For our meditation on Lesson 20, we meditated on the scripture from Acts:17:28 “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being” It drew me into a special sacred space.

I started picturing every breath as a gift of life and light from God flooding through every part of me from the top of my head to the tips of my fingers and toes. It made me think of anatomy classes and how they study the immense number of systems covered over by our layers of skin.

You and I are each, as Og Mandino says in The Greatest Salesman in the World, Scroll IV “nature’s greatest miracle.” And yet sometimes I think I just do not really let that sink in!

Since the beginning of time never has there been another with my mind, my heart, my eyes, my ears, my hands, my hair, my mouth. None that came before, none that live today, and none that come tomorrow can walk and talk and move and think exactly like me. All men are my brothers, yet I am different from each. I am a unique creature.

Og Mandino,The Greatest Salesman in the World, Scroll IV, pg 68

That is a paragraph worth pondering for me and for you. You and I are unique and special! Often over time, we have been worn down by life events and circumstances. We get lost in the noise and busyness of our lives. So how do we get back? Several habits that are helping me are to practice being quiet (appreciating my breath), making conscious decisions about what I think, and turning off the noise. Let us start with the breath.

Every time we breathe, we fill our lungs with air and at the same time vitalize our body with this Pranic Ether which is Life itself, so that we have the opportunity of making a conscious connection with All Life, All Intelligence and All Substance.

The Master Key, Charles Haanel 20:24

(I looked up the definition of Prana, “prana is seen as a universal energy which flows in currents in and around the body”)

Here is a tip on breathing that will help you breathe better and calm your mind:
7-2-1 breathing is a simple and effective pranayama technique that can help you relax, focus, and rejuvenate. Let us break it down:

Inhale (7): Take a slow and deep breath in through your nose for a count of seven. Fill your lungs completely, allowing your chest and belly to expand.

Hold (2): After inhaling, hold your breath for two counts. Keep your focus on the pause between the inhalation and exhalation.

Exhale (1): Exhale slowly and completely through your mouth for a count of one. Let go of any tension or stress as you release the breath.

Repeat this cycle as needed, adjusting the counts to what feels comfortable for you. This practice helps balance your energy, calms the mind, and promotes overall well-being.

Remember to maintain a straight spine and a relaxed body while practicing. Happy breathing!

We have talked a bit about the breath, next here are tips on thinking from Haanel.

Every time you think you start a train of causation which will create a condition in strict accordance with the quality of the thought which originated it. Thought which is in harmony with the Universal Mind will result in corresponding conditions. Thought which is destructive or discordant will produce corresponding results. You may use thought constructively or destructively, but the immutable law will not allow you to plant a thought of one kind and reap the fruit of another. You are free to use this marvelous creative power as you will, but you must take the consequences

The Master Key, Charles Haanel, 20:28

Ask yourself, what kind of train is running on my tracks?

Next, talking about quieting the noise, we can learn to pause and head for silence and quiet (reducing scroll time may help you find that you had the time – you just found the desire to redirect it)!

I want to close this blog with the following thoughts that wrap around what I have been sharing so far. When it was read in our Centering Prayer Group, it applied in so many ways to the habits and my desire to feed and nourish my Spirit. It was like another God Wink!

From Contemplative Outreach -Word of the Week-February 11, 2024
We desire to be healed, to be clean, to no longer feel alone and unloved. And we come, in communion, to the One who helps us not only see and feel the ups and downs of the boat but also helps us sense the entirety of the river. We are reminded that we are the sky, and the rest is just weather.

Howard Thurman says, “There is something so big and vast about God as Creator and Sustainer of all life that it is hard for me to feel that I am included.” And yet, God is with us. We are included. With tenderness and beauty, God wants to cleanse us, to heal us and rest with us in silent unity.

Like the leper, we are in need of God’s healing touch to be renewed. We trust and believe. But often, like the healed leper, we get caught up. We come to God, centering within the sacred space together, and yet our minds bounce.

We try to settle, to just be the sky and yet we get caught up in the winds or rain or darkness of the night. We may hear God, but actually listening is much harder. Even though the leper’s faith was strong, and he heard the command of Jesus, he did not listen. His lack of discernment and obedience made life more difficult for Jesus.

Stillness and silence exercise our spiritual muscles. As we build our capacity to sense our inner self, our true Self, we become more attuned and receptive to discerning and listening to the presence of God.

We become stronger and more obedient, which in the original Greek means “to listen under,” in the sense of understanding and responding.

“Obedience is the outward expression of a heart that has turned to God” (Greek word studies blog, 2007). In other words, like a sunflower turned to the sun, our lives reorder and align with the promptings of the Spirit, of Indwelling Presence, thus co-creating a path of grace and wholeness for the goodness of God’s Light to shine.

Thus, we deepen our sense of both the boat and the river, the sky, and the weather, continuing to grow in the divine-human life – theosis.

“God is with me. Always there is the persistent need for some deep inner assurance, some whisper in my heart, some stirring of the spirit within me – that renews, re-creates, and steadies. Then whatever betides of light or shadow, I can look out on life with quiet eyes. God is with me.”
– Howard Thurman, Meditations of the Heart

Till next week – Feel the breath of God whispering within you calling you back on track!