another season is upon us....lent; the season for reflection and either 'giving up or taking on'.
for centuries, people have been giving up things for lent, as a way of being reflective of what jesus has done for their lives. a newer tradition is to take on something for the same reason.
i think i am going to go back to the tradition of giving up; rather it will be "letting go". there are so many things i have no control over, and yet i tend to hold onto things long after they are over, emotionally speaking. instead of asking, 'why can't i let this go', and getting mad at myself, i'm going to actually work on letting it go in a new way. here's how.
while working on a continuing education event for my other field, i ran across john preston, who was leading a therapeutic workshop on 'when east meets west'. there is, in eastern spiritual belief, an actual eastern god that is frightening looking, that literally takes hold of us (therapeutically called holding) during our rough times.
the intervention that was used with this belief system was none other than prayer! imagine! prayer!! specifically, meditation.
the intervention works through our breathing. in essence, we are seeking to find compassion for ourselves, and our common humanity with others.
the actual intervention invites one to get comfortable, clothes the eyes, and focus on breathing.
this intervention will actually call you to focus on the distress. get comfortable and try it out!
as you breathe in slowly, focus on the distressing issue (remember focus on only one distressing issue!). as you breathe out, imagine others dealing with a similar (or the same) issue, and breathe with them. in essence, send your support to them, since you have a common distress. it doesn't matter if you actually know someone dealing with the same issue; just imagine that there are people "out there, somewhere" (and really, there are people dealing with the same issue as you!) who could use supportive, caring, loving breathes of energy.
as you continue this for about 10 minutes, imagine, then, breathing in with those who are wanting to support you in your great distress. an example might be not being able to protect your child, or getting mad at your partner because you couldn't clearly communicate your need in the moment of an argument.
just as a sense of awareness, few of us get distressed over something well going on in our lives.
from a christian perspective, we can envision, not only others who are struggling with the same issue wanting to support us, but also god or jesus also wanting to help us get through this issue. as a way of prayer, we breathe in the resources of care and support and grace, and breathe out the distress and empathy and gratitude for god's grace.
you can do this more than once a day! note how the distress moves from being the focus of your life, to just a part of your life, to an occasional awareness. let yourself be enfolded by the prayers of others, knowing that you are also being supportive of others along the way.
during lent, we find empathy to live a faith-filled life. give up those distracting things this lent that prohibit you from being at peace. and in that way, you will find wholeness. best wishes for a faith-filled journey this season....
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