THAT PRAYER

Imagine a person, deep in a meditative moment, 

begins to to pray. We shall call that person 

'The Prayer', as in one who prays (pray-er). 

The gender doesn't matter here, 

the action and thoughts do, though. 

"The Voice" is that of whatever you call 
the Divine Power...

The Prayer:  "Our Father which art in heaven."

The Voice:  Yes?

The Prayer:  Don't interrupt me. I'm praying
The Voice:  But you called me!

The I didn't call anybody. I'm praying. "Our father which art in heaven."

The Voice:  There, you did it again. 

The Prayer:  Did what?
The Voice:  Called me. I don't know about the Father part, whatever floats your boat, but here I am...that I AM (a giggle). What's on your mind?

The Prayer:  You don't sound like a father.
The Voice:  Let's not get into a gender discussion, here. You want to unify with the Universe or not?

The Prayer:  I was just saying my daily prayers. I thought the Lord's Prayer might be a nice change of pace to do the deed.
The Voice:  Do the deed.? All right. If you say so...go on.

The Prayer:  "Hallowed be thy name."
The Voice:   Hold it. What do you mean by that?

The Prayer:  By what?
The Voice:  By "Hallowed be thy name?"

The Prayer:  I don't know what it means. It's just a part of the prayer. "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
The Voice:  Do you really mean that?

The Prayer:  What?
The Voice:  What you just said.

The Prayer:  Sure, why not?
The Voice:  What are you doing about it?

The Prayer:  I just think it would be kind of great if you got control of everything down here like you have up there.
The Voice:  Up there, down here, what are you talking about? Never mind. Have you listened to yourself when you're not, as you say, praying?

The Prayer:  I go to church.
The Voice:  That isn't what I asked you. What about your self-talk, the woe is me attitude or the lack and limitation issues you have sometimes? And what about the kinds of books you read and what you watch on TV; what you feed your mind with, my friend?

The Prayer:  Stop picking on me! I'm just as good as the rest of those church people.
The Voice:  It's not a competition. And, excuse me, I thought you were calling on me to connect with, and reveal better experiences into your life.

The Prayer:  All right, all right. I guess I have a couple of hang-ups.
The Voice:  Uh-huh.

The Prayer:  Hadn't thought about it very much before, but I guess I'd really like to get free of some of those things.
The Voice:  Good. Now we're getting somewhere. We'll work together. You just know the what and I'll take care of the how.

The Prayer:  Okay, great, but look...ma'am
The Voice:  Not necessary.

The Prayer:  What?
The Voice:  the ma'am

The Prayer:  Oh, sorry...Presence, Essence, Divine Intelligence?
The Voice:  Whatever...

The Prayer:  Look, I need to finish up here. This is taking a lot longer than usual. "Give us this day our daily bread."
The Voice:  You could cut out the bread. It would help you drop a few pounds. 

The Prayer:  What is this, criticize Jay day? Here I was doing my religious duty and all of a sudden you break in to remind me of my hang-ups.
The Voice:  Praying can be a dangerous thing, Jay. You could wind up changed, you know. That's what I'm trying to get across to you. Keep praying. I'm interested in the next part of your prayer.(Pause) Well, go on.

The Prayer:  I'm scared to.
The Voice:  Scared? Of what?

The Prayer:  I know what you'll say.
The Voice:  Try me and see.

The Prayer:  "Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us."
The Voice:  Talking about missing the mark on your neighbor? What's all this between you and her?

The Prayer:  See? I knew it! I knew you would bring her up! She's told lies about me, spread stories about my family. She never paid back the money she owes me. I've sworn to get even with her.
The Voice:  Wow, great plan. But this prayer? What about your prayer?

The Prayer:  I didn't mean it as far as she goes.
The Voice:  Ahhh, well, at least you're honest. But it's not much fun carrying that load of bitterness around inside, is it?

The Prayer:  No, but I'll feel better as soon as I get even. Boy, have I got some plans for her. She'll wish she never moved into the neighborhood.
The Voice:  You won't feel any better...you'll feel even worse. Revenge isn't sweet, Jay. And destructive thinking?!? You think you're unhappy now...

The Prayer:  What do you mean?
The Voice:  Forgive your neighbor. Then forgive yourself. Then the hate will be her problem and not yours. You will have settled your heart.

The Prayer:  Oh wow, you're right. You're always right. Okay, I guess I can forgive her. She's bound to be awfully miserable, considering the way she acts.
The Voice:  Wonderful! Doesn't that feel great?

The Prayer:  Yeah, not bad, not bad at all. I feel pretty great, actually... don't think I'll go to bed uptight tonight. Maybe I won't be so tired in the morning.
The Voice:  Good on you. Are you through with your prayers?

The Prayer:  No, wait ...."And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."
The Voice:  Okay, okay, the Law can do that ... guide you. But you have to listen to your intuition. And we'll save the “there's really no such thing called 'evil'” talk for another day. Just don't put yourself in a place where you can be tempted.

The Prayer:  What do you mean by that?
The Voice:  Don't turn on the TV when you know the laundry needs to be done or something like that. When you spend time with your friends, if you find yourself always complaining and whining or you can't influence the conversation to positive things, perhaps you should re-think the value of your thinking and maybe those friendships, as well. And another thing, your neighbors and friends should not be your standard for "keeping up." Stop with the “keeping up” already. And please don't use me as an escape hatch.

The Prayer:  What? I don't understand that last part.
The Voice:  Sure you do, you've done it lots of times. You get caught in a bad situation, you get in trouble and you do the “I guess it's the inevitable consequence of my beliefs,” thing. Which is true, but then you don't change your thinking. You kind of blame it on the Universe as an excuse for your beliefs. And then you get into the beseeching habit again: "Lord, help me out of this mess, and I promise I'll never do it again. Please, please, please Lord!" You know I hear you, don't ya? I can have compassion, but, come on, what do you want from me? It doesn't work that way ... change your thinking, change your beliefs and your life will be changed. It doesn't work with mamby-pamby, whiney praying.

The Prayer:  Wow, jeez, I'm ashamed.
The Voice:  Oi, come on...shame, blame, guilt? Don't waste time with all that. Just do the mental work, I'll take care of the rest.

The Prayer:  Sorry, sorry; I thought that if I just prayed the Lord's Prayer every day, then I could do what I liked.
The Voice:  Really...really? Well, go ahead and finish your prayer.

The Prayer:  "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen"
The Voice:   Do you know what would bring some glory here?

The Prayer:  No, but I bet you'll tell me. Look, I can see what a mess I've made of my life. And I can see how great it would be to really believe in my power and to trust my heart and gut, and speak my word with love and wisdom; knowing that the Universe...you...will make it happen.
The Voice:  You just answered the question.

The Prayer:  I did?
The Voice:  Yes. That is the kind of thinking that would bring glorious experiences into your life. 

The Prayer:  Really? ...that's what I hear at New Thought Spiritual Center every week. It's confirmed, then. Now that some of my old missteps are exposed and out of the way, there's no telling what we can do together, eh Universe.
The Voice:  Yes. Yes. Now you get it, Jay.

The Prayer:  Hallelujah!
The Voice:  That was last week. Oh and Jay...your mission today... is to work on that prayer translation. Not very accurate. Let's do a little re-discovery of the Lord's Prayer.

The Prayer:  You got it. And so it is. 

The Voice:  And so it is...God out.

A couple thousand years ago, this nice Jewish boy, Yeshua, stood on the top of a hill, a mount, you might say, and gave a talk on how to pray. And that lesson has carried through over these millennia. One part of the sermon, you might say, was his lesson on how to pray.

Today, I want to talk about prayer, this specific prayer. Today I want to re-discover what is called "The Lord's Prayer."

I want to first talk about the word, "prayer." It is, from the Aramaic, slotha, which means to trap, to capture, to be receptive to or attuned with. It is the act of intentionally trapping within that which is actually already captured within, be receptive to or in tune with the Presence, Intelligence, Love, and Light that It is; that God, the Divine, Spirit or whatever you want to call that Creative Power is and reveal It's wisdom. Prayer is like a radio dial, tuning to the frequency of Divine Spirit

This Lord's Prayer was a Gospel in itself. The word "gospel," like the Lord's Prayer has been widely mistranslated using the Hebrew or Greek and without cultural or vernacular consideration of the times. Gospel is actually translated from the Aramaic as "a joyous word."

Here's a few translation mistakes you might have said or heard from parts of The Lord's Prayer:

"Give us this steak and daily bread, and forgive us our mattresses."

"Our Father, who art in Heaven, how didja know my name?"

"Give us this day our jelly bread."

"Did you ever wonder who "Howard" was? "Our Father, who art in Heaven. Howard be your name..."

These usual childhood mistakes aren't any far off than the meaning this prayer has been given by its sometimes poor translations and interpretations.

Most think the prayer goes something similar to this:

What Yeshua really said as he stood atop the mount, was:

Ahhwoon dwashmaya

Nith-kadash Shmakh

Teh-they Malkuthakh

Nechway Sayweeyanahkh Akanna Dwashmaya ahp bar-ah

Hawlan lahma dsunkanan yaumana

Washwok-lan haubain akana dap hnan shwaqan l'hayawein

Wla ta-alan l'nisyona ella pasan min beesha

Mitol ddeelakhee malkutha whaila wtishbohta la-alem almeen Amen

Let's it break it down, re-discover its translation and meaning, and check out some similarities between it and Spiritual Mind Treatment or other forms of affirmative prayer. As a point of information, I have used the translations from the Aramaic made by Dr. Rocco Errico, a student of Dr. George Lamsa, both experts in the language, vernacular and culture of the times and people who spoke Aramaic over 2000 years ago.

In the usual translation, the prayer begins, "Our Father, who art in Heaven." In Aramaic, Yeshua said, "Ahwoon dwashmaya." Ahwoon is a word that doesn't mean a male figure as much as what a fatherly figure represents...a beloved parent. Ahwoon is that which is approachable, someone with whom you have kinship, a loving and wise power in your life...like a beloved parent. The Prayer starts by recognizing "our beloved parent." Finishing this first section is the word, "dwashmaya," which may translate to the word "Heaven," but it is not about a destination, but that which is everywhere, like the Universe. Yeshua's upbringing has no belief in a place called Heaven, nor, too, a place called Hell. It is a state of mind and, deeper still, a state of Being. So we are basically calling on and recognizing the singular energy which created all and is All...our Universal parent...the great I Am.

We continue usually with, "Hallowed be thy name," which in the original tongue was "Nith-kadash Shmakh." Now kadash translates to holy, yes, but it also means distinct, dedicated, or sanctified. And Shmakh translates to "is It's name." It's name, not he or she or they or them...It. So in the second section we are identifying and calling on the Perfect, Whole and Complete Goodness of the Creative Presence that is distinct of all else and is a sanctified and dedicated power.

Then, in the third section which is familiar as "Thy Kingdom come," we find some distinct translation differences. "Teh-they Malkuthakh" is the what was said on the Mount. "Teh-they" is not so much similar to the word "come," as in show up, but reveal, turn to or think and act as It. It is an intentional act of  unification with that beloved parent, "Let me reveal your wisdom in my life right here and right now." And "Malkuthakh" can be translated as kingdom, but not in the sense of the rest us being the little folk in a place ruled by a King, but as a "Divine Counsel" or adviser, the smartest of smarts or wisest of wise. Reveal your wise counsel to me!

Fourthly, as we might usually state, "Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven, " we see the Aramaic, "Nechway Sayweeyanahkh Akanna Dwashmaya ahp bar-ah," translate closest to the following:  Nechway Sayweeyanahkh is "Let it be your will," but not like something forced or commanded, more like a desire, delight, or pleasure; like a good parent would instruct or offer as wise counsel. And "Akanna Dwashmaya," relates to "as it is in the Universe." Again, not so much  Heaven as a place to go or live, but as a state of being to be in. We are tuning in to or unifying ourselves with this loving force, an energy, a beloved parent which is everywhere in the Universe and, which is, as well, "ahp bar-ah," "so too, on the Earth."

As we step into the fifth section of that prayer, Yeshua instructs us to reveal and declare certain things through the beloved parent. The "Give us this day our daily bread" section; in the Aramaic is Hawlan lakhma dsunkanan yaumana. "Hawlan lakhma" does mean to provide us bread, but when you go deeper into the vernacular of the time, you understand that "Lakhma," though it does mean the word "bread," wasn't just about the food item or even material things in general, it, most importantly, represented the Truth of ourselves as children of this beloved parent; the inspiration we receive in every thought and action when we connect with this Divine Counsel, the spiritual, as well as, the emotional and physical food. It is what we require from It, "dsunkanan yaumana," for our needs day to day. So, we are declaring and revealing It to provide us everyday with that which not only feeds our body temple, but our soul.

Which leads us to the sixth section, usually translated as "And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." Washwok-lan haubain akana dap hnan shwaqan l'hayawein is best read as "And free us from our offenses and mistakes, even as we have freed our offenders."  We sometimes offend the perfection that the Divine created. But we are not pleading to have the Universe forgive us. It, our beloved parent, does not condemn. It is a releasing of any shame/blame/guilt and invoking a self-forgiveness from the burden and bondage of any and all judgments. This what we reveal, this is what we declare from the Divine Counsel.

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil" is the seventh part of that prayer. In Aramaic, it is "Wla ta-alan l'nisyona ella pasan min beesha."  Nisyona means temptation or trials, like materialism, addiction or other such missteps. Beesha is not about evil as in an entity (Devil, etc.); as there is only one power in the Universe, but more like mistakes that we make.  And "pasan" is not a request to deliver, but a claim of separation or being parted from these mistakes and/or the troublemakers who encourage such things; people we allow into our lives, our heads, our hearts or our actions. In essence, we are telling the Law to keep us from any thoughts or feelings of lack or limitation, dis-ease, etc. from our minds and hearts and any people who may lead us to such mistakes.

As we complete the Lord's Prayer, commonly with "For thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory forever...Amen" or "Mitol ddeelakhee malkutha whaila wtishbo(c)hta la-alem almeen Amen," we begin the ending of the prayer with a re-call, "Mitol ddeelakhee malkutha," Your Divine Counsel. After that, Yeshua said, "whaila wtishbohta," meaning "that power and glory in song," another description of our beloved parent and the prayer that intentionally called It for connection and communion. This final section continues with "la-alem almeen," meaning "from ages to ages," So we recall the Divine Counsel which is a powerful and glorious song (prayer) and end this recall with "Amen." Now Amen has a translation, which is like "and so it is." But it is more than that. Going deeper still, it is closest in feeling and meaning to this prayer, this treatment of the mind as being "faithfully sealed." I faithfully seal this message with my most sincere heart and soul...my life. Yeshusa was reminding us that prayer isn't an act of beseeching, it is an intentional communion with the Divine parent in us all; that which is within all things, powerful and loving, ready and willing to reveal the Truth when forgotten, give wise Divine Counsel when needed, and invoke It's creative force, when declared, to rid us of all mistakes and missteps, and the thoughts and beliefs that do not serve our greatest good and the gift of this life given to us by the Divine. It is the most basic and possibly the most powerful treatment of our mind and heart, moving the energy of power, love and abundant prosperous grace into our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and experience.

It is time we re-discover and reclaim the song of praise Yeshua spoke of on that hill, over 2000 years ago. It is time to dig deeper into its meaning and what he was telling his followers to treat their minds and hearts with. Spending much time with this prayer and the translations from the Aramaic, here now is my translation and interpretation of The Lord's Prayer:

Our beloved parent, Mother-Father-Mind, which is everywhere in the Universe. That which is the pure, indestructible, omniscient, omnipresent, all-knowing, and all-loving power; the singular energy which created all and is All, quenching the thirst for life in all...

the great I Am.

I take this moment to call upon and reveal your Divine Counsel and unify with It's beauty, power, light, joy, peace, understanding and wisdom.

Let it be your wish and desire on this planet, as it is in the Universe, to flow into my consciousness, like the movement of the celestial bodies in the cosmos; filling my life with your blessing of love, health, harmony, and prosperity. I now intentionally receive 
those blessings and acknowledge my Good.

Provide me bread, the meals which my soul feeds from day to day. For you are the source and substance which nourishes my body temple and my mind, brings abundance into my pocket, Light into my heart, and joy into my experiences. Your power and love surrounds me with the kindness, respect and compassion of others, and the knowledge of Truth and the understanding of who I am.

Empower me to forgive all my offenses and mistakes, as I forgive any and all who has offended me; untying, releasing and setting me free from the burden 

and bondage of anyone and anything that I believe has done me wrong; and canceling those things in my mind and my heart, forgiving myself and removing 

all judgment in my life.

And do not let me enter into any temptation that separates me from my best life and the perfection of your creation. Yet, separate me from any mistakes and troublemakers entering my life. Keep me from any thoughts or feelings of lack or limitation, dis-ease or despair, narcissism or entitlement, addiction, selfishness or fear and anyone who may lead me

to such actions and beliefs.

For I know your Divine Counsel, power and energy, which has come forth in songs and praises throughout all the ages, now lovingly guides and inspires me, through It's indwelling presence, to speak my word, which I now faithfully seal and release, backed by my belief in and gratitude for its fulfillment; right here and right now. 

I am powerful and I am blessed! 

And so it is.

Use this when you don't know what to say or what your saying sounds like b.s. That happens to me now and then. I can't quite get the feeling right or the words don't inspire me or my affirmative prayer just doesn't come out convincingly. This is how I regroup. This is how I center myself. This is how I flip the factory settings switch, reboot and restart. In my re-discovery of that prayer, I have found that it is not just the Lord's Prayer, but is the Namaste Prayer, the Christ Consciousness Prayer. It is the Truth Prayer. Enjoy it, be blessed by and empowered with it and through it. It is your Prayer. It is my Prayer.

Affirmation For The Week
Whenever I speak my word, I am inspired. Wherever I speak my word, I am unified with Spirit. However I speak my word, I speak from the heart, revealing and declaring my magnificent life. Forever, when my word is spoken, it is with gratitude, knowing I am heard by a Universe that always says "YES." My life is good...yes, it is very good!