Is there any benefit to praying? (Blog)

[Erin Pavlina]

Use this thread to discuss the following entry from Erin Pavlina's blog:

Is there any benefit to praying?

[Bitsy]

Hello again,

I have had a question for a long time since I learned about LoA and since this blog entry deals almost directly with my question, I think this is the best time to ask it...

I can see how praying for yourself works, especially given the LoA. But what about the LoA and praying for another person? Does praying for another person do any good at all? For example, if they are ill, or if they have some sort of misery you wish them to be free of? I used to pray a lot to God for other people.

According to the LoA, it seems logical that it is useless to pray for anyone but yourself, however, in "What the Bleep Do We Know," a man says that a large group of people prayed concerning crime in Washington D.C. and that crime in D.C. took an extreme drop, but the man didn't say what or how these people were praying.

If I pray for a friend, does it do any good at all?

Thanks

[Erin Pavlina]

Yes, if you pray for someone else it definitely sends out energy and intention. But one thing I forgot to put in the article and am remembering now is that you have to phrase the prayer correctly or you could inadvertently do more harm than good.

When you say, "Please help Bill get well" you are affirming that he is not well. You are noticing he is not well. You are intending him into a state of non-wellness.

Instead, you would want to say, "Please allow Bill to achieve the same state of wellness that I now visualize him to have" or something like that. Or "Bill is getting healthier every day."

When you pray, imagine what you want, not what you don't want.

Prayer is about empowerment, intention, and communication with your divine source. Work in concert with it. Don't give your power away. You are still responsible for your life even when you give up control to a higher power.

[Bitsy]

Originally Posted by Erin Pavlina

Yes, if you pray for someone else it definitely sends out energy and intention. But one thing I forgot to put in the article and am remembering now is that you have to phrase the prayer correctly or you could inadvertently do more harm than good.

When you say, "Please help Bill get well" you are affirming that he is not well. You are noticing he is not well. You are intending him into a state of non-wellness.

Instead, you would want to say, "Please allow Bill to achieve the same state of wellness that I now visualize him to have" or something like that. Or "Bill is getting healthier every day."

Ahaa, thanks!

[shant121]

Thanks Erin for that important tip

[Angela]

I just hate the word, "prayer"; for some reason it just gives me the heebie-jeebies.

But the way you describe it, Erin: communing with the universe -- that is exactly what I do every day, so I guess I am indeed pra..pr....pr...... communing with the universe!

I don't imagine a god or a "higher power" or any specific and separate entity hearing what I am saying or asking or working out; rather, when I ask for something, it's more like an exercise in trust. Trust that the present moment is perfect, trust that I will be accepting and present regardless of any preferences, and trust that solutions, love, freedom, and joy will flow through me and be presented to me in quiet moments, in dreams, and other unexpected venues. If I'm doing it right (not going all unconscious, I mean), it's a great way to deliberately think thoughts that feel good when I think them.

I just need a better word for it than prayer. *shudder*

[Erin Pavlina]

I didn't like the word prayer either until I dissassociated it with religion and realized it is a spiritual word. And it is just a tool.

I also like communion as a word. And I also think it's important to realize that prayer can be a dialogue, not a wish list.

[XeutonMojukai]

This is how I see prayer, and I think it's similar to what you were saying, Erin.

Our souls are like ham radios, and in a way, our Higher Self is the Antenna.

If we focus too much on what we put into the microphone, we never find out if anyone got the message.

If we focus too much on what we want to hear, no one will ever know that we're looking for them, and we still won't know if anyone is out there.

The first thing to do is simply to find your correct wavelength, and spend the quality time dialing in the exact setting you need for optimum quality of reception and transmission.

The next thing is to realize that you need to essentially give a clear message that can be answered in an affirmation or a decline, without inviting too many questions (there's only so much time before emotional static makes it impossible to understand what's being said).

Also, make sure you have your antenna in good upkeep, meaning that you continually reaffirm your connection to your Higher Self, so it can go and get the connections you need with more efficiency.

Lemme know what you think of the analogy, Erin, and if there are any extra bits you'd add to it!

~ David

[Ernie]

Instead of prayer I use the term "centering". Prayer, meditation, contemplating and centering are all different degrees-angles to get to the ground of being that we all are. When we are who we ARE I- the I AM that I AM- then the light is on for me to see what I already have but wasn't aware. Regardless of what we NAME it, JUST DO IT!

[Susan68]

I very much believe in the LOA. I believe the universe or higher power that aligns all things to materialize that which we ask for is God himself. Since my cancer diagnosis eight months ago, I have been praying for, asking for, believing in receiving permanent healing and health. I have tried hard to phrase my request correctly and not inadvertently ask for more cancer. Erin, now I am scared after reading your post, that by asking for health and healing, I am acknowledging that I do not have health and will get just that. I wish there was more information available about how to ask for what you want.

What is even scarier, I have dozens of friends, family and church members praying for me. I am certain, they are saying “Please cure Susan’s cancer.”, not “Please allow Susan to achieve the same state of wellness that I now visualize her to have.”

Is it possible to deflect the unintentional harm that others may bring?

[Erin Pavlina]

Yes you can deflect the harm that others may be doing on your behalf.

You must be fully aligned with health. You may enjoy reading Esther Hicks book The Astonishing Power of Emotions. In there she/they present examples of how to turn your upstream thoughts into desired downstream thoughts.

instead of saying
I have cancer
I am sick
I am unwell

You want to say
Feeling wonderful feels good
Health is brimming within me

I'll bet she covers cancer. See what you can find.

[Lola]

Originally Posted by Erin Pavlina

You must be fully aligned with health. You may enjoy reading Esther Hicks book The Astonishing Power of Emotions. In there she/they present examples of how to turn your upstream thoughts into desired downstream thoughts.

Good suggestion - also addressed in Ask and It Is Given, Process #21 - Reclaiming One's Natural State of Health. I'm currently re-reading this book and just last night read the chapter on health.

They suggest lying in a comfortable position where you will not be disturbed and reading the following list, followed by a few minutes of lying still and focusing on your breathing with the goal of being as comfortable as possible:

• It is natural for my body to be well.
• Even if I don't know what to do in order to get better, my body does.
• I have trillions of cells with individual Consciousness, and they know how to achieve their individual balance.
• When this condition began, I didn't know what I know now.
• If I had known then what I know now, this condition couldn't have gotten started.
• I don't need to understand the cause of this illness.
• I don't need to explain how it is that I'm experiencing this illness.
• I have only to gently, eventually, release this illness.
• It doesn't matter that it got started, because it's reversing its course right now.
• It's natural that it would take some time for my body to begin to align to my improved thoughts of Well-Being.
• There's no hurry about any of this.
• My body knows what to do.
• Well-Being is natural to me.
• My Inner Being is intricately aware of my physical body.
• My cells are asking for what they need to thrive, and Source Energy is answering those requests.
• I'm in very good hands.
• I will relax now, to allow communication between my body and my Source.
• My only work is to relax and breathe.
• I can do that.
• I can do that easily.

-Hicks, Ask and It Is Given; p. 284-285

Sounds like prayer to me.