What is Prayer?

Is it possible, in our busy, fast-paced culture, to have a close relationship with God, one that is not limited to our “spiritual practice” but is our constant living experience, our primary purpose?

Without becoming monks and nuns, can we devote our lives to God?

The answer is yes, we absolutely can. If you want to devote your life to God, there is nothing standing in your way. No busy schedule, no demanding job or spouse, no feeling of unpreparedness can stand in your way of putting God first in your life. No cultural demands, no government, no army can get between you and God. If you want to put God first in your life, you can, no matter what.

Do you need to know why you would want to put God first in your life?

Imagine every moment of your day being filled with a sense of inner fullness and ease. Imagine a presence in your life that simply swallows up every worldly appearance and transforms it into a spiritual experience, a vision of higher purpose and understanding. Imagine releasing all worries, fears, and concerns to this presence before they even have a chance to hit your awareness.

Imagine knowing that without fail, there is nothing needed. Imagine falling wordlessly, silently, in love with all of creation, continually, no matter what is happening around you, no matter what commotion is going on, no matter if bombs are being dropped on the next block. Imagine every moment being the same as the last, so overflowing with restfulness and goodness that there is no desire for change.

Imagine constant companionship, constant love flowing towards you, personally, from this source of boundless love and compassion. Imagine being forgiven constantly for all the errors and blunders you make all day long. Imagine this constant companion seeing nothing but the good in you, seeing nothing but the Christ consciousness, that in you which is already pure and perfected, because you have always been that; you have never not been that.

These are a few of the reasons you might want to put God first in your life. But how? Prayer. Not just occasional prayer, but constant prayer. St. Paul said it: “Pray without ceasing.” But before you can pray without ceasing, you have to know what prayer is, and it is probably not what you think.

Is prayer asking God for things you want? If you listened to a thousand prayers being uttered around the world right now, probably 999 of them would be entreaties to God to deliver something desired by the person praying. What does this say about God? If one prays for anything at all to be given by God, then one is saying God is not omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient. For if God is these things, there is nothing further for Him to do; He is already doing it all.

God is not going to do any more. God is already total presence everywhere, eternal, eternally good, eternally loving and merciful and kind. So don’t ask God to give you more stuff, whether it be money, a relationship, health, or release from guilt or anger. God has already given you the entire Kingdom.

So this gives us a big hint as to what prayer is, or should be. True prayer is an opening, a surrender, an entreaty to God, not to give you something, but to help you be receptive to what is already given to you. One prays to recognize the gifts that are already given you freely, all the time, through God’s grace.

It is important to note that God does not give you material things. God’s gifts are spiritual. You may have a hard time recognizing gifts that you cannot see in the world. Pray about this, then. Ask God to show you what His gifts are, so that you can recognize them and give thanks. Ask to be shown the Kingdom. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.” He is only waiting for you to open the door and let Him in.

This is prayer: “Tell me, show me, dear God, all that you have so generously provided for me that I overlook. I am looking. I am listening.” That’s all. Just an openness, a silent waiting. This kind of prayer is always answered with an unimaginable generosity. God is so happy to answer this type of prayer.

But back to the world for a minute. What about the responsibilities, the demands, and keeping ones head above water with all the pressure society places on us? What about expressing ourselves creatively, having relationships, maximizing our career potential; and what about our spiritual work and our aspiration to be spiritually evolved? Who has time for constant prayer with all this stuff to do?

These are decisions you make. Maybe you let some things go. Certainly you can pray even in the midst of a work conference or feeding and bathing the kids, but it is advantageous to eliminate some of the unnecessary activities in your life to make some time for devotion without distraction. Can you do without some of the constant electronic socializing via cell phone and computer? Can you turn off the news? Can you take time for a little solitude? It is in silence that you hear God’s voice. That silence might only be found today in one moment between work calls, but it’s there. Find your silence, and you may discover that you want to have more and more of it, as you find God’s voice to be the most nourishing and truthful and comforting thing in your life. Slowly the volume of the world decreases, and the spiritual communication from God becomes more audible to you. And as this happens, you want it more and more.

Start now. I mean right now. God, I am listening. God, show me Your gifts. I don’t want material gifts, but I long for the gifts of spirit that You are already giving, in totality, at all times. Please show me how to see You, God. Please show me how to love You.