Carol observes that, in Traditional Religion, the ego is viewed as a person being full of themselves, or wanting to be in control in some way. Rev. Bill discusses New Thought perspectives on the helpful and unhelpful aspects of ego. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-light.com . This podcast is suppor...
Apr 10, 2024•37 min•Season 13Ep. 147
Carol continues the conversation about manifesting, diving into the idea that we don't manifest anything. She also found that all sorts of stuff started happening after the Manifesting episode. Rev. Bill agrees that it's God, or the Creative Power that does the manifesting, and we simply provide guidance (or intention). Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring...
Apr 03, 2024•39 min•Season 13Ep. 146
Carol and Rev. Bill dig into the HUGE difference in the understanding of sin between traditional churches and the New Thought teaching. The conversation turns to the ways that sin gets wrapped into judgement, ranking some sins as worse than others, and the power differential that it can set up. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fu...
Mar 27, 2024•40 min•Season 13Ep. 145
A recent Opinion piece in the NY Times described the current trend in "manifesting" as part of New Thought. Rev. Bill, in a posture of righteous indignation, points out that it's not, and why not. Carol observes that "manifesting" is an inch deep and a mile wide, whereas New Thought has great spiritual depth. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical ...
Mar 20, 2024•41 min•Season 12Ep. 144
Carol's experience with "traditional" prayer was that God could answer Yes, No, or Maybe. She always found it troublesome because it starts a prayer with doubt about its effectiveness. Rev. Bill describes how the doubt we find in our own consciousness is actually a powerful diagnostic resource to help us understand our beliefs, and what to change to get a new result. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the...
Mar 13, 2024•38 min•Season 12Ep. 143
Carol's account on Facebook was suspended, for reasons that were not apparent. Efforts to correct the situation didn't work, but for some reason she wasn't bothered by it. Rev. Bill helps take the experience to its spiritual context, and how this might fit into the bigger picture of what's going on for Carol. Spoiler: The account had been hacked, and was restored a few days later. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more informa...
Mar 06, 2024•35 min•Season 12Ep. 142
Carol and Rev. Bill go on a wide-range and freewheeling conversation about creation stories, science vs. religion, and the basics of the Science of Mind textbook before settling in on the notion that, no matter what we're praying for, we can always add the intention to experience peace of mind as our newness unfolds. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Pr...
Feb 28, 2024•34 min•Season 12Ep. 141
Step three - the Realization - is the heart of a Practical Prayer. Carol wants to talk about it, and the importance of the steps leading up to it. Rev. Bill points out that the Realization is the same as what the self-help movement calls an affirmation, except that it's powered by the Divine creative force that creates everything, everywhere. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes...
Feb 21, 2024•44 min•Season 12Ep. 140
Carol is back from a fabulous family event that was better than anyone could have planned. It brought to mind that we are in a co-creative process with the Infinite, in which there are some things that are ours to do, and others for us to surrender, open and allow. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-l...
Feb 14, 2024•37 min•Season 12Ep. 139
Carol can't get away from "The One". She does a lot of different sorts of creative work, and every time she wants to get into the head space of other creators she realizes that they are ALL channeling the same creative force - the One. Rev. Bill dives in with the observatiion that getting away from The One is not going to work, because The One is all there is. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcas...
Feb 07, 2024•36 min•Season 12Ep. 138
When Carol initially got into the New Thought philosophy she put a lot of energy into learning the language, and the way to say what we mean, and what we want. She and Rev. Bill discuss how important it is to be clear about how our words are RECEIVED. What we intended is not nearly as important as the impact of how it lands. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to ...
Jan 31, 2024•39 min•Season 12Ep. 137
Carol and Rev. Bill continue the conversation about bringing something new and fresh into our lives, this time with a focus on letting go of what we've had up until now. In the same way that we must exhale to make room for another breath, we must clear a space - in our consciousness or our closet. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more...
Jan 24, 2024•33 min•Season 12Ep. 136
Carol observes that we can't just pray and expect something to change - new it happens when we do something different. Rev. Bill suggests that our intention, our consciousness, is where the change begins, and that we get to let go of our attachment to what we've had so far, and partner with the Infinite, doing what's ours to do in order to bring the newness about. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the po...
Jan 17, 2024•38 min•Season 12Ep. 135
Carol usually does things in an orderly serial progressions - from A to B to C - but finds that the episodes of the podcast have not tended to build on one another in that way. Rev. Bill points out that every week we're talking about the same thing - Oneness - from a different perspective, and that means that we're free to engage in a fresh way in each conversation. This time, they talk about how we use the One creative Power to create our own reality. Thank you for listening to the Practical Pr...
Jan 10, 2024•41 min•Season 12Ep. 134
Carol wants to know why Jesus didn’t do Practical Prayer… or did he? And how do we pray like Jesus? Rev. Bill gives us the instructions from Jesus on how to pray, and create our own miracles. (This is a rebroadcast of Episode 13). Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-light.com . This podcast is supporte...
Jan 03, 2024•36 min
There's a tradition of focusing on what we want to be "new" at this time of year. Carol found that, in her years on the traditional pulpit, people wanted their life to suddenly and miraculously be transformed when the calendar rolls over. Rev. Bill points to the way that harvest season has made way for winter, and that newness is inherent as we pass into another season. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about ...
Dec 27, 2023•35 min•Season 12Ep. 133
Carol wants to talk about Oneness, and Rev. Bill is emphatic about how central it is to the New Thought teaching. Carol wants to take it to a personal level, when we find ourselves having to acknowledge that people involved in bad behavior and activities. Do we really have to acknowledge that we are one with the "crazy" people? Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources ...
Dec 20, 2023•40 min•Season 11Ep. 132
Carol has noticed that people sometimes get "stuck" between the second and third steps in their Practical Prayer, describing it as "spiritual indigestion." Rev. Bill observes that this happens when what we're praying for is at odds with what we believe we deserve. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-li...
Dec 13, 2023•40 min•Season 11Ep. 131
Rev. Bill is joined by Dr. Robert Brzezinski, the mastermind behind the New Thought Media Network and an ordained minister in the Centers for Spiritual Living. They discuss the language of Practical Prayer and Spiritual Mind Treatment, which are actually the same prayer technique. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your ...
Dec 06, 2023•35 min•Season 11Ep. 130
Carol wants to talk about "Release". It's the final step in a Practical Prayer, and so ingrained in Rev. Bill's thinking that he can overlook its power and importance. They also talk about the importance of letting go of our attachment to allow our Good to flow. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-ligh...
Nov 29, 2023•38 min•Season 11Ep. 129
Rev. Bill is solo today, and takes the opportunity to get back to Practical Prayer fundamentals - the notion that the underlying Power is a spiritual principle. It responds to everyone, everywhere, in exactly the same manner. This Power doesn't choose who or what it responds to, and thus is available to all of us. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Pract...
Nov 22, 2023•33 min•Season 11Ep. 128
Carol points out that, sometimes, we're just having "one of those days". She and Rev. Bill discuss the metaphysical perspective on it, and how that experience of having "one of those days" - and other ways our experience of life is unfolding - has a Mental Equivalent in our belief system. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully in...
Nov 15, 2023•45 min•Season 11Ep. 127
Carol has been encountering a lot of people who find themselves looking for purpose in their lives. Some are dealing with a loss, and wonder what could be next. Others are seeking guidance on what is theirs to do. Rev. Bill observes that we are here not to do "God's bidding", but to understand the Gift that we are, and find our way to share it. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the class...
Nov 08, 2023•38 min•Season 11Ep. 126
Carol observes that changes are always happening, and sometimes it feels like there's a LOT of change going on. Now there's a change of seasons, changes in where we are in life, and some unhappiness in people about the changes that are happening. Rev. Bill notes that there are changes that we have wanted for a long time, and other changes that we didn't want or expect. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about t...
Nov 01, 2023•36 min•Season 11Ep. 125
Rev. Bill and Carol both doubt that multitasking is a real thing, and each bring their own shifting perspective as they have grown (or aged). The discussion veers to the opposite, which is stillness, and how that can help us turn any task into a spiritual practice. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-l...
Oct 25, 2023•31 min•Season 11Ep. 124
Carol has understood the convergence between science and spirituality for a long time, even when it was frowned upon at the churches she led. Rev. Bill is all about the oneness, and describes the way the Big Bang might have been described in biblical language. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-light....
Oct 18, 2023•41 min•Season 11Ep. 123
Carol wants to know how Practical Prayer is different than other forms of prayer. Rev. Bill acknowledges his ignorance, and limited familiarity with other forms of prayer. Together, they stitch together an understanding of what’s different and what’s not. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-light.com ....
Oct 11, 2023•38 min
Carol observes that there is a widely held belief that God has a plan for our lives. The go-to scripture is Jeremiah 29:11. Both Carol and Rev. Bill object to the idea of predestination, for their own reasons. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fully into your life at be-the-light.com . This podcast is supported by listeners like y...
Oct 04, 2023•39 min•Season 10Ep. 122
It's a conversation about healing... not how to do it, but our attitude about it. Carol has noticed that people in many cases have full faith and belief until they have a particular experience, and then they get shook up, and the faith disappears. Rev. Bill joins in by re-framing healing, not as fixing a problem, but the revealing of the spiritual Truth that it's already perfect. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more informat...
Sep 27, 2023•43 min•Season 10Ep. 121
Carol asks about what's going on when we're hoping for a blessing - a financial breakthrough, resolution of a health challenge, or some other answered prayer - and we're waiting, and it's not working. Rev. Bill points out that our prayers are answered at the level of what we believe we deserve. Thank you for listening to the Practical Prayer podcast - please invite your friends to listen! There's more information about the podcast, and the classes and resources to bring Practical Prayer, more fu...
Sep 20, 2023•41 min•Season 10Ep. 120
