To Breathe and to Pray

One of my lived realities is that my youngest daughter has Tourette Syndrome.  The nature of Tourette's is that it ebbs and flows over time, and is more than just tics, but also includes issues such as anxiety, OCD, and a variety of other things.  We have been very blessed that for the better part of a year her tics have been almost non-existent with medication.  This week however, we started a new "flowing" phase which has left her feeling scared and frustrated and me feeling extremely overwhelmed.  In moments like these, I have a simple (yet profoundly effective) go-to that helps me to move from overwhelm and paralysis back into life one step at a time:  breath prayer.

Breath is fundamental to life -- we inhale and we exhale.  When we get scared or anxious and our breath races, we slow down and breathe slow and steady to settle us down.  When we get excited or upset, our breath catches.  When we take in the beauty of the earth , we often find that breathing deeply grounds us in the moment.  Beyond being a source of life, it is a piece of our faith.  Breath is a way in which we relate to the Spirit -- the breath of God. With a biblical model for linking Spirit with breath, I find myself naturally drawn to the very simple, yet profound practice of breath prayers -- especially when life gets to be too much.  The great thing about breath prayers -- they are completely customizable for the moment and very short in nature.  These prayers are intended to cooperate with your breathing patterns -- short and sweet and easily repeated.  With an inhale, a phrase is prayed -- perhaps a name or image of God.  With an exhale, our request is lifted.  Each breath being filled with a prayer lasting just a few syllables.  Each prayer easily being breathed.

What are the benefits of this prayer?  First, it slows us down.  For me, it gets me out of my cycle of spinning out.  It makes me mindful of my breathing and of my surroundings.  And perhaps most important, the repetitive nature of this prayer helps to focus less on me and more on the power of the Spirit -- looking to and trusting God to lead me through the moment.  Breath prayers are not just for moments of chaos, but for moments of peace, as well.  They call us to a more contemplative stance and lead us towards being more mindful of each other as God's creation, living with God and trusting in God's provision.

How do you make a breath prayer?  Easy Peasy.

1. Choose a name or image of God/Christ/Spirit that speaks to you.  Perhaps it is a favorite phrase, image or biblical description. This name, you will prayer upon inhaling. 
2. Consider your need at the moment -- shrink it into as few words as possible.  This phrase should fit into the space of an exhale.   
3. Put these two pieces together to form your prayer. Breathe in - praying God's name.  Breathe out - praying your petition.  Of course, if you choose to reverse the order and pray the petition first, that is completely acceptable -- to each their own.  

Some examples:

Giver of life, calm my soul

Spirit of wisdom, lead me on. 

Grant me grace, Merciful God. 

Holy Lord, heal my heart.  

Do you have a go-to breath prayer?  If so, share it in the comments -- more often than not, our prayers inspire one another. Whether this is your first breath prayer or your 101st, stop now, take a moment to breathe and invite the Spirit to help you form the prayer of your heart at this moment.  Take the time to breathe and to pray -- your soul and your God will thank you. 

Life Behind the Curtain

It's always interesting to see where you strike a chord with people.  In my last post, I spoke to the importance of spiritual direction as a means of clergy and lay leader care.  I'm not surprised that it resonated, but I continue to be struck by how many (clergy and laity) struggle to claim some sort of meaningful practice of soul care.  It's my observation that as church leaders (again, clergy and lay), we find ourselves in one of two places: 

1. Completely overwhelmed and gasping for breath.  Because of this, we cannot even fathom finding the time, much less taking the time to take care of our own souls.  There is too much to do and too many issues that require our attention. 
2. We desperately want to be better about our soul-care (different from self-care), but we don't know where to start, how to start, and we feel guilty for the time it will take. Will we be supported in our efforts to do so if it means we say 'no' to something else??

 Why is it so important that we invest in the time and resources to care for our souls?  First, we are caring for others.  To care for others, we ourselves have to be cared for.  Secondly, and perhaps often overlooked, we need soul care simply because we as clergy and lay leaders have seen behind the curtain of the church and we are shocked by what is there. We may have entered into professional/lay ministry within a rosy picture of this holy calling as the clouds parted and God blessed us on our journey.  Truth be told,  it doesn't take long after stepping foot into the work of the church to realize the church is a human institution.  As such, it is somewhat flawed, filled with broken and flawed people, and often a source of stress rather than strength and spiritual renewal for its leaders.  That isn't to say the church is a bad place...not at all!  But when a person begins living out their call in ministry from outside the pew, they see behind the curtain of what the church is and suddenly see the imperfections.  They see the focus on numbers - budgets and attendance.  They experience the stress of living a more public life.  They live in the chaos of always looking ahead to the next big church season (which for the record, there is nothing ordinary about "ordinary time -- VBS, camps, back to school, etc).


Remember the Wizard of Oz and how Dorothy and her friends were told to ignore the man behind the curtain because it revealed something very different than what was expected?  For many who work in the church, being in ministry is seeing behind the curtain and having revealed a new and unexpected truth of how the church works and how broken it sometimes is.  Hear me say this:  God is still there.  God is still present in the midst of the brokenness and stress. We as leaders just need someone to help us see it.  That is where having a spiritual director comes in.  In cases like this, a director can not only help us stay in tune with God, but help us stay right-side up when ministry and the church get upside down.  A director will offer the space needed to talk, pray, sort through and embrace the Spirit's tugs and nudges as we move through and minister with the church.

So while I am glad that these recent topics have resonated with people, my prayer is that it will help us all move into better practices of soul care.  Whether in spiritual direction or not, do something for your soul today! Take the time to lose yourself in the scriptures.  Learn a new way to pray and find God there.  Buy a new journal to write or draw in.  Color a mandala.  Call a friend to have tea and holy conversation about how you can each support one another in faith.  Just do something.  You and your soul deserve it.