The Unity movement is built on a foundation of Affirmative Prayer. Silent Unity, which has been praying 24/7 for 125 years, responds to 5,000+ prayer requests daily. At Unity Church of the Hills, our Prayer Chaplains make 636 prayer calls every month. This is in addition to the one-on-one prayer offered after Services. Classes, services and committee meetings about topics such as grass mowing all begin and end with prayer. Prayer weaves itself through every facet Unity.
To understand prayer is to understand the core teachings of Unity and how they have molded the “how” and “why” we pray as we do. Embedded in the Unity practice of Affirmative Prayer is the understanding of God as love and not judge. Prayer is the understanding that we are creations of wholeness and completeness. Our prayers do not beg a distant God, but come from an understanding of our nature as expressions of divinity. We understand that our thoughts and feelings create our experience in this life. We know that words have power and intention. In Affirmative Prayer, we bear witness to each other’s journey knowing that we are all in Oneness with the Divine.
These affirmative prayers are grounded in the concept of The Silence, a quieting of our thoughts and emotions. Prayer unites with meditation as a few moments of relaxing, centering, and paying attention to the breathing can allow for the concentration of the moment. Being in The Silence allows for the shift of focus to move from the changeable to the unchangeable Presence of God. It is at this time that we can center on the Truth of our nature and the mystery of the One Power of the Universe. Bringing the monkey mind thoughts and random emotions and crazy circumstances of our lives into a time of peace and knowing releases these anxieties and negative thought patterns, allowing for a Divine perspective. All judgments about circumstances, assumptions about people, and any ideas out of alignment with God’s perspective of love can be denied and the declaration of the Truth can be expressed.
In prayer, we give thanks to the Divine, knowing that gratitude is a power that draws into our awareness the Presence of God. In thanksgiving and gratitude, we know that we can enter the Secret Place where we are the ruler of the kingdom of God within.
Ephesians 4:23-24 says ”be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” This is what occurs in the practice of prayer. Colossians 3:2 teaches that we are to “set our mind on things that are above, not on things which are on the earth.” This speaks to the power of prayer. Prayer does not alter the nature of God, but it causes the focus of our minds and hearts to shift to the realm of the Absolute, the Allness and Oneness. It allows us to express ourselves as the “godlings” we are! Prayer helps us remain in the flow of God’s grace and goodness for our lives. Coupled with meditation, it is the key to a successful spiritual walk.
