5"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.6But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.7And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.8Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
I think about that secret place with Christ. A place of refuge. A location of solace, where we come away from the challenges we face each day, where our view of our troubles can be transformed by an encounter with Almighty God. Our minds can be at peace, and our spirits can soar - our perspective of those concerns in our lives can be changed because God will shape our thinking as we pray, and we can experience the power of God as the resources of heaven are released in response to a surrendered prayer.
In 1st John 5, the writer encourages us to come before the Lord and gain confidence in His love and faithfulness:
12He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.13These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.14Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.15And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
Could your activity in prayer can actually have a physical impact on the brain?
Could your activity in prayer can actually have a physical impact on the brain?
The Christian Post reports on a new study by Dr. Andrew Newberg, director of research at Thomas Jefferson Hospital and Medical College in Pennsylvania, who led the study in which MRI brain scans proved that there is power in prayer or meditation. The study also found that prayer is much like a physical workout for the brain.
According to South Carolina-based WLTX 19, Newberg said, "When we look at how the brain works, it looks like the brain is very easily able to engage in religious and spiritual practices. … It only makes sense if God is up there and we are down here that we would have a brain that is capable of communicating to God, praying to God, doing the things that God needs us to do."
Back in 2012, The Huffington Post reported on another study by Newberg that found the ways in which prayer and meditation affect the human brain. His research proved that when a person engages in prayer, there is an increase in activity in the frontal lobes and the language area of the brain known for becoming activated during conversation. He found that for the brain, praying to God is similar to talking to people.
To conduct this study, he injected participants with a harmless radioactive dye while they were deep in prayer or meditation. The dye then migrated to the parts of their brain where the blood flow was the strongest.
He concluded that regardless of religion, prayer created a neurological experience among individuals.
"It helps us to understand that at least when they (participants) are describing it to us, they are really having this kind of experience. ... This experience is at least neurologically real," Newberg said.
According to South Carolina-based WLTX 19, Newberg said, "When we look at how the brain works, it looks like the brain is very easily able to engage in religious and spiritual practices. … It only makes sense if God is up there and we are down here that we would have a brain that is capable of communicating to God, praying to God, doing the things that God needs us to do."
The article says that test results revealed that the benefit of praying or meditating can actually shape the brain.
"There are multiple parts of the brain that seem to get involved and it really does look like the brain is easily able to have these experiences," Newberg said. "It has something to do more generally with how we can improve the function of the brain that these kinds of practices can actually help with."
"There are multiple parts of the brain that seem to get involved and it really does look like the brain is easily able to have these experiences," Newberg said. "It has something to do more generally with how we can improve the function of the brain that these kinds of practices can actually help with."
Back in 2012, The Huffington Post reported on another study by Newberg that found the ways in which prayer and meditation affect the human brain. His research proved that when a person engages in prayer, there is an increase in activity in the frontal lobes and the language area of the brain known for becoming activated during conversation. He found that for the brain, praying to God is similar to talking to people.
To conduct this study, he injected participants with a harmless radioactive dye while they were deep in prayer or meditation. The dye then migrated to the parts of their brain where the blood flow was the strongest.
He concluded that regardless of religion, prayer created a neurological experience among individuals.
"It helps us to understand that at least when they (participants) are describing it to us, they are really having this kind of experience. ... This experience is at least neurologically real," Newberg said.
This makes sense - prayer is a wonderful practice that God has given us the opportunity to engage in, where the limitations of earth reach into the unlimited resources of heaven. And, while you may think of prayer as strictly a spiritual practice, I believe that it has holistic effects. So, I would think that we are affected physically by our prayers. I believe prayer can contribute to our emotions being transformed. And, as we call upon God, our awareness of His love and expectancy of His faithfulness increase.
I do believe God is calling us to a greater intensity in our prayer life. Think about Newberg's dye injected into the brain - the experience of intense prayer created a tangible change in brain function. And, when we are focused on God and His resources, abiding in Him, not only are we affected spiritually, but we can have the confidence that God hears and answers our prayers. Prayer enables us to come apart from the influences and challenges of this world and to experience the presence of the God of the universe.
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