Pray for more light

If you are in doubt, pray for more light and you will get it.

The Basis of Our Will

We may unconsciously pray and attract persons to us from the spirit world, of whose existence we may be unaware; so may we also be said to have faith in those spirit friends. We may call it luck or genius or destiny—it does not matter, so long as it inspires our confidence or trust. The latter forms the basis of our will and carries us to success.

Pray for congenial partners in life

Pray for congenial partners in life. As a rule, we offer up prayers for all kinds of possible and impossible advantages—our daily bread, salvation, conversion, consolation, success in business, change in the weather, etc. No one thinks of praying for a good husband or a good wife and yet no duty comes more readily within the scope of a spirit guide than that of impressing people how to choose their friends and in no respect could such services be rendered with a greater certainty of good results than in the task of selecting and preparing for each other's society those who are most fitted to marry. It would be a work which our spirit friends would enter upon with more joy and thankfulness than any other task we could impose upon them. We talk of marriages being made in heaven but no marriage could be more truly made in heaven than one where the compatibility of the two partners for life had been previously ascertained and approved of by their spirit friends. We talk of the idea of fortune-hunting and matchmaking as being derogatory to the dignity of the sex but surely those who seek a fortune in a wife and are above the selfishness of desiring a fortune with a wife may be excused for asking aid from Him who made all men and women and who knows, better than we, which are suited for being life partners. 

Let those scoff who choose

Prayer is like advertising in the newspapers. We make known our wants to those in the spirit world who take a pleasure in responding to requests of the kind we put forth; just as some specially learned among us take pleasure in imparting to enquirers the knowledge which is their particular forte. These spirits—men—have means of knowledge on the subjects that we pray for and so they respond to the call more readily. When, therefore, we are told how multitudinous the victims of ill-fated marriages are who are found in the spirit world—still suffering the terrible consequences of their former folly—we can easily imagine that, as they obtain relief and happiness in their sufferings by rendering that aid to others which they are best qualified to give, they respond readily to prayers for help in that direction. Since the whole future welfare of the human race depends upon the knowledge which guides the present generation in the selection of their partners for life—these being necessarily the progenitors of the next generation—how all-important this question must appear to those who calmly consider it. 

Spiritual Impressions—or Inspirations

Spirits have the power to introduce thoughts into our brain. They do this by whispering in our ear—the ear of the spirit body, not the material body. The spirit body is asleep, so to speak, whilst the material body is awake; hence they can only communicate with the spiritual body in a peculiar manner. We have heard it said that if we whisper in the ear of a sleeping man, we will make him dream of what we have whispered. This may be true or not but, if so, the case is precisely the same as spirits' mode of communicating thoughts to the semi-conscious spirit body, whence they penetrate into the brain of the physical body and are used by the owner as his own ideas. Thus, we are always in communication with the spirit world though we do not know it and if we would take the trouble to enquire of anyone who has had the experience of impressional mediumship, we would find that the words come into his head one after another as distinctly as if someone were dictating them.  All the most brilliant geniuses of any age have been such. They could not have originated the ideas which are conveyed by the works of men like Shakespeare, Spenser, Milton, Dante, Plato, Aristotle and others unless the writers or speakers had been inspired by men from the spirit world. This is the secret of all inspiration. We see it at work in everyday life just the same. From the spirit side—seen behind the scenes, as it were—the process is so simple and commonplace that he who runs may read. Spirits have much to tell us for our own good—it makes them happy to impart knowledge; hence, they seek out an impressional mind amongst us and pour into his brain the thoughts which they are full of. 

The great motive power in the universe

One who constantly and actively wishes for success has a far better probability of success than one who merely trusts passively to chance.

What is the great lever by which you accomplish?

Willpower is the great lever by which you accomplish that which you long for.

Prayer is something like advertising

We think it is not permissible to pray for worldly objects but this is a popular delusion—pray for help whenever you want it, let the object be what it may but not if it is an evil object. In the latter case, prayer is certainly undesirable, for it is the cause of attracting to us spirits who will aid us in accomplishing our purpose, perhaps, but they will only increase our unhappiness afterwards, for, if we have strong willpower, we are tempting them. On the other hand, if we pray for a good object, we benefit the spirits whom we draw around us. It is good for them to help others and, in helping us, they help themselves. Thus, we see, prayer is a spiritual force which we can put in operation if we have willpower enough. It is not necessary before we can be helped but it is advisable because, although spirit friends can read our thoughts and understand our wants, we lose the aid of many others who cannot read our thoughts but who would be attracted to us by our prayers and would help us if they knew we wanted help. If, however, we never pray, they do not know of our needs and do not help us. Prayer is, therefore, something like advertising our wants in the newspapers. All spirits do not see them, it is true, but those who can help us are made aware of our needs and are able to assist us. We should, of course, prayer to God, not to spirits. He permits spirits to execute His decrees. We may not know that this is the case because we do not see God but we all live under His laws and nothing can happen contrary to His laws; consequently, whatever is done must be done by Divine sanction and to Him our prayers should be addressed. We can address our prayers to spirits if we like but it comes to the same thing. We call on the spirit of God which dwells in their souls—as in ours—to help us and that spirit responds to our call. There is, therefore, no disgrace in asking help from spirits.

An Unnatural Mode of Life

The agonies that are endured by those who have lived inharmoniously as man and wife—a life which is alike an outrage upon nature and delicacy—include so large a proportion of all marriages that it might be inferred that there are very few who are satisfied in their married life. What is not referred to are the petty squabbles, which are incidental to all human relationships and which may be caused by ill-temper due to disappointments in business, bad digestion, over excitement or the multitudinous worries of everyday life, having no connection with matrimonial troubles. These, of course, are not necessarily signs of matrimonial inharmony, although, in too many cases, they may be so. Let each one decide this for himself—but where there are perpetual bickerings and jarrings between husband and wife, running through a course of years, you may depend upon it that the absence of love—which is the only true basis of married life—is only too surely indicated. In all such cases, the continuance of cohabitation as husband and wife is a crime against God and man and must be atoned for and compelled to work out the full extent of the sentence which outraged nature inflicts on those who disobey her laws.

The agonies in store for the selfish

Shall we tell you what we have witnessed of the agonies that are in store for the selfish? Have we not seen many a mother weeping and wringing her hands in vain, wandering about the earth plane, seeking eagerly for her infant child, whom kind nature took from her selfish arms to place in better care? Oh could you but see the sorrow and agony which awaits such a woman as the one who—with plenty of love for her home, her child, her husband and her own belongings—has never cast a thought on the wants of others, preferring to centre her whole earthly love on herself—for such her love amounts to—few would be anxious to be happy in this life at such a cost in the future. Mothers who do their duty to their own children and their own families and cast no thought around them are not qualified to enter the higher life; they must remain below until, like the rest, they have learnt to love humanity and not merely those who minister to their love of self. If, therefore, they have lost any children very young, the latter will necessarily be separated from them until the mother's spiritual development brings her to a higher sphere.

Life Beyond the Grave, described by a Spirit, through a writing medium, London, 1877