"Prayer as SElf-Transformation"

by DR. Susan Nettleton

Self-transformation is the key to prayer for others. Whether for the people who are closest to us, or for someone unknown to us—a name on a prayer list—or for the individuals and groups we may read about in the newspaper and long to spiritually help, this fundamental principle is the same.

When we pray we initiate a process of self-transformation. Prayer is our willingness to be changed. Prayer is our offering of our fears, worries, doubts, confusion, anger, opinions, judgments, images, our care and love of our world and all the people in it to God. Prayer is our willingness to awaken to the Presence of God in the midst of every human struggle; we agree to a new awareness of Wisdom, Order, Harmony, Truth, and Light right there. In prayer we find ourselves at Peace. Our prayers do impact the lives of others, but we discover the change has happened within ourselves.