Prayer, Meditation and Expressing Gratitude by Odilia Rivera-Santos

There are people who struggle with the concept of 'God' or any other being or energy which might be in charge of how and when things shift in an individual life. Ego, negative connotations regarding organized religion and a reverence of intellectualism, above all else, can make prayer seem antithetical to a modern life in an urban setting.
Prayer is energy directed toward an unknown entity in order to relieve some of the angst, emotional injury and confusion of quotidian life -- this is my definition anyway. And I have found there is a definite vibrational energy created when a group of people are in the same room praying together.
I was not brought up in a family that went to church; my mother's guidance was based more on her ethics and morality than that of an organized religion. We were taught to not embarrass ourselves or our family.
I have friends who were brought up in a strict religious household and their response was to rebel and abandon all aspects of religious practice and to cringe at the mention of prayer, God, or any idea we might not know everything.

We do not and never will know everything

Life is full of strange occurrences, great beauty, cooperation between human beings, beautiful synchronicities in which a path appears to be mapped out and things work out perfectly with little effort on your part, horrific acts and injustices. We can't squander our lives in an attempt to decipher why every little thing happens. It is always a test of faith to stand your ground and pray despite dealing with what you view as unfair in your personal life or in the world.

Prayer, Meditation and expressions of gratitude

You do what you can in life. And sometimes, this means saying a prayer for those one cannot help and saying a prayer for healing in those areas of life in which one is struggling and a prayer to say thanks for whatever one has. And expressions of gratitude via a daily list can certainly soothe feelings of fear, desperation or general sadness regarding injustices in the world.