Note: (Allow up to half an hour ¢â‚¬“ or more, for this meditation. Have sketch pad and colored pens/pencils etc on hand too).
Tonight we are going to do a centring prayer. Centring prayer is where we purposefully bring our awareness to one thing, to focus on a word, a short phrase, a Scripture, a flower etc and allow it to take us into an awareness of God, where Spirit gazes upon us as we concentrate on Spirit (God, Jesus, etc).
Tonight I invite you to concentrate on your hands. Examine them with tenderness. These hands have always been a part of you – as a baby, these were tiny hands, curling tightly around the little ¢â‚¬Ëœpinky ¢â‚¬â„¢ fingers of others. You learnt to use these hands to feed yourself, dress, and draw. When you were tiny, who did these hands reach out to? How were they welcomed?As you grew to adulthood, some of us remember a significant ring being slipped on to a finger, a sign of love and commitment. Some, too, recall that same ring being slipped free, for a variety of reasons. Our hands hold this and other stories of our heart, our inner story.
They have stroked babies, nurtured, set boundaries, welcomed, and waved goodbyes. They have cooked, keyboarded, cleaned and gardened. These same hands have written poetry perhaps, or painted, sewn; created something beyond them.
They have joined together in prayer, made the sign of the cross, perhaps Namaste. They have embraced and linked fingers, stroked tired and aching brows, provided care in so many ways to others we care deeply for.
All of these activities reflect our inner selves – our loves, feelings, desires – through them our outer world has connected with our inner world where God resides – our Spring of Life.
These hands represent the deep and holy treasure of our true selves. They have enormous ability to teach us about our journey, others, our world and God.
Let us sit in the stillness now, acknowledging the holy in our hands ¢â‚¬“ these precious treasures. You may like to use this time to trace your non-writing hand, and embellish colour, add words or shapes of significance ¢â‚¬“ symbols, perhaps, of our own unique, complex, wonderful journey.
Let us then sit in the silence, listening to the stirrings of the Spirit within, and let us respond to God as we reflect upon our hands. Is there an awareness of God emerging? Of myself? A new understanding of my journey?
Pause.
Amen.
2012. Christine M. Jones
Discussion
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