To Welcome and Release

There is something about the fall season that triggers a great deal of anxiety within me.  I am sure it is a mix of the new school year, a fuller schedule, a desire to get outside as much as possible before the snow flies and the guilt over all the things we didn’t do this summer.  Throughout September that has led me to revisit an old prayer I used for years when I first started my spiritual direction journey.  Perhaps you find yourself also over-functioning, twisted with anxiety, worry, and weighted down with stress and unrealistic expectations.  Maybe that isn’t where you are, but this prayer, the “Welcoming Prayer” offers all of us a place to name and welcome those parts of ourselves we try to ignore or wipe away and reminds us of the place they truly belong, in our identity as a Beloved Child of God.

Jesus, I breathe deeply of your Spirit and welcome my need for power and control. (sigh out)

Jesus, I breathe deeply of your Spirit and welcome my need for affection and esteem. (sigh out)

Jesus, I breathe deeply of your Spirit and welcome my need for safety and security. (sigh out)

(pause, dwell in this welcome)

Now Jesus, knowing you are my companion and my Savior…

I release my need for power and control to you.

I release my need for affection and esteem to you.

I release my need for safety and security to you.

In you, I trust. Amen.

Siblings in Christ, use this prayer, modify it as feel appropriate and with your breath, your very being let it fill you. Let the Spirit of Christ fill you and for this day, this week, this season.

Peace,
Pr. Hannah