Hi,
And welcome to this guided practice of the welcoming prayer with a twist.
We're going to take the classic practice of the welcoming prayer and add in some breath work and some physical movement to complement and maybe enhance the natural intention and movement that goes along with the welcoming prayer.
If you're not familiar with the welcoming prayer,
You can also check out my guided meditation by that same title,
The welcoming prayer,
Saying yes to daily life.
The welcoming prayer is typically considered a complement to a daily sitting prayer or meditation practice,
Especially centering prayer and meditation.
And it's a practice that many people have found helpful to return to when you might find yourself going throughout the active parts of your day and noticing that something has been triggered,
Usually something emotional,
Something in the body that perhaps throws you off center or gets you a little bit upset.
And that is a clue from grace that something in the body that's being stored and perhaps is ready to be let go to the divine healing and presence for a deeper healing is being activated so that you can bring it some attention and let it go.
So to begin this practice,
Since this is a more active moving form of the welcoming prayer,
I'm going to invite you to stand for this practice.
Though if you choose to do it sitting on a chair or on a sitting meditation cushion,
That's fine too.
So begin just by allowing yourself to become present.
Bringing some equal weight to both sides of the body,
Whether that's through your feet connecting to the ground or the earth below you,
Or through your sit bones connecting to a chair or a cushion or the floor or the earth beneath you.
And then without any need to bring any judgment or need to do anything,
Call to mind the situation that has brought up some kind of emotional reaction for you.
And then with kindness and curiosity,
Take a moment just to feel and sink into what you are experiencing right now in this moment in your body.
Where do you feel any tension?
Does the emotion that has arisen seem to reside in any particular place in your body?
If you wish,
You can place a hand as a sign of gentleness and compassion on that place that you feel tension or restriction in your physical,
Emotional,
And spiritual body.
The next step is to welcome what you are experiencing in your body in this moment as an opportunity to consent or to say yes to life,
To whatever is arising in your experience,
And perhaps most importantly to the divine indwelling and healing that is available in this moment.
So to do this,
I'm going to invite you to embody this process with your breath and in your physical movement.
As you take a deep breath in,
Allow your arms to go out to the side and rise up.
Coming to meet above your head.
And then on your exhale,
You're going to allow your hands with the palms together to slowly come down that center line from the top of your head and come to rest right in front of your heart center.
So that's the breath and the movement part of this.
Now we'll add in the words of the welcoming prayer to tie it all together.
As you breathe in and reach up,
Repeat the words,
I embrace this moment as it is.
And then as you exhale and allow your hands to come down to your heart center,
Softly say to yourself,
I let go of my desire for security,
Affection,
And control.
Again,
Inhale and arms up.
I embrace this moment as it is.
Exhale,
Hands back to heart center.
I let go of my desire for security,
Affection,
And control.
One more time,
As your arms go up and you breathe in,
I embrace this moment as it is.
And as you exhale and bring your hands back to heart center,
I let go of my desire for security,
Affection,
And control.
You can continue with a few more rounds on your own if you desire.
And when you feel ready to complete the practice,
I invite you to stay in this standing posture with hands in front of heart center.
Perhaps close your eyes if that's comfortable and you can maintain your balance.
And check in again with your body.
Do you notice any changes,
Especially in the area that you felt that emotional trigger arising in the body?
Take a moment to thank God for whatever healing you have experienced during this process.
Thank yourself for taking the time out to surrender deeper to the divine love and the divine healing as you go throughout your day.
And know that you can return to this practice as often as you like or as often as you need.
Whenever life continues to provide you with ample opportunities to respond to the ways in which our emotions and our physical,
Spiritual,
And mental bodies become triggered.
And know that this practice and the divine presence is always available to help you move into deeper levels of consent,
Of saying yes to God's indwelling and healing presence in every moment and of saying yes to whatever is arising in your life.
Thank you for joining for this practice and may you have a wonderful rest of your day as you move into whatever comes next.
