Praying In Silence
In the heavens,
everything is said and done in silence.
By
The Man Who Saw God Face To Face
Raphael Okechukwu Nweze
Introduction
"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. 6 But 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.
Matthew 6:5-6
The hierarchy of vibrations in the life are as follows, beginning with the least:
1. Action.
2. Word.
3. Thought.
4. Silence.
The implication is that among the four levels of vibration, the greatest is silence, followed by thought. What is said and done in silence produces greatest effects, lasts longer and travels far and wide. Besides, it does so without disturbing other actors (people) and without interfering in other events. Hence, action speaks louder than words, but silence, better than both. Again, the first sign of greatness is silence. The person who can do something good without making noise is far better than the person who does good in a noisy manner. You notice the difference in levels of vibration when you read texts. You then notice that the brain (your thinking) is faster than the eyes, and the eyes move faster than the lips. That is why a person may jump a word while reading a text, or be pronouncing a word when the eyes have already passed that word.
On the earthly plane of existence, humanity are fond of action. That is why they are always moving, engaged in one activity or another. Everybody is busy bustling and hustling about. This is all right for the ordinary man. But as a person, who wants to grow in spirit and in truth, you should limit your physical activities to a minimum and cultivate the quiet and gentle disposition necessary for spiritual growth.
Those at the helm of affairs, the executives, managers and leaders, do more of talking than action. They live mainly at the mental plane of life, so that they can plan, execute and co-ordinate various operations, while staying in one place. On the other hand, those in the lower echelon of workers do more of actions than talking. Hence, the labourers work, silently, during the whole day.
In spirit, all activities are performed as thought. A person’s thought is also word and action. That is why Jesus said that whoever that looks at another, lustfully, has already committed adultery.
In course of spiritual development, people should learn to be thinking beings. They should study, analyze and plan activities very well. Also, and very importantly too, people should learn to talk less and cultivate a habit of quiet life. By so doing, they can grow very fast in spirit and in truth. Remember that Jesus was often going into the wilderness to rest, pray and meditate in silence and quietness. If He did so, when there were no noise-making automobiles, the present generations suppose to do more now that there is so much noise pollution in the environments. Unfortunately, people do not care about the spiritual life and wellbeing, and are retrogressing in spirit, instead of growing in spirit and in truth. That is why I say that what humanity call civilization is like the parable of people who moved from light into darkness and do not know again how to come out of the darkness.
Many people insist on shouting their prayers to God, as if to say that God is deaf. Frequently, this happens when others are praying or receiving messages (dreams, visions, trances, oracle, etc) from the Holy Spirit. The time may be early in the morning, in the night or during worship. Those who pray aloud feel that they are being fearless, faithful and courageous. They should know that the first sign of greatness is silence. On may occasions, they have disturbed the concentration of others and hindered people from getting accurate messages.
Our silent prayers and thoughts sound like thunder and lightning in the presence of God. Therefore, it is both good and compulsory that people develop the ability to pray in silence. More so, as Jesus warned that we must not let our religious pieties be known to the public. We should rather pray in spirit, and the Father, who sees in secret, shall reward us. The same message and correction goes to those who pray the rosary inside the offices, in the buses, on the roads or in public places. God does not accept such religious pieties.
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. 6 But 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. Matthew 6:5,6
And the rosary is full of repetitions, the very thing Jesus warned against.
7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Matthew 6:7