The Pull of God week 4

‘The Pull Of God’ –
A Lenten reflection series adapted with permission from PrayerBench.ca
Scripture
Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers (Philippians 4:6)
Reflection
In the Lenten calendar for mindfulness (attached again in case you have misplaced) it suggests that today “allow yourself to be drawn to a news story. Pray.”  I don’t know about you, but I am struggling to find the words to pray for the images in the news today. There are times when I just sit in silence.
We are called to pray in all things – but prayer does not always require words. Sometimes silence is all we can do.  In the Quaker tradition – silence is a central part of worship.  We have been having a moment of silence at Grace during our Lenten candle mediation; each week it gets a little longer.  Perhaps silence in church makes you uncomfortable – but sometimes words are just not enough.
I encourage you this week to take time to sit in silence.
 
Practice (Body Prayer)
Praying with our bodies invites our whole self to bend in prayer.  It grounds us and invites us to pay attention. Here are some simple prayer gestures to try using your hands.
Clench your fist: Silently think of moments of anger, frustrations, and disappointments in life.
Move your hands from praying hands together to open hands with palms up: Silently come to God, then as you open your hands, be aware of ‘Letting go and listening to God.
Join your hands together with interlocking fingers: Silently imagine you are joining your spirits with others in carrying out what God wishes for us.
Now try putting all these actions together in sequence in silent prayer:
Clenched fists – praying hands – open palms – hands linked.
 (Adapted from Anglican Fellowship of Prayer)
You might also design your own body prayer with these familiar words. “Be still and know that I am God. Be still and know that I am Be still and know Be still Be.”  You can also follow along with this video using these words with six gestures. 
​https://vimeo.com/393306124/cf361bec77
Peace, Rev. Gail.