I welcome you to this welcoming prayer practice.
At its very foundation,
The welcoming prayer exists to help us heal.
There's a phrase that says what we resist persists and what we allow ourselves to feel will heal.
And the welcoming prayer helps us to do just that.
The welcoming prayer is a method of actively letting go of any thoughts or feelings that support the beliefs that we have about ourselves.
Some people call this the false self or your conditioned self.
The welcoming prayer was developed by Mary Marzowski,
One of the founders of Contemplative Outreach.
Through it,
We can invite God or the name you choose for God into the ways that we have been unconsciously programmed.
We have tapes that play on loop in our heads and feelings and beliefs that take over and remain stored in our bodies.
And that's what we're going to work to heal today.
So find a comfortable place and sit or lie down.
If at any point you'd like to pause and spend a little bit more time with your feelings,
Thoughts or beliefs,
Please do so.
Place one hand on your heart,
Rest another on your belly.
Very gently allow yourself to settle in.
There's no need to breathe intentionally.
Simply let your belly soften and relax.
Feel yourself sinking into your chair or the floor.
If it feels right and true,
Tell yourself that it's okay to be here right now,
Just as you are.
It's okay to be with any thought that arises,
Any body sensation,
Any feeling.
You can titrate in and out of this experience as needed.
You're safe.
You can feel the energy of your body and your body's energy.
You can feel the energy of your body and your body's energy.
You can feel the energy of your body and your body's energy.
You're safe.
Now for a moment,
Simply notice.
Just notice what surfaces.
As you feel what rises to your awareness,
I'd like to ask you to focus on that.
Stay with it and feel what's coming up,
And then sink into it.
Try not to resist.
And as you go there,
If it feels too overwhelming,
Scale back a bit as needed.
Take a few breaths,
Then allow yourself to return to it again.
Feel the feeling.
Hear the commentary.
Sense what your body is communicating.
Next,
Welcome that feeling.
Hopefully now that your defenses are down,
Simply greet it.
Tell it hello.
You can use words out loud or just in your heart.
Say welcome,
Or have a welcoming stance or posture.
I welcome this thought.
I welcome the feeling of.
I welcome the sensation that's present.
I welcome the memory of.
If this thought or feeling of welcoming feels disingenuous,
That's okay.
With practice,
We can learn to welcome whatever comes up with sincerity.
We will come to learn that it's there to teach us something.
There's no such thing as a bad or wrong or negative emotion.
It's information.
Emotions are messengers.
They're our teachers.
Now,
As you sit with that welcoming posture,
I invite you to welcome God into that feeling,
Sensation,
Thought,
Emotion,
Memory,
And tell God welcome.
You might name God in another way,
And that's fine.
Now,
In that shared space with that feeling and with God,
We're going to let go of the thought,
Feeling,
Belief,
Sensation.
Recite with me one that lands with you.
I welcome you to come to me.
I welcome you to come to me.
I welcome you to come to me.
I welcome you to come to me.
I welcome you to come to me.
Let go of my desire to change this experience,
This feeling that Iran is playing against their glaring place in right in front of a hotel door,
Was like to say,
Playing makes perfect.
This clean vacuum.
This clean vacuum was purely my mission.
It set the direction of God with me.
And everyone that was there for the first time I let go of my desire for certainty.
I let go of my desire for security.
I let go of my desire to be rid of this.
As you repeat whichever statement fits best with you,
Notice.
Oftentimes we want to eliminate the feeling.
But that's not the way our bodies,
Our narratives,
And our habits work.
See if you can be content with progress,
With a shift that you can sense ever so slightly internally.
Maybe it has a little bit less of a hold on you.
Maybe you're a little less attached to it.
Maybe you feel a softening around the feeling,
The thought,
The emotion.
If you experience less of an attachment,
If you experience a shift or a softening,
Please celebrate that.
Now as you return to the world around you,
I'd like to remind you that the welcoming prayer is something you can turn to again and again.
It can be used in shorter time periods than this meditation practice.
You can use it in conjunction with a breath practice or a breath prayer,
And I hope it can give you the pause that you need between the sensation,
Feeling,
Or thought.
And instead of letting it overtake you,
May you tend to yourself and utilize the welcoming prayer instead.
Remember,
What we resist persists,
And what we allow ourselves to feel can heal.
I'd like to leave you with a poem called the welcoming prayer by Father Thomas Keating.
Welcome,
Welcome,
Welcome.
I welcome everything that comes to me today,
Because I know it's for my healing.
I welcome all thoughts,
Feelings,
Emotions,
Persons,
Situations,
And conditions.
I let go of my desire for power and control.
I let go of my desire for affection,
Esteem,
Approval,
And pleasure.
I let go of my desire for survival and security.
I let go of my desire to change any situation,
Condition,
Person,
Or myself.
I open to the love and presence of God and God's action within.
Amen.
