You are not alone. We are here for you, as a spiritual community and as individuals that are loving, welcoming, accepting, and inclusive.
“Above all, practice the presence of God in prayer.” — Charles Fillmore, Teach Us to Pray
Unity is a ministry founded on the power of prayer. It was through prayer that our co-founders, Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, received significant and seemingly miraculous healings. Unity believes that the prayer of faith releases the Power of God to work in the life of the one for whom we are praying. Our faith is in God, and we know that with God all things are possible. We give thanks in advance, knowing that God answers each prayer in the perfect way.
The word prayer comes from the Sanskrit “pal-al” which means judging oneself as wondrously made. We hold each one in prayer as wondrously made, created by God in God’s image. We pray affirmatively that this is the Truth about each one in spite of any evidence to the contrary on the human plane. We look beyond appearances to the eternal and changeless Divine Essence that is the Truth about each one. We pray for God’s will to be done for the highest good of all.
Unity’s emphasis always is that we are healed through the Christ within. The reason we can be healed is that in Truth we are already whole, complete and perfect. We have faith that with God all things are possible. God, as the healing power within everyone, is greater than any appearance of any dis-harmony. We look beyond the appearance to the Truth that we are spiritual beings made in god’s image. We affirm and claim wholeness for those who are asking for healing prayer.
Prayer always has been central to Unity and to our ministry at Unity Spiritual Center. Both prayer and meditation are intimately linked in Unity practice. We sit in the silence as the gateway to our connection with God. We engage in affirmative prayer that lovingly accepts the reality of what is, and all is as it should be.
The Power of Prayer
Prayer is an opportunity to experience God in the midst of our busy daily lives. Prayer consists of relaxation, concentration, meditation, realization and thanksgiving. As we release our fears and concerns, we are able to experience the love, life and vitality of the Kingdom of God. With this awareness, we are comforted, revived and strengthened. Our lives are transformed as we choose to change our perception and are transformed by the renewing power of Spirit.
“We have been so persistently taught that prayer consists in asking God for some human need that we have lost sight of our spiritual identity and have become a race of praying beggars.” — Charles Fillmore, Teach Us to Pray
What is affirmative prayer?
When most people think of prayer, they think of asking God for something. Not so in Unity.
Unity uses “affirmative prayer.” Rather than begging or beseeching God, this method involves connecting with the spirit of God within and asserting positive beliefs about the desired outcome. Affirmative prayer is the same method of prayer Jesus taught when he said, “So I tell you whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark 11.24)
If, for example, one were to pray traditionally, one might say: “Please God, help me find a job.” By contrast, an affirmative prayer might be: “I am now guided to my right and perfect employment.”
Affirmative prayer reflects the certainty that we are each being led to our highest good, despite any temporary appearances.
“In Unity, we believe that all things work together for our highest good,” says Lynne Brown, vice president of Unity’s 24/7 prayer ministry called Silent Unity. “We pray to align ourselves with God and to allow ourselves to be inwardly guided to that good. Through affirmative prayer, we help co-create the good that is possible in our lives.”
By using an affirmative prayer approach, we can visualize and plan for the future with faith that the power of God is continually blessing our lives with unlimited possibilities. Affirmative prayer leads to an awakening of our spiritual selves. In faith, we pray giving thanks in advance that the universe is meeting our every need.
Life Event Support
You may be experiencing circumstances in your life, or in the life of a loved one, that require prayer support. In times of joy, as well as in times of challenge, Unity is here to support you. Please complete a confidential online prayer request now or fill out a prayer request any Sunday during our service, and we will add you to our confidential prayer list. A prayer chaplain is available after each service for confidential, one-to-one affirmative prayer. Prayer chaplains listen and affirm the highest and good for you.
Want someone to pray with you right now?
You also can reach Silent Unity, our movement’s worldwide prayer ministry, any time of the night or day by calling 1-800-669-7729 (1-800-NOW-PRAY). Every request to Silent Unity also is kept confidential and receives loving, compassionate attention.
Or you can complete a confidential online prayer request to Silent Unity right now; just click here.
Helpful Prayers
The Prayer for Protection
The light of God surrounds me;
The love of God enfolds me;
The power of God protects me;
The presence of God watches over me.
Wherever I am, God is!
The Prayer for Protection was written by the late James Dillet Freeman, poet laureate of the Unity movement, former director of Unity’s ministerial program, and former director of Silent Unity, Unity’s worldwide prayer ministry. In 1969, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin carried a copy of The Prayer for Protection with him on the first manned moon landing.
In addition, a prayer statement was presented, so we can be united and of “one accord.” The statement was:
I step out in faith, filled with a deep conviction
that infinite wisdom guides my way.
Faith grows in my soul,
and I reap the harvest of God’s bountiful Presence,
a Presence that makes all things possible.
It is done. And so it is.
The Prayer of Faith
God is my help in every need; God does my hunger feed;
God walks beside me, guides my way
through every moment of the day.
I now am wise, I now am true,
patient, kind and loving, too.
All things I am, can do, and be,
through Christ, the Truth that is in me.
God is my strength, unfailing quick;
God is my all; I know no fear.
Since God and Love and Truth are here.
– Hannah More Kohaus
The Prayer of St. Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
AFFIRMATIONS
Healing
Mighty currents of God’s healing love are flowing through me now making me whole and well.
Divine Order
I am one with the divine order of the universe. All is well.
Prosperity
I am one with the rich substance of Spirit now taking the form of that which I require and desire.
Right Work
I have faith that God has already prepared my perfect place of employment and it is manifest now!
Comfort
The holy presence of Spirit within comforts and strengthens me as I move through every experience with grace and ease.