Heart Centred Meditation Week 5: Total Self Surrender To God

‘I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh’ (Ezekiel: 36:26)
Welcome to From the Heart. You will find here 8 Christian Heart-Centred meditations to be used across 8 weeks. There is a natural sequence from week 1-8, where you gradually get closer to God, so do not try jumping across weeks.
The meditations are based in a long tradition of heart-centred contemplative exercises from the Roman Catholic tradition, particularly the Sacred Heart of Jesus and St Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises. They were originally developed by Fr Kuruvilla Joseph Pandikattu and edited by Dr Miguel Farias and Sara Shah.
These meditations were developed as part of a research project sponsored by the Templeton World Charity Foundation. The protocol was published in BMC Psychology, 2024 and the research was led by Faye Ng, Miguel Farias, and Inti Brazil.

Transcript

Welcome to our contemplation today. Take a deep breath. And relax into the practice. Become aware of the time you will spend today with the Lord in prayer and contemplation. Take a moment to sit up straight on a comfortable chair or in a position that feels comfortable on the ground. Sit up straight, But not overly erect. Allow your shoulders to soften. Set an intention to remain in this position during this contemplation, Even if you feel tired or distracted. But remember, If there is any extreme discomfort, Please adjust yourself. You may remember that the heart of Jesus, From which blood and water came out, Is central to Christian tradition and spirituality. We may keep in mind that the heart symbolizes God's unconditional and all-inclusive love for all of us. We are also called to live in His heart, Full of joy, Love, And hope. Gently close your eyes. Breathe slowly and deeply. Breathe a one. Three times. Now imagine that you feel and see Jesus in front of you. Jesus is sitting in front of you, Looking at you with love. His loving gaze is on you. Let your mind rest on the feeling of being loved by Jesus. Let us pray. Lord, Please give me the grace to surrender myself totally and completely to you and you alone. Please give me the grace to surrender myself totally and completely to you and you alone. You Lord, Please give me the grace to surrender myself totally and completely to you and you alone. Let us now hear a reading from John's Gospel. Now Thomas, One of the twelve, Was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, We have seen the Lord. But he said to them, Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were and put my hand into his side, I will not believe. A week later, His disciples were in the house again, And Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger here. See my hands. Reach out your hand. And put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe. Thomas said to him, My Lord and my God. Then Jesus told him, Because you have seen me, You have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Let us keep silence for some moments while reflecting on this reading. Now, Let us breathe in… and breathe out. Remember those words of Jesus. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Bring those words into your heart. Say them slowly. Speak them from your heart. As if you're chewing them. As if you're chewing on something very special. And you want to taste every bit of it. Blessed. Are those. You have not seen. And yet half-believed. Blessed are those who have not seen. And yet have believed. You you you Keep breathing in. And breathing out. Listen again to the words. Blessed are those who have not seen. And yet have believed. Bring those words into your heart. Chew on these words. Blessed. Are those. Who have not seen. And yet have believed. Let us pause now for a reflection. Sometimes. We doubt the presence of Jesus. But once we experience Him, We are overwhelmed by Him, Like St. Thomas. Then we do not need words, Then we are ready to commit ourselves totally to Him. He becomes fully my Lord and my God. This implies total self-surrender to Him who is our everything. Let us now repeat the phrase, My Lord and my God, Slowly and continuously with an attitude of self-surrender, Gratitude, And trust in Jesus. My Lord. And my God. My Lord. And my God. While you repeat it, Imagine the sacred heart of Jesus. You you my Lord and my God. My Lord. And my God. You Keep saying the words, My Lord and My God. While thinking of the sacred heart of Jesus. Give yourself entirely to your Lord and your God. Surrender all of who you are with your joys and sorrows. To your Lord and your God. Now surrender to God. Remind yourself that God unconditionally forgives and accepts who you are. Make an offering of yourself to the Lord and request Jesus to accept you. Ask Jesus to come and live in your heart. Then give yourself to Him to live in His heart. You you Jesus. Come and live in my heart. Jesus. I give myself to live in your heart. Jesus. Come and live in my heart. Jesus. I give myself to live in your heart. Jesus. Come and live in my heart. Jesus, I give myself to live in your heart. Thank you, Jesus, For the graces you've given me in this contemplation today. Let us end with the Lord's Prayer. Our Father, Who art in Heaven. Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. Now get up slowly. Remain in the mood of prayer for some more minutes and write down the main experiences, Insights, Or questions in your notebook.