Chapter 85

The Purpose of Short Prayers

That you cannot manage a short prayer—nothing to worry about. It will come in time. Your frequent turning to God during the day, in every activity and after each task, is very good. This is part of the general law—walking before God. Short prayers have the same purpose. In them sacred words express what you express in your own words. But the higher purpose of the short prayer is the focusing of thought and feeling toward God. What you experience in these invocations—scatters at first impression; moreover, despite the invocations, thoughts buzz in your head like flies. To cut short this buzzing, you must bind your mind to one thought, or the thought of the One. The short prayer is a help for this. With its aid the mind becomes simple, unified, and awakens or develops feeling toward God.

When this feeling comes—the soul is established in consciousness of God and begins to do everything in God’s way. With the short prayer you must hold the thought of God and attention to Him. But to limit yourself only to the words is a sounding gong (Cf.: 1 Cor. 13:1).

(Letter 957. Vol. 6, p. 55–56)