Spiritual exercises open your eyes to the conversation of your heart.
Developing a “Listening Heart” will free you to go beyond thinking of your life as disconnected dots of experience. When you become aware of the interconnections God will also gift you with new possibilities. These exercises all begin with a time of relaxing, slowing down to help you listen to your thoughts rather than manage them. Then I will encourage you to use some form of King Solomon’s prayer, “Lord, give me a God Listening Heart.” 1 King 3:9 The Message.
Taking a break from actively managing your may be something new for you.
The content I suggest is more of a window through which to look than a task to work on. To become aware of the difference between Attending and Managing, use the first exercises a few times. I will also encourage you to breath from your diaphragm. If you have any training in public speaking or singing you already know what I mean. If you are not sure, click here.
After learning to take a break from management you are now able to develop you ability to listen:
The current “jargon” for attending to our thoughts by detached listening is “Mindfulness.” All the faith communities I am personally familiar with have taught “Mindfulness” for literally thousands of years. People who are familiar with the Hebrew Scriptures generally know that a “listening heart” leads to Wisdom. Therefore, I will teach you to use King Solomon’s prayer often, “Lord, what do you want me to understand?”
We call Solomon wise because he took time to reflect on how life actually works from a perspective much larger than just his desires. As a teenager who suddenly found himself to be King, Solomon asked God for a listening heart. 1 Kings 3:1-15. The use of open ended prayer directed to God helps anyone to gain a larger perspective. Using the prayer often will teach you where to look for God’s presence. It is an amazing thing to be taught about life from the Creator of Life. God will help you gain new insights, develop your sense of purpose, strengthen your ministry to others and integrate your experience and your faith. And that is just for starters, really.
Here is a list of the current Simple Thoughts included in this blog: Blessing, Song in Your Heart and Ask Who Do You Want Me to Love Today?
There are six Cycles offered for your use: Lord, Do You Love Me?, Lord, Do You Understand Me?,Lord, Do You Accept Me? Lord, Do I Count?, Lord, Can I Succeed? and Lord, Will You Protect Me Now and Forever?.