Sun Myung Moon
April 15, 1979
Excerpt
The Importance of Prayer
Belvedere, NY
Unofficial Translation
Test your own power of prayer: take one person and pray for him fervently, constantly, without telling him. Pray, tearfully, for his well-being and then that person will feel a magnetic attraction to you. He won't know why he feels drawn to you. If you pray for a person, wholeheartedly, without doubting, when you go out, then that person will come to you. If you are dead serious, then these things will happen. Hypnosis can transfer a person into another state of consciousness, but how much more can prayer change lives.
There is no limit to the power of prayer. There is no distance or limit to its influence, because the power of thought travels everywhere. You can mobilize the entire spirit world by the power of prayer. You have experienced that I will work through your prayers; and teach and enlighten you of certain things. When you have the right attitude in prayer then, miracle after miracle will happen. The most important part of a launching pad, for example, at Cape Kennedy is the foundation. At take-off it must not break under the heat and pressure. Your prayer is like a missile firing and you need a solid foundation. You must not pray from greed for yourself. Public prayer and self-depreciating prayer will cleanse you and elevate you higher and higher. If you live with this high sensitivity to spirit world, you will sense what is forthcoming. Your perception will be keen and you can prepare for the future.
You should know that you are like two people in one. Your inner man is like a mirror, clean and bright. When the inner and external men are not synchronized you feel anguish, but when they are perfectly aligned you feel joy and power. This is happening every day within you. When you see a person your inner man can tell you what kind of person he is, and if you hear a person's report, a sense of the inner man will tell you how truthful it is. As soon as someone walks into a room, you can see whether he is bringing good news or bad. The two men in you are interacting as one.
Don't neglect this inner man but consult him all the time. Your inner man always wants to talk to your physical man. When you are higher spiritually, the inner man and physical man are united and have a clear communication between the two. You may not have any intention of saying anything yet suddenly you find your mouth moving. That is not you but your inner partner speaking. You will experience such phenomena. A man is very mystical. Even the rats of a ship can sense when a ship is in trouble and run away, but how much more should man, the supreme creation of God, know when a life or death situation is coming? Shouldn't you be alerted when a certain destiny is forthcoming? You are superior to those rats, right? Through prayer, you will gain such spiritual sensitivity. For your inner and outer man to become one, you need the power of prayer.
Don't pray empty prayers. Now you know the power of prayer. Everyone needs to experience these things spiritually. You must know whether the things you do will succeed or fail. You know that certain things will succeed because you feel pulled in that direction and are eager to go ahead. Your body is like the receiver of a radio. Free yourself from self-centered thinking, and you will be filled with mighty power. You must win such spiritual battles. After this, you are entitled to ask for God's power, as you pray for the sake of God's righteousness and His Kingdom. Then, He will come down to you.
Pray and act. As you act, you will know the power of prayer. You will discover yourself being different from yesterday. If you could not accomplish what you prayed, you must pray, "God, I worked hard today, but I was not enough. I need Your help." Make a showdown with God every day. This is absolutely necessary. It shall become second nature, and without being conscious of it, you can live that life all the time.