this taking?  What specific experience do you desire from what you want?. This is such a powerful exercise that I encourage everyone who is wanting anything (uh, everyone) to do.  It’s funny how disconnected our wants can be from what the experience we desire.  This is a practice that we will certainly continue going forward, individually and as a family.  My deep desire is to know and experience peace, love, compassion and joy in every moment – starting with our home and then rippling into the world.  What’s your deepest desire?  Something to think about until next time…

“The process of [prayer] is to bring into alignment that which we know to be true and that which we are not experiencing.  In this process we are surrendering any idea of separation between the inner and outer realms of our being.  We are surrendering any idea or feeling of separation between the Creator and It’s Creation…between the Intelligence and Wisdom the peace and Harmony of the Creating power and our own life.” 

~Ernest Holmes, The Anatomy of Healing Prayer

Keep shining!

~Kandace

About the Author: Kandace Jones

I used to live life shackled by fear, doubt, and worry. I put on a happy face while navigating my day-to-day duties, but I was emotionally drained, stressed, and unhappy. When I hit rock bottom, and was diagnosed with depression and anxiety, I was determined to live life differently. I knew there had to be another way. Out of that determination, and guidance from Spirit, the "Living in the Light" blog was born. It documents my spiritual journey out of the darkness and into the Light. After nine months of publicly sharing my journey, and consciously releasing my attachment to the ego, I experienced a powerful spiritual awakening. I went from living in fear, doubt, worry, and stress to complete inner peace. My greatest passion has become assisting others on their own journey to inner peace. My spiritual memoir, From Stress to Peace: An Intimate Journal on the Journey from Living in Darkness to Living in the Light, is available now on Amazon and BN.com. Click the tabs at the top of the page to learn more about the From Stress to Peace 21-Day Challenge, Living in the Light Retreats, 1:1 sessions, and the Living in the Light Community - all of which are designed to support your journey to inner peace. I appreciate you taking the time to visit the blog and look forward to supporting you in any way I can!