Praying…. 11/6/2016

I used to think that I wanted to pray like a fella in my prayer group. When I shared that with him, he set me straight. He told me that my “talk time” with God was not supposed to be like his.  He then told me whatever I had to offer to God in prayer was 100% acceptable to God.  It took a long time of thinking about that and coming to believe it.

Sometime later I spoke with a trusted spiritual guide.  I shared with her that I felt guilty for not taking the time to pray the way I thought I should. She asked what I meant and I told her that I had good intentions of setting aside time but then I got caught up in the things of the day, my work and didn’t get to it.  I did tell her that I prayed in church and sometimes with certain clients.  She asked me if I had conscious awareness of God throughout my day. I told her yes, that often I think of Him in the “inter-stitches” during the day, times between activities, times when I’m in my car, and times when I’m in transitions. She simply said to me, “That’s prayer!” I was taken aback, but as I reflected on it, I realized she was right. She also told me not to worry about the structure and the amount of time. She also asked how God communicates with me. I told her in different ways – sometimes an idea in my head (“aha”), sometimes something from my reading, sometimes in a song or the words of another person, sometimes in what I see and, at times, just a sensation in my heart.  She also pronounced this as fine and told me I was on the right track.  I was relieved, but it still took me a while to work this through and to let some of the guilt dissipate for not doing it “the right way.”

“The power is in the One who hears it.”  The receiver has all the power. He is a better listener than I!  He hears and knows everything, even my weak and sometimes infrequent attempts to communicate with Him.  He loves me just as I am, with all my shortcomings, blemishes and character defects – I’m still trying to wrap my head around that one!  He doesn’t judge – He just loves me for who I am.

Be mindful of God’s presence in your life and you are already praying.  Your prayers are not wasted.  Be humble, contrite, thankful and ask on behalf of your self, and others. When in doubt, to paraphrase Mother Teresa, “Pray anyway!”

What Do You Deserve? 12/21/14

Have you been looking for that “moment” when everything changes? I call it an “aha” moment. It’s got two parts. First, when you’re thinking one way and another thought comes in that contradicts or crosses that thought and allows, in your mind, the possibility that things can be different. A new thought is possible! Much depends upon what you do next. If you dismissed the thought, or react to it with reasons why it’s not valid, you will probably return to the original way of thinking and become more frozen in that line of thought. If you resist the urge to go negative and think about the possibilities, the new thought will live. The second part of the “aha” moment, if you get that far, is when you take that new thought and figure out how to put that thought into action. Once you change your behavior consistent with the new thought, you anchor it and you become a catalyst for change in your life. Now you need to persist in this new process of “changing the thought, moving a muscle!”  

If you have been accepting that which is unacceptable in your life and deluding yourself that someone else (Prince Charming?) or something outside yourself is going to change to make you okay, then the above quote is definitely for you. What do you deserve? And if you believe you deserve different than what you have been accepting, then it’s time to make some changes based upon this new insight, don’t you think? Change is an inside job, or you will be changed by outside forces.  

Please comment on this quote and how my ideas apply to your life. Also feel free to share this with your friends. 

I wish you a blessed and Merry Christmas and a healthy and Happy New Year.

                           Peace, John