Powerful Prayer

Having railed about powerless prayer yesterday, I want to make it clear that I believe in the counterpoint – powerful prayer. I also want to make it clear that I am very grateful for everyone who prayed for Danny, without regard to their beliefs about prayer and without regard to the outcome. The power of prayer lies in praying, not in its outcome. In my prayers for Danny for 4½ years, and in knowing that countless others were praying for him as well, I experienced each of the following powerful aspects of prayer.

§ Prayer connects us with God, the Creator, the Source of all life and energy in the world. Prayer affords us the opportunity to align ourselves with that Source and to come to a place of harmonic resonance with God, in whatever way we may experience God in our life. In that resonating alignment we are empowered to receive wisdom and make decisions in a brighter light.

§ Prayer is recognition that all things are not under our control, that purposes other than our own are unfolding in our lives. This recognition helps to lead us away from a self-centered view of life; it elevates us to higher vista where a new perspective allows us to see our lives in a bigger context.

§ Prayer is a means to help others through a heartfelt expression of our love and compassion for them. As such, it can be one of the most selfless activities in our day.

§ Prayer is a sacrifice of time, energy and attention.

§ Prayer is an expression of our feelings of need and a confirmation that we don’t believe that we have the power to meet those needs. But, at the same time it is a statement that we believe sufficient power is available to us in the universe without regard to whether those needs are met.

§ Prayer is a humble acknowledgement that many of the events of life are bigger than us. It is a means to achieve a peaceful acceptance of whatever may come our way; it is a means to discover and then tap into strength and endurance that we aren’t certain are within us.

§ Prayer creates a sense of community, both among those with whom we pray and those for whom we pray. It not only brings people together in a common cause that lies outside their own lives, but it brings us a realization that we are all much more alike than we are different.

§ Prayer is a means to express gratitude for an abundance of things that bring purpose, meaning or joy into our lives; and, it is a means to express gratitude for the absence of things that can drain purpose, meaning or joy from our lives.

Each of the above makes prayer more than worthwhile. All of the above make prayer a potentially invaluable element of a healthy life. While prayer doesn’t result in our personal Genie granting us “three wishes”, it can empower us and bring us an overarching awareness that alters how we view and approach almost everything that comes our way in life. As such, we are wise to pray often in whatever form prayer may take in our life.