Praying in Secret

"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly." --Matthew 6:6

There was a time when I thought I could not turn to God. I became pregnant after a weekend with a friend, I thought this disqualified me from God's love and help. But my fear got the better of me, and I had nowhere else to turn. I've written about other aspects of this time in my life before, but what I want to focus on today is how God responded when I confessed my situation to Him and asked for help.

One of the things I was most concerned with in my initial fear was how this pregnancy would be received by those who knew me, and by those who didn't. Would I be judged? Would the baby be judged, perhaps be considered less of a person because of my marital status?

So when in answer to my prayers for help I only felt God's great love, I gained the courage to bring up this question. What could I do to protect my baby from being hurt by my mistake?

And God's response was, "You made a mistake then, but you're not making one now."

I had decided to keep the baby, you see. In my heart of hearts, I felt this was the only option. I wanted my child from the moment I knew about the pregnancy.

And the passage above from Matthew came to mind. I think this was the first time I really had prayed to God in secret. I had told no one about the pregnancy yet, not even the father. I had thrown myself into God's care first, and He was strengthening me.

From this prayer, I got this clear comforting message that God could see into my heart. He knew how I really felt about this baby, and He knew my deep desire to do right. He knew the sincerity of my internal promise to stop the self-destructive behavior that had gotten me into this situation, and He accepted that as enough.

I felt the truth of the words, "Thy Father who seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."

To me, this meant that everything would be okay. I'd be able to support us, I'd be able to handle whatever came my way from friends and family, and I'd be able to make the changes I needed to give my child a stable, happy home. There would be open acknowledgement of my secret connection to God.

This is over 14 years ago now, and it's all come true. The self-destructive behavior dropped away, I don't even miss it. I couldn't now ask for a better life; each day brings new occasions for gratitude.

All because of that simple spiritual law that Jesus shared with us so long ago.

Laura Matthews is a spiritual healer in the US Northeast. Visit her Website at: http://www.lbmatthews.com

---

Getting Beyond Imperfect Examples & Resistance, to Receiving Loving Guidance & Help from the Father

As soon as he saw me I saw him. It... Read More

When Bad Things Happen to Good People

Why do bad things happen to good people? Surely this... Read More

Understanding the Gospel of Matthew and Why it Matters - Part 3

The Birth of Jesus Christ18 Now the birth of Jesus... Read More

AD33Today: A Search in Modern America

We, a group of ordinary people who believe in Jesus... Read More

10 Tips For Spiritual Growth

Spiritual growth is the process of inner awakening, and becoming... Read More

A Mothers Journey to Spiritual Surrender

I have studied many of the great Religions, Quantum Physics,... Read More

Accessing Your Spiritual Guidance

For the last 35 years, I have been working with... Read More

Starved Spirits, Sorrowful Souls

Give us today our daily bread. Matthew 6:11 (NIV) We... Read More

Shallow Victories

How many of you out there have ever wondered if... Read More

It Took a Banker to Show Me What Jesus Was Talking About

On January 13th 1982 an Air Florida flight crashed off... Read More

Sing Psalms, Let Joy Resound: A Case For Exclusive Psalmody

Ephesians 4:4-6 indicates that Christians ought to practice one single... Read More

5 Ways To Learn More About The Orisha

The Orisha are the Messengers of Oludumare, the God/dess of... Read More

The Purpose of Life, Told by an Agnostic

Talked to an interesting person today at a coffee shop,... Read More

How to Hear the Voice of God

In this series I would like to take you through... Read More

Spirituality: Blues for Buddha

Being critical of Buddhism isn't easy.Buddhism is the most likable... Read More

Law to the Nth Degree

Most of us know that the universe - God's universe... Read More

Getting Back to the Basics of Truth

Anyone who has invested time, energy and effort into finding... Read More

New Century; Same Old Story

In His graciousness, God has blessed us to enter a... Read More

Gilligan Finds Jesus!

One day Gilligan ventures off as usual into the jungle.... Read More

Halloween Rites

For some of us, EVERY DAY IS HALLOWEEN!!! If you... Read More

What Makes You A Saint

Don't be confused that a saint is a religious leader... Read More

Home of God

The first hymn of Isha Upanishad says - whatever living... Read More

Celtic Mythology: 7 Ways to a Wonderful Life

In Corrogue, Celtic mythology helps me live a wonderful life.As... Read More

Zen and Peace (The Road To Lasting Harmony)

Presently, many of us live in uncertainty. Due to the... Read More

How Does God See You?

How does God see you? Does He like what He... Read More

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

That we must live with imperfections is a fact of... Read More

Creating A Tithe Account

Almost every spiritual and religious teaching exhorts its followers to... Read More

What is the Evil Eye?

The Evil Eye has been around since the beginning of... Read More

Ask and It Shall Be Given You

This statement sounds incredible. ASK and it shall be given.... Read More

Pursuing Your Destiny

During my childhood days, I disliked Lenten season because radio... Read More

Insulting Spirit or Exposing the Me

While it isn't my intention to insult anyone (Alright, for... Read More

Spirituality at Work Because You Cant Leave Home Without You

Several years ago after I presented a workshop entitled "Spirituality... Read More

Unfinished Business (Part 1)

Most of life can be said to be bad, or... Read More