Another Look at the Meaning of Prayer
Greetings, brothers and sisters. This is Dr. James Perry continuing with our series where we seek to
explore the deeper meanings of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Over the years, the heavenly
Father has revealed many revelations of spiritual truth to me, and I want to share them with you.
Today, we seek to contemplate the deeper meaning of prayer.
And now, sit back and listen to today's message.
Another Look at the Meaning of Prayer
"And he spake a parable unto them to this end. That men ought always to pray, and not faint; saying,
there was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: and there was a widow in
that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he could not for a
while: but afterward he said within himself; Though I fear not God, nor regard man; yet because the
widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.." Luke, Chapter
5, Verses 1 through 5.
Prayer is a process by which the unconscious relationship between the heavenly Father and the souls
of his children become conscious. This process is gradual and spiritual in nature. The heavenly
Father has a special relationship with all his children. This process is initially largely unconscious;
that is, our conscious minds are not aware of this relationship even though the divine urges of the
Father are manifested through our conscious minds. The divine impulses to love, be patient, be
merciful, and to forgive all emerge from the divine spirit resident in our souls.
There must be some mechanism that the Father uses to initiate the conscious prayer process. The
Father uses the very environment that we live in. Almost everyone will feel the urge to pray if
stressed enough. In response to the stresses of life, the urge to pray, the desire to seek super human
help appears in the conscious mind. It does not matter so much what we pray for; the very act of
praying initiates the conscious relationship between ourselves and the Father.
Initially this prayer process unfolds on our part only when we are stressed materially. Praying this
way is similar to a person who always allows his car to run out of gas before refueling. This is a very
foolish practice, but we can only act upon that which we are conscious. In the thoughtful individual,
the car is refueled long before it runs out of gas. Likewise in our prayer life after we realize the
consequences of praying sporadically--the loss of spiritual power--we learn to pray on a regular
basis.
Sporadic praying tends to prolong the materialistic phases of prayer. When we pray sporadically, we
likely pray for a materialistic reason. Materialistic praying can only bring disappointment and causes
some of us to doubt the reality of the Father's love for us, robbing us of the precious faith that we
have been able to develop. But if we pray on a regular basis, gradually the reality of our relationship
with the heavenly Father becomes more real and less imaginary in our conscious minds.
If we pray persistently, we gradually develop trust in the Father's goodness so that over time, even
though our prayers may remain unanswered, in reality unrecognized, we will still trust the heavenly
Father. Gradually with persistence of praying, our prayers gradually change from the materialistic
to the spiritual. Gradually we come to understand the difference between things and values. Things
belong to the material world; values belong to the spiritual world.
The pursuit of divine values requires energy, for divine values are not real to us unless we live them.
The value of love does not assume meaning in our souls and minds until we try to love our brothers
and sisters the way this value dictates, and always does this value dictate that we love our sisters and
brothers unselfishly at all times and under all circumstances the way that Jesus loves us. This is
spiritual work and requires power and dedication. This power must be renewed because we use it;
thus we must be replenished through prayer.
Prayer is also the process whereby true meanings and spiritual values are revealed. Since the absolute
value and meaning, the heavenly Father is infinite and eternal. There can never be any end to the
revelation of these meanings and values of his love. Always will we who pray discover new
meanings and new values. Let us take a look at the value of love. Those who pursue divine love are
conscious of a certain meaning and a certain value. If we should consciously decide not to pursue
divine love, then the meaning and value of such a decision will be some other meaning and value
devoid of God, for God is love. Thus it is seen that the penalty for the conscious violation of the law
of love (sin) is inherent in the act, in reality the loss of the meaning of value to which we were
disloyal.
This concludes today's message on understanding the meaning of another look at prayer. We hope
you find something in this message to ponder and pray about as you go about your day. Until next
time, this is Dr. James Perry.
Inspirational Messages
By Dr. James Perry
Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done!
Another Look at the Meaning of Prayer
