Prayer And Meditation
/Do you pray? Do you meditate? Maybe you do both.
What is prayer and meditation?
You can find a meme for everything nowadays, and prayer and meditation are defined in this one.
We Like To Define Things
As humans, we have a need to explain and define things. It makes us feel more comfortable to think we know what things are. It makes us feel a little more safe when we think we understand something. It even gives us a little illusion of being in control.
Now, most of us would admit that, in truth, we're not in control of anything, but that's easier said than believed. So, off we go with our definitions clutched tightly to our chest.
Then again, perhaps we are, indeed, talking and listening as we pray and meditate. This idea captures the duality of the breath in and out and an exchange of giving and receiving.
Here, we have a statue of St. Francis sitting on a hill that overlooks the valley of Assisi in Italy where he often came to be in prayer and meditation.
Prayer And Meditation Are A Circle
Where does the beginning of a prayer become a meditation and when does a mediation start to slip into a prayer? I would propose that they co-exist in a circle. Without a beginning or an end, we constantly meet ourselves at the start of a prayer and at the end of a meditation session.
As he sits outside on the steps in Assisi, a Franciscan monk lifts a prayer to the heavens.
Better Than A Hallelujah
Sometimes when we pray and meditate, we find ourselves facing aching tears, sorrow and anguish. In these moments, we fear our prayers are not heard. Perhaps our meditations are not "holy enough" to be considered worthy.
Have courage, and know you are held within a great light in both the good times and the bad. Your tears and your laughter are all a melody within the heart of the universe.
Amy Grant captures this in her heart-expanding song: Better Than A Hallelujah.
