A Practical Prayer to be at peace with the news of the world - to invite the experiences we're having to inform us about how we'd like life to be going forward - more of what we call "good", and a pivot away from what's not working to what we'd prefer.
It's from "Good News", Episode 28 of the "Practical Prayer" podcast. It was recorded live.
A Practical Prayer follows the specific set of steps found in the most effective prayers from spiritual practices throughout
We're talking about being overwhelmed by the news and being at that point where we have to turn it off or escape it or ignore it or duck it or otherwise avoid it in which case do we have that uneasy balance point of being ignorant and not being able to be a good citizen and one of the things that does in a democracy is we can vote we really need to understand what we're voting for and who the people that were voting for are and so there's some need to be aware of the issues and what we believe about the issues and so forth so that we can be informed as we're doing those things and also so we can be informed about what is it that requires my attention or participation at a particular time so we can't just ignore the news although we can it doesn't really serve us in all the ways so the prayer that I want to do is to open up to that third possibility or that additional possibility even when the news is overwhelming and horrifying it is the opportunity that we have to look the fact in the face and know something better to use the reports the information whatever's coming in as guidance as to what we want to have happen instead those are our prayer requests the news is good even when it's not good so let's do that as a prayer take a deep breath because there's lots of stuff that's going on and the reason we take a deep breath is because we let it go breathe it out deep full breath out to release whatever's no longer necessary whatever's not serving and continue breathing at the pace that's comfortable allowing what's new to come in allowing what's no longer necessary whatever's left over from the past to go out and open our awareness to that divine creative power that infinite presence that one from the very beginning in the beginning there was darkness and void and God there was only God and God said let there be light the creative law responded and it said yes and there is light and then God continued to say let there be and the law continued to respond and there is and there continues to be and everything in the universe comes from that one God sharing itself as its creation which is the same story as the big bang the one expanding and unfolding and evolving into everything that exists so everything is that one taking its own particular and specific form that everything includes me and everyone who is listening to this prayer and it includes all of the activities and all the circumstances and situations that come up in the news when there's a happy story we call it good news when there's a challenging or frightening or upsetting story we call it bad news and in either case we can use that new awareness of something that's going on in the world around us as guidance for who we are and the experience that we would prefer to have it's a wonderful happy story we can set our intention to invite more and more of that good into the world and if it's something that's upsetting or challenging or difficult we get to ask ourselves what is the experience that I want to be having instead what do I prefer instead of this that's the pivot we get to turn away from the problem the challenge the difficulty the bad news and turn around to whatever its opposite is and invite that if it is struggle and poverty and illness we get to decide what we want to have what is the peace and the prosperity and the harmony and the vitality look like what's the greatest idea that I can possibly imagine about that and that's the invitation that we make that's the intention we set so on behalf of each of us I am now claiming that that awareness is available to us whenever something new comes along whenever information makes itself available and to the greatest degree possible each one of us is now able to discern that which is supporting and life affirming and that which is upsetting or challenging that is inviting a different response and we easily pivot to whatever that newness is that we want to have and we invite it in we open ourselves up to it and we do that knowing that infinite creative power that creates everything is fully able to create this next new experience we let go of any attachment to the way things have been we open ourselves up to the possibility of the new and invite that in and that creative law that has been saying yes since the very beginning says yes to this new invitation the law is responding and I'm grateful for it I'm grateful for the way that these new experiences of peace and harmony are coming about I'm grateful for these pivot experiences that allow each of us to be able to remain aware of the important activities and events that are going on to keep up with the news without being consumed by the news and to use that as our prayer requests our guidance in inviting that newness that's what I'm claiming now and the law is responding and I'm grateful I'm so grateful for this good that's already unfolding I'm grateful for the stories I'm grateful for the willingness of each one here too to take part in this practice and I'm grateful for the wonderful way that it's unfolding and so with a deep feeling of thanks I speak this word of intention and I release this into that creative law and I know it's saying yes and I let it be and so it is
