Article June 30, 1917 Issue

Purified Desires

LOUISE C. MARTIN

Prayer is the mental process by which the human consciousness seeks access to and aid from a power beyond itself. The mainspring of prayer is desire; and the quality of the desire determines the character of the prayer and its answer. In view of this, the important point is not only how we pray, but why we pray. When our hearts go out in prayer, what desires are impelling us? What motives are inciting us? To ascertain this requires constant vigilance and frequent heart searchings,—a continual separating between spiritual motives and material ones. So subtle is the carnal mind, so constant are its efforts to beguile us, that unless we are sober and watchful we shall find that the cravings of the carnal mind, the fleshly desires, have crept in while we slept.

Pure, spiritual longing, then, is the seed of true prayer, the seed that must be nurtured and cherished until it springs up and unfolds into deeds. This tender seedling must be watered with consecration, guarded with watchfulness, and protected from the thorns which Jesus said were "the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in." Right here some one may ask, "What of the daily needs,—food, clothing, clothing, shelter,—the needs which press so insistently upon us: should not one take account of these in his prayers?" Indeed, these things form such an integral part of human experience that they cannot be ignored, and Christian Science deals wisely with this question.

Mrs. Eddy answers the query in the following sentence, to be found on page 307 in "Miscellaneous Writings": "God gives you His spiritual ideas," she writes, "and in turn, they give you daily supplies." Despite the transcendentalism which this statement implies, it is nevertheless demonstrably and invariably true, and is in exact agreement with Jesus' saying, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." From this it follows that our great need is to gain spiritual ideas; then the needed material supply will follow in turn. Therefore the intent which should inspire all prayer is the desire to gain more and more of the spiritual ideas which are included in real being.

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