Centering Prayer
Centering Prayer is a silent time of going to the deep place within where Christ dwells. It is a place of stillness deeper than the chaos that often prevails in our interior life. It is deeper than the tricks the devil plays with our minds and emotions. It is the place of silence at the core of our being.
To practice centering prayer, use the recommended 20 min.
Remember this time of centering prayer is not for you to receive some special experience but for you to give your attention, love and adoration to God. It is not to be judged by what happens in the 20 min. It is an expression of our intention to be present to God and open to the Spirit’s work in us. The Holy Spirit’s work within is deep, in our unconscious, transforming us in ways we may not feel at the moment. This is prayer is answer to the teaching of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount: to enter your room, shut the door and pray to your Divine Loving Parent who is in secret. We enter that inner room, the temple of the Spirit that is within us, there to be in intimate communion with God. To help us not to be pulled away by thinking about something else we use a prayer word. Your sacred word can be the name of God you most naturally use in prayer, or another faith word that is expressive of your intention to be in silent communion with God. The word is used as an aid to simple attentiveness to God, to go beyond words or thoughts to simple presence.
Sit in position for prayer, spine erect.
Breathe deeply, be aware of the physical sensations that flow thru you. Experience the stream of sensations the course thru your body. No need to change them. No need to judge them. Simple let yourself feel deeply the multitude of sensations that cascade thru your body. Gently focus on the sensations in your head...in your neck and shoulders...your elbows...your wrists and the palms of your hands...the sensations in your knees...your ankles and the soles of your feet.
Now move your attention to the center of your body, let your attention center in your heart. Consider Proverbs 20:27: “The human spirit is the lamp of the Lord.” Consider how the flame of the Spirit burns in you, the living flame of love, burning with the light of Christ, burning away the false ego, the false desires, the wrong motives and tendencies of your life, burning with the joy of the Spirit, radiating the love of God. When you are ready go beyond that image to a simple awareness of God. Open yourself to the presence of God. Whenever your attention drifts away from God’s Presence, bring back your sacred word gently, as if laying a feather on a flulf of cotton. As you say the sacred word, allow your intention to be with the Divine to move you back to your deepest center.
Whenever you become aware of any sound, emotion or thought, simply return to the Lord thru the gentle repetition of your prayer word. The word that is a symbol of your consent to God’s presence and action within.
Meditate using your imagination.
Offer a silent prayer that you may be in communion with God, to be present to God and aware of God’s presence. To be in love and faith, attentive to the Spirit’s indwelling at the center of your being. Read Luke 9:23-25
Imagine yourself walking into that time and place and coming upon Jesus and his disciples. You are attentive to the kind of day it is, the sun is shining, the temperature is comfortable. As you approach Jesus motions for you to sit with them. You sit among other disciples, aware of their taking notice of you and warm acceptance of your being among them.
You settle yourself in quietness and listen very closely to the words of Jesus. You watch his expression as he speaks. You sense his earnestness, connectedness with his listeners, love for them that comes through. You allow his words to resonate deeply within you. You are keenly aware of the response his words excite within you.
He says, “If you want to become my followers, renounce yourselves and take up your cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves?” You reflect on those words.
When Jesus finishes speaking and others gather in clusters to talk among themselves, imagine that Jesus approaches you and speaks his invitation to discipleship directly to you.
Share with him your feelings about saying yes to becoming his disciple, tell him if you feel excitment, fear, confusion, urgency, anticipation, weak...
Speak your heart’s desires to Jesus. Listen to him.
Continue a conversation with Jesus
When you are ready, let yourself come back to this place. Take a deep breath. Find your notebook and write what happened.
Or with a piece of clay let your hands form it into a shape into which Jesus is calling you.
