Using our God-given faculties in prayer
Using our God-given faculties in prayer
In a past blog
blast, we discussed the power of sticking to your prayer routine. Some folks
treat prayer like a business deal, clocking in with lines like "I sent up
a prayer" or "I prayed my heart out." If prayer is drudgery to
you, this blog can help you rethink prayer.
Some may see
their spiritual journey as preparing for a marathon - it's all about getting
ready for the big run. It doesn’t need to be that hard, but prayer does need
its prep. It's all about building that inner strength to power. Preparing for a
race with proper training can lead to some major rewards. Learning to pray with
the right mindset can lead to magical transformation.
Learning to pray
Our
spiritual laws operate similarly. Take The Lord’s Prayer, for instance; We can
mechanically repeat this prayer five times in a row, our minds wandering
elsewhere. Alternatively, we can recite it with intense concentration and
profound contemplation of its significance. The outcomes for us will be
markedly different. I'm sure anyone can discern which form of prayer is more
likely to yield a favorable outcome.
Let’s
add a third dimension to the prayer. We now add feeling to the prayer. We feel
God’s love for us as we “our Father.” We feel the honor of being in a heavenly
state as we intonate the words “Art in Heaven.” We indulge ourselves with the
glory of God and the majesty as we resonate “Hallowed be Thy Name.” This
personal connection, this intimate conversation with the divine, sets
this form of prayer apart. It is easy to see where I am going with this. This
third form of prayer will have an even more significant effect on us than even
the second practice above.
In
addition to the last type of prayer, let’s say we used our senses to engage
more of the human heritage God has bestowed upon us. For example, we say the
prayer out loud in a private room and let the words and meaning resonate in our
bodies. We let our skulls work like a musical instrument. As we breathe, we
quickly note the blessing of our God-given breath and how pleasing it is to us.
We become aware of any subtle vibrations and enjoy them in a non-judgmental
way. When done with such mindfulness and joy, this practice of prayer can bring
us a sense of peace and tranquility that is hard to find elsewhere.
We
use our imagination to see our blessings. As our awareness touches upon our
body, we feel the magnificence of the relaxation we have attained. If we
envision a blessing, we see it with all our senses. As we ask God to “Give us
this day our daily bread,” we smell and taste the bounty. Or we see, touch, and
hear the bounty we ask for.
Praying with others -
We
can do this alone in silence or congregation. I warn you to follow Jesus' words
when you work in church. Do not pray in public to be seen above others in your
holiness. Rather, do your mental work as described above, and you will help
lift the entire congregation. The congregation will also lift you
more.
Suppose
we give our prayer life. We will be rewarded if we fill our minds with joy and
use all our God-given gifts in prayer. What will the reward be? That reward
will differ for each person to the measure that they have invested and in their
need. God will know. God is interested in national affairs but also knows the
number of hairs on your head and the fall of a sparrow.
Other spiritual rituals -
As
children growing up Roman Catholic, we participated in the ritual of
confession, which involved bearing and purging our sins before the priest.
After admitting our shortcomings, the priest would counsel and ask us to do
penance. This became routine, and much like reciting a prayer like a
parrot, I received little benefit from the experience.
The same principles apply to confession that apply to prayer. If we do
something because we have to and our mind is not truly in it, we get little in
return. If we take the time to understand the ritual and then focus our minds
on the intention of the ritual, we will grow from the experience. Adding all our
God-given gifts of the five senses and augmenting them by using our imagination
faculties brings out the best of who we are at the present point we are in our
spiritual journey.
Do
not force the use of any of the above in prayer or in participating in a
ritual. Let the processes happen. If you visualize an outcome as part of your
prayer request, know it is OK. I enjoy the visualization. See it as a gift from
God. It truly is. Your ability to visualize is a God-given ability. It is
developed far greater in humans than in other mammals and far greater in
mammals than other creatures.
When
you experience using a sense during your prayer session of gratitude during a
ritual, drink it up. Smell the candle wax in the church. Feel and hear the joy
of singing. Be the song. You can become one with the act of gratitude. You
don’t have to force anything. Let it all come to you.
Practice helps
Enjoy the Journey
It
helps to enjoy the ride. As you notice new things in your spiritual
development, you should celebrate. Try to see that all things can have some fun
in them. What makes us think that God does not want to play with us? God wants
to interact with us and bestow gifts to his children. Have fun with God while
you adore him. Why not.
If I
am concentrating on something and I have told myself I will keep my mind on
that one thing, I try not to let my mind wander. However, I can engage my
senses and allow my imagination to work if it does not leave my central focus.
If I
am meditating on a virtue, the principle is the same. I can employ all my
God-given human heritage as long as I am given my virtue. I may find it easier
to focus when deploying these senses in time.
The idea
that prayer and adoration to God have to be a point of suffering is not right. It
is based on the teaching that fearing the Lord was to be our primary focus as a
spiritual being. Indeed, we can't break God’s spiritual laws with consequences.
Yet, Jesus taught us we can focus on love. We can focus on the good news. Spirituality
can be a joy. This may take practice, too, but it is worth anyone's effort.
I want
to close on this idea about learning to engage your senses and imagination.
This can be fun. If you find yourself imagining an outcome of something, really
see it. See the vivid colors. Hear the birds sing. Don’t be afraid to let all
five senses reward your experience.
If
this seems overwhelming, I suggest you meditate on one of my favorite biblical
verses. Jesus says in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 7, verse 7: "Ask and it
will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened
to you."
Know that
God will guide you to the degree you are willing to be guided. Above all, keep
preying. Keep seeking, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will
open.
Peace, Joe Pikul
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