Whatever environment you are coming from it's always a good idea to take a few moments to settle down and Transition from an outward looking to an inward looking And then maybe shift your weight back and forth from your seat and get a little comfortable noticing if There's a little pain or an itch Because you know that Sometimes these distract you from that inward looking because the breath is that beautiful breath of life The breath can also help transition you to that inward looking So notice the breath right now If possible breathe through the nose Notice the coolness of it coming in And maybe the heat as it leaves your body See if you can invite it to go a little bit deeper and that's the times I like to place my hand on my belly and allow the Diaphragm to push out my belly a little bit and then in the belly push pushes out and then the chest expands on the inhale and then On the exhale it does the opposite And also roll your shoulders back because sometimes they get tense While you're sitting here,
Is there a particular grace a particular gift from God that you would like to receive whether it's clarity Maybe it's compassion Fortitude peace joy not that Aspiration of that grace to settle deep into your heart As we engage our imagination in this this prayer We invite the Holy Spirit to guide us and the Holy Spirit will allow us to go into a unique experience That best suits you and whatever you're struggling with your life so if you have a particular gesture I often Say come Holy Spirit or if there's a particular prayer I Often say veni sancti spiritus to invite the Holy Spirit.
That's the Latin of Come Holy Spirit So I'm gonna read our paraphrase Just a small snippet from the Gospel of Luke We know this happened more than 2,
000 years ago So first get a picture What does this area look like Is it night or day?
What's the temperature on your skin and you might be a passive observer or?
A participant in this scene And so notice the road to Bethlehem Maybe take a few steps in your mind What is the sound of?
This road on your feet.
Is there a smell in the air?
What do you see up ahead?
What does this town look like?
So as you walk into this town What do the people look like?
What is?
The vibe that you get from the people the faces Are they anxious?
Are they unaware?
Or are they at peace?
So then Continue to walk through the town and take us good look at the character of this town and then you notice a Small in at the edge of town so you walk towards it and behind the end there's a barn and you see the Some of the animals what are those animals look like?
Maybe notice the smell there and as you walk closer you hear the sounds of a woman in labor You walk closer you Walk into this barn and notice There is a young man Even younger woman and the woman is struggling to give birth Listen,
And so what do you do?
And so take a few moments?
And engage with this scene here Anytime you feel distracted Reconnect with the senses,
So Take note of something you see or hear smell feel This is your time to engage so if you were having a conversation or Maybe doing something in this scene Wherever you wound up It's time to bid.
Farewell Just for a brief time.
And so you think whoever may have guided you or Giving you advice or at least allowed you to further this experience so you turn yourself around and walk away and notice the ground beneath you and the ground beneath you suddenly changes to a familiar place that you frequently walk and just as we Needed a time of transition for this inward looking We transition back in a similar fashion so if there's any Prayers that emerge from your heart these could be Memorized prayers or just a thank you or maybe Particular Petition or intercession and Return to that grace and see if Maybe a fraction of that grace appeared Then notice your breath again Maybe take a deep breath in as you allow a sliver of light into Your eyes maybe gaze a Few feet in front of you.
So you're transitioning slowly into the outward looking world and then if you have a particular gesture to close the Official prayer practice you can engage in that now And it's always a good idea to take a few moments to review this experience you can stay seated or press pause and head to a computer or a journal maybe reflect on a few questions such as the particular feeling or Mood that you felt Did a particular thought arise?
Or was it a Nudging of Something that you need to do in your waking life and also ask yourself if there was something particularly meaningful to you was there a particular sense that really Struck you and if you notice that this time Wasn't enough maybe tomorrow or a couple days later Maybe return to that And take care of that unfinished business so it's always a good idea to reflect a little bit on the experience and and Then further it with maybe some insights so maybe how this connects to a particular theme that is Echoing in your life and so wherever you are in this world it's always a good idea to engage in that practice of Slowing down and then reflecting and so take care of yourself
