When our world seems upside down, we turn to those things that offer comfort. To some that might initially be the pillow, the bucket of Ben & Jerry’s or the shoulders of a friend to cry on before going beyond ourselves to find strength to move forward. Then, there are those whose instinct and skills guide them to prayer.
Prayer is a conversation with a higher power, an intimate connection with the divine. It has the power to sooth because of this intimacy and outpour of the heart.
In a time of need, there is little that can compare to the efficacy of prayer.
It is jewish tradition to pray 3 times a day. This ritual, service of the heart as it’s often called, is meant to be done as a connection to the almighty. A type of drawing down energy to be able to channel it for others and ourselves . A strengthening of the soul.
A Daily Practice
Prayer is part of my daily practice. Something I do because we are meant to and we know spiritually it moves the heavens as our reality shifts and manifests in the physical.
When the Coronavirus crisis struck and our lives took a temporary hiatus as we needed to adapt to a new normal, prayer took on a different meaning. This outbreak affected my family financially, shifts in routines, psychologically and all that carries an emotional impact. The more I read the news or talk to people I find I am not alone in this, it seems this is a commonality in our current landscape.
This challenging time brought an unwelcome pain as our reality shifted. I quickly learned how pain has the power to break the heart making us feel more human, more sensitive to that reality where we can connect easier to other people and see beauty surround us. Prayer facilitated my connection with the divine because a part of me felt broken, and longed to connect with a higher energy. My connection became stronger because the desire was stronger. The lack as the sages say allows us to draw down more energy because we have a bigger vessel to fill.
Those that pray, know this well, the conversation through prayer is like no other because we can let it all out. There is no judgement, nothing to hide, and we can ask for everything. We divulge our innermost thoughts that we wouldn’t share with our closest of friends.
Before the sabbath, Jewish woman lits candles and says a special prayer.
Prayer a Way to Hope not Despair
There is one important component in this heart-to-heart talk; faith. Faith in the divine, that our prayers are heard and will be answered.We pray to connect but also because we want something in our reality to switch. It is a call for help in a sense. A call filled with hope, love and trust. Hope being the total opposite of despair. A call from a place of strength, certainty and positivity. We turn to prayer because we trust that things will change for the better.
The magic of prayer is that we achieve an intimacy and connection with the divine and we trust in him or her that all is good. Through prayer we reach inside ourselves to find the potential in ourselves to shine and reveal goodness in our world.
Many ways to Pray
Prayer can take many forms. There is organized structured prayer, there is long conversations, brief acknowledgements like a simple thank you, or father please help me. Reading Psalms – poetry, is also a form of prayer, and communal prayer. The main point is that you have this sharing of yourself with G-d. There is no right way. I use different forms throughout the day. For me it has become a daily meeting, morning structured prayer along with conversation, afternoon reading of Psalms and evening introspection. I find that when I go on walks, when I’m in nature it becomes much easier to strike this conversation.
Gateway to Potential
Prayer is a gateway to open our divine self to a higher power. It offers a soothing achieved only through this meeting. It requires only your presence, and can be done at any time. Prayer opens solutions and a change of perception. In challenging times, there is no better remedy and strengthening than this convocation.
When your world is upside down, turn to prayer to find strength. When your world starts to change and you align to what you want, pray even more to reveal more of that.