Have you ever done this: Been faced with a problem that is a bit terrifying, commit yourself to praying for a solution, but spend the bulk of your time rehearsing worries and fears about the problem instead of truly knowing God’s allness and goodness?
Prayer is about discovering spiritual reality. Problems are our opportunity to learn more about spiritual reality.
The quickest way to a solution is not to rehearse the problem, but to get laser-focused on the spiritual truth that resolves the problem.
A worry-prayer is not a prayer. It’s worrying.
Prayer focused on knowing Truth is a healing prayer.
Waste no time in worry. Pray with sincerity, and worry will vanish.
I am so grateful for this today Evan. the answer to the question posed in your first paragraph is yes! I have found myself doing a worry prayer as you call it, not really fully concentrating on the spiritual truths because fear or worry is hanging around in the background! Time to get laser focussed as you say.
Also for some reason I couldn’t see any of yesterday’s comments though it says there are 42 of them. Don’t know if there is another way of viewing them?
I havd just reclicked on yesterday’s blog and all the comments have suddenly come up! I see a lot of people had problems viewing them, not just me. Hopefully it’s now fixed X
Hi, no, I still see “No Comments Yet” for yesterday’s blog.
Regarding yesterday, I get sometimes 0 comments and sometimes 3 comments, but regrettably not all. I would hopefully say that God, divine intelligence can fix it!♡
The same for me too. It’s still like yesterday where you can’t access the comments unless you post one.
Hi J , Yesterday I posted a comment, then once I got a lot comments, but then not anymore.
Thank you very much Evan for today`s SpiritView! Yes, mostly my prayers are a cry for help in situations worrying about. And therefore I am so very grateful for this SV, as it says clearly how to pray. Just yesterday I prayed, dear God teach me how to pray right! And look, the answer is here, not wasting time in worry, but rather discovering spiritual Truth, to get laser-focused on divine Truth! Am really glad to learn very much from SpiritView!
And the same than to Linda happened to me! And I have the same desire, namely to be able to read all the wonderful many comments from yesterday`s SpiritView! 🙂
So true, Thanks Evan!
What a great post. I was once told ‘worry is ingratitude for good not yet received’ which I think sums it up very well.
No need for worry when we know we can rely on God.
That is a beautiful statement, and your sharing reminds me of the CS Hymn, #249, Verse 2–
Our gratitude is riches,
Complaint is poverty,
Our trials bloom in blessings,
They test our constancy.
O, life from joy is minted,
An everlasting gold,
True gladness is the treasure
That grateful hearts will hold.
(Christian Science Hymnal, No. 249:2)
I see now that worrying is complaint in thinking.
Thank you, God, for distributing your riches to all!
So Very Lovely!! !
A beautifully expressive thought:
“May your spirit soar throughout the vast cathedral of your being
May your mind whirl joyful cartwheels of creativity
May your heart sing sweet lullabies of timelessness”
~ Jonathan Lockwood Huie … and
“… beauty is God’s handwriting” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Beautiful inspiration!!!
I’m so grateful to Christian Science for the main reason that I don’t feel alone, when others admit their challenges are just like the ones I am blessed to be learning to overcome as well, and because I don’t have to feel bad about any struggle I may be perceiving as unsolvable when the worry monster (negative habit patterns of mortal mind conditioning) tries to keep me from looking under the bed. (beneath the evidence before the five corporeal senses, to the powerful Truth of the one Mind). God is infinite, therefore ever present, and there is no other power or presence. (SH p. 471:6, 18, 19) One of the weapons of spiritual warfare is the sword of the Spirit. The Word of God is alive, active, and powerful in the Armageddon of our minds. Therefore, it is crucial that we stand with God’s truth. “For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.” Psalms 61:3
And so, this is my treatment for myself today.
Love I enjoyed your comment about the worry monster trying to keep us from looking under the bed. This image would be great in a children’s book that teaches how to spot error in action. I totally relate. The worry monster is the one that’s actually scared (but wants us to think we are), because it knows that when we do look under the bed we’ll see our true permanent peaceful nature and it will dissolve into its native nothingness. Thanks.
Worrying is choosing to believe and repeat to oneself, and to act out on, a scary story with fear that expects us to be separated from good and each other, and to not be able to handle the test calling forth a testimony to gods all powerful good. Worrying is the discouraging expectation of bad . Worrying is refusing to stay present with the presence of good but to imagine a future separated from good. . Worrying is bowing down to evil. The opposite of praying which expresses through love and gratitude, humbly letting go of human views/ego/will, and instead choosing obedience to, and trust of, infinite good here and now.
Wow! Really needed today’s Spirit View!
Very grateful for it and all of them! Thank you for always taking the time
to share them!
It is so Wonderful to see the posts today and for the very inspiring
message and responses! What a blessing! And as Love writes, “when
others admit their challenges are just like the ones I am blessed to be
learning to overcome as well”. How True. Learning together is so
beautiful and I thank you all.
One of the challenges I sometimes face is being distracted in thought
while reading. I have become more focussed lately.
In trying to keep in the NOW/God’s present .. am reminded of a quote,
(not CS, but I believe pertinent to the topic of not worrying):
“Heaven is not a goal; heaven is the presence right now. If we
are present, the [D]ivine is available. If you live in the moment,
you are enlightened; there is no other enlightenment. And
the ordinary life is so extraordinary. Then to be just a nobody
is so fulfilling …The ego disappears, you are no more, but the
[D]ivine Is. And that is bliss and that is [T]ruth”. ~ Osho
Of course we Are a Somebody, as God’s perfect, beloved
children, being cared for and guided by the One Mind, Soul,
Spirit, Principle, Life, Truth and Love, all synonyms for God,
our Creator. The daily unfoldment of our spiritual Being
becomes so lovely and precious.
Hi Carol, so cool that you quoted Osho, who was a controversial but beloved enlightened guru from India and the yogic traditions. Much wisdom came from ancient Eastern spirituality. I’ve read that Mrs. Eddy studied some of these teachings, don’t know if it is true, but she did say in S&H, “Whatever inspires with wisdom, Truth, or Love – be it song, sermon, or Science – blesses the human family with crumbs of comfort from Christ’s table, feeding the hungry and giving living waters to the thirsty.”
Possibly what he meant by being a nobody is realizing that we are not a separate “self” with a separate “mind” and separate thoughts struggling to make “our” lives go a certain way, but just expressing One divine Mind and able to enjoy the bliss of ordinary moments in the Now.
Thank you so much for your input, Rose. I wasn’t aware of who Osho
was. I only copy down quotes sometimes that have a special or helpful
meaning or inspiration and that was one of them. I love the quote you
mentioned of Mrs. Eddy’s above. Yes, there are so many ways of
inspiration.
Your understanding of what he might have meant by “self” is a great
way of describing the spiritual sense of God’s ever presence that
we feel. Lovely!
Thank you Evan and all. I have been a victim of worry prayer unknown to myself. It is subtle error, drawing one’s attention to the problem which we know, is nothing.
Mary Baker Eddy’s hymn, “Feed my sheep” starts with this statement, “Shepherd, show me how to go o’er the hill side steep”. Truly one needs to turn to the shepherd at all times and let Him be our total focus.
I am so glad to see SpiritView operating today. I made a comment yesterday and when it didn’t post I did it again. When I tried the third time I was told it was a duplicate however it never posted.
It’s comforting to know I’m not the only one.
Hi Everyone,
There was a tech glitch yesterday that was causing comments to not appear in many cases. My tech guy is working on it!
Hopefully its fixed now. Thanks for your patience.
Thank you so very much Evan and your tech guy. So much
appreciated that all the lovely sharing can be seen again!
Evan I know what you mean about the worry prayer that is more focused on the seeming error than the Truth. Error tries to be so loud, tries to drown out the all-powerful, still, small voice of God, always there waiting for us to turn our attention, even just slightly, towards Him.
You mention that rehearsing the problem is unhelpful. Made me think of something I’ve seen here on SV before:
Don’t nurse it
Don’t rehearse it
Give it to God and let Him reverse it!
Sending blessings for a worry-free day and weekend to all (including me!)
Thank you Rose! Grateful to have that little rhyming verse!
Wonderful the rhyme, Rose, thank you very much!
Oh my, yes! Thanks for bringing out into the light this unhelpful approach we sometimes find ouselves submitting to. “All error wants is to left alone.” And when we focus on the illusion, error is having its way with us and we are not turning to the Truth-filled reality of things. I know I’m guilty of this sometimes, but am learning to catch myself faster and go right to the Truth. It is in our nature as Truths reflection. to be Truth seekers. I love the idea of being “laser focused” on the Truth! And I also had to laugh at the truth about a “worry prayer,” is not prayer!
“The quickest way to a solution is not to rehearse the problem, but to get laser-focused on the spiritual truth that resolves the problem.
A worry-prayer is not a prayer. It’s worrying.”
Maybe no comments yesterday was an opportunity for us to focus more on the inspiring message…
Excellent, Trista. Thank you for sharing that the point of focus should be on the inspiring message more so than the comments (which can be helpful, especially the links to CS articles). Thankfully Evan does a perfect and complete job of conveying spiritual ideas! Thank you so much, Evan. No “worries” here!
Just re-click on yesterday’s SV wherever you have it and the comments come up!
Here are two of them in case you cannot get to yesterday’s comments: J. Says
“LISTEN and SILENT are spelled with the same letters.. “. Right under that,
Chilisands replies to J with this “thinking about the same letters, I will listen for thy voice-then be silent so I can hear the voice. It heals instantly. Thank you for your clear contribution.”
Thought those two comments were awesome. Hope you can find yesterday’s SV and try the re-clicking! Thank you Evan for these wonderful Spirit Views.
Amazing how the letters can be interchanged like that … like God and
dog! The unconditional Love that dogs give us, is like the unconditional
Love that God gives us. God’s Love is always with us. His Presence is
always with us. Sitting at ourr desk, we can all be experts when we
turn to Mind/God’s Spirit and intelligence. There is no glitch that can
come between us and God. Sweet!
Have a great day, Everyone! : )
“Don’t worry—Christ is here” by Kathy Bauer:
https://sentinel.christianscience.com/shared/view/lcj0q1xoo
“ESCAPE to reality” by Evan Mehlenbacher:
https://sentinel.christianscience.com/shared/view/13dvurlgpmg?s=e
Thank you for sharing this article, J. It’s wonderful!
I agree with Love and Carol, what a comfort and a blessing are these sharings with you all who are earnest students of this precious Divine Science, -seeking mental and spiritual illumination and a greater awareness of God’s presence and allness. As Love describes, in the “Armageddon of our minds” there seems to be a constant battle with worry, claims of disunity, discomfort, strife, confusion, and resistance to Truth…. “their name is legion”. These SV posts inspire a clearer sense of how Impersonal and Unreal these claims are,-and they add support and strength to our prayerful efforts to maintain our God endowed natural dominion over what Mary Baker Eddy terms animal magnetism.
Evan, I am immeasurably grateful for your consistent spiritual guidance, and for all the encouragement and support from the contributors on this God blessed site.
Yes thank you Evan, the error is mended. I now can see all comments from yesterday. Itelligence and truth win!!!♡
I am deeply thankful for today’s SpiritView and comments. I, too, have engaged in “worry prayer” more often than I like to admit, most recently regarding my vision and a long overdue visit to the optometrist. I had been aware of a lessening of clarity, excessive watering, and a mild deterioration of my sight for the past couple of years. I had prayed intermittently about the problem, but I wasn’t diligent and focused. Finally, in January I made an appointment only to learn my insurance was no longer accepted at this eye center. A couple of months went by, and I made another appointment at a different eye care office. The day before my appointment, I was told my insurance would not be accepted there either. Two more months went by and I again called my insurance company to find out where I could get new glasses. I was told there was only one option close by, so I gave them a call and was told it would a two and a half month wait. Fine. Clearly I was being given more time to address this misconception metaphysically. Mrs. Eddy has much to say about sight, including the revelatory recognition of God as “all-seeing.” I knew that my vision could only reflect the divine, effortless all-seeing vision of divine Mind. I studied references to sight and eyes in Eddy’s writings and read many helpful articles on JSH online. By the time my appointment arrived yesterday, I was at peace and unafraid. I could know with the prophet Isaiah, “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together “ It was and we did. No mention was made of cataracts forming, which had been my concern, and the doctor seemed surprised at the healthy state of my eyes. He made a slight adjustment to my prescription and new glasses were ordered to replace
the scratched pair I had been wearing for over 6 years.
I am so thankful for the healing truth revealed in Christian Science and this forum which uplifts and shepherds us in the way.
Thank you for sharing your testimony Joan and so happy to hear it.. Great that you recognized that the inability to get an appointment was your cue to take that time to approach the issue from a higher plane of Truth. Appreciated the verse from Isaiah.
Dear Joan, thank you very much for your comment. It’s wonderfully clear and helpful for me. It’s a jolly good divine truth, that, as God is allseeing, man, God’s perfect expression is allseing as well! And the Isaiah Verse is very suitable, too.
I can always only repeat that I am deeply grateful to God, that He is revealing Christian Science to me and to us all, and to dear Evan for this wonderful SpiritView Blog!!♡♡
Thank you Evan for a very helpful and much needed message today.
Thank you very much Evan!
Thanks Evan, and all the great responses!
I’m learning that praying worried is like putting your car in drive and reverse at the same time.You won’t get anywhere!
Laser focus on the truth!
Catching up on reading, and giving a shout out to Maggie for posting this article on Thursday. Thank you! In case you missed it, it’s inspiring and thought-provoking, and is also helpful regarding Friday’s topic..
“Does God have a plan for me?” by Josh Niles:
https://sentinel.christianscience.com/shared/view/1txm8d4kkt6?s=copylink
Thank you, Maggie, and J for reposting the article. It was good to
read again and confirms Evan’s writing above “to learn more about
spiritual reality” and how to understand things better to see what
God has already planned for each of His children.
Thank you, J for reentering Josh Niles article!! It is outstanding!