I humbly admit that most of my blog ideas stem from far wiser and prolific wisdom teachers and preachers.   Lately I have been listening to sermons from Pastor Max Lucado.  There is something about his voice, his humility, humor and devoted heart that sooths my soul and gives me hope.   I tend to listen first thing in the morning when science says cortisol levels can cause a thing caused morning anxiety.   Well, Max is the perfect cure for my cortisol levels and helps me start the day with a more peaceful mind and heart.  The sermon series that I have been watching is over 10 years old but speaks to every age and time.  He is preaching on how to pray and suggests we start with God is good, an honest I need help, and so do they, ending with gratitude.   This makes so much sense to me as a short guide to prayer for seekers particularly in our anxious times. There is so much power in focusing our attention on these positive heart felt thoughts and feelings.  Science says gratitude and fear and worry cannot exist together.  So let us consciously choose to pray in this practical way.  Perhaps we can even rewire our neurology so that we do not react so much to the chaos around us.  As Paul says we should pray without ceasing.  I think Paul would really like Max Lucado. 

As I headed off for a lovely fall walk this morning, my mind drifted in all sorts of directions and thought patterns, not many of which were ‘good’.  While it can be healthy to allow the mind some space to wander and process, sometimes the mind just needs to be harnessed a bit.  This is where Max’s prayer came in.  Often in the woods if my mind gets to busy, I will focus on a mantra or centering prayer but this prayer seemed just right.   I started in with matching each phrase with breath, perfect for helping to settle an errant mind.  Then I allowed more space.  God is good.  Breathing into this phrase, looking up at the blue sky, feeling God’s goodness as the backdrop to all things.   I need help, perhaps focusing in on certain needs or the idea that I can do nothing without Christ.   So do they, directing specific prayers to family members or simply out to the world, we all need help, even those we consider our enemies, adversaries or oppressors.  We all need Gods grace, direction, forgiveness and provision. 

Lastly, Thank you.  This I feel is the most important.  Remember your mind cannot neurologically hold both fear and gratitude at the same time.  This is why gratitude is so grounding and powerful at transforming potential negation emotions into more heart centered positive emotions aligned with God’s grace.

I often end my prayer time with gratitude thanking God for things that have not come to pass but I trust that they will.  I feel that true faith is gratitude for the truth and grace that God has set aside for us but is coming in His time, not ours. So, I thank him today for what I know will come later in his time.  Funny how modern-day manifesting and trust in God walk similar paths.  

Speaking of which, another doorway to peace and calming my worried mind comes from a a Buddhist practice called meta or loving kindness meditation.  There are variations on this practice but the one I tend to use goes like this:  First wellness and balance is offered to the self in phrases such as:  May I be happy, may I be at peace, may I be free from suffering and may I know the joy that resides in my own soul.  These phrases are then extended to a loved one, a neutral person, a difficult person and lastly to all beings.   I tend to modify this in a more affirmative way almost like the gratitude practice for things to come.  I say I AM happy, I AM at peace, I AM free from suffering and I KNOW the joy that resides in my own soul.  See the difference.   We are stating the tenants in a way that is more positive and trusting, even if we do not feel these things we are acknowledging that these qualities have already been given to us and lie within as a birthright as spiritual beings.

The second part of meta meditation is sending meta to a loved one.  This practice is so helpful when one is worried about say a sick or struggling child, an ailing parent or a partner that is stuck in the muck of their life situation.  Honestly, we acknowledge that there is truly not much we can do to help another BUT by sending them meta, we change our mind from worry and fear to hope and a trust in God to carry this person.  So, with this the phrases would include your loved one’s name, perhaps as you imagine them surrounded by a healing benevolent light or Jesus walking beside them.  The phases may go something like this, (I will use the generic he) He is happy, He is at peace, He is free from suffering (I often add and from the causes of suffering including his own mind), He knows the joy of his own soul, this is his birthright.  

Often, I leave out the rest of the meta meditation as for me this is a mini meditation to change my fears to trust.  I have offered this practice to many friends that have struggled with worry over their children or feeling unable to truly help aging parents due to physical distance.  The idea is we are changing our thought patterns. By opening the space around our own minds and hearts we invite space and healing around the other.  

This line of thinking related to prayer reminds me of one more practice that’s goal is to change the heart vibration of the individual and ultimately the world, one practice at a time, one heart more open, radiating like a pebble on a pond.   I speak of the work of the HeartMath Institute. Their work has intrigued me, giving me hope in humanity for many years.  The HeartMath basic meditation also known as Quick Coherence Technique involves focusing on the physical heart space while taking slow deep breath and cultivating a positive emotion such as gratitude.  This can be done by recreating or recalling a time when you felt true gratitude and allowing this feeling to fill the heart.  With awareness and intention we quickly switch from fear or stress to wellbeing and openheartedness. They have done studies where many people do this mediation at the same time with such beautiful results.  They truly feel that the vibration of the earth and its people can shift and change when more people practice in this way.  I agree! 

I have often compared spiritual mini practices such as yoga, meditation and prayer as having a toolbox to go do when you need help to keep you in balance.  Another analogy is that your daily small practices are like putting a life vest on before entering the fast moving currents of the world.  A world that to be honest can be fraught with negativity and fear mongering.  So looking to the world for safety or the powers that be to protect, guide and nurture humanity,  well.. we see how that is working out.  I think individually we need to take responsibility for our own wellbeing and energy.  Considering how we spend our time and what we give our attention to can truly be life changing.   These mini practices suggested here are just one small way to tip your scale towards well being and balance, to align yourself with God’s grace and provision. 

My family often teases me saying I see the world through rose-colored glasses.  I honestly think this is a choice and akin to putting on my life vest.  Similar to what Max, the Buddhist teachings and what the HeartMath institute are teaching, we choose how we see the world.   With small pray or prayer like practices I feel we can make these shifts from fear to gratitude or worry to love.  Yogis call this bravana which involves actively shifting your perspective by focusing on positive qualities or alternative feelings when confronted with a negative emotions like fear or worry. This practice, which I have honestly been speaking of all along but now giving it a name, helps retrain the mind to respond calmly and shift from a default mode of negativity to a growth mindset, creating a more positive reaction to life’s tumults.

 I invite you to experiment with some of these practices.  Who knows you might just change with world.  If nothing else you will change your mind and declutter your heart.  I close with my absolute favorite inspirational quote from Clarissa Pinkola Estes, another wisdom teacher for the ages, who in her poetic and powerful way speaks to this decluttering of the heart and mind so that we might become a more clear powerful beacon of hope and peace for ourselves and the world. 

Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach. Any small, calm thing that one soul can do to help another soul, to assist some portion of this poor suffering world, will help immensely. It is not given to us to know which acts or by whom, will cause the critical mass to tip toward an enduring good. What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of acts, adding, adding to, adding more, continuing. We know that it does not take everyone on Earth to bring justice and peace, but only a small, determined group who will not give up during the first, second, or hundredth gale.

One of the most calming and powerful actions you can do to intervene in a stormy world is to stand up and show your soul. Soul on deck shines like gold in dark times. The light of the soul throws sparks, can send up flares, builds signal fires, causes proper matters to catch fire. To display the lantern of soul in shadowy times like these — to be fierce and to show mercy toward others; both are acts of immense bravery and greatest necessity. Struggling souls catch light from other souls who are fully lit and willing to show it. If you would help to calm the tumult, this is one of the strongest things you can do.