Our church does an Advent Study each year. Usually, it’s a book of devotions written to inspire people to prepare themselves to celebrate Christmas in a meaningful way (always a trick since our commercial society ends up making it about consuming, competition and credit-card debt.) This year the some of the staff of FirstChurch thought it might be helpful to share our spiritual journey as we attempt to navigate the spiritual path surrounded by the secular mine field that we all experience during the holidays.
Each devotional in The Uncluttered Heart ends with “CARRY THESE WORDS IN YOUR HEART TODAY.” Each posting then will include the words suggested for each day to be used as both a breath prayer and as a source of contemplation and stimulation for each day. Regular postings begin Sunday, November 27.
For those of you unfamiliar with the breath prayer let me explain. A breath prayer uses a word or phrase as a calming, energizing and focusing device either before, after or during prayer or meditation. You simply relax and take deep breaths repeating in your mind the key word or phrase with each breath. You make these breaths long and sustained, pausing significantly before you exhale. In my favorite breath I simply say to myself the word “God” as I inhale and the word “Love” as I exhale. I envision myself filling up with the Holy Spirit and God’s love for me as I inhale. Then as I exhale I envision God’s Love and Spirit flowing through me into the world. This is a great way to start or end daily devotionals, but I also find it very helpful when I am in a stressful situation or when I need to remind myself that I need to be and agent of God’s love rather than focusing on my needs to be accepted or nourished.
