Hello my friends and welcome to today's practice.
Let's begin today by finding a comfortable posture for your body.
And if you're willing.
I invite you to gently close your eyes.
And start by tuning into how you're feeling at this moment.
Perhaps you're feeling restless.
Stressed out,
Or perhaps you're feeling anxious.
Maybe you're feeling some fears inside of your heart.
I invite you to intentionally identify your emotion,
What is going through your heart,
Your mind right now.
By labeling our emotions,
We're already bringing it into our prefrontal cortex.
Into the conscious decision-making center of our brain.
And we are already actively decreasing the overwhelm and the effects of these emotions on us.
I invite you to breathe into your body at this moment.
Feel into any tightness.
Anything stiff,
Any contraction or resistance.
When we are in the state of fight and flight.
Usually our shoulders are clenching up.
Maybe your hands are tense.
Trying to grasp onto something.
Maybe you're clenching your legs together.
Maybe the tightness is in your belly.
And you find it hard for your breath to travel all the way down into your belly.
Pay attention to your neck as well.
Are you unconsciously extending your neck forward?
See if you can soften your shoulders a little bit and let it drop As you breathe in,
See if you can breathe in just a little bit deeper.
Feel your chest and your belly expand.
And can you loosen up your legs a little bit more?
And you loosen up your hands.
Tune in to how you're feeling.
As you are changing the posture of your body.
There may be feelings of more fear.
Feelings of heightened anxiety.
Feelings of resistance.
Of this trust.
These are all of your natural protective mechanism at work.
And without judgment without criticism or forcing anything.
Just allow your body to do what it can right now.
Now let's turn our attention to God.
Our loving Father and Creator.
I invite you to gently imagine how it would feel like for you to be in a safe space.
To be in a space of acceptance.
A space of what is right and just.
A space of being protected and supported.
A space that is so much bigger.
Than all of our individual identities.
Again,
Simply imagine a space like this.
In the presence of God.
Without forcing yourself to do anything.
Notice if your mind starts to think how you should be.
And how you shouldn't be.
As you breathe in and out.
And just come back.
To being in the present moment.
Honest,
Vulnerable.
As you are.
In front of God.
Now I invite you to gently turn your hands facing up.
So that they're in a receiving and open posture.
You can hold them in front of you.
Or simply lay them on your lap.
Notice how you feel in this posture of receiving.
Of openness.
Reliance.
This open posture that acknowledges that we are not the ones in control.
Observe if there are any fears arising in your heart.
And I invite you to identify these fears.
And you can even speak them out loud.
If that feels comfortable.
Perhaps you're afraid that God won't provide for you.
Perhaps you're afraid that you won't be accepted.
Loved.
Perhaps you're afraid that you won't be taken care of.
Whatever fear it is in your heart.
I invite you to imagine that you're placing these fears in the palm of your hands.
And offering them up to God.
Breathe into your heart.
Breathe into these feelings of being afraid.
And let's listen to Psalm 23.
A song that comforts anxiety.
The promise of God to be our shepherd.
And to lead us through OPATH.
The Lord is my shepherd.
I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right path for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley.
I will fear no evil.
For you are with me.
Your rod and your staff.
They comfort me.
You prepare a table before me.
In the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil.
My cup overflows.
Surely,
Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord.
Forever.
Feel into how you're breathing now.
As you breathe in and out.
I invite you to bring some curiosity to the fears that are in the palm of your hands.
How do they feel now?
Do they feel heavy?
Light.
Have they changed?
Simply breathe in and out without attaching any meaning or narrative.
To these fears.
They are not your identity.
And they're so little.
Compared to God's love for you.
Now let's listen to Matthew 6.
Look at the birds of the air.
They do not sow or reap or store away in bars.
And yet your Heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not much more valuable than they?
Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
And why do you worry about clothes?
See how the flowers of the field grow.
They do not labor or spin.
Yet I tell you that not even Solomon,
In all his splendor,
Was dressed like one of these.
If that is how God clothed the grass of the field.
Which is here today and tomorrow is throwing to the fire.
Will he not much more clothe you?
Our God takes care of us.
Just like he has sovereignty over all the flowers in the field.
The cycles of nature.
He provides for us.
Spiritually.
Emotionally.
And physically.
Breathe in and see how this feels in your body.
Feel into how these verses have landed in your body.
Do you feel comfort?
Do you feel a sense of opening?
Do you feel any resistance?
Do you feel doubts and questions?
Without pushing these sensations away.
I invite you to imagine how it would feel like.
To be fully seen by God.
As you are.
With all of your joys and sorrows.
All of your doubts and questions.
And with your open hands,
Your open posture.
Allow any kind of trust or distrust.
To be seen by God as well.
And know that you're still accepted.
You're still loved.
And God is always with you.
And not separate from you.
Breathe in and out.
And you can slowly open your eyes.
As we wrap up today's practice.
I invite you to offer up a prayer.
You can ask for your eyes to be opened.
For your heart to be softened.
You can ask for peace.
Or for rescue.
With Thanksgiving.
As we present our request to God.
Our prayers will be answered.
Our hearts and our minds will be guarded and protected.
Thank you for joining me in this practice.
