365 Prayer Blog Challenge

Dear God/ess, Today marks the end of the 365 day blogging challenge. Working towards this day has been life's greatest achievements. The joy was in the journey. This is an accomplishment of spirit, not the ego.

Tomorrow we all have to seek the vision to meet a new day no matter what anyone has accomplished in life.

So I receive the blessings of these beautiful prayers even as we move on to embrace another cycle. Never underestimate the constant movement towards the good, to God-ness. Every day is a continuing process of growth, of lessons learned. Each day provides all of us with the opportunity to reach for higher and higher levels of consciousness.

So we pause on this day to look back over a 365 prayer marathon with a vision that no prayer is a final statement on the great creation we see all around us in this world and beyond.

Where do we go from here in this ending and new beginning?

We realize that life begins anew every day, the more awake we become. If we look closely, no day is like any other.

Let us reflect what has brought us to this very moment, the only "time" there is.

Om Peace Amen

Dear God/ess, Everything, every person, my daily work, every relationship, and every person I meet, every one I help and who helps me allows me to set my inner compass. All of it teaches me how to work/play on my own personal power, how to refine my own personal energy as well as give insight as to how I give and receive all of the available energy in the world.

God/ess works through the personal power of Love, Grace and Faith. God/ess works through our animals and the messages we receive daily through books, media and so called chance meetings.

How do we choose to learn from all of this seemingly random stimuli? Do we slow down and pause in order to receive messages coherently and deliberately? Or does the incoming data speed up our senses, our reaction times? Do we walk and breathe faster, allowing the mind to run rampant with recycled thoughts that go round and round with nothing real to offer?

Today is the day we wake up collectively to the music of the spheres, the great cosmic messages that are ours if we receive them. Also we can learn to give what we receive ten-fold because we understand the beauty of the gift.

Look in the eyes of your companion animal, today. What revelation can be garnered from those soulful windows into the fathomless pool of spirit?

Who is speaking to you through those eyes? Listen without doubt or fear. Receive with the Love that brought you into this world.

Om, Peace, Amen

Dear God/ess, The lessons of our lives need to be shared, so that others may learn and grow into the infinite spaces that surround us all.
This Prayer Blog at the heart of it is a place where we can share here in this mini-community created by none other than the Internet.
Today is day #360 of the 365 day blogging challenge. These prayers seem to fuel a Will to Live that is beyond my understanding. For instance, I fell one week after Mukunda the Dog's death 1/10. I thought: "I can't die today! I have a prayer to write!"
The Will To Live is just one of the topics that run as a theme through these prayers. If we haven't made a commitment to a life purpose and a means of fulfilling that purpose, we may feel weakened in the face of life's challenges. This is one of those lessons I feel compelled to share with you today.
Let us adapt a humble patience as we confront our truth in the face of experiencing the soul's journey in this life and beyond. The more we work through in this lifetime, the stronger we will be.
Confront what you are called to face and honestly learn what you need to learn.
Be an active participant in your life. Pay attention. Be aware. Breathe and walk consciously upon this green earth. And if you fall down, get right back again.
Or, as the Japanese Proverb says:
"Fall down seven times, stand up eight."
Om Peace Amen

Dear God/ess, Today I embrace all the blessings of my life and even though a challenge may not seem to be a blessing, it always is.
My dog Mukunda is sick tonight and may be trying to die. I value his valiant effort, his struggle. I thank him for his great service he bestows now and always to me and my family.
Embracing death is not the way of our society.
Embracing illness is not very popular, either.
But focusing on the fear of lose clouds the blessings, the joy, the gifts of a life well lived, of service beyond any I have ever known.
The highest good for me and Mukunda is to pause and really experience the love he has for me and me for him.
Dear Angels, take him if his time is up. He is yours, but make sure you leave a place next to him for me when I am born into the Infinite Love of All That Is.
Om, Peace, Amen

Dear God/ess, I am thinking today of what it means to be called, to feel infused with light, to feel the breath of Prana resonating with my own.
Do we listen to our own inner longings or do we ignore them?
When we come to that fork in the road, are we courageous enough to take that which is overgrown or do we prefer the one everyone else has chosen?
What is the calling we hear today? to change careers or retire, go back to school, start or leave a relationship, get married and have a child and/or decide to be more loving, less judgmental, more creative?
Are we afraid of the demands that arise by following the calling that lead to Divine Grace?
Are you following your muse? Are you able to surrender to the Greater Power that now orchestrates your life?
Dear Angels, help us be more receptive to our Divine Calling today, to see the extra-ordinary in the ordinary, the sacred in the profane.
Angelic Presence, help us only to conform to God/esses Will, and let societal will move along as it always has and always will.
Please help us Trust in our highest Authentic Potential.
Om, Peace, Amen.

Dear God/ess, I am still thinking about the purpose of every living being, plant and beast on the planet, and how everyone's sense of purpose is closely aligned with their Will To Live.
Recently, I had a terrible fall. Immediately I thought, "I can't die now! I have a prayer to write!" This deep sense of motivation accelerated the healing process, and strengthened every cell in my body.
A few hours later, I sat down and wrote the prayer for that day.
Then I think, am I writing these prayers, or are they writing me, rebuilding my thought processes, weeding out all the false beliefs from years and years of conditioning? To say that I write prayers somehow minimizes the full dimension of how these prayers are changing my life.
It isn't the act of writing these prayers that defines my feeling of purpose, but it is the strong calling I feel to write them that brings music to my soul and a dance to my step every time I think about it and do it.
The key is to turn this sense of purpose and calling to everything else in my life, from the most mundane to the most inspired and passionate, always contributing to something greater than myself. This something greater is called the Will To Live, the Will To Love, to be the peace I seek in the world.
A project of any kind brings great feelings of satisfaction and happiness to your life but when that project is taken away, be happy and find that sense of fulfillment in the here and now. Live for the joy of meaning that exists always in every life, in your life and mine.
My happiness does not depend on writing these prayers. But I will continue to write them as long as I can.
Om, Peace Amen

Dear God/ess, I mentioned in another blog post about yesterday's prayer that humans are incapable of knowing love without an animal teaching them the nature of what Love really is.
I know that not everyone loves animals. Some people are deathly allergic to them. This must be a lonely existence. However what you do not know, you do not miss.
A strong wind has seemingly come from nowhere this late winter's early morning. What would life be like if Ulysses weren't lying at my feet to bring that profound sense of serenity to my life? Occasionally, he sighs. Sometimes I hear him lick his foot and go back to sleep again. I stretch out my leg and place my foot under his warm belly. This makes both of us smile.
And now, it is snowing again, laying down pure white over snow that needed some touching up. Ule goes bounding out like a puppy, smiling at his great fortune, here, in this present moment.
This prayer is for all the people in the world who think they don't need an animal in their lives. Or for the people who need love and don't have a companion animal. And for all the people who are waiting for just the right Beast to come into their lives.
I was one of those people for twenty-eight years before Mukunda chose us to teach the secrets of Joy and Transformation. Ulysses arrived four years later.
I had many excuses as to why I did not need an animal in my life. Some were solid reasons. Others were just plain idiotic.
Suffice to say, all the stages of an animal's life, puppy or kitten, or the blessings of their advancing years, hold special joys and sorrows, yet all serve to deepen our awareness of Life's special Joys and loving meaning.
Om, Peace, Amen

Dear God/ess, As I sit here on my couch with Ulysses all stretched out beside me, I am thinking of the healing powers of this dog and of all the animals I have ever known. When we pay attention to the love of our animals, especially of the love they have for us, then we are accessing the regenerative powers of the Divine Source in everything, including you and me and all of our animals.
The Divine Source is revealed the more we live with joyful spontaneity and are tuned to a purpose that fuels thewill to live.
Our animals, as healers and guides, awaken us to the Divine Mystery which at first is invisible. As we are guided, this world opens our hearts. Our mind drops ideas of how things should be.
The animals teach us how to detach from thoughts and conceptions. Dropping judgement is one of the most important things we humans can do, yet in my estimation, the most difficult.
My friend Ulysses the dog judges nothing. He is at liberty to merge with everything this world has to offer. What a powerful and healing example!
Judgement is neither good or bad. But it is burdensome and humorless.
When a judgment arises, this is a signal that a false belief is lurking and ready to be liberated. We are spiritual beings having a physical experience and freedom from judgement is a necessary part of that journey.
Our animal friends, guides, healers and companions are the vehicle for this transformation. They lead us every step and breath along the way.
They are healers who teach us to heal. They are Divine Helpers who teach us to help.
They teach pure love that transcends understanding. If we are willing students, we will be pure love, too, instead of a pain body riddled with judgement.
Which would you rather be?
Om, Peace, Amen

Dear God/ess, Recuperating from an illness is a spiritual experience. Combine that with taking a Vow Of Silence, and you definitely have something to write a prayer about!
I am sitting here, down by the river, throwing sticks for Ulysses, while watching the incredible green, as waterfowl arise suddenly from the corner of my eye.
Ulysses has a relationship with a pair of geese who are here every spring around this time. A few weeks ago, I mentioned here on this Prayer Blog that he swam out to greet them on our evening walk. He seemed to give them his greeting and then went about his business of poking around in the water.
This evening, they all swam in the same vicinity and had a great spirit of familiarity between them all.
Humans commonly reject interspecies communication. We humans think these animals love only us. We may think that the animal world is hostile, dog eat dog and so on. But the truth is, there is a lively world of animal interaction. All we have to do is tune into it.
Mukunda died on the Epiphany, 1/6/2010. On Easter Sunday, his paws were sticking out of his grave, with no deterioration, or sign of an animal eating him. His golden red paws looked quite alive.
So we reburied him.
We named Mukunda after the Indian Saint, Paramahandsa Yogananda. Mukunda was the Yogi's childhood name. One of the miracles that Yogananda's followers always talked about was when the Saint died, his body was laid in state for a number of weeks, rather than immediate cremation, so his followers from all over the world could come and pay their last respects.
The miracle in question was that the body did not break down. It did not have an odor of deteriorating flesh. In fact, it smelt of an incense. His skin was radiant. He looked like he was sleeping.
I know the Epiphany represents the Wise Man following the star to the Christ child. I know the star symbolizes the third eye of wisdom and intuition.
The resurrection is as much a miracle as a body that does not decompose. The dog Mukunda, has all of these covered in his Easter Day Miracle.
I plan to contact an animal communicator about this tonight.
Stay tuned.
Om, Peace, Amen

Dear God/ess, The act of prayer and praying can add a healing balm to the psyche. It can pull you up and help deflect negativity when it arises. It can protect you when everyone else is going down. And it also can protect others in your life.
Recently, I decided to write short prayers to share with anyone who wanted to read them.
I will write one prayer every day for one year as an experiment to prove that not only does prayer heal, but also to prove (to myself) that prayer is nourishment to every cell and tissue in my flesh and blood body, and reveals the full spectrum of perception that not only is rooted in this world but the spiritual world, as well.
Already these prayers have become a beautiful meditation piece (peace) a vision board with the prayer and an accompanying photograph I take on most occasions to illuminate the flow of the prayer, on the platform I have chosen to put them.
Here are 10 reasons why I have decided to write prayers:
1) to heal myself
2) to heal other people
3) as a meditation
4) as a way to concentrate
5) as a way to create something meaningful
6) as a way to create something meaningful everyday
7) It's good writing practice to write a prayer every day.
In order to write a prayer a day, I must have organized times of solitude. This means I do not listen to the news or any other form of mindless chatter.
9) I am finding that my intuition is strengthened by the practice of writing prayers. For instance, I am more tuned into the art of taking care of myself, eating foods that agree with me, and staying away from those don't.
10 )I love the act of reading the prayers I have written to people, like our 100 year old Aunt. She loves them!
I read a story one time written by Carolyn Myss. She said that a woman she knew was in a serious car crash, and had an out of body experience. The accident caused a multi-car pile up on a freeway in one of the major cities in America. Many of the people were complaining because they were going to be late for work.
But from one of the cars she saw the vibrations of a person who was praying for her. The energy field of the area all around the car was expansive. The woman who was in the crash felt the love. She felt it might be worth going back to the body because of the beauty of the love.
But before she returned, she took note of the person's license plate number.
After several months of recuperation, she sought out that person and thanked her.
My hope for these prayers is that they help to raise the energy of those recipients of the prayer and that they soothe your spirit, as it reverberates outwardly to calm everyone in your life.
May the prayer calm your inward fears.
May it be your friend.
Om, Peace, Amen

Dear God/ess, I just finished reading a poem by Rumi, with a commentary by Elizabeth Lesser, founder of Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York.
Learn the alchemy
true human beings know.
The moment you accept
the troubles you've been given,
The door will open. *Rumi*
On this very early rainy morn, July 14, I think about how we all tend to mask our troubles. We want to appear as if we have it all together, have enough or more than enough money, hide the alcoholics, and sweep the rest under the rug. The kids are fine. No one gets sick. The house is perfect and clean.
The truth of our lives need not be a secret, because we all have common experiences, we live daily lives, we get up in the morning and go to bed at night. That is, some of us do. Working night shift corrupts the circadian rhythm. But we get back to morning and night regularity as soon as we can.
My troubles are not so different from yours. I choose to look at life experience as lessons to be learned, as opportunities for growth. "Life is a classroom," the sages always said. And in the classroom, we can share common griefs, common joys, often which arise from from the saddest of times.
We go to a good old fashioned auction on Tuesday nights and get sweet deals on chestnut, cherry, oak and mahogany furniture. Some of the pieces obviously come from family treasures and have been in the family for generations. Many times these heirlooms sell for $1-2 dollars.
And the truth strikes a chord that yes, we are in a depression, people are losing their homes and their family furniture. These troubles need to be faced, shared and transcended. We cannot deny these things when treasures are sold off for nothing.
Yet as we transcend, we find the compassion in our collective soul to become better people.
Om Peace Amen

Dear God/ess, The best things in life are free: Love. Holding hands. Gazing at the stars. Feeling inner peace. Petting your cat on his head. Meditating in absolute quiet. Sitting on the grass. Contemplating your life. Finding Joy within your soul. Walking along the river bank. Swimming in the river or ocean. Sharing conversation with a friend. Drinking water from a fountain. Singing in the shower. Dancing alone in your living room. Kissing a new born baby. Giving directions to someone who is lost. Thanking a person who has served you. Valuing the gift of human encounter. Smiling as a gift you give to others. Loving all strangers. Getting down on both knees to pray. Walking very slowly upon the earth. Compassion. Respect. Forgiveness.
The following things cost us our soul if not our lives: B-52s. Long range missiles. Military helicopters. Tanks. AK-47s. Artillery guns. Field cannons. F-16s. Rotary wing aircraft. Littoral combat ships. Joint strike fighters. Artificial limbs. War. Poverty. Starvation. Dependence on oil. Oil spills. Murder. Revenge. Destruction.
"We must challenge the belief that war is inevitable," says Congressman Dennis Kucinch.
Now is the time to challenge the belief that self-destructive militarism and use of Nuclear Weapons is still a viable solution to the conflicts of the world. We must not wait for future generations to put an end to war, poverty, and the mass genocide that goes hand in hand with a war mongering mentality.
The time is now to seek that which is simple and free. Peace. Serenity. Acceptance. Courage of spirit. Enlightenment.
Om Peace Amen