Does Prayer Work?
Yes. Each and every time. If it is sincere,
a fervent cry from the heart, then yes, prayer works. I promise you.
(Cue hordes of scoffing atheists jumping on
my back and wrestling me to the ground for the sheer ridiculousness of that
statement…. I look around. Oh, they’ve gone? So, I’ll get up, dust myself off,
and repeat:)
Prayer works. Each and every time.
I’ll tell you why.
Prayer is not about what you pray for.
Prayer is about you.
Prayer is not about who you pray to.
It is about the prayer itself.
Prayer is not about changing the world, to
get the outcome you want.
Prayer is about what happens to you when you pray.
Prayer is about changing you.
Prayer is about making you strong enough to
bear the outcome, if it is not to your liking, not the thing you prayed for.
If the outcome is to your liking, prayer works because the relief and sheer
gratitude you feel will strengthen you and give you faith for the next time you
need to pray.
And let’s admit it: most of us pray only in
desperate situations. When someone we love is ill, or a child we know might be
dying, or you’re in a plane that has
been hijacked, or you see distressing photos of refugees in a boat on the
Mediterranean – that’s when people pray -- often, even, people who don’t believe
in God.
People pray when they have no more control
over a situation or its outcome. We, especially those who live in the West, are
greatly enamoured with the word “empowerment”. But sometimes we
have no power, and something bad is looming, and there’s nothing at all we can
do to change it. Sometimes we feel weak, perplexed, helpless and need an anchor, a source of strength. That can come from deep inside us, but a method is needed. That method can be prayer. It can also be meditation. It really is like throwing an anchor down to the deepest part of your being, finding the ground and anchoring yourself there.
The harder and more you pray, the better it is for
you, and for those around you, in your orbit.
Sometimes, the person you are praying for
“feels” your prayer, deep inside, and it gives that person strength, too, and
so prayer works for others as well. A praying person helps those around him or
her. Just like a panicked person spreads panic, a praying person spreads peace, and peace helps soothe others in distress. It’s contagious.
It doesn’t matter whether you believe in
God or not.
It doesn’t matter whether there IS a God,
or gods, or not. That’s irrelevant, actually.
The problem is that YOU are in distress,
or unsteady on your feet, or unsure what move to make.
Prayer is always good, whether it is for your own sake or for someone else.
Help is needed. That distress does no-one
any good, neither you or the person who needs help. So pray.
It doesn’t matter if you pray in the
Christian way, or the Hindu way, or the Muslim way, or the Jewish way. In the end, they are all the same: a turning, turning to a source of strength.
The strength you will find in praying eventually makes you a tower of strength and calmness in the storm. That's the best way to be a strength for others; and you will want to be that strength, to lend a hand to those who need it, to lift others.
If you are in trouble, simply pray.
I have prayed for over 50 years. In good
times and bad, I’ve prayed. Gradually, over those 50 years, prayer turned into silent meditation, which is even more effective. Now, I do both, as the need shows itself.
It has always worked. Each and every time. I do not want to live one day without prayer or meditation. I don't understand how others can. It's like having a constant lifeline to something greater, stronger, calmer than my ego, my silly little self. A source, constantly at my fingertips.
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