I'll teach you how to pray!

Honestly, I can’t even remember the last time I actually prayed to God!
Prayer is how I found clarity before; I was in that perfect state, I actually saw Him!
Then, coming down from that mountain of holiness, I thought I’d find an alternative for everyone else. All my fear just vanished. But here’s the kicker: I lost God while I was busy trying to find the path for others! God wants every single breath you take to be a gift to Him. He wants you immersed in Him with every thought. Once you flip over to His side, reaching the summit is easy. "Ask for whatever you want, believe, and it will be yours," Jesus said. Then He calls me a lazy bum. "It's because of you that I'm changing!" (Yeah, yeah, I'm just rambling😉). He tells me in a whisper, "Fine, you folded your hands and realized I was already right here because you thought of me! Ask for whatever you want and you'll get it." I thought, maybe I should look for peace in this world? Whatever, it'll show up eventually. I figured, why not ask for seven virgins in paradise? 🙂 Because if it were seventy, I’d definitely lose my mind. 😁

Oh, I forgot—He also told me, "Just stick to the Our Father and the Hail Mary and give glory to the Father!"
Whoops, just realized God doesn't change! 🙂

The Bible

Mal 3

1See, I am sending a messenger to prepare the way before me. And the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to His Temple, and the angel of the Alliance you long for is on His way. Behold, He is coming, says Yahweh of the Armies. 2But who can endure the day of His coming? Who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and a whitener's solution. 3He will sit as one who melts silver and purifies it. He will purify the sons of Levi and cleanse them like gold and silver, so they may offer to Yahweh a sacrifice in righteousness. 4Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalem will be dear to Yahweh, just as it was in the days of old and in the early years. 5I am coming to judge, and I will be a witness ready against sorcerers and adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who cheat workers, widows, and orphans, and against those who trample on the rights of foreigners and have no fear of Me—says Yahweh of the Armies. 6For I, Yahweh, do not change, but you, the sons of Jacob, change constantly! 7You have strayed from My commands since the days of your fathers and do not keep them. Return to Me, and I will return to you—says Yahweh of the Armies. You ask, "How shall we return?" 8Should a man defraud God? Yet you are defrauding Me. And you ask, "In what way have we defrauded You?" In tithes and offerings. 9You are struck with a curse, for you have defrauded Me, all of you! 10Bring the full tithe into the storehouse so there may be food in My house. Test Me now—says Yahweh of the Armies—will I not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing upon you so abundantly 11that I will command the locust to not destroy your crops, so your fields remain fruitful—says Yahweh of the Armies. 12All nations will then call you blessed, for you will be a land of bliss—says Yahweh of the Armies. 13Your words against Me have been harsh—says Yahweh. You still ask, "What have we said against You?" You have said, "What is the point of serving God? What profit is there in keeping His rules and walking humbly before Yahweh of the Armies? 14From now on, we will call the arrogant ones blessed: the wicked prosper, and though they test God, they get away with it!" 16But when those who fear God speak, Yahweh listens, and He records them in a book of remembrance for those who fear Yahweh and honor His Name. 17They will be Mine, My special possession—says Yahweh of the Armies. On the Day I prepare, I will be merciful to them, just as a father is merciful to the son who serves him. 18And then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not. 19For behold, the day comes like a furnace; the arrogant and the wicked will be like stubble: the approaching day will burn them up—says Yahweh of the Armies—leaving neither root nor branch. 20But for you who fear My Name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will leap out like calves at pasture. 21And you will trample the ungodly like dust under your feet on the Day I prepare"—says Yahweh of the Armies. 22"Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, to whom I gave laws and decrees at Horeb for all Israel. 23Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the day of Yahweh comes, that great and terrible day. 24He will turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a curse."

By the way, this is the final book of the Old Testament and the very last part! 😲 🤣
"Jewish apocalyptic traditions claimed that Elijah never actually died, but would instead die alongside Enoch at the end of days while fighting against the Antichrist."
Oh shit, you can never trust those guys. 🤷

Look, God—not some Jewish apocalyptic hero, mind you—told me straight up, face to face: don't be afraid.

So I went off to light up a joint, but honestly, you shouldn't overdo it. You can't just smoke your life away unless you're actually trying to forget 😉 I've been hitting it way too hard lately, and since I'm barely feeling the buzz anymore, it makes sense... I just need this phase to pass 🙂

I dig it... I finally felt the actual weight and meaning behind this quote 🙂

Rote memorized prayers are pretty much useless—they’re just empty words thrown together without any real substance.
Prayer needs to come straight from the heart; it has to be sincere and expressed in your own words to actually mean anything, if you ask me. 🙂

Thanks a lot 😁

Anyway, I can't quite recall the exact wording—I'd say something like "I don't remember!"—but I know I read somewhere in the Bible: "God, give me the strength to heal." You gotta whisper that quietly to yourself, then just sit with the thought until you actually feel that energy hitting you. It’s about learning how to actually receive from Him! Once you smoke some weed, everything comes flooding back 🙂

Look, anyone who actually wants it—or even someone who tried before and finally found the drive again—can hit holiness in just 40 days if they commit to the spiritual path. I’ve also heard this theory that if you stay mindful of your breath 24/7, just constantly feeling every inhale and exhale (I mean, what's the big deal there?), you'll reach enlightenment. Honestly, I can't deal with that; I don't even have the time... Anyway, you’ve gotta strip away every single distraction and excess you feel pulling at you. A spiritual hermit will find their way in no time if they listen to me... I actually experienced holiness for the first time back when I was with my old flame and my current wife; we both got swept up in it that night... Our voices didn't even sound like ours anymore, they were so much more beautiful! Truly... and our eyes weren't even ours either! They looked way better, like they were glowing! We didn't even need words because our senses were so dialed in, we were basically swimming through that world.... I did it a couple more times with weed, but nothing like that since...

So yeah, you both should try smoking weed, kind of like how you'd feel after you grab a few 🙂 because I've felt it that way myself, but it's definitely not the real thing 😛

The more time you spend with Him in the quiet corners of your mind, as Jesus says—just pray in secret, and God, who sees what’s hidden, will reward you! seek and you shall find! knock and the door will open! ask and it’ll be given to you! the more you surrender to Him, the more you’re gonna have to let those tears flow. You’ve gotta humble yourself, deep down, and just let His grace pour over you like rain. Don't tell anyone else about this. And don't go spamming this everywhere in 24 hours! This is just for you, to help open your eyes... because otherwise, you'd just stay blind... God knows, I haven't got a clue...

A true fear of God will soak into your soul; you'll feel His depths and soar above the heights!

velvettiger21 said:Rote memorized prayers are pretty much useless—they’re just empty words thrown together without any real substance.
Prayer needs to come straight from the heart; it has to be sincere and expressed in your own words to actually mean anything, if you ask me. 🙂

Exactly. Also, prayer is strictly an act of gratitude. You don't pray *for* things; you pray to express thanks to God, the universe, or whatever you choose to call it. At the end of the day, the label doesn't matter.

Michael Roberts9 said:The more time you spend with Him in the quiet corners of your mind, as Jesus says—just pray in secret, and God, who sees what’s hidden, will reward you! seek and you shall find! knock and the door will open! ask and it’ll be given to you! the more you surrender to Him, the more you’re gonna have to let those tears flow. You’ve gotta humble yourself, deep down, and just let His grace pour over you like rain. Don't tell anyone else about this. And don't go spamming this everywhere in 24 hours! This is just for you, to help open your eyes... because otherwise, you'd just stay blind... God knows, I haven't got a clue...

A true fear of God will soak into your soul; you'll feel His depths and soar above the heights!

Personally, I’m afraid of the light. Have you ever felt that? I’ve often found myself close to the light, only to pull back in fear, thinking, "Not yet, this isn't for me, it's too early."

Jacob Sanchez7 said:Exactly. Also, prayer is strictly an act of gratitude. You don't pray *for* things; you pray to express thanks to God, the universe, or whatever you choose to call it. At the end of the day, the label doesn't matter.

But people also seek through prayer. They ask for everything that aligns with the Creator's path—everything positive and necessary that a person simply can't handle alone. That’s where the Creator steps in, making spiritual energy available to us. It’s the natural connection between human beings and the creative energy of the Creator. A human being isn't on that energetic level and never will be, so asking for help or petitioning is perfectly natural. It's about receiving that assistance and, of course, the gratitude is mutual—just like how someone who helps you feels grateful just to have been able to pass that help along.

Spirituality boils down to this: the universe helping humanity specifically through prayer. A person's true spirituality is reflected in how much their effort is rewarded—basically, how much capacity they have to channel that spiritual aid.

I know you're thinking of selfish requests—the kind of prayers a secular mind might use that aren't actually seeking help, but are just pure ego. Usually, those are things a person could easily do for themselves anyway.

So, I disagree— prayer isn't exclusively an attitude of gratitude. Because if you're just being thankful, that's called gratitude. Prayer is prayer. Think of it like a child wanting a parent to provide something they need but can't get on their own. Sure, the Creator knows exactly what we need better than we do, but most of the time, we don't even realize what would serve us best. 🙂

Give Walsh’s Conversations with God a read.

There is just an overwhelming surplus of books out there.

Ultimately, one ought to listen to their own inner voice.
One needs to observe how we perceive things and the mechanics of our own vision.
And then, quite simply, act upon that realization.

Literature, for all its merits, serves to guide and assist, yet it possesses a tendency to confuse; it entangles people in such a way that they lose touch with their own sound mind and heartfelt intuition.
I find myself falling into this trap occasionally—reaching a point where I feel a sudden, intense urge to never open another book again.

Why is it that we harbor such doubt in ourselves?

Jacob Sanchez7 said:Give Walsh’s Conversations with God a read.

For me, practice always carries more weight than theory. That book has plenty of both, sure, but I have a different take. Claiming you don't even need to pray feels a bit too modest—it’s a valid choice, but it shouldn't be treated as the only "correct" way to live. After all, the entire spiritual history of the human race is built on prayer (or setting intentions) and receiving answers from the spirit through energy, ideas, information, and eventually even physical manifestation. Even if our modern, decadent history tends to overlook this and the materialistic paradigm refuses to acknowledge it, it's still fundamentally true.

Morgan Chase5 said:There is just an overwhelming surplus of books out there.

Ultimately, one ought to listen to their own inner voice.
One needs to observe how we perceive things and the mechanics of our own vision.
And then, quite simply, act upon that realization.

Literature, for all its merits, serves to guide and assist, yet it possesses a tendency to confuse; it entangles people in such a way that they lose touch with their own sound mind and heartfelt intuition.
I find myself falling into this trap occasionally—reaching a point where I feel a sudden, intense urge to never open another book again.

Why is it that we harbor such doubt in ourselves?

Exactly. I’d recommend a book only if it felt like I had written it myself. Since I have zero interest in writing essays just to get my point across, I recommend the book instead.

Michael Gonzalez77 said:For me, practice always carries more weight than theory. That book has plenty of both, sure, but I have a different take. Claiming you don't even need to pray feels a bit too modest—it’s a valid choice, but it shouldn't be treated as the only "correct" way to live. After all, the entire spiritual history of the human race is built on prayer (or setting intentions) and receiving answers from the spirit through energy, ideas, information, and eventually even physical manifestation. Even if our modern, decadent history tends to overlook this and the materialistic paradigm refuses to acknowledge it, it's still fundamentally true.

I have no idea where you pulled that sweeping conclusion from.
It doesn't apply to me. But then again, everyone walks their own path and believes what they choose. Every choice holds equal weight.

electrictinker26 said:Personally, I’m afraid of the light. Have you ever felt that? I’ve often found myself close to the light, only to pull back in fear, thinking, "Not yet, this isn't for me, it's too early."

So you aren't ready to let go of the material world just yet? Look, I won't give away the source, but try reading everything I've posted. Once you stop being afraid of me, you won't be afraid of the light anymore!

The first one in the morning is always the best part of the day. 🙂
Just to get back in touch with my own thoughts and vibes... honestly, until you feel that first pull from God, there's no point moving on to the next thing. It's all empty words if you haven't truly understood and felt it. In the spiritual realm—with your eyes closed—that sensation is like a silent bullet train rushing past you... God, just let me learn how to receive from You... some things don't even need to be said out loud if they feel like they're taking too long; just feel that sensation...

I looked into Buddhism, and it’s incredibly similar to what I’ve been going through! They have the path of the seeker (the struggle) and then there's the other path—the letting go—which you can take directly if you're pure and ready. Their version of nirvana, which nobody seems to have reached right now, is the exact same as what Jesus experienced! But given how Buddha lived and experienced it, Jesus didn't care about standing out either; after performing a miracle, he'd just say, "Go fix yourself and tell nobody!" But everyone would go spreading the word because they were scared! Buddhists actually respect Jesus, but the Church doesn't return the favor. They don't have a clue!

In the book Spirit Power, it says this about Buddhism:
Nirvana
Basically—the ultimate Perfection—once you crush your ego, false laws, doubt, hatred, and greed, and you are reborn (like what I mentioned), you'll be able to follow the final four stages known as true Purity, true Thought, true Solitude, and true Ecstasy.
Then, naturally, you'll be capable of overcoming the desire for earthly life, the craving for heaven, your delusions, and especially that pride you feel for progressing on the path of holiness.(!)
At that point, you'll be right on the doorstep of nirvana. India, Tipitaka, Vinaya, 1, 1st Century BC, Christ— 🙂 you need serious patience to transcribe all this. 🙂

But on our path, while praying to God, a seeker will meet you after holiness (I've written about this before)... maybe they'll meet them too, but they aren't even aware of it... and they are way closer to what I'm saying than we Christians are. We're just superficial. Whatever, this is the penultimate Pope, and I think my word is the last! The Light of the World, I think that's how that monk described Him... man, I don't need all that drama! 😍

Michael Roberts9 said:Look, anyone who actually wants it—or even someone who tried before and finally found the drive again—can hit holiness in just 40 days if they commit to the spiritual path. I’ve also heard this theory that if you stay mindful of your breath 24/7, just constantly feeling every inhale and exhale (I mean, what's the big deal there?), you'll reach enlightenment. Honestly, I can't deal with that; I don't even have the time... Anyway, you’ve gotta strip away every single distraction and excess you feel pulling at you. A spiritual hermit will find their way in no time if they listen to me... I actually experienced holiness for the first time back when I was with my old flame and my current wife; we both got swept up in it that night... Our voices didn't even sound like ours anymore, they were so much more beautiful! Truly... and our eyes weren't even ours either! They looked way better, like they were glowing! We didn't even need words because our senses were so dialed in, we were basically swimming through that world.... I did it a couple more times with weed, but nothing like that since...

So yeah, you both should try smoking weed, kind of like how you'd feel after you grab a few 🙂 because I've felt it that way myself, but it's definitely not the real thing 😛

Only 40 days. That sounds absolutely fantastic. Meanwhile, I’ve been grinding away with these TMA-style mantras for 32 years now. 😢😲😁
Maybe I'm just praying wrong?

I'm genuinely curious about this "high-speed" prayer technique. Assuming, of course, it doesn't involve weed. Or sacramental copulation 😕

So you haven't actually achieved anything 😉

Read everything I've already said, then tell me exactly what part you don't get 🙂
And about the weed—look, it's true, life's better with it, but I'm obsessed and it’s not really my thing when it comes to the spiritual side. I just like hanging out and reminiscing with you guys; in person, so many emotions just start burning up again... I'm more into that Tantric union, but even that’ll have to wait until I actually master the technique :P

It’s tough when your wife is so grounded in the material world! As for the weed, I bet it can work! I mean, look at those Sadhus in India—they're the only ones allowed to smoke legally because they're considered holy men. I saw this documentary once where the reporter said they were smoking like there was no tomorrow🤣

If the world would just fix itself and I could send my wife to the Seychelles with her girlfriends while I head to Tibet, a few grams of Tibetan pumpkin would go a long way toward helping me set the world on fire😛 but surely there's someone out there who will truly swallow my words whole and be the first one to stand up for me!

Everyone’s gonna end up as an angel eventually, it’s written 🙂 but I can't find the source right now 🙂

My head's a bit scrambled, but we're all returning to God—I definitely pulled that from some quote somewhere 😁

An angel is just someone who reaches perfection. Who knows if they'll even need a wife at that point 🙂

Jacob Sanchez7 said:Exactly. I’d recommend a book only if it felt like I had written it myself. Since I have zero interest in writing essays just to get my point across, I recommend the book instead.

I have no idea where you pulled that sweeping conclusion from.
It doesn't apply to me. But then again, everyone walks their own path and believes what they choose. Every choice holds equal weight.

I agree that every genuine choice is equally valuable—provided by "genuine," I mean one that fosters growth and actually produces results. I’m not saying there's anything controversial about that, but just because a path works doesn't mean it's the *only* right way. There are many layers to this, and prayer is certainly useful and even desirable.

What I wrote in bold is a fact; that's exactly what spirituality is. It's a natural process. You don't even have to be consciously aware of it because everything happens at an energetic and mental level driven by "desire." But it also involves conscious contact and cooperation with spiritual energies (sometimes through deities and such). All the spiritual heritage on this planet comes from the contributions of highly evolved people and the responsive help provided by spiritual energies. Humans have become disconnected from nature, but nature isn't just forests and lakes—it's the natural connection to the spiritual energies surrounding us and within us. These energies are our creators, the architects of the material and energetic universe, all acting in harmony with that most noble energy we call the Creator or God.

Think about Tesla. Where did those indispensable ideas that transformed human civilization come from? He implemented them in such a unique way, but they clearly came from a spiritual plane of Ideas. They weren't just "invented"; they were assistance and insight drawn from the cosmos—something that has existed forever. We humans have gradually drifted away from that through our evolution. We've lost that natural access and instead developed a way of thinking that is flawed in this regard. This flaw creates a massive amount of negative phenomena that inhibit us in every sense—intellectually, creatively, physically, and spiritually. A human being is a single entity; the spirit and body are interconnected. Some parts suffer more than others, but generally, it's a universal issue: our spiritual level, our level of conscious development, is still very low and in its early stages.

Look at Buddha, or the Greeks—where did all those postulates suddenly come from? Before that, there was a much lower level of consciousness, knowledge, and conceptual achievement. Then, almost overnight, within just two or three hundred years, these peak intellectual achievements appeared. Let's be honest: no one has surpassed them to this day. As a civilization, in both cultural and scientific terms, we haven't even reached that level yet; it remains an ideal that we can't quite grasp because of problems we haven't figured out how to solve. It's certain that these individuals were enlightened; they received insights that had nothing to do with standard human logic.

You don't *have* to pray. Obviously, a person doesn't need to do that to achieve well-being; positive thinking is enough. But simply through their desires or thoughts, if they possess sufficient energetic or spiritual power, they will contribute spiritual help to everyone around them without ever literally begging a deity or the Creator. That's not the point. On the other hand, prayer is beneficial and helpful, provided that people's desires align with the will of the Creator.

What you wrote at the end actually gave me some motivation.. everything you see out there with your eyes—that's just the external world, and it won't hear your prayers!
Look inward. Squint your eyes, feel your own depths. It’s all so delicate, and slowly, you start to feel your spirit rise and your heart clear. That's when the realizations hit, based on how much you surrender. You really have to be like a child before God! Don't show this to others, and don't even mention what you're seeking! Because if you share it with someone who doesn't think or feel the way you do, you're just throwing your knowledge to the wind! You'll lose yourself... discover your inner nourishment, it's divine! Man, I suddenly found so much joy in prayer—before and after work, throughout the day—and soon I was one with it.. like hanging out with your own mother! A real, true one...

So when you feel like you're hitting rock bottom, there won't be any doubt, because the spirit of our Creator will flow through you. Stop searching! When it comes to you naturally, you'll conquer the intruder!

But your heart has to learn how to weep before Him, because tears cleanse... think about someone's suffering, look around... everything is exactly as it is, nothing else, and it belongs to God.. He is all you have.

My internet is acting up, and this song is so dear to me...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5CeTDCFonw