Hello my friends,
This is Mark Gladman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighbourhood monk in docks.
Welcome to another Breath Prayer in our Breath Prayer series.
Before we begin,
I just invite you to pause,
To settle and just notice what you might be carrying in your heart today.
Maybe there's tension in your body.
Maybe there's thoughts that keep circling around your head.
Maybe there's just a sense of uncertainty about something coming ahead in time.
Just notice what's sitting in your heart.
And now just gently bring attention to your hands.
You might let them rest open in your lap if that feels comfortable.
And just bring your mind and heart gently into that space and posture of openness.
Now there's a prayer that Jesus speaks from the cross.
Into your hands I commit my spirit.
And these are words that speak from pure vulnerability.
There's no certainty and no comfort that are in them.
It's a pure place of surrender.
And surrender,
Let's be honest,
Is pretty difficult.
We're taught from an early age to hold on tightly to things,
To manage the outcomes,
To stay in control,
Even when we're exhausted.
But this prayer invites us into something different.
Letting go like this,
Though,
Isn't giving up.
It's not being passive.
It's trusting.
It's the kind of trust that slowly opens our clenched hands.
So we're going to pray this breath prayer together today.
We'll be breathing in,
Saying into your hands,
And then breathing out,
I commit my spirit.
Just allowing ourselves to become willing,
Even slightly,
To surrendering to God.
So we pray,
Breathing in,
Into your hands,
Breathing out,
I commit my spirit.
Again,
Breathing in,
Into your hands,
And breathing out,
I commit my spirit.
And as you continue with the prayer,
Breathing in,
And breathing out,
Just notice if there's somewhere in your body that's holding tightly.
Maybe you can notice it in your jaw,
Or your chest,
Or your stomach.
Just notice where it is,
And as you exhale,
Just allow a little softening.
Breathing in,
Into your hands,
Breathing out,
I commit my spirit.
You might quietly bring to mind something you've been trying to control.
Maybe a situation,
Or a fear,
Or an unanswered question.
Not to try and solve it,
Just to hold it before God gently,
And acknowledging to yourself that this is one of the things that you hold,
That perhaps you need to let go of,
Grip of.
As we breathe in,
Into your hands,
And breathe out,
I commend my spirit.
Surrender rarely happens all at once,
But it can happen breath by breath,
Moment by moment,
Gradually loosening our grip,
Gradually opening our heart and our hand.
Breathing in,
Into your hands,
Breathing out,
I commit my spirit.
You don't need to be certain in order to trust.
All you need is willingness,
And you can give that willingness just a little with each breath.
One more time,
Slowly together.
Breathing in,
Into your hands,
Breathing out,
I commit my spirit.
And as you continue to pray,
Just naturally let the words fade away,
And simply rest for a few moments with your hands open,
And your breath steady.
As we close our time together with prayer.
Faithful God,
Into your hands I place all that I carry.
The things I understand,
And the things I don't.
The things I can change,
And the things I can't.
Teach me the surrender that's not rooted in fear,
But in trust.
When I cling too tightly,
Gently open my hands.
When uncertainty overwhelms me,
Just remind me that I'm held,
And as I breathe this prayer,
Form in me a deeper freedom.
The freedom of belonging fully to you.
Amen.
When you're ready,
Just gently bring your awareness back into the room around you,
And as you go into your day,
Carry this spirit of surrender with you as you go.
And as you slowly let go,
May you also recognize the grace,
Peace,
And love that travels with you,
And remains with you today,
And always.
Amen.
Peace be with you,
My friend.
Until next time,
Bye for now.
You
