Loving Kindness: Shared Life Force

Let your body soften and your breath move naturally. Pause and appreciate your breath, the life force within you as you offer loving kindness to yourself and others too. 

For more on the Shared Life Force theme, see page 80 of With God in Every Breath by Whitney R. Simpson. 

Transcript

Welcome And Settle The Body

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hi, I'm Whitney and you're listening to Exploring Peace Meditations. Before we begin today, I invite you to start settling in. Find a posture in which you can breathe fully and deeply. And as you settle, I'd love to remind you that you can find my books and more resources at whitney rsimpson.com. This podcast is made possible by people just like you. You can be part of that community at exploringpeace.com slash community. Now, wherever you are, bring awareness to your breath. Let your body soften. Let your breath move naturally. And begin to notice the rise and the fall of the breath. Each breath, a gift given freely by our Creator. The same breath that fills your lungs fills the lungs of every living being. We have a shared life force that connects us all. Breath. Receive the next full breath into your entire being. And then exhale that breath out. Inhale. Exhale. Today's practice is a loving-kindness meditation. I love this practice. It invites us to share loving kindness not only with ourselves, but with those in our community, those in our world, those we've never met before. We'll slowly widen our circles as we offer our loving kindness. But let's begin with you. So as you hear me say these words, I invite you to repeat them silently or out loud for yourself. Remember to breathe. May I be safe and at peace. May I be healthy and whole. May I live with ease and rest in God's love. May I remember the sacred breath that sustains me. Pause and appreciate the breath, the life force within you. Now bring to mind someone you love. Someone who brings a smile to your face. Someone you care about. And you'll offer these words to them, silently or out loud. May you be safe and at peace. May you be healthy and whole. May you live with ease and rest in God's love. May you remember the sacred breath that sustains you. Pause, breathe, and hold this person in your mind's eye as you share the sacred breath of life with this person you care about. Now widen your circle of compassion and bring to mind friends, neighbors, coworkers, those you see but may not truly know. Is there a person or persons that come to mind? As you breathe, offer these words silently or aloud. May you be safe and at peace. May you be healthy and whole. May you live with ease and rest in God's love. May you remember the sacred breath that sustains you. Hold this person or persons in your mind as you breathe. Now bring to mind a person or persons with whom you have conflict. This might be the most challenging prayer to pray. God invites us to love our enemies. And so whether or not a face or a name arrives in your mind, hold space for that reminder and say these words either silently or aloud. May you be safe and at peace. May you be healthy and whole. May you live with ease and rest in God's love. May you remember the sacred breath that sustains you. All of creation. Say these words silently or aloud. May all beings be safe and at peace. May all beings be healthy and whole. May all beings live with ease and rest in God's love. May all beings remember the sacred breath that sustains us all. As you continue to breathe purposefully, deeply, fully with presence, know that you are part of something vast and holy, a great web of life woven together by our Creator. The breath that fills the lungs of you fills the lungs of your neighbors, friends, enemies, strangers, and loved ones. We are connected through breath, through love, through God, through our shared life force. Creator God, thank you for breath and life. Be with us. Help us remember to be kind to ourselves and others. Help us find safety and peace in our everyday lives. Help us find health and wholeness on this journey with you. Show us what ease and rest in your presence looks like. And help us to always remember the sacred breath that sustains us. In your holy name we pray. Amen. Stay where you are and breathe as long as you wish, purposefully with presence. Or carry that breath back into your day, being reminded that God is as close as your breath. Thank you for exploring the gift of God's peace with me. Until next time, may God's peace be with you.