Centering Prayer

Have you spent some time in silence today? If you haven’t, I highly recommend you make the space in your daily routine, even if just for a few minutes, to sit in silence. As we center ourselves in the Divine, we gain a new vantage point on life.

You can have a deep self-awareness that isn’t easily shaken by that jerk who cuts you off in traffic, the long line at the grocery store, or the day you don’t get the big promotion, but it will require some spiritual discipline. When we start to catch ourselves turning molehills into mountains it is one of the early indicators that it’s time to reallign our lives. I have personally found that the practice of centering prayer is a great place to start…

“Those who have a deep and real inner life
are best able to deal with the irritating details of outer life“

– Evelyn Underhill

 How to practice centering prayer:

1. Find a word or phrase that will be your anchor point during your time of contemplation (“Jesus”, “Love”, “Maranatha”, “I am a child of GOD”, or something personally significant to you)
2. Sit or kneel comfortably (but not in a way that you could fall asleep.. don’t worry, it happens to the best of us)
3. Open with a prayer to invite the Spirit to protect and guide your time of centering
4. When distractions arise, return to your anchor word
5. Repeat step #4.
6. Repeat step #4 (click here if you need help clearing the monkeys out of your prayers)

Candlelight Contemplation

A few nights ago my neighbourhood experienced a power outage for a few hours, and I wonder if anyone else took advantage of the rare blessing it brought.  In an instant our world went silent, and dark.  There was no listening to music on the radio, no surfing the internet, and those who own televisions lost several hours of “high-quality entertainment”.  In those moments, we were offered the rare opportunity to get a taste of a simpler life, and to get reacquainted with books, blankets and candles.

Before heading to bed, I stopped at our family altar, where the vigil candle had become the only source of light in the room.  I was reminded of the threefold significance of that candle to me, and I would love to share them with you.  Firstly, the candle reminds me that the true Light of the world has come in the person of Jesus Christ.  Secondly, I am reminded that wherever there is light, the darkness is being expelled.  Finally, I am humbled by the fact that the same Light that created the universe and holds all things together, is the spark of the image of GOD in you and in me.

In my family, we take time to remember these three things every time we join together in lighting the Christ candle at vespers.  As my wife lights the candle, we sing these words from the Book of Common Prayer for Ordinary Radicals:

“Walk in the light, the beautiful light,
Come where the dew drops of mercy shine bright,
Shine all around us by day and by night
Jesus, the Light of the world!”

5 Tricks to Keep the Monkeys Out of Your Prayers

If you’re anything like me, you may find the idea of contemplation intriguing, but when it comes time to put it into regular practice, there are too many distractions to stay on track.  Perhaps you share my problem, there are monkeys in your brain.  They swing through your worries, they climb all over your memories and they fling poop at your concentration.

So, here are my 5 steps to clearing out the monkeys:

1) Don’t over think it.  It is easy to get caught up in the theology of the practice, buy books on the subject, or peruse blogs like this one, looking for all the “secrets to contemplation”. Although all of those things are good to do, they can also keep you from actually doing what you now know how to do theoretically.  Don’t come to contemplation expecting ecstatic experiences, like St. Theresa of Avila, or sit waiting for the dark night of the soul, like St. John of the Cross… those things may happen, but first you need to get out of your head.

2) Have a prayer word or phrase.  If you’ve read any writings on contemplation and meditation, then you’ve likely come across this idea before.  I find it best to choose a short phrase or couplet, to use as a tool for refocusing and quieting the monkey mind.  One of my personal favourites is the “Jesus Prayer”, which I often pray with the aid of an orthodox prayer rope to keep me on track.

3) Separate yourself from distractions.  This may sound like a no-brainer, but I am the worst for it.  For me, the phone needs to be off (or in a different room), not on silent mode where the screen flashes or the phone vibrates.  Take batteries out of clocks that tick, turn off the dishwasher, and if you live with others, let them know not to disturb you in your “prayer closet”.  There are many practices of the Christian faith that are experienced in community, however this is not one.  When practicing contemplative prayer, I suggest solidarity and silence.

4) Acknowledge the monkey, and set it free.  Ignoring distraction often makes them worse, so I find it helpful to play a game of catch-and-release.  There are some distractions that are of no consequence, and these small monkeys are fairly easy to let go of… however, there are memories, dark thoughts and worries that will occasionally intrude, and they can be like looking an angry 600 lb. gorilla in the eye.  Either way, take ahold of the monkey, give it a name, and then set it free.  Some days I feel like a zookeeper, chasing my thoughts around my head, but if contemplation were easy, they wouldn’t call it spiritual “discipline”.

5) Start small, and keep at it.  I recommend starting with 15 minutes at least once a day.  Many seasoned mystics will recommend 20 or 30 minutes twice daily but I am a little more realistic.  For everyone who doesn’t live in a monastery I think an hour a day may be a bit ambitious, but the keys here are consistency and patience.

Finally, as a word of encouragement, remember that St. John of the cross wrote that, “Silence is GOD’s first language”.  The goal of contemplative prayer is not to be heard by GOD, or even to hear GOD, but rather to simply be still and to know GOD.