“Growing Pains”

How easy it is for all us to become distracted.  This is as true of our inner life of prayer as it is in our active life in the world.  When this happens, we can be so hard on ourselves and doubt our ability to be in the moment. 

In the midst of powerful “kicks” and movements of God within us, it is not uncommon to have other voices, thoughts, doubts, memories of failure enter our head and heart space. 

This can result in our taking our eyes off of Jesus.  When Jesus sent his disciples two-by-two he gave them encouragement when met with distraction or hostility:  Shake the sand from your sandals and move on!   

What might this look like for us?  When distraction comes in our inner life and when we feel we are failing we are invited to gently acknowledge this reality. Though it may be difficult we should recommit to our life of    prayer even praying a little longer than we feel we’re able to endure.   

When we do this, we grow in the ability to shake off the sand of distraction.  We are then freer to move forward with a renewed gaze fixed on Christ.   

Four Count Breathing Meditation Exercises

Breathing is something we often take for granted.  During our waking hours we breath in & out without thinking, an instinctual & involuntary action. Amazingly, we can actually slow or speed up our breathing through intentional & voluntary action. This kind of breathing work, often utilized in prayer requires our awareness of breathing as well as patience & practice. 

Imagine the image of a square in your mind.  Breathe in through your nose for 4 seconds.  Hold your breath for 4 seconds, then exhale through your mouth for a slow  release of 4 seconds. When the breathing begins you can imagine tracing around each side of the square.  Inhaling – tracing one side, holding on the next and the slow    release for the remaining two sides. 

It is very easy to incorporate prayer into this breathing technique.  Although the video below from Hallow doesn’t outright state a FOUR count, you’ll notice it the pauses are the beginning are exactly that long! Enjoy!