GETTING TO KNOW JESUS AS A WAYSHOWER, PART 8 – “Lord, Teach Us To Pray”
GETTING TO KNOW JESUS AS A WAYSHOWER, PART 8
“Lord, Teach Us To Pray”
Nancy B. Detweiler, M.Ed., M.Div.
In the early 2000s, I wrote a series of lessons to help Christians, and others who choose to use Jesus as an example of an individual demonstrating the Christ Consciousness, to get know him as a Wayshower.
As many know, whether or not Jesus was actually crucified has recently become a hot topic of discussion. Truth—in 2014–is pouring out, shocking many and pulling the rug out from under others’ worldview. However, for many, whether or not the Roman government actually crucified Jesus is of less importance than their rejection of the theological reason for that crucifixion as stated in orthodox Christian teachings. The orthodox reason is that God sent his Only Begotten Son to die on the cross to save a sinful people, whom He would otherwise sentence to eternal punishment in the fires of hell for their sins.
I, and countless others, rejected this theological viewpoint decades ago. Since Jesus is regularly proclaimed as Savior/Redeemer and therefore worshipped as such, many Christians were left in limbo without a Wayshower to guide them through the stormy waters in which they found themselves once they stepped outside the orthodox box.
It is for this reason that I am re-posting this series of lessons … one a day for the coming 10 to 12 days.
BE SURE TO READ THE INTRODUCTION TO THIS SERIES FIRST:
Part 8
“Lord, Teach Us To Pray”
HELPFUL HINT – Elizabeth Clare Prophet’s chart of the Divine Self is most helpful in understanding the multi-dimensionality of your being. The lower figure represents your physical body … the middle figure signifies your Higher Self/Christ Self/Soul … the upper figure is the I AM PRESENCE within you, i.e. God indwelling you. The chart relates especially well to this lesson.
http://tsl.org/2009/10/chart-of-your-divine-self/
Jesus instructed his disciples concerning the manner in which we are to pray. “When you pray, enter into your inner chamber and lock your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret shall himself reward you openly. And when you pray, do not repeat your words like the pagans, for they think that because of much talking they will be heard. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need, before you ask him.”[1]
Preparation for prayer entails turning our attention inward and focusing on the God dwelling within us, our I AM PRESENCE. Prayer is a lifting upward of our thought energy, an elevating of our consciousness to the higher realms of existence. The Psalmist described preparation for prayer, “I will lift mine eyes to the mountain from whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”[2] Prayer, and its answer, is that two-way flow of energy between our physical self and our I AM PRESENCE. It is to be done in secret and not with a motive of impressing others. The power and glory are to be God’s alone.
In response to his disciples’ request, Jesus also taught us how to pray. We find the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6. The chart of our Divine Self is an excellent visual companion to the Lord’s Prayer. Embedded within this prayer is the formula for our transformation into the Christed Consciousness. Let’s look at this formula more closely.
“Our Father ….” We are to address God as our Father. These two words tell us who we are. We are God’s children—all of us. Because we are the children of Father/Mother God, we are child-gods learning through the human experience. Jesus is our elder brother and we are members of one human family. The Aramaic word for Father, Abba, signifies an intimate relationship, one that we often refer to as Dad.[3] According to Fillmore, Abba indicates a relationship of the “most tender of affections.”[4] Jesus is revealing that our relationship to God is to be one of tender affection and intimacy.
“Who art in heaven ….” Jesus taught “the kingdom of heaven is within you”[5] We are to pray to our Father/Mother God who is within us. The kingdom of heaven within us is our I AM PRESENCE. God has individualized within each of us and therefore, offers us the privilege of sharing an intimate relationship. When we pray, we are not praying to a being separate from ourselves, who is far away and may not hear us. We are praying to a Part of who we are—our I AM PRESENCE. We are praying to the perfect Dad, the Dad who wants only the best for us. Because the kingdom of heaven is within us, we are never alone. We are never without unconditional love. We are never without the means to fulfill our role in the Divine Plan. Everything we could ever need can be found within ourselves. Our task is to awaken to that fact.
“Hallowed be thy name.” To hallow something means to set it apart, with reverence, for a sacred purpose.[6] Within the name is the numerical vibration on which every individual functions. Our name reveals who we are at the core of our being. To hallow God’s name means to set it aside for a special purpose in our lives. We learn what this purpose is to be in the next phrase.
“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven so on earth.” We are to set God’s name apart as the guiding Light for our lives. When we pray that God’s kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven, we are asking God to express through our earth plane lives as powerfully as in the higher dimensions of existence. We are making the commitment to allow God to manifest, through our daily lives, in ways that demonstrate recognition of our true identities as a beloved Son or Daughter of God. When we pray “Thy will be done,” we are surrendering our personal wills to the Divine Will. Recall the Divine Self chart. The physical part of us stands with hands open to receive, as the stream of energy flows forth from our I AM PRESENCE into our physical plane lives. As we surrender to Divine Will, we do so knowing that our Father will bestow all things Good upon us. There is no fear, no hesitation in receiving our Good. The outstretched hands may also signify sharing our Good with the world. We set apart the powerful energy, that is within the name of God, for the special purpose of assisting in creating heaven on earth and thereby, fulfilling the Divine Plan.
“Give us bread for our needs from day to day.” As we allow God’s energy to flow unimpeded into our daily lives, there is a constant supply of all we need. We do not have to worry over “what we will eat, or what we will wear.”[7] We are to seek attunement with the kingdom of heaven within us and know that all our needs will be supplied before we can even identify them. The chart of our Divine Self reveals we live within a capsule of white light that is connected directly to our I AM PRESENCE. The God within us sees all of life, is unlimited, and ever-present with us. There is no way we can experience lack, as long as we remain open to the influx of God’s abundant supply flowing to us from a source within ourselves. We are never separated from our Good. It is only our insufficient spiritual attunement that leads to experiencing lack or imperfection.
“And forgive us our offenses, as we have forgiven our offenders.” Because we have forgotten our true identities, this portion of the Lord’s Prayer has created much confusion. In our spiritual blindness, we believe we are praying for God’s forgiveness. God beholds each of us according to the immaculate conception of perfection with which we were created. Because we made the freewill choice to experience the plane of duality, we are having continually to make decisions as to how we will live our lives. We make mistakes and create pain. But, the part of us that is God never changes. God has no need to forgive us. We must forgive our physical plane selves, for the mistakes we make while attending school on planet Earth. Recall the chart. The physical body is surrounded with the purple transmuting flame. This flame is our source of forgiveness and it is ever-present with us. As we allow the flame to transmute our negative thoughts, emotions, and actions, we are choosing to forgive ourselves. Negativity is not a permanent energy. It can be transformed, by the purple flame, into the pure energy of God. Likewise, we are to view those who offend us in the same manner. They, too, make mistakes while attending school on planet Earth. We can just as easily transmute the pain, which we allowed our offenders to create in our lives, as we can transmute the pain we created for ourselves. Failure to forgive ourselves, and others, creates pockets of negativity within our energy field. These pockets clog the passageways to our reception of the constant flow of Good coming to us from our I AM PRESENCE. Our spiritual progress hinges upon our willingness to forgive and transmute all mistakes made by ourselves and others. We cannot move forward on the spiritual Path as long as our energy fields are clogged with negativity. It is for this reason that forgiveness of self and others is of such paramount importance.
“And do not let us enter into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Our I AM PRESENCE can only hold in Mind the immaculate conception of perfection with which we were created. Since we possess the gift of freewill, it is up to us to be so closely attuned to our I AM PRESENCE that we will not enter temptation. God does Its part by holding, for us, the image of our perfection. We must do the rest. As we seek first the kingdom of God within us, we turn our backs to evil. (Remember evil is turning our backs to God.) We deliver ourselves from evil by choosing to hallow God’s name and power, by choosing to assist in creating heaven on earth. The words “do not let us” sound as if we are asking God to prevent our entering temptation. However, because we possess freewill, God has no power to intervene. In the Bible, “let us” constitutes a command or fiat. It is a powerful affirmation of what we intend in our lives. With the words “do not let us,” we are stating our intention to attune to our I AM PRESENCE and thereby, overcome temptation and deliver ourselves from evil.
“For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory for ever and ever.” With these words, we are affirming our intention to maintain a consciousness of the kingdom within ourselves. From this kingdom will flow our abundant supply; it is the Source of all our Good. We are affirming our intention to allow the power of our I AM PRESENCE to flow through us and to do the works God would have us do. Jesus explained repeatedly, “I can do nothing on my own … whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise.” [8] We are to be the channels through which God finds expression on this planet. The numeric value of our names reveal the ways in which God chooses to manifest through us.[9] (See Endnote below) The power for all we do is to flow from our I AM PRESENCE. To believe our personality selves possess the power to achieve our goals is to fool ourselves and to create scenarios in which we adopt false beliefs about who we are. Likewise, the glory for our good works belongs to our I AM PRESENCE. When a rich ruler called him “Good Teacher,” Jesus responded, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.”[10] In order to possess the Christed Consciousness, we must live as an outpicturing of our I AM PRESENCE, the kingdom of God within us. All power and glory belong to this kingdom.
AMEN – “a Hebrew word meaning certainty, truthfulness, and faithfulness.” It also means “So be it.”[11] When we end our prayer with AMEN, we are affirming our faith that the answer is already present in our lives. We are certain of this Truth. “So be it” is our fiat, or command. Prayer is not pleading for favors from a distant God. Prayer is a means of co-creating with God—of bringing forth that which is already ours to claim, our rightful inheritance as a Son or Daughter of God.
The formula, for the Christed Consciousness depicted within the Lord’s Prayer, is one of recognizing who we truly are. It entails abiding with continual awareness of the kingdom within ourselves, while turning outward to the world with arms outstretched in service. The Christed Consciousness means being a vehicle through which our indwelling God can manifest freely and powerfully.
And, to God be the glory forever and ever. Amen!
UNITY’S PRAYER OF PROTECTION
The Light of God surrounds me,
The Love of God enfolds me,
The Power of God protects me,
The Presence of God watches over me.
Wherever I am, God is.
And, all is well.
[1] Matthew 6:6-8.
[2] Psalm 121:1-2.
[3] Jesus spoke the Aramaic language, thus would have referred to our Father as Abba.
[4] Charles Fillmore, Metaphysical Bible Dictionary (Unity Village, MO: Unity School of Christianity, 1931) 10.
[5] Luke 17:21.
[6] Dennis R. Bratcher, “Hallow,” Harper’s Bible Dictionary, 1985 ed.
[7] Matthew 6:31.
[8] John 5:19.
[9] You may determine the numeric value of your name by going to my website: http://www.pathwaytoascension.com/numerology.html
[10] Luke 18:18-19.
[11] “Amen,” Harper’s Bible Dictionary, 1985 ed.
