Hello friends,
This is Mark Gladman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighborhood monk in dogs.
Welcome.
Let's just take a moment as we start today's breath prayer,
Just to become aware of ourselves.
Not just our thoughts,
But our whole inner landscape.
Just do a short little body scan,
Noticing your body,
Your breathing,
Your emotions.
Just whatever feels present today,
Be aware of how you've come into this time.
And let yourself be fully here as you are,
Because as you are,
Is welcome.
Just allow your breathing to settle into its natural rhythm.
And just for a moment,
Simply notice what has your heart been carrying lately.
There's a prayer in the Psalms that says,
Create in me a clean heart,
O God.
It's one of,
I think,
The most honest prayers in scripture.
It's not an attempt to appear spiritually strong.
It's anything but.
It's pure honesty before God.
Because over time,
The heart can become incredibly crowded with all the things like disappointment,
Resentment,
Fear,
Fatigue.
And quite often,
Those things come just quietly in through a side door and they build quietly.
And before we know it,
Our heart is crowded with this stuff.
But realize that this prayer isn't about shame.
It's not saying I'm bad.
It's saying God,
Continue shaping me,
Continue renewing what's become tired or hardened within me.
And the word create here is incredibly important because it recognizes that deep transformation isn't something that we can force through our willpower.
It's something that has to be healed gently and slowly through grace.
So we pray this breath prayer not to condemn ourselves,
But to remain open to God's wonderful grace and presence in the midst of those difficult times and open to the transformation and healing that that presence brings.
And so today's breath prayer will simply be breathing in,
Creating me,
And breathing out a clean heart.
Let the prayer move slowly with the breath.
There's no need to rush it.
As we begin,
Breathing in,
Creating me,
Breathing out a clean heart.
And again,
Breathing in,
Creating me,
Breathing out a clean heart.
And as you continue,
Just notice what rises within you,
Maybe tiredness or emotion,
Maybe even resistance.
Just notice it and return to the breath and the prayer.
As you breathe in,
Creating me,
Breathing out a clean heart.
If it helps,
Imagine the breath gently moving through the places within you that feel heavy or closed or weary,
Just making space for presence to come and bring that restoration and healing.
Breathing in,
Creating me,
Breathing out a clean heart.
Realize that transformation often begins with honesty and with openness and with allowing ourselves to be fully seen by God.
And that's what this prayer does.
As we continue to breathe in,
Creating me,
Breathing out a clean heart.
Just continuing to remain available and open.
One more time,
Breathing in,
Creating me,
Breathing out a clean heart.
And as you continue to pray,
Just let the words fade but remain in that posture of openness and renewal.
As we bring our time to a close,
We pray.
Creating God,
You who've continued the work of renewal within me,
Soften what has become hardened.
Where fear has narrowed my heart,
Bring openness.
Where resentment has taken root,
Bring healing.
Where I've become disconnected from love,
Draw me back into compassion and truth.
And as I breathe this prayer,
Continue forming in me a heart that reflects your presence,
Honest,
Awake and alive with grace.
Amen.
And when you're ready,
Just bring your awareness back into the room.
And as you go into the day,
Just carry this openness with you as you go.
And may grace,
Peace and love be known to you through that openness today and every day.
Amen.
Until next time,
Peace be with you.
