As we move into the holiday season and a time of gift giving, it’s also the ideal time to explore what it means to receive and how to do this with more intentionality.
With that in mind, I’m going to dive deeply into the concept of receiving and how- especially for those of us (givers) for whom that is difficult- we can allow ourselves to experience even more of it!
If you’re wondering why this is important, let me clarify.
In truth, receiving IS the entire game. What I mean is that God/the universe/universal mind/conscious awareness- or however you think about higher self/spirit is ALWAYS trying to give us more love, goodness, support and help.
I don’t need to tell you that the world situation is, to quote Tom Robbins, “desperate as usual.”
In truth, it feels even worse than usual as systems and structures collapse all around us.
Not to be morbid…but the rate of change is too fast! None of us can keep up, not with technology, with AI, with the news cycle, none of it.
Our nervous systems are simply unequipped to manage this level of change/ chaos/however you define it.
Part of why the rate of change continues to increase, is because we’re in what mystics are calling a “celestial speedup.”
Last blog I shared a meditation/prayer practice with you called the centering prayer. If you missed it, here’s a link to the post.
As a quick review, here’s the basic idea:
1. Choose a word (or phrase) to focus on during your meditation.
2. Ensure that you’re sitting comfortably with your eyes closed.
Begin repeating the word or phrase silently to yourself over and over again slowly. Deepen into the phrase, slowly and intentionally, giving your thought-mind something to focus on. If your phrase is: “I rest in God,” begin by saying that phrase. Eventually it may become “I rest,” or “God” that gets repeated as you slow down and deepen into the words.
Today I have a cool meditation/prayer for you.
It’s called the Centering Prayer.
The Christian contemplative, Cynthia Bourgeault, has written extensively about this practice and teaches this technique around the world! It’s a way of praying that allows us to loosen our minds from thought and enter that transcendental space that can often feel elusive.
She shares that this practice was popularized by Father Thomas Keating, a Trappist priest. He was one of the first people to promote the Centering Prayer which is based on a 14th century Christian mystical text called The Cloud of Unknowing.
Ready for the final installment about using gratitude to live the life you’ve come here to have?
Let’s do a quick review first.
First we covered exploring gratitude as a REACTION. In other words, cultivating gratitude for what you have in your life right now. Are you still doing your list every day?
Second, we dove into the idea of adopting a PHILOSOPHY of gratitude. The invitation being to experience life through the lens of gratitude.
Today we’re going to the deepest level, IDENTITY.
How is your practice of awareness coming along?
Another way to think about awareness, is mindfulness. If you google that word alone, you’ll find loads of practices (in addition to the pause one I gave you) to support you in cultivating more awareness.
Today we’re exploring the 2nd pillar of well-being that Dr Richard Davidson identified with his neuroscience research.
The other day I was talking to a young woman who’s been living in the city for a while. On a work trip recently she visited a sleepy town surrounded by national forest. While there, she realized the city was no longer feeding her.
More and more I hear that. And it echoes my own experiences.
I crave nature- trees, water, silence.
How about you?
When life pulls at you, demanding your time and energy, it’s SO easy to feel depleted. Then what do you do? Sleep for a week? Binge watch Netflix?
Instead, think about what FEEDS you?
