When we pray the Godward way, we close our eyes. Relax our bodies. And rest.

We don’t go straight to the Holy of Holies. We first observe thoughts. Take our time to understand what constitutes a thought. We then choose a thought that we are familiarized with; that could be a mantra, for example.

Now we know what a thought is. How a thought originates: memories, emotions, sensations, etc.

That leads us to recognize that God is not like that. So we don’t just direct our attention to God, as if He were another thought.

But how can we point our attention to something that is not inside our mind?

That’s when the prayer starts.

We go beyond.
We transcend.
Beyond the words. The language. The thought.

We go to that place that gives birth to all of them.
That place is our consciousness.
That’s the Holy of Holies.
That’s where we can meet God’s consciousness.

But we are not the same. We are not equal.
We are connected.
Like a tree branch connected to the tree trunk.
They share the sap. But they are not equal.

It’s all directional.
It’s a connection.

But connection through what?
Through what we know about God.

He is the Father.
The source.
To whom we belong.
Whose identity is concealed. He is not a thought. (His name is hallowed.)
To whose will we surrender.
To whom we open our hearts so He can flow through us. (As in heaven, so on earth.)
Whom we trust to take care of us at any given moment, as we perceive our reality as a moment that’s just happening now.
By whom we are cleansed of any guilt that accumulates inside us.
Whom we ask that we don’t fall into the temptation of containing Him as a thought, and using the great power of His connection to serve lesser thoughts, including ourselves.
Whom we ask to protect us from adversary forces that want to pull us away and sever the connection.
Whose kingdom, power, and glory we recognize. Now and forever.

That’s what we address. That’s the gate that we connect to.
That’s not God. That’s the connection that we can perceive.

The tree branch cannot perceive the tree trunk, but it can perceive the connection.

And through the connection, we pray.