By Lizzie Wildwood
One of the greatest blessings of serving our online and in-person congregation is seeing people gather from so many different places, united by a shared desire for peace, healing and a closer relationship with God. Whether you’re sitting in our church at Thundersley or joining us from your own home, we become one spiritual family, sharing our thoughts, prayers and love together.
This week I found myself reflecting on something I had never really spoken about before: prayer.
Someone recently asked me how I pray and what prayer means to me. It made me stop and think about my own process. Prayer is something many of us do instinctively, yet we rarely pause to consider why it is so important or how deeply it connects us with the Divine.
Finding Stillness Before God
Before I begin any prayer, whether privately or with a congregation, I always start by becoming still.
I take a moment to breathe, allowing the distractions of the day to settle. The messages on my phone, the headlines on the news, the worries I’ve been carrying – all of them are gently put to one side.
Only then do I open my heart.
For me, beginning with words such as “Divine Loving Spirit” or “Heavenly Father” is like opening a telephone line to God. Of course, God already knows everything that is on my heart. Our loved ones in Spirit and our guides know our struggles too. Prayer is not about informing God of something He does not already know.
Instead, prayer changes us.
It gives us permission to hand over the burdens that feel too heavy to carry alone. It is a moment to ask for guidance, to seek peace and to trust that we are never facing life’s challenges by ourselves.
The Power of Praying Together
One of the wonderful things about our church community is that we don’t all have to be in the same building to worship together.
Technology allows us to join in prayer from our own homes, yet spiritually we become connected. I often picture it like a great web of light, with each person adding their own love and energy until we are all united in one shared purpose.
Prayer reminds us that none of us walks this path alone.
As we gather together, we lift one another up. We pray for ourselves, our families, our friends and our wider world, knowing that love is never limited by distance.
A Prayer for the Whole World
When I pray publicly, I try to remember that our prayers can embrace so much more than our own personal needs.
We pray for healing where there is illness.
We pray for those caring for others, including our emergency services, whose courage often goes unseen.
We pray for those approaching their transition into the Spirit World and for the families who sit beside them with love.
We pray for newborn babies beginning life’s journey, asking that they grow surrounded by kindness, encouragement and opportunity.
We remember our planet, the animal kingdom and everyone who shares this beautiful world with us.
Prayer becomes an act of compassion that reaches far beyond ourselves.
Seeing the Lord’s Prayer with Fresh Eyes
Many of us learned the Lord’s Prayer as children.
We repeated the words week after week at school or in church, often without fully understanding their meaning. Yet as adults those familiar words can take on an entirely new depth.
Take the phrase:
“Give us this day our daily bread.”
Perhaps it isn’t only asking for food.
It can also be a prayer for shelter, security and enough income to pay the bills. It can be a prayer that nobody experiences homelessness or hunger.
But it also speaks to our emotional and spiritual needs.
We ask God to provide meaningful human connection so that loneliness does not become overwhelming. We ask for friendship, companionship and someone to share life’s simple moments with. Our daily bread is everything we need to live with hope, dignity and love.
Learning to Forgive
Another part of the Lord’s Prayer that speaks powerfully to me is:
“Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
None of us is perfect.
Every one of us makes mistakes. We all say things we wish we hadn’t or make decisions we later regret. Prayer reminds us that forgiveness is not about pretending those mistakes never happened. It is about acknowledging them, making amends where we can and allowing ourselves to move forward.
Equally, if we ask God for forgiveness, we must also learn to extend grace to others.
That does not mean accepting harmful behaviour or allowing ourselves to be mistreated. Rather, it means seeking peace instead of allowing bitterness to take root.
Holding onto anger often hurts us far more than the person who caused it. True forgiveness frees our own hearts and allows healing to begin.
Simply Having a Conversation
Perhaps the greatest realisation I had while reflecting on prayer is that it doesn’t need to be complicated.
At its heart, prayer is simply a conversation.
It is talking honestly with God about our fears, our hopes, our gratitude and our struggles. It is asking for help when we cannot see the way forward and trusting that Divine Love continues to walk beside us, even when life feels uncertain.
Prayer is not about finding perfect words.
It is about opening our hearts.
Walking Forward Together
As Christian Spiritualists, we believe that God’s love surrounds us continually and that the Spirit World remains close, encouraging and inspiring us through every season of life.
Whether you pray using the familiar words of the Lord’s Prayer or simply speak to God in your own way, know that every sincere prayer is heard.
May we each find the courage to lay down our burdens, the wisdom to forgive, the compassion to pray for others and the peace that comes from knowing we never walk alone.
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” – Matthew 7:7 (KJV).
This article was drafted using Chat GPT AI from a Transcript of Lizzie’s spiritual address at our divine service. Edited by humans.
