Prayer

As I listen to many spiritual people around me, one message that God seems to be speaking loud and clear is "Pray"! Everyone seems to be in agreement that prayer is of vital importance, but for me, prayer is a subject of constant education and continual enlightenment. I am convinced that there is no right or wrong way to pray, but that as we grow spiritually our prayer methods and dialog change. I have observed that prayer is a word that means many things to many people, but for the sake of this article, I want to define prayer as being in communication with God.

Listening
The most important part of communication with God is not what we say, but what He says. We really need to say nothing as He already knows our hearts, and our needs. He feels what we feel, and He has every hair on our head numbered. Yet, we feel compelled to bring forward our list of people, places, programs, provisions, and problems to Him for His careful sorting out and of course, reminding Him what His job is (with our suggestions of how He should go about it - so as to be most pleasing to us). Let's just start sitting silently in His presence – listening, just in case He wants to speak.

Controversial Prayer Methods
Some of you reading this don’t believe in praying in tongues. That is fine, but this may give you some insight into the hearts and minds of those that do. God has shown me some things about praying in tongues this year, and I would like to share that with you. He has also shown me some things about meditative prayer or “listening” prayer, often beginning with controlled breathing and chanting. Although these methods are not accepted by all Christians - and are even sometimes regarded as false doctrines, I am not trying to make any religious statements here. I am simply sharing some spiritual observations.

No matter where I go from here – I’m going to alienate some readers, because the mind can not hold two conflicting thoughts as truth, and I understand that we are constantly challenged with new conflicting thoughts. Both tongues, and meditation are ugly words in some Christian circles, and beautiful gifts in others.

Here it is.
I believe that as we are spiritually transformed to become an extension of God Himself, our body becomes His body, and our heart, our mind, and our will are also transformed by His spirit to become one with Him, as we yield to Him. It is in our yielding to His will, that we allow ourselves to be broken and stretched and then reshaped or transformed.

I have noticed that there are stages of spiritual growth, and that certain prayer methods become obsolete in the next stage, as freedom abounds and certain boundaries are no longer needed or are even valid. Here’s what I mean. If you drive to work and park your car in a designated parking area, observing the boundaries painted in the pavement, you are being obedient and loving. If you take the bus to work, you have no need to follow parking lot rules because they don't apply to passengers on the bus. You have chosen a different method of transportation that operates with different guidelines.

With tongues or with meditation, you have chosen a different method of communication with God (other than a spoken understandable language). The beauty of these methods are in their purpose, not in their function. Whether you are praying in tongues or chanting - these are not natural or normal behaviors for people in early stages of spiritual growth. These people would be so taken back by the behavior, that they couldn't begin to understand a deeper meaning of purpose.

Tongues
Prayer language that is gifted to us by God is a concept that is hard to grasp by anyone not aquainted with it. In a nutshell, it is speaking a language understood by the spirit and not the mind. Even more difficult to understand than that, is how God speaks to us as we are the one speaking. I have experienced this, but can't explain it. I gain understanding that surpasses knowledge. In other words, I begin to learn things and know things without reading a book or having any logical mindful input - by just practicing that heavenly language. In other words, we position ourselves to hear from God and to practice His presence within us.

Meditation
Meditation is being willfully silent and yielding to God's presence. To quiet one's self down and to become receptive and totally yielding to God, there are many pre-meditative exercises used to accomplish this state of consciousness. Breathing techniques and chanting are the most commonly used.

Christian meditation is a form of silent prayer that yields the same result as praying in tongues. To listen to Him and to behold Him is this result. For us, it is for one purpose, to love God - to yield ourselves to the power and presence and will of God for our lives.

I have observed the lives of many spiritual leaders that have healing ministries. They have one thing in common. They practice the presence of God for hours every day - usually through speaking in tongues or through meditative prayer - sometimes both.

My prayer for you is that you would take the time to practice the presence of God for hours every day. To listen and to yield to His love in all that you do. See Him in others, and in all of His creation. He is there. If you seek Him, you will find Him in the quietness of your own heart, for He is within you.

God bless you,
David R. Thayer
Net2Church Global Ministries