Guidance and Prayer

©2008 Joan M. Newcomb

I just completed a submission to the Oprah Show on Prayer and Healing (see it on my Mystic Musings blog ) which inspired me to write more on the subject of prayer.

I don't pray, at least in the way I assume people pray, although I do enjoy standard prayers such as St. Francis' and the Serenity Prayer. I have a metaphysical approach to prayer (of course). I see it as focusing energy more than communication with the Divine. For instance, the Lord's Prayer from a mystical viewpoint actually helps one run energy through your chakras!

My communication with God or the Universe is more casual, and usually starts with my saying "Hey U"! I don't ask for anything, although sometimes I request clarity on things.

The other day I was in a meeting and we were reading a story where the person prayed for guidance for her marriage. What a great idea! So me, being me, closed my eyes and shifted my focus, intending on prayer for guidance, too, and instead found myself relaxing into a greater awareness of the energy in the room. Things became brighter and sharper and clearer. Which is how I feel when I'm connected to Source.

What kept running through my head was the phrase 'sought through prayer and meditation to increase our conscious contact with God, prayer only for God's will for us and the guidance to carry it out'. I thought that was an interesting response to a request for guidance for one's marriage.

Except that I have been aware of wanting to focus more on my partnership with Source, in which case it was a pretty clear answer.

Then I felt a little resistance to praying for God's will for me, but that's because of the language. Any time I've aligned my will with Source, the higher Will, I've felt much better and in agreement with whatever is going on at the time.

I thought about 'the power to carry it out' and how it was similar to the Serenity Prayer's 'Courage to change the things I can' (which I've always considered to be me). Courage and power. When I'm aligned with Source, my energy feels clear, I feel empowered (inwardly, rather than dominantly powerful).

Writing this I recognize my resistance was my little ego wanting to run the show. It's a chihuahua thinking it's a mastiff. It's a mini-will with a Napoleon complex.

My current growth phase concerns de-energizing patterns in the morphic field that have been blocking my experience as Spirit. My little will thinks they're real, so I end up battling with windmills. (Don't you love how I'm mixing metaphors today)? Which only solidifies them, or brings more experiences that reinforces them.

So, without formally going down on my knees, I'm coming to see that my prayer is being answered. I was wanting navigational tips, but the guidance I'm getting is to focus on my inner connection with Source. It feels like what to do is to turn within and the patterns will naturally evaporate from lack of attention.

Notice that my experience with prayer is more empathic and unstructured. It's intuitive rather than intellectual, I feel it more than think it. Notice what your natural tendency is; are you visual rather than verbal? Maybe your form of prayer is in drawing, and your guidance comes through mental images rather than words. Are you musical? Perhaps your connection with the Divine is in playing some good tunes. And when a song goes through your head, the lyrics could be communication from Source.

Have fun with this, and see what happens!