Everyone who has ever tried to use prayer to request something has
experienced what appears to be failure. This is not only true in
connection with specific things which might be harmful, but also in
connection with requests which are strictly in line with this course.
The latter, in particular, might be incorrectly interpreted as “proof ”
that the course does not mean what it says. You must remember, however,
that the course does state, and repeatedly, that its purpose is the
ESCAPE from fear.

Let us suppose, then, that what you request of the Holy Spirit IS what
you really want, but you are still AFRAID of it. Should this be the
case, your ATTAINMENT of it would no longer BE what you want, even if IT
is. This accounts for why certain specific forms of healing are not
achieved, even though the state of healing is. It frequently happens
that an individual asks for physical healing because he is fearful of
BODILY harm. At the same time, however, if he WERE healed physically,
the threat to his thought system would be considerably MORE fearful to
him than its physical expression. In this case he is not really asking
for RELEASE from fear, but for the
removal of a symptom which HE has selected. This request is, therefore,
NOT for healing at all.

The Bible emphasizes that ALL prayers are answered, and this must be
true if no effort is wasted. The very fact that one has asked the Holy
Spirit for ANYTHING will ensure a response. Yet it is equally certain
that NO response given by the Holy Spirit will EVER be one which would
increase fear. It is possible that His answer will not be heard at all.
It is IMPOSSIBLE, however, that it will be lost. There are many answers
which you have already received, but have not yet HEARD. I assure you
that they are waiting for you. It is indeed true that no effort is
wasted.

If you would know your prayers are answered, never doubt a Son of God.
Do not question him and do not confound him, for your faith in him is
your faith in YOURSELF. If you would know God and His Answer, believe in
me whose faith in you cannot be shaken. Can you ask of the Holy Spirit
truly, and doubt your brother? Believe his words are true because of the
truth which is in him. You will unite with the truth in him, and his
words will BE true. As you hear HIM you will hear ME. LISTENING to truth
is the only way you can hear it now and finally KNOW it.

The message your brother gives you is UP TO YOU. What does he say to you?
What would you HAVE him say? Your decision ABOUT him determines the
message you receive. Remember that the Holy Spirit is in him, and His
Voice speaks to you THROUGH him. What can so holy a brother tell you
EXCEPT truth? But are you LISTENING to it? Your brother may not know who
he is, but there is a light in his mind which DOES know. This light can
shine into yours, making HIS words true and making YOU able to hear
them. His words ARE the Holy Spirit’s answer to you. Is your faith in
him strong enough to let you hear?

Salvation is of your brother. The Holy Spirit extends from your mind to
his, and answers YOU. You cannot hear the Voice for God in yourself alone
because you are NOT alone. And His answer is only for what you ARE. You
will not know the trust I have in you unless you EXTEND it. You will not
trust the guidance of the Holy Spirit, or believe that it is for you
unless you hear it in others. It MUST be for your brother BECAUSE it is
for you. Would God have created a
Voice for you alone? Could you hear His answer EXCEPT as He answers ALL
of God’s Sons? Hear of your brother what you would have me hear of you,
for you would not want ME to be deceived.

I love you for the truth in you, as God does. Your deceptions may deceive
YOU, but they CANNOT deceive ME. Knowing what you are, I CANNOT doubt
you. I hear only the Holy Spirit in you, Who speaks to me through YOU.
If you would hear ME, hear my brothers in whom God’s Voice speaks. The
answer to ALL prayers lies in them. You will be answered as you hear the
answer in EVERYONE. Do not listen to anything else or you will not hear
truth.

Believe in your brothers BECAUSE I believe in you, and you will learn
that my belief in you is justified. Believe in me BY believing in them,
for the sake of what God gave them. They WILL answer you, if you learn to
ask truth of them. Do not ask for blessings without blessing them, for
only in this way can you learn how blessed YOU are. By following this
way, you ARE looking for the truth in you. This is not going BEYOND
yourself but TOWARD yourself. Hear only God’s Answer in His Sons, and
you ARE answered.

To disbelieve is to side against, or to ATTACK. To believe is to accept,
and to SIDE WITH. To believe is not to be credulous, but to accept and
APPRECIATE. What you do not believe you do not appreciate, and you
CANNOT be grateful for what you do not value. There is a price you will
pay for judgement because judgement IS the setting of a price. And as
you set it you WILL pay it.

If paying is equated with GETTING, you will set the price low but demand
a high RETURN. You will have forgotten, however, that your return is in
proportion to your judgement of worth. If paying is associated with
GIVING, it cannot BE perceived as loss, and the RECIPROCAL relationship
of giving and receiving will be recognized. The price will then be set
high because of the value of the return. The price for GETTING is to
lose sight of value, making it inevitable that you will NOT value what
you receive. Valuing it little, you will not appreciate it and will not
WANT it.

Never forget, then, that YOU have set the value on what you receive, and
have priced it by what you give. To believe that it is possible to get
much for little is to believe that you can bargain with God. God’s laws
are ALWAYS fair and perfectly consistent. BY giving
you receive. But to receive is to ACCEPT, not to get. It is impossible
not to HAVE, but it IS possible not to KNOW you have. The recognition of
having is the willingness for GIVING, and ONLY by this willingness can
you recognize what you have. What you give is therefore the value you
put on what you have, being the exact measure of the value you put upon
it. And this, in turn, is the measure of how much you WANT it.

You can ASK of the Holy Spirit, then, only by giving TO Him, and you can
GIVE to Him only where you SEE Him. If you see Him in everyone, consider
how much you will be ASKING of Him, and HOW MUCH YOU WILL RECEIVE. He
will deny you nothing because you have denied HIM nothing, and so you
can share everything. This is the way, and the ONLY way, to have His
answer because His answer is all you CAN ask for and WANT. Say, then, to
everyone,

“Because I will to know myself, I see you as God’s Son and my
brother.”