This is the secret closet,
   Where the door is closed, and where
Faith moves in triumphant progress
   Up the shining aisles of prayer.

Here where a host uncounted
   Has beaten a path to seek,
My soul doth wait in the silence
   To see what the Lord will speak.

To Him who is love unbounded
   I come with a voiceless plea,
Knowing His perfect wisdom
   Has an open door for me.

I have but to trust His goodness
   And to listen and obey.
My soul doth wait in the silence
   To hear what the Lord will say.

   Clarence Edwin Flynn (1888-1970)

What is true prayer?

1. The subject of prayer is of vital importance to every human heart, because the hopes and the destinies of mankind depend so largely upon what men believe concerning the willingness and the power of God to answer prayer. That He does hear and answer those who call upon Him, millions have believed and have proved. "All things are possible to him that believeth."—Mark 9:23 (A.V.). Knowing that we are able to learn to pray with understanding and always get an answer, we can come to the study of prayer with wholehearted interest.

2. True prayer is conscious communion with God, or a common union of the human consciousness with the Father within, the principle of Absolute Good. Unity's method of prayer is the Silence1 and it is reached through orderly steps in thinking and feeling.

3. Jesus promised, "And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.—Matt. 21:22. He gave some clear, definite instructions about how to pray, and He gave The Lord's Prayer2 as a model. These instructions and this prayer furnish all necessary information to one who would pray the fervent, effectual prayer that avails much.

4. First, Jesus warned against praying for the purpose of being seen and heard by men; then He taught the true way: "When thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee."—Matt. 6:6.

5. The key word in this text is "Father."3 The first and most important point in the study of prayer is to understand the true character of Him to whom we pray. Hardly less important is it that we understand our relation to Him. Jesus called Him "Father" and taught us to approach God as children would an earthly parent. "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father..."—Matt. 6:9.4

6. Jesus understood how to reach the people of His time by the word "Father."5 Had He referred to God as Principle or as Mind, the word would not have conveyed to the people the same understanding that "Father" conveyed. It was customary for them to refer to "Father Abraham," "Father Jacob," and others, and to like to claim their relationship, to like to think that they had proceeded from these "fathers" and were possessed of the same characteristics. By this word, "Father," Jesus tried to show them their divine origin, and have them really understand that they truly possessed the same qualities as God, the source from which they came. In using the word "our," He was claiming this same relationship for all, thus welding humanity into a universal brotherhood, all originating from the one Cause.

7. This relationship suggests love.6 "God is love."—I John 4:8. To bring this close to us the Scriptures give these comparisons: "Like as a father pitieth his children, so Jehovah pitieth them that fear Him."—Psalms 103:13. Those who fear Jehovah are those who stand in holy awe and reverence7 before Him. "Or what man is there of you, who, if his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone?—Matt. 7:9. "If ye ... know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"—Matt. 7:11.

8. Have you prayed, yet failed to receive? Perhaps you fail to receive because you do not go to God as to a Father, believing in His loving readiness to give you good things. The better our understanding of the character of "our Father," the greater will be our consciousness of faith, and the more certainly shall we receive. Great light is thrown upon the true nature of God by the statement of Jesus, "God is Spirit; and those worshiping must worship in Spirit and Truth" (Emphatic Diaglott). This does away with the belief that God is a man and far removed from us.8 Spirit is Infinite Mind, always and everywhere evenly present. Paul thus describes this omnipresent One and our relation to Him: "For in him we live, and move, and have our being."—Acts 17:28.

1. Silence. Unity’s method of prayer reached through orderly steps in thinking and feeling.
2. "The Lord’s Prayer naturally falls into seven clauses [affirmations.] The eighth clause was added–'Thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory'–but this, though in itself an excellent affirmation, is not really a part of the prayer.” Emmet Fox, The Lord’s Prayer: An Interpretation
3. Father There is a relationship with God into which we can enter where He seems "closer . . . than breathing, and nearer than hands and feet." When we enter into this relationship, we become acutely aware of God as a living presence and we are lifted up by His love. In this consciousness we are able to say as Jesus did, "Father." (MBD/father)
4. The words “Our Father” represent the creative capacity of God that is within every individual. These words remind us of the close, intimate relationship that is possible with God, a relationship in which we depend upon God totally for all that we need. God is our Creator, our Source of happiness, joy, health, supply, security, or whatever is needed. (Jim Lewis)
5. Father. The term Father/Mother God is based on very ancient theological insights and metaphysical symbols which had their origin prehistorically. Masculine and feminine are terms which need to be viewed on a level of meaning higher than physical body gender or personality traits. In metaphysical terminology, the masculine principle is the active, energy-generating power. The feminine principle is the more passive aspect—the matrix from which energy can be generated. Both are necessary for existence, for manifestation, and for human evolution. (Metaphysics/The Divine Paradox/Father/Mother)
6. Love. Metaphysically, Love is a divine attribute; it is an idea in the one Mind. God is love and love is God, or a quality in Being. (RW/love)
7. Holy awe and reverence. A consciousness of the Christ as in exaltation, awe, or reverence.
8. God is a man and far removed from us God is the moving force in the universe. When one concentrates all the faculties on Truth ideas, the conscious mind and superconscious mind blend, and there is a descent of spiritual energies into soul and body. Then the faculties receive new power to express Truth and the body is renewed. (RW/Spirit)

What is the "secret place of the Most High"?

9. God is everywhere evenly present, but it is within man that conscious union with God is made. Jesus refers to this inner place of union as "thine inner chamber," and the Psalmist calls it the "secret place of the Most High."—Psalms 91:1.1 One Bible translation refers to it as "thy closet."

1. Secret Place of the Most High. The connection between the superconscious mind and the conscious is established within–by meditation, by going into the silence (RW/superconsciousness). “When we have entered this secret place often enough and abide long enough truly to behold the beauty of the Lord, it will spring forth as a living message of harmony in our life, a manifestation of wholeness, joy, abundance, and it will fill our universe with the glory of God.” (Frances Foulks, Effectual Prayer 84).

What is meant by "Enter into thine inner chamber, and shut thy door"?1

10. "Enter into thine inner chamber"—that is, turn your attention from the without to the within. "And having shut thy door, pray." To close the door is to still the five senses that connect one directly with the outer world. They will keep calling the attention without, if they are allowed to do so. Closing the eyes helps very much in closing the door to the outer world. Then "pray to thy Father who is in secret." This inner closet of prayer is the secret meeting place between God and man. It is a place of stillness, of silence, so we speak of entering it as "going into the silence."2

1. Matthew 6:6 (WEB)
2. Silence. “The silence is not an end in itself; it is merely a means to an end. It is only the threshold to greater things, for beyond the silence lie all the infinite resources of God. To open the door and pass this threshold into the presence of Being, consciously living and moving and having your being in God, is your privilege. Once you have entered into the light, continue to walk in the light, for the light becomes your life.” E.V. Ingraham, The Silence. The Silence was a preliminary book for the correspondence course.

How may we bring our thoughts under our conscious control?

11. It is no cause for discouragement if one is not able at first to enter this secret place or to close the door on the outer world. The senses are habitually active in the exterior consciousness; this habit is not overcome all at once, but by daily practice of denials, of affirmations,1 and of constantly aspiring toward the divine standard of thinking and feeling.2

It is well to have a regular time for prayer, but the mind should also be trained to "pray without ceasing, (I Thess. 5:l7) that is, the ability to turn within at all times in conscious communion with God should be sought by a continuous realization of God as ever present, "over all, and through all, and in all," (Eph. 4:6) and waiting always in the secret place when one turns the attention there to meet Him.

1. denials, affirmations Through denials and affirmations, we press out the frenetic tension of old, unwanted thoughts and pull in the fresh vitality of new and inspired ideas. (Laura Bennett)
2. the divine standard of thinking and feeling. The dominion which is ours by Divine right is over our own thoughts. They are under our absolute control. We can direct them, coerce them, hush them or crush them. We can dissolve them and put others in their place. There is no other spot in the universe where man has mastery. (Temple Talks Series Three, 5)

Explain the meaning of the statement, "in him we live, and move, and have our being."

12. What we shall say in the secret place is a secondary matter. The first and most important affair is to be still1 and know God. "Be still and know that I am God."—Psalms 46:10. Paul, in speaking of the innate desire for God in all men, says that God "made of one every nation of men . . . that they should seek God, if haply they might feel after him, though he is not far from each one of us: for in him we live, and move, and have our being."—Acts 17: 26-28.2 In the silence or stillness we feel after God, and great is the blessing when we get so still that we feel His presence filling and thrilling us with His life and love.

In this consciousness one places the right value on the things of the world, because he becomes more fully aware of and appreciative of his blessings. We know what is meant by the promise, "But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness;3 and all these things shall be added unto you.' — Matt. 6:33. The familiar Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6:9-14 and Luke 11:2-4), will have new meaning to us when prayed in the silence. This prayer is filled with the life and the substance and the power of Jesus' realization of Truth, and it will open with a new meaning as it is prayed to the Father in the "secret place."

1. be still. The first step in metaphysical treatment is the Silence, not affirmations. "Be still and know that I am" (Psalms 46:10) and in that stillness, listen. Every problem is life trying to communicate something to us; so we need to begin with "be still and listen" and then "say what one is listening to." (Eric Butterworth, Practical Metaphysics/Prayer)
2. Acts 17:28 (WEB)
3. righteousness. A state of harmony established in consciousness through the right use of God-given attributes. Truth working in consciousness brings forth the perfect salvation of the whole person--Spirit, soul, and body--and righteousness (right relation) is expressed in all our affairs. (RW/righteousness)

What benefit comes to us from praying to God as "our Father"?

13. "Our Father." The simplicity and the majesty of this term1 are impressed upon one when he thus addresses God in the inner closet and meditates upon His character.

1. simplicity and the majesty of this term. Henry Ward Beecher said: “A man has a right to go to God by any way which is true to him. If you can think it out, that is your privilege. If you can feel it out, that is your privilege. One thing is certain: The child has a right to nestle in his father’s bosom, whether he climb there upon his knee or by the chair by the side of him; any way, so that it is his father. Wherever you have seen God pass, mark it, and go and sit in that window again.” (Ingraham, The Silence)

What and where is heaven?

14. "Who art in heaven." This has been taken to mean "who art in the skies," but such an interpretation is misleading. Jesus says, "The kingdom of God is within you." — Luke 17:21. Having learned the true nature of the Father, we can no longer think Him separated from us. Heaven is the expanding consciousness of the kingdom of God,1 and is an omnipresent spiritual reality. We find it within when we find God. It is the realm of perfection and order and life and love and peace and wisdom.

1. the expanding consciousness of the kingdom of God Meta. The kingdom of heaven, or of the heavens, is a state of consciousness in which the soul and the body are in harmony with Divine Mind. (MBD/heaven)

What is it to "hallow" the name of God?

15. "Hallowed be thy name." Hallowed comes from a word that means wholeness. God's name is "I AM" which is wholeness and perfection. It should be so realized by us. "To hallow"1 is to make whole, sacred, pure, holy, perfect. You are His character, His being, His expression. Are you seeking to bring forth that perfection, the reality of your spiritual nature? Stop and ask yourself these questions: "Am I, the expression of God, hallowing His name? Am I being that which God is? Am I bringing forth in thought, word, and deed—in mind, body, and affairs—the perfection which I really am?"

1. To hallow. To realize that His name means wholeness and perfection for us.A call to action to shine in the world (RW/hallow). We might ask, "Am I bringing forth in thought, word, and deed–in mind, body, and affairs–the perfection which I really am?"

What is "God's will" for man?

16. "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth." We have learned that the kingdom of God is always, everywhere evenly present. This is a prayer that it may come into expression and be manifest in the earth, the outer, as it is in heaven, the inner. Thus it is that God's will is done.1 The great moving force that tends toward perfect expression in the universe, in everyone, in nature, and in everything is the will of God.

God's will is God's plan, purpose, intent, and pleasure2 for us and all creation. It is very necessary in praying, "Thy will be done," to remember that His will for us is always good. He is love;3 He wills not that His children shall suffer in any way, but that they shall come to the knowledge of Him3 and be blessed with His wholeness.

1. Thus it is that God's will is done. To do the will of God means to cooperate consciously with the law of mind action in thinking, feeling, word, action, and reaction.
2. and pleasure. God's will can also be called the I AM identity in us, for it is the perfect law of mind action that produces only good. (Annotations 2-10/2)
3. He is love. God’s will is always good and based on love.
4. come to the knowledge of Him. God's will is also His purpose, design, and intent of Absolute Good for man and all creation. In man, God's will can also be called the I AM identity in him, for it is the perfect law of mind action that produces only good. (Annotations Lesson 10, Annotation 2)/span>

What is "our daily bread"?

17. "Give us this day our daily bread." Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."—Matt. 4:4. This petition, then, must have a larger meaning than is commonly believed. "Daily bread" means more than the food that is eaten physically. "Dally bread" is divine ideas that feed and nourish the soul and build states of consciousness that accords with the will of God (RW/our daily bread). There is a substance in true words and no one lives life to the fullest unless he feeds upon words of Truth in dally prayer and meditation.

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." There is a law involved here. According to this law we cannot be forgiven until we first forgive.1 This would be seen more clearly if the prayer were put in the affirmative form, thus: thou dost forgive debts as we forgive our debtors.

"And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." All things originate in mind, and evil comes from wrong thinking.2 To be delivered from evil is to have the mind cleansed from all belief in evil by the Spirit in us, by prayer find meditation. In this way wo are delivered from evil, delivered from the very last one of the thoughts of evil that may be in mind. So long as one false thought or belief remains, our mind needs the purifying power of the Christ Mind.

1. we cannot be forgiven until we first forgive. This we find to be in harmony with a law of mind. That is, an idea must be dissolved before another can take its place. If you have in mind a thought that some one has wronged you, you cannot let in the cleansing power of the Spirit until you have dissolved and cast out the idea of the mortal wrong. (Temple Talks Series 3, 5)
2. evil comes from wrong thinking. There is but one presence and one power, God omnipotent, but we have the privilege and freedom of using this power as we will. When we misuse it we bring about inharmonious conditions. These are called evil. Evil appears in the world because we are not in spiritual understanding. We have not learned that all is Mind; neither have we conformed to the law of Mind, with the result that inharmony appears in our bodies and affairs. We can do away with evil by learning rightly to use the one Power. If there were a power of evil, it could not be changed. (RW/evil)

Why it is necessary to pray believing that we have received?

18. One of the secrets of the prayer of demonstration is revealed in this promise: "All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for,1 believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them."—Matt. 21:22. This is mysterious only until we see that it is the way of faith. "Faith is the perceiving power of the mind linked with a power to shape substance." — Prosperity 43, by Charles Fillmore. Faith shapes substance into the desired form or shape. At the tomb of Lazarus, before Lazarus came forth, Jesus said: "Father, I thank thee that thou heardest me. And I knew that thou hearest me always."—John 11:41-42. He knew that He had the answer, even before He saw it manifested. When He increased the loaves and the fishes, He gave thanks before He saw the demonstration.

To claim the answer and to give thanks for it,2 unwaveringly believing in God as absolutely unfailing, even before you see the proof, is one of the greatest lessons that can be learned in connection with prayer. This is the prayer of faith. With God "can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning."—James 1:17. All that He is, all that He does, all that He says, are exact law and can no more fail than following the rules in arithmetic can fail to produce the correct answer. This is the basis of our faith in prayer and this is why it is absolutely safe to claim the good He has promised and give thanks for it before we see it manifested.

1. and ask for We know now, that words and thought are a tremendous vibratory force, ever moulding man’s body and affairs. (Florence Scovel Shinn)
2. and to give thanks for it. To give thanks after a blessing does not usually require much of an effort. It is not hard to be polite when something nice has happened to us. But to give thanks before receiving may take some effort. All good effort is rewarded under spiritual law. (Metaphysics/Developing a Prosperity Consciousness)

How do we come into conscious unity with God?

19. This claiming of what is ours in Truth we call affirmation. Jesus was bold and fearless in making the highest claims for Himself. He affirmed, "I and the Father are one," (John 10:30) and, "All things whatsoever the Father hath are mine, (John 16:15) and so raised Himself above the prevailing thought of the world. In this way He demonstrated His sonship.1 He is our example; He came to teach us how to attain the realization of our unity with God.

We can attain this realization by following in His steps, by doing as He did. He said, "Judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment — John 7:24. In the realm of the mainifest world all about us, many things appear true that are not true in Spirit, and we are freed from the habit of judging by appearances and established in the consciousness of the Truth of our being by the prayer of faith made in understanding. One of the names of God is "I AM." I AM is Being.2 When we enter the silence and speak the name, "I AM," it brings our being into conscious union with Him in whom "we live, and move, and have our being."—Acts 17:28. There is in reality but one Being. "Oneness means sameness. We are to become conscious that we are unified with God, are the same in nature as God. This consciousness comes from knowing that "I AM," from thinking, feeling and claiming that, "I am a spiritual being, a child of God."

As in the stillness of the soul we meditate on that which we know God is, we are to become conscious that "I AM THAT I AM." — Exodus 3:14. God is love. In the silence I am being that which God is — love; therefore I know, "I am love." So with all the other qualities of God of which you may think. You are to be them through thinking and, feeling these qualities3 or ideas within you, and then you are to make them manifest. The belief of separation of our being from God's Being is only a part of the falsity that comes from judging by appearances. We overcome this by claiming, affirming, praying in faith, "I and the Father are one."—John 10:30. The first step in entering the silence is to think of the presence of God; the second step is to feel oneness with God, the Good. Upon these two fundamental steps all true prayer rests, for thinking and feeling build consciousness.

1. demonstrated His sonship. We reveal our "sonship" to ourselves and to others by claiming it; by declaring that we are not a child of mortality but a child of God; that the Spirit of God dwells within us and shines through us; that this Spirit is Christ, Child of God. (RW/sonship)
2. I AM is Being. If you would know the mystery of Being, see yourself in Being. Know yourself as an integral idea in Divine Mind, and all other ideas will recognize you as their fellow worker. Throw yourself out of the Holy Trinity and you become an onlooker. Throw yourself into the Trinity and you become its avenue of expression. (Christian Healing, Being's Perfect Idea, 20)
3. feeling these qualities or ideas within you. The I AM (wisdom) puts feeling into what it thinks, and so "Eve" (feeling) becomes the "mother of all living." Feeling is Spirit, which quickens. Woman symbolizes the soul region of man and is the mother principle of God in expression. (MBD/Eve)

What is meant by "holding a thought" as used in connection with prayer?

20. Students of practical Christianity sometimes speak of "holding a thought." This means that they take some statement of Truth into the silence, repeat it over and over,1 and meditate upon it until they realize its meaning, until it becomes alive in consciousness as spiritual understanding. This is the way to come into understanding. It is natural for the one who is yet in ignorance of the great all-knowing One within him to want to seek here and there of some man or some book for explanation of various texts of Scripture, but the only way to come into the knowledge of Truth is to seek the kingdom within. Teachers and books are helpful because they turn our attention within and help us to have faith in our indwelling Lord.

The power to "hold a thought" is the power to concentrate upon an idea.2 Concentration, as used in its application to spiritual development, means the act of fixing the attention upon a central idea and drawing all the thoughts to that center. Our thoughts require discipline. Thinking to a purpose must take the place of thinking at random. The silence gives thought discipline. Power to direct and control thought comes not from the personal will but by centering within, in I AM. Thus poise and self-control are attained in our thoughts and feelings, in realization.

1. repeat it over and over. The saying over of any Denial or Affirmation is a necessary self-training of mind which has lived so long in error and false beliefs that it needs this constant repetition of truth to unclothe it and clothe it anew. (Emilie Cady/Lessons in Truth, Affirmations)
2. the power to concentrate upon an idea. The silence is not a negative or an inert state of the mind. Many persons, not realizing this, have allowed their minds to become inert, and through this false conception of the silence they have lessened their executive ability to no small degree. These persons, when attempting to practice the silence, often fall asleep. (Ingraham, The Silence)

What are the eight necessary conditions of true prayer that are mentioned in the final paragraph of this lesson?

21. If our prayers seem not to be answered, let us not accuse God of failing us but let us examine ourselves to find whether we have truly prayed with understanding.1 Have we directed our prayers within,2 or without? Have we prayed to God as Father,3 or as the "unknown"? Have we known ourselves to be one with Him,4 or have we thought Him separate from us, perhaps a long way off? Have we entered the inner chamber of prayer?5 Have we closed the door?6 Have we asked believing that we have received?7 Have we prayed, desiring, above all, the kingdom of God;8 have "things" been first in our minds? Have we forgiven?

1. prayed with understanding
2. directed our prayers within
3. prayed to God as Father
4. known ourselves to be one with Him
5. entered the inner chamber of prayer
6. closed the door
7. asked believing that we have received
8. desiring, above all, the kingdom of God

Give three affirmations that help us to realize our unity with God.

22. God is the all-surrounding, all-penetrating Spirit-Mind, out of which all come. I live; that is, I am animated and inspired by and through Infinite Mind. I breathe into my lungs that which is necessary for the life of my physical body, and my mind is inspired with divine ideas, ideas of good which are in this Mind. I am ever in the presence of this Almighty One, and am being the qualities or attributes of God to the extent that; I know them.

I am God-life, God-intelligence, God-substance, to the degree of my understanding. A fish lives in the water, its natural element, and moves and has its being there. An animal lives and moves and has its being in the air, its natural element, that which is necessary for its well-being.

Spiritually, I am an idea in God-Mind, and I live and move and am the expression of God-Mind. I am sustained and eternally supplied with its substance through right thinking and by not misapplying or misusing any of its ideas. I must learn to do this consciously; through choice I am to keep my thoughts on the good that is in and around all. In this way I consciously live and move and have my being in God.

1. What is the difference between spiritual understanding and intellectual understanding?

This subject was covered very extensively in the eighth lesson of Lessons in Truth, especially annotations one, two, five, six, and eight (Lessons In Truth Lesson 8 Annotation 1). We can say that the difference between these two types of understanding is the difference between that which is revealed by Spirit within and that which is apprehended through the use of the senses and the thinking faculty (intellect). Intellectual understanding may present information about God, but spiritual understanding knows God.

When our consciousness is attuned to Spirit we receive ideas direct from Divine Mind within ourself, where all is Truth, order, and perfection. As we learn the value of these divine ideas, and learn also to use them in the right way, we attain spiritual understanding.

When our consciousness is directed only toward the external world we receive information through the five senses, which information is then handled by our intellect, or thinking faculty. It is here that we observe ideas, things, people, even beliefs about God, for the intellect (thinking) is the realm of choice and judgment. Too often through ignorance we judge from the appearance of some manifestation, not from the reality. Intellectual knowledge acquired through the five senses and handled by the intellect may be good as far as it goes, but in accepting such knowledge as final we stand in danger of weakening our conscious contact with Divine Mind and putting our dependence on the external world. Unless intellectual understanding has become blended with Truth, it can fill an individual's life with restlessness and dissatisfaction, giving him a sense of insecurity.

We must come to see the true relation of intellectual understanding and spiritual understanding, and perhaps the following words of Charles Fillmore found on page 155 of Keep a True Lent help to make this clear:

"Intellectual understanding comes first in the soul's development, then a deeper understanding of principles follows, until the whole man ripens into wisdom" (Keep a True Lent 155).

2. What is God?

In the absolute sense, God is infinite Being, the one Presence, the one Power in the universe; the Creator, the Sustainer of all life. God is the originating Cause and continuing Source of all being, all creation. He is the one universal Principle, unchanging Law, the unlimited and absolute Good; He is Truth, Spirit, omnipresence, omnipotence, and omniscience.

In the relative sense, God as Spirit individuated in man becomes to us the personal, loving Father who always welcomes His child, who cares for us, guides, protects, shelters, feeds, clothes, comforts, and sustains us. He is to us the Presence and the Power that is our help in every need.

God is dependable Principle both in an impersonal, universal way and also in a personal, specific way. The divine Creator as Spirit and as unchanging Principle in the universe moves as the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, and loving Father in each human being just as soon as we turn within to God and puts our dependence on Him as the one and only source of all our good.

3. What is True Prayer?

3. Our lesson material states emphatically that true prayer is "conscious communion with God." When we consciously turn our attention to the Father within, placing our faith in Spirit (God), then we are acknowledging the one Presence and Power within our own being. We thus become receptive to divine inspiration in the form of God ideas, and there is no room for any limited concept to find entrance into our mind.

When our consciousness is free from worry or tension we are an open channel for the inflow of the inspiration and enlightenment of Spirit.

"In eagerness 'we wait in singleness of heart' for the revelation, inspiration, or illumination from the Father. When God 'speaks' it is the movement of Divine Mind on our mind expressing divine ideas that are absorbed by our waiting consciousness. We have now come to the place where we know!" (Lessons In Truth Lesson 10 Annotation 4).

4. What is the "secret place of the Most High"?

The "secret place of the Most High" (Psalms 91:1 WEB) is

"a place of meeting between the Christ at the center of your being, and your consciousness — a hidden place into which no outside person can either induct you or enter himself" (Emilie Cady Lessons In Truth 9:6).

The "secret place of the Most High" is the name the Psalmist uses to designate the "place" within our own being where we may retire to feel God's presence and power. It is where the human consciousness merges with the divine consciousness and Spirit meets spirit (the first phase of our threefold nature). The "secret place" is the point at which we are able to silence all limited thoughts and desires that seem to entice us into sin, and acknowledge the supreme Source of our being. We are then able to contemplate our unity, oneness, and sameness with Divine Mind, the Father within.

Anything is "secret" when it is hidden; the "secret place of the Most High" is that which is hidden from all who are not in the "Most High" state of consciousness.

In our metaphysical study we find that the "secret place" can be explained simply as being the Silence, that phase of prayer when God "speaks" and we "listen" to His revelations.

"When we pray in spiritual understanding, this highest realm of man's mind contacts universal, impersonal Mind; the very mind of God is joined to the mind of man. God answers our prayers in ideas, thoughts, words; these are translated into the outer realms, in time and condition" (Charles Fillmore Christian Healing 78).

5. What is meant by "enter into thine inner chamber, and shut thy door"?

5. It is important that we realize that the instruction given by Jesus to "enter into thine inner chamber" and to "shut thy door" is not something mysterious but a simple turning within to our loving Father. The instruction telling us to "enter" also advises us to "shut thy door," meaning that we are to close the mind to anything of the outer that would intrude upon this meeting with our Father.

"What we need to know above all is that there is a place within our soul where we can consciously meet God and receive a flood of new life into not only our mind but also our body . . . . Quietly entering the inner chamber within the soul shutting the door to the external thoughts of daily life, and seeking conscious union with God is the highest form of prayer we know" (Teach Us To Pray 5 and Teach Us To Pray 17).

Once we have entered the "inner chamber" which is God's Presence in us, it becomes a simple matter to close the mind to all that would call our attention away from the light, life, and love of God that permeates and enfolds us; yet it often requires discipline to control our thinking and feeling. The five senses need to be controlled so that the physical eyes are closed to all outer objects or situations; the physical ears no longer listen to the noises of the objective world. This also means that the mind must be controlled so that past thought forms or psychic phenomena must not be allowed to interfere with this sacred meeting with our Father.

6. What is the meaning of the expression "going into the silence"?

"Going into the silence" means just what the previous annotations brought out — turning within to the indwelling Presence of God, our "inner chamber," closing the mind to all outside distractions, and waiting in stillness for God's revelations to us.

Charles Fillmore gives very definite statements about "going into the silence" in Teach Us to Pray:

"The first step in scientific silence is simply to still . . . outer intellectual thoughts so that the consciousness may become subservient to the Spirit within. . . . God works in the stillness. As man comes into the presence of God with his prayer in the form of an affirmation of Truth . . . he is aware only of the soundlessness of God's word as it weaves itself in and out through the whole soul and body consciousness." (Teach Us To Pray 24,25)

7. How may we bring our thoughts under our conscious control?

The highest way to bring our thoughts under conscious control is by constantly aspiring toward the divine standard and daily practicing the presence of God. This may involve much denial of error (as being reality) and affirmation of the Truth, in order to train the mind to stand firm on the divine standard for right thinking and feeling.

It is possible for us to consciously control our thoughts by fixing our attention on an object or on an idea, and by willfully opposing all diversions. However, resisting the forces that may distract attention takes energy and wears a person down, diminishing our power to produce according to the idea we are holding in mind.

Desire is a great factor in making thought productive; the more intense the desire, the greater is the onward impulse of the thought and the greater is the power to produce desirable results. However, the desire must be one-pointed in order that Mind substance may assemble around the single idea to support it and give it body. When a single God idea fills the consciousness, there is no room for other thoughts to enter; one's entire interest and attention is given to it and no energy is expended in resisting other thoughts. For this reason, we take some statement of Truth into our mind, dwell on it until its inner meaning becomes a realization. Then the idea is free to do its work in and through us.

8. Explain the meaning of the statement "In him we live and move and have our being."

By this statement (Acts 17:28 WEB) Paul was endeavoring to make clear to the people of Athens that God is a living presence and power, the cause or originating essence of all life as well as the sustenance of every living creature during its existence in a bodily form. He pointed out to them the statement made by one of the Greek poets (and recorded in our Scriptures), "For we are indeed his offspring" (Acts 17:28), making plain to them that God is not a human being apart from them, nor, as verse 29 says, "like gold, or silver, or stone." Rather God is the everywhere-present intelligence, the all-pervading Spirit substance, the one Mind essence in which are inherent all the qualities (Ideas) of God. It is out of this one substance through the power of Spirit moving on the ideas that beast, bird, fish, and man are created.

Job stated:

"In his hand is the life of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind" (Job 12:10).

The fish lives in the water and from it obtains everything needful for its existence; the bird, the beast, and the human body maintain a physical existence in the air by a natural process of breathing air substance. The soul of man lives in omnipresent Spirit substance by means of divine thought action, the Word, Spirit-breathing (inspiration), through which man is inspired by prayer with God ideas. It is the right use of these ideas that enables us to express and manifest ourselves as a divine being instead of just a human being.

9. What benefit comes to us from praying to God as "our Father" (Matt. 6:9)?

The benefit which comes to us from praying to God as "our Father" reaches into all areas of our life. Recognizing God as "our Father" causes us to see ourself as heir to the qualities (also termed ideas, truths, principles) that make up His nature.

Primarily, a father is one who has begotten a child. The word beget is made up of "be," which is to enter into a living relation with an object or an idea and "get," meaning to cause to be. God as "our Father" has entered into a living relationship with us as His son, His idea of Himself in action. A father is also called a generator; to generate is to produce a being similar to the parent. Man is a spiritual being because, created by and of God, he is similar to his Parent; he is God's image, patterned after His likeness. A father performs the office of a parent through affectionate care, maintenance, counsel, and protection. In like manner, God as "our Father" maintains us, supplies us with all that is essential for a full and complete expression and manifestation of our spiritual nature. God shows His affectionate care for us by all that He has provided for our well-being.

"See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are" (I John 3:1).

The possessive adjective our in "our Father" links us with all humanity as brothers. Because there is but one Creator, all men have the same Father; every human being belongs to the family of God and each is an heir to God's estate of good. Consciously recognizing God as "our Father" inevitably moves one into the larger perception of the brotherhood of all men where God is recognized as the universal Father of all,

"One God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all" (Eph. 4:6).

10. What and where is heaven?

Heaven is the poised and balanced wholeness existing in man and in the universe through a conscious realization of the presence of God — Absolute Good.

We find the word kingdom used in two ways:

"The kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21 A.V.).

"The kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 3:2; 4:17).

The kingdom of God, then, must be the realm of God within the individual, the very Presence of Absolute Good or God's own nature in every man. The kingdom of heaven is the realm of harmony resulting from the right use of the ideas that make up the kingdom of God. Harmony (heaven) is always "at hand" ready to be brought into manifestation when we handle rightly the Truth (ideas) of God.

"The kingdom of heaven . . . is a state of consciousness in which the soul and the body are in harmony with Divine Mind ...

"Teachers of metaphysics find that their most difficult work is getting students to recognize that heaven is a condition of mind" (Metaphysical Bible Dictionary, Heaven, p.266).

The Kingdom of God is neither a state of mind nor a condition of mind, but it is the God nature; the kingdom of heaven is that good state or condition of mind that produces in the outer life a sense of harmony, causing us to feel that we are truly "in heaven."

When we say "our Father who art in heaven" we can see that this universal Father of all, who is also our loving, individual Father, could only be harmony, wholeness, perfection. We must become con- scious of and obedient to the God ideas, and make right use of them (handle them rightly), in order to dwell in this "home" of God and experience the heavenly state of joy, order, and harmony that stem from the "kingdom of God . . . within you."

11. What is it to "hallow" the name of God?

To "hallow" the name of God means to recognize God's nature (name) as wholeness and perfection. To hallow is to consecrate and hold in reverence; to make holy, or whole. The name of God is the nature of God, thus to use the name (nature) of God only in relation to that which is good is to "hallow" the name of God. (See How I Used Truth Lesson 3 Annotation 2 and How I Used Truth Lesson 3 Annotation 3)

God is to each person whatever that person can conceive Him to be -- whatever the person's concept of God is. Regardless of the way one may conceive Him, God is Absolute Good in all its perfection and wholeness. The name of anything is its whole nature; it bespeaks the thing's character, its power, its authority. Therefore, when we speak of or to God we must recognize and reverence Him as Absolute Good – this is "hallowing" the name of God.

We must come to understand that God is Principle, Law, and that He bestows no new favors upon man for hallowing His name. Man simply opens the door of his mind, his heart, and through this opening Absolute Good in its fullness pours into his whole being. By this "hallowing" of God's name or nature, we make contact with the highest good that we are capable of receiving and sublimate or refine our human (moral) nature so that it becomes a fit channel for the expression of our divine nature, our real Self.

12. What is "God's will" for us?

God's "will" is God's purpose, intent, plan, or law for man, His beloved son; and God being Himself Absolute Good, His will is always good, because He could only plan that which is good for His creation.

"For man, God's will or plan is that he shall express and manifest his true spiritual nature, imaged for him at creation" (How I Used Truth Lesson 1 Annotation 9).

Because our spiritual nature (called the Christ, or I AM, or our real Self), is God's own nature in us, we often refer to God's will in man as I AM, for it is His plan that man bring forth this nature. A right understanding of God's will for us does away with any tendency on our part to think that anything unpleasant could be "God's will" to which we have to submit.

As brought out in the above reference from How I Used Truth, God's will does not apply to man alone, but to all species of creation, operating under the law for each species. As we learn to seek guidance in carrying out God's will in every area of our human experience, we begin to cooperate with the rest of creation with very satisfying results. We come to realize that God's will has resulted in definite laws in our world and that only obedience to these God laws can bring about the harmony, peace, and happiness we all seek.

"God's will is always perfection and all good for all His children; perfect health in mind and body; abundance of every good thing including joy, peace, wisdom, and eternal life" (The Revealing Word, God - Will of).

13. What is "our daily bread"?

The lesson material brings out very clearly that according to our teaching (Matthew 6:11) "bread" is representative of all the divine ideas that "feed" the soul. These ideas inhere in divine substance and the following from The Revealing Word, page 29, on "bread", covers this point very well:

"Bread -- Representative of universal substance. ... Our daily bread is the sustenance for spirit, mind, and body. Some of this daily bread is appropriated in the form of food. There is substance in words of Truth, and this substance is appropriated by prayer and meditation on Truth."

Most people feel it is vital to feed the body daily with physical food, and certain periods are set aside for mealtimes. When one becomes aware of the needs of the soul, he realizes that the soul (i.e., the mind) has need of its "daily bread" in the form of divine ideas, otherwise the soul is starved for the only sustenance upon which it can really "feed."

Bread has been referred to as the "staff of life." A staff is a stick, carried in the hand, upon which one may lean for support. In Truth study, substance ("bread") is the support that God has provided for all states of man's being. Life could not be made manifest unless it were "embodied," hence the necessity of substance through which to give expression and manifestation to life, to give it "body."

We are threefold beings — spirit, soul, body — and each phase of our being has need of its special food; needs to be nourished, sustained, and satisfied in order that we may be channels for the expression and manifestation of the God nature.

Let us consider other words of Scripture related to food:

"It is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matt. 4:4)

"He ... fed you with manna, which you did not know ... that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone" (Deut. 8:3).

"Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work" (John 4:34).

"Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life" (John 6:27).

"I am the bread of life ... This is the bread which comes down from heaven" (John 6:48, 50).

From these sayings it is clear that our concern should be to feed, through prayer, upon the Word of God — the I AM — the living substance that is within every human being, providing him with the necessary sustenance for both the inner and outer life.

To sum up the meaning of "our daily bread," we say that it is the spiritual ideas, inspirations through which we enlarge our consciousness of God and His creatures. It is through "our daily bread" that we have the courage and the strength to meet our experiences at opportunities to do God's will and thus to make Him manifest in the world of visibility.

14. Why it is necessary to pray believing that we have received?

It is necessary to pray believing (with faith) that we have received the good we desire, because our believing opens the door of our consciousness to receive the idea that is back of our desired good. This believing (faith) goes further than our consciousness or mind; it acts like a magnet to draw the outer forms that can fulfill our desire.

We live, move, and have our being in divine substance which is provided for our use in satisfying our longings and fulfilling our every need. All good is ours now and always has been, just as all air is ours to breathe freely.

We often refer to divine substance as the presence of God. To each of us is entrusted the power to mold this substance into the forms that fit our needs. But in order to lay hold of this substance, we have to believe (i.e., perceive through our faith faculty) that it is inherent in us as part of our divine inheritance. Through prayer we are able to appropriate this substance, in which inhere the ideas that are our "daily bread," and this appropriation should be as spontaneous and effortless as the appropriation of the air that we breathe. The mental attitude of faith, or believing, seems to correspond to the physical action of breathing air into the lungs.

The abundance that we call divine substance has always been ours, but we have lost sight of it. Because of this and our need for "daily bread," we feel the impulse to pray. When we do pray believing, our attitude becomes positive and expectant toward the answer. We are able to act as though we had already received the answer in the outer. It is through our faith, or believing, that we make way in consciousness to accept the fulfillment of all of the promises of God to us as His beloved children. It is only our faith in God as our Source and in His promises that we are able to mold rightly the omnipresent substance into the forms ("our daily bread") that can meet our needs.

15. What is affirmation?

Affirmation is making firm in consciousness that which is true of God and man; it is declaring as true in human experience that which is already true in Spirit.

An affirmation is a statement of Truth, spoken silently or audibly, or written for use by an individual. The word affirm comes from the Latin prefix af, an assimilated form of ad, meaning to add to or intensify, and firmare, meaning to make firm, stable. Affirmation is the claiming of what we believe (have faith) is already ours. If we have not felt our oneness with God and the spiritual principles, or laws of God, that we call divine ideas, we affirm in order to establish them as a conscious part of our mind or soul consciousness.

The constant repetition of Truth adds firmness to firmness, strength to strength, and causes a divine principle to become established in our subconscious (heart) or feeling nature. When both the conscious phase of mind (intellect, thinking faculty) and the heart (subconscious, feeling faculty) have accepted the truth behind the words of the affirmation, then the true meaning is established in our consciousness.

The power to affirm, to say "yes" to any idea, belief, or concept that comes to him, is a part of every man's divine heritage. However, too often man has misused his spiritual and mental powers and has affirmed or said "yes" to false beliefs and wrong concepts. By this wrong use of mind activity, he builds up a false standard that produces inharmony and discord in his mind, body, and affairs. For this reason we each need to be ever alert to affirm or say "yes" only to that which is true of us as a son of God; affirm only that which we desire to see manifest in our life. (See Lessons in Truth Lesson 5 Annotation 1 and the annotations that follow)

16. How are we helped by affirming Truth?

As explained in Series 1 Lesson 1 Annotation 13, through the practice of affirming Truth, we consciously "feed" our soul with the substance of God, our "daily bread," in the form of divine ideas. As we daily affirm words of Truth, we are making our mind a storehouse of the principles of Being (God). However, our conscious phase of mind, the thinking faculty, which is constantly in touch with the outer world through the five senses, needs disciplining and help. Affirmation of Truth keeps the consciousness up to the Truth level whenever we are tempted to think or feel that which is not true. Affirming Truth (eating of our "daily bread") gives us courage and confidence to meet the experiences of daily living, and stimulates us to reach for higher goals.

The greatest help to be received from affirming Truth is that it causes us to arrive at the state of consciousness where we no longer find it necessary to say actual words — we think the Truth habitually; we feel Truth habitually; we act habitually in accordance with Truth. We have identified ourself with Truth until it is manifested through us both consciously and subconsciously. Just as the eating of our food each day provides the body with the various elements it needs as it goes through the processes of mastication, digestion, and assimilation, so our mind can "eat" of words of Truth masticating, digesting, and assimilating the ideas that are back of the words.

17. How does one come into conscious unity with God?

One comes into conscious unity with God first by thinking about God and man's relation to Him, then letting the Truth become a part of the feeling nature so that one no longer merely thinks about God, but feels His indwelling presence.

"'Conscious oneness with the Father' means that we are able to feel — not merely think about — the Christ or God-presence within, the 'Father' of our human consciousness. With the revelation of God as immanent in us, we come to know with deep feeling that our true nature is one with and the same as the God nature . ... there is a vast difference between merely being intellectually aware of Truth principles and actually knowing Truth (God) and rightly using the principles. We can see, then, that we have to add feeling to our thinking in order to reach the state of knowing that is 'conscious oneness with the Father'" (How I Used Truth Lesson 11 Annotation 5).

Conscious unity with God comes from identification with God. We identify ourself with God through I AM. "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalms 46:10). We silence or quiet all that is "of the earth earthy" and contemplate that which God is. We let our human consciousness expand to encompass God's greatness, His power, His might. Then we let our heart dwell on His love for the "little things," the tiny insects, the blade of grass, for all are the object of His love and care. From the greatest to the least, all are expressions of God's Being—therefore, each one of us is one with all life. Each can say for himself: "I am all that God is; God is Mind; I am idea; and I live to be, to bring this idea into manifestation in all the fullness and glory of the likeness of God. I am consciously the son of the Almighty."

18. What is meant by "holding a thought" as used in connection with prayer?

"Holding a thought" as used in prayer means taking into the silence of our being a statement of some spiritual good that we desire to see manifest. The statement "holding a thought" is the same as "holding to the Truth," and we find further explanation of this in How I Used Truth Lesson 8 Annotation 1, "Trusting and Resting":

"By this familiar statement, we mean holding words in mind that declare the reality of God, a person, a situation, or a thing until the meaning of the ideas back of the words becomes clear to our consciousness (thinking and feeling). . . . If we are 'holding to the Truth' with a sense of anxiety concerning the answer to our prayer, then we are not knowing that God is in charge. ... When we 'let go and let God' we are releasing everything erroneous or limited from our thinking and feeling and letting our consciousness be open and receptive to the inspiration of God ideas."

At first the thought or statement is viewed intellectually only. By affirming it over and over (silently or audibly), mentally studying its meaning, and from time to time excluding (denying) all other thoughts from our attention, we give all our interest to this statement in absorbed concentration. Meditating on the ideas embodied in each word of the statement or prayer holds the mind steadily focused and helps us attain a fuller understanding of the context of the statement or prayer — and thus we are "holding the thought" or "holding to the Truth." Meditation and concentration enable one to obtain mental control; this activity is carried on in the brain. But to reach the desired good requires more than this. It is through contemplation in the heart, or the feeling side of the soul, that we come in conscious contact with the intuitional state of our being that leads to illumination. The "spirit" (i.e., the meaning) of the thought in the statement becomes alive to us, and we begin to see with the inner eye.

"For the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life" (II Cor. 3:6 A.V.).

This coming alive causes every area of our life — thinking, feeling, speaking, acting — to express and manifest the spirit of the statement.

19. Give three affirmations that help one to realize his unity with God.

One point to be remembered is that "unity" means oneness, sameness, likeness. It is through knowing God that conscious union is made. Bear in mind that a keyword here is realize. We need more than an intellectual approach (talking about God) — we need a spiritual approach (talking to God).

20. What are eight necessary conditions of true prayer that are mentioned in the final paragraph of this lesson?

We must:

1. Direct our prayer to the Lord within our own being, God's Presence in us.
2. Acknowledge God as the Father-Mind which contains, constitutes, creates, sustains, and governs all that is.
3. Know that each of us is the son-idea, forever one and the same as the Father-Mind — His image-likeness.
4. Enter the "inner chamber," the very core of our being, the innermost recess of our soul.
5. Close the door to both physical and psychical phenomena. (We are seeking Spirit, not phenomena of any kind.)
6. Seek to know, to understand the substance of Being, the kingdom of God, and the laws governing its presence and use.
7. Have faith that Absolute Good, God, is the one Presence and the one Power in the universe and that the good we especially desire is now being manifested.
8. Realize that the forgiving love of Jesus Christ, the love of God intelligently active in us, dissipates and dissolves all that is unlike the nature of God. We are to exercise that spirit of love by forgiving all shortcomings (sins) in ourself and in all other persons.

Let us, then, labor for an inward stillness
— An inward stillness and an inner healing;
That perfect silence where the lips and heart
Are still, and we no longer entertain
Our own imperfect thoughts and vain opinions,
But God alone speaks in us, and we wait
In singleness of heart, that we may know
His will, and in the silence of our spirits,
That we may do His will, and do that only!
    —Longfellow