Have you ever felt despair because you’ve prayed long and hard for something and received no answer? At that point you could be said to be “poor in spirit.” You certainly feel your need of God.
And that, Christ Jesus assures us, is a blessed state to be in. The first four beatitudes Jesus proclaims in his Sermon on the Mount refer to a state of spiritual lack or longing, and the happy consequences that follow that active yearning. The Amplified Bible gives us this rendering of the four:
“Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are the poor in spirit [those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven [both now and forever].
“Blessed [forgiven, refreshed by God’s grace] are those who mourn [over their sins and repent], for they will be comforted [when the burden of sin is lifted].
“Blessed [inwardly peaceful, spiritually secure, worthy of respect] are the gentle [the kind-hearted, the sweet-spirited, the self-controlled], for they will inherit the earth.
“Blessed [joyful, nourished by God’s goodness] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness [those who actively seek right standing with God], for they will be [completely] satisfied” (Matthew 5:3–6).
Another translation of the first beatitude succinctly says, “God makes happy those who know that they need him. The kingdom of heaven is for them” (Worldwide English).
The only thing that will meet that need for God is spiritual growth. The human mind and human effort cannot accomplish what only Spirit can give. Growth in Spirit means receiving more of the divine understanding and making it active and useful in our daily life. It is being so inspired by the spiritual truths we are studying that we have an unshakable conviction of their validity and power. This transforms human experience and results in healing.
One time, Jesus’ disciples encountered a desperate father whose epileptic son was put in peril by seizures that bruised him and often threw him into the fire or the water. The disciples prayed for the boy but couldn’t heal him. Then Jesus told the father that all things are possible to one who believes, and the father cried, “I believe; help thou mine unbelief” (Mark 9:24).
This conversation holds a key we can use today whenever healing seems delayed. The way out of frustration and discouragement is to understand that God has no empty words. God is the only cause, and His Word is the law that maintains the harmony of His creation. The Bible states, “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).
Believing that all things are possible to God, as Jesus advised the distraught father to do, is based on understanding the power of divine Love instead of trusting in human ability. When Jesus similarly told his disciples, “All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matthew 21:22), he meant more than having a strong human opinion. He was urging them to trust steadfastly in God’s tender care and readiness to meet man’s needs.
This is the crux of the issue in these days of sophisticated arguments, material wonders, and jaded sensibilities regarding the next big remedy around the corner. How can one have firm conviction during a drought of belief in the power of God? Could it be as simple as asking?
How can one have firm conviction during a drought of belief in the power of God? Could it be as simple as asking?
When Jesus said, “Ask, and it shall be given you” (Matthew 7:7), he was using a verb that meant a continual asking—keep asking. The prophet Zechariah said, “Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field” (Zechariah 10:1). The prophet Ezekiel heard God saying, “I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing” (Ezekiel 34:26).
God is the source of everything good, and He showers us with His love at all times. The action of asking to be blessed by Spirit gives focus to our receptivity and prepares us to accept the good that God is always pouring forth.
After Jesus encountered a woman at a well in Samaria and asked her for a drink, they conversed about water, thirst, and how to properly worship God as Spirit. At one point Jesus told her, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water” (John 4:10).
A primary meaning of prayer is petition, asking. Perhaps before we can believe we will receive what we ask for, we must first take a smaller step and simply ask for the spirit of believing, of firm assurance that God is there and hears our prayer. Jesus knew this need and promised that the poor in spirit would receive the kingdom of heaven, or a sense of God’s ever-present goodness. He proved this to the father of the epileptic son when the man was helped with his spirit of unbelief and the son was healed.
If you have need of this deep faith that all things are possible to God, then take your prayer into a reverent mental space—what the author of the Christian Science textbook refers to as “the quiet sanctuary of earnest longings” (Mary Baker Eddy, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 15). Quiet your thought, be still, and invite Spirit to speak to you. Ask God what you need to see to believe that His Word is law—true, invincible, and real, now.
The Bible promises, “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him” (I John 5:14, 15).
Would not the God who is Love want us to feel and know the presence and power of Love, with healing signs following? What we are asking for is the understanding of divine Science, the Holy Ghost, that enables us to heal through prayer.
Jesus pointed out that even a human father would not substitute a snake when his child asked for a fish. How much more will our heavenly Father give us the faith, understanding, courage, strength, and conviction we need to demonstrate the truths of divine Science?
If you have felt poor in spirit, lacking in demonstration, weary or discouraged in prayer, don’t delay to ask for the power of Spirit, or the Holy Ghost, to be present in your life. It brings a heavenly conviction and sense of sufficiency in all things through the gift of God’s grace, which doesn’t have to be earned or deserved but does have to be desired. And we must not spurn the gifts we are asking for when they come, but follow through by living in accordance with our requests. Constant gratitude for this gift of spiritual sufficiency and faith in God assures that we will feel its continuance in our experience.
Mrs. Eddy, who was a dedicated follower of Jesus’ example and a prolific healer, was once asked when we would be able to heal as she did. She answered: “When you believe what you say. I believe every statement of Truth that I make” (Mary Baker Eddy: Christian Healer, Amplified Edition, p. 101). Isn’t it wonderful to realize that each of us can also have the divine gift of believing every word of Truth we speak or read?
Mrs. Eddy encouraged us to turn to God in every circumstance. “Remember, thou canst be brought into no condition, be it ever so severe, where Love has not been before thee and where its tender lesson is not awaiting thee. Therefore despair not nor murmur, for that which seeketh to save, to heal, and to deliver, will guide thee, if thou seekest this guidance” (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, pp. 149–150).
Whatever you feel is your greatest spiritual need, ask God to meet it. And if you don’t receive an immediate response, keep asking, for prayer always brings us closer to that which seeks to heal, to deliver, and to guide us. Like a chick pecking open her shell, we can be confident that each yearning request brings us closer to the full freedom of the new world we are being ushered into. The effort of pecking the shell open bit by bit strengthens and prepares us to unfurl our wings and take flight for heaven.
