Why does prayer work?

Prayer is our opening the door to God.

"Ask and you will receive." That's a promise made by Jesus in the Bible. The Sermon on the Mount is one of those very studied parts of the New Testament because of the fantastic promises the Sermon describes of our power as human beings.

But why? Why does prayer work?

I hear time and time again that God says no sometimes, or that they go unanswered. Parents pray for sick children, who end up dying. Soldiers overseas die in battle, in spite of prayers from loved ones.

I want to assure you that prayer works. God always says yes. Ask and you will receive still works.

You must do your part though – you must believe that your prayer is already answered.

I've heard this for years. It always made me mad. If my prayer was already answered, I wouldn't be in the pickle I was praying about.

Prayer is about trust. It's about tapping into a relationship with a Higher Power, with our very Source. It is a parent-child relationship. It is a promise.

Prayer works because of physics. You, acting as a radio station, emit a frequency of a particular desire. Your thoughts create that frequency. The more you play that song, the more you boost your frequency.

When it comes down to it, there are only two songs: fear and love. Is your song a song of fear, or of love?

A parent praying for a sick child must pray for the child believing her to be already healed. We find this difficult, because we see the child's suffering, we see the symptoms of the disease.

Of course the parent wants the child to be healed, to be healthy and happy.

Keeping prayers in the positive, based in love rather than fear – this is the way to pray for results.

The formula that works

So many powerful prayers start with exaltation. Exclaiming the goodness and power of the Universe is the place to start – not because God needs to be praised, but because we need to remember the Power we're petitioning.

After all, prayer is for us. We're the ones who've forgotten who we are.

Next, express your request – but do it in the spirit of thanksgiving. A grateful heart is a receptive heart.

Finally, close with more thanks for the Power of Mind.

And don't worry about language. No one needs to be a poet like Rumi to talk to God. Some of my most effective prayers have been yelling-in-the-car prayers. No problem with that. A prayer in demand-mode works just fine. Just remember to frame your demands to God in love.

And the bonus reminder for working with prayer: when you find yourself doubting, which you will, being human, counter your doubts with a prayer using this simple formula. Mind is more powerful than doubt.

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