Most of us think of prayer as some sort of religious activity, where one usually asks God or some other deity in the dim hope of receiving something.
If you’ve ever read Neville Goddard, Ernest Holmes, Joseph Murphy, or any other manifestation teacher, you have probably noticed that Prayer is used in a very different way.
In New Thought and similar philosophies, Prayer and Manifesting basically mean the same thing. Both Prayer and manifestation means using your mental powers to cause the creation of the particular object prayed for.
In the world of manifesting, books such the Bible has been reinterpreted as to be “guidebooks” on manifestation rather than records of historical facts.
Here Prayer means “moving the infinite power” by the use of your mind. God is not a man in the sky but rather the “universal mind” or “spirit,” an intelligent power rather than a separate being. In fact, God is not a being, but rather your very own “beingness” or consciousness.
What Is Prayer?
First, I want to start out with a quote from one of Neville Goddard:
Prayer is the key which unlocks the infinite storehouse. […] Prayer modifies or completely changes our subconscious assumptions, and a change of assumption is a change of expression.
Neville Goddard, Prayer: The Art Of Believing (Book), 1945
Prayer refers to the individual mind’s ability to move the infinite mind (the subconscious mind). It means using your mental powers to give suggestions to the subconscious mind (in the bible: “the Father,” “God,” “I Am”), which the subconscious mind then takes and manifests in the individual’s world.
Many seem to think that Prayer is a certain technique of impressing the subconscious, but according to the above definition, Prayer is the process of doing so itself. Whatever technique you choose to do when trying to manifest something is a form of Prayer. Techniques such as visualization, affirmations, scripting, gratitude, etc., all fall under the category of Praying.
The Certainty of Prayer
A vital difference between this interpretation of Prayer and traditional interpretation has to do with the certainty with which we pray for something. Traditionally God decides whether or not he wants to answer the Prayer, and we’re at the whim of God’s will.
Prayer in the New Thought philosophy is very different. “God” is viewed as an intelligent power rather than an individual being with individual motives. For that reason, “God” does not have individual motives, and if we pray with certainty, our Prayer MUST be answered.
Prayer was to be made to the unseen Being, not with doubt or fear, but with the absolute assurance of a certain answer, and no limit was to be set to its power or willingness to work for us.
Thomas Troward, Edinburgh Lectures on Mental Science, 1907
Also, in New Thought, God is often viewed as the innermost part of our own being. Therefore, your desires are one with God’s desires.
Prayer And The Bible (Example)
To understand how Prayer in the Bible has been reinterpreted in New Thought and other teachings relating to manifestation, let’s look at a bible verse and how it is interpreted.
“What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye have received them, and ye shall have them” (Mark 11:24).
Believe that you have received it, and you will receive it. This bible verse is a statement you need to contemplate your desire as an already accomplished fact on the inner plane, which will then cause the desire to manifest in the external world. This is a good example showing how the Bible is solely a guidebook hiding behind heavy symbolism and not a record of historical facts.
How To Pray
To pray basically means to manifest. It is the exact same process. This is how to do it.
- Choose your Goal
- Go into a relaxed state of consciousness.
- “Pray” for the goal – impress the goal on the subconscious mind
- Let “God” do the Work
You can choose whatever you want. I always recommend you start off with something “easy,” but some people prefer going big.
Get into a relaxed state of consciousness.
Ideas are best suggested when the objective mind is partly subjective, that is, when the objective senses are diminished or held in abeyance.
Neville Goddard, Prayer: The Art Of Believing (Book), 1945
In this state, begin “praying.” This is basically just doing a technique, such as visualizing, affirming, etc., in order to impress the idea on the subconscious mind.
Then you have to Let Go. When we manifest something, we are to let go of control and let the power take care of the how.
“[…] the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” (John 14:10)
If you’re interested, I describe the process of manifesting more in detail in some of my other articles on this site, but I still wanted to give a brief overview of how it relates to Prayer.
Prayer and Gratitude
Oftentimes, Prayers are in the bible, always done with an undertone of gratitude. According to manifesting, feelings such as gratitude are, for one reason or another, really effective.
“Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.” (John 11:41)
Usually, it is believed it is because there is some implication of receiving when we are grateful. If we are grateful for within, it must correspondingly manifest as conditions and circumstances to be grateful for. If we are grateful that our prayer has been answered, the prayer must manifest in the outer world.
Summary
Prayer is often thought of as a religious activity where one asks God or some other deity for good fortune. However, in New Thought and similar philosophies, prayer and manifesting mean the same thing. God is not an individual being with individual motives but rather an intelligent force underlying all reality. Therefore, if one prays with certainty, the prayer must be answered.
In New Thought, The Bible is reinterpreted as a guidebook to manifesting rather than a record of historical events.
To pray is to manifest, and the process is to choose a goal, go into a relaxed state of consciousness, “pray” for the goal, and let go of control, allowing the power to take care of the how. Gratitude is often added to prayer, as it is believed to be effective in manifesting.
I hope you found this article helpful. Thanks for reading!
