This recording starts with a lesson.
To skip to the meditation,
Go to 6 minutes and 20 seconds.
As I'm preparing for sleep and I think back on my day,
What tends to define a day as a great day versus an ugly day has more to do with the choices that I made,
The thoughts that ran through my head,
The words that came out of my mouth,
And the way I treated the people around me.
Than it did about the things that happened around me,
The circumstances of my life.
I've had incredibly beautiful days here in the holy city of Jerusalem that were challenged with the sounds of sirens and rockets.
And I've had horrific days where everything around me is blue skies,
Beautiful weather,
Birds chirping,
Safety in the streets.
And the thing that differentiates those days are the beliefs that are running through my mind,
The stories that I tell myself about God and the universe,
About people,
About the circumstances of my life,
And mostly the stories I tell myself about me.
That's what differentiates a day of beauty and connection.
From a day of brokenness and disconnection.
And I believe it is for this reason that the Bible begins with stories.
Stories of human beings just like you and me,
Who are trying to navigate the struggles of life,
Make choices,
And decide the kind of people they want to be.
And of course,
The greatest story is the story of the exodus from Egypt,
When the Jewish people are in the lowest place,
Believing that God has abandoned them and that there is no hope for her greater future.
To one of wonders and miracles and redemption,
And being given a mission to make the world a better place.
And we tell this story over and over again to remind us that we are beacons of light in this world,
That we are meant to repair the world.
And if you tell yourself the story that you are a beacon of light,
That you are meant to repair the world,
Over and over again,
You are likely to become someone who creates inventions for healing and technology and agriculture,
To write great literature and comedy and music and art,
Because when you believe that it is your mission to make the world a better place,
Lo and behold,
You do.
And if you tell your children that that's their mission,
And you tell your children's children and the children after that,
That that's their mission,
Lo and behold,
You create a nation that has etched in its bones a deep desire to shine light in every corner of the world.
And that's our global mission,
But the question is for you.
What are the stories that you're telling yourself about God and the universe,
About your role in the universe,
About who you are and what you're capable of,
And about life in general?
I find that if we repeat good stories over and over again,
As the Jewish people do daily and weekly and monthly and through all of our holidays,
Those stories become a part of who we are.
And so in this meditation,
I'm going to be inviting you to plant seeds within yourself of stories that I believe can empower you to believe that you are held and loved,
To believe that you are good at your core,
And to believe that you are put here for a good and holy reason.
I bless you that these beliefs become etched into your bones so that you can be a source of light to everyone around you.
I invite you to find a comfortable seat and close your eyes and become aware of the rise and fall of your body,
Your mind,
Your consciousness,
And your body and your chest as you breathe.
Feel the Ruach Elohim,
The divine breath,
With the Nishmat Chaim,
With the breath of life.
It is a breath of love.
Each breath whispering a response to that wind of love because you,
Precious one,
An extension of that light,
With its particular color and frequency,
Shining onto this world.
You are always connected to the endless light,
As a ray of the sun is always connected to the sun.
You shine your unique divine light,
Just like every soul on this planet shines their unique divine light,
And in this way,
Precious one,
With the intent purpose of shining love.
Is that like the divine who always was,
Haya,
Always is,
Kove,
And always will be,
Ihie?
You,
Precious one,
Simply are.
There is nothing you need to do to be a part of this endless light,
To be a part of this endless love,
Because you already are,
Precious one,
Made of this light,
Made of this love,
Held by this light and held by this love,
Seen as a reflection of this light,
Seen as a reflection of this love.
It is everything you are,
Everything you have ever been,
And everything you will ever be,
And the illusions and challenges of this world might confuse you at times,
Might trick you into forgetting who you are,
But in your heart of hearts,
Know this,
I invite you to place those precious hands over your beautiful heart again,
And bless yourself with the light of your love,
And bless yourself,
And as you soak that in,
I invite you to come back into the present moment by wiggling your fingers and slowly batting your eyes open,
Ready to bless the world with your gaze.
From my little corner of Jerusalem,
I bless you with my light and my love.
