Wednesday, May 22, 2013

THURSDAY THUMP: prayer tapping on family


2 Timothy 1

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,
2 To Timothy, my dear son:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
3 I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4 Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
Timothy was fortunate. He had a good mother.  A good grandmother. Supportive extended family, including the author of this letter. The author (probably not Paul, but someone who was familiar with the firebrand and his concern for Tim) wrote these encouraging words of faith from prison.Tim was, like the church of his day, going through some hard times, and the scribe wanted Timothy to know that he was not alone. That things would get better. That the love that Tim’s family had told him about, was real!
Not everyone has that kind of system to sustain them. In fact, family can be a source of a lot of pain and distress. Old wounds, still infected by years of reopening and pouring salt on them, can drive us to derision.
--You’ll never amount to anything.
--You’re such a disappointment.
--I knew you couldn’t do it right.
Words like this spoken to a child can set the stage for a lifetime of self defeat, low expectations, and unhealthy relationships.
What if God could heal some of those hurts? What if the Holy could take the sting out, so that instead of reflexively recoiling at the sound of a siblings voice, we could listen to hear if anything had changed? We could watch to see if there was an opportunity for reconciliation? We could calmly respond by not engaging in ways we that we always engaged before?
Tapping prayer offers us a healing alternative to the knee jerk response most of us are conditioned to experience. God’s spirit can give us options that we could never even imagine before.
Before you begin today’s tapping prayer, think back to an incident that happened long ago...something somebody said or did that is still buried deep under your skin. Try and remember an event that still gets your blood boiling when you think of your parent or sibling or cousin or....saying it to you. On a scale of 0-10, how upsetting is that incident when you think of it? Write that number down. It is your Subjective Unit of Distress (SUD) for this family event and you will use it later to see how God’s spirit has moved in you during the time of prayer.

Family can affect us in ways that outsiders cannot. Family usually know our buttons. If while you are praying you feel like the issue has suddenly shifted to something more frightening or disturbing, either stop and consult a professional counselor on this issue, or move your prayerful attention toward the new issue and focus God on this new concern.

When you are ready to begin praying, please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray!

Karate Chop: I know that Sister Sledge sings that We are Family, God, but sometimes I wish the folks I’m related to would go away! They have hurt me with words or deeds, and I am still recovering every time I am in their presence. The event I am remembering in particular is very painful. Just thinking about it registers a SUD of ….... I need your help. I need your healing spirit. Because I know that even though I have this painful event in my past, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though...........hurt me, I am completley loved and deeply held in God’s constant care. Even though I remember............I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.
Top of head: I have this pain.
Eyebrow: It’s so embarrassing to remember.
Outer eye: I don’t know why.......did that to me.
Under eye: It really hurt me.
Under nose: i can still feel the pain from when.....did......to me.
Under iip: I am hurting.
Collarbone: This pain is getting in the way of my joy.
Wrists: This hurt is keeping me from peace.

Top of head: Even though I have this.......I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.
Eyebrow: I wonder why........did that to me?
Outer eye: I can consider forgiving.......for hurting me. (Maybe)......didn't understand how they made me feel.
Under eye: I can consider forgiving myself for feeling hurt by what.......did.
Under nose: I was only a child when.....hurt me. I had no power in that relationship.
Under lip: Even though it happened awhile ago, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.
Collarbone: God can heal my younger self. God can tend to my old wounds. God saw what happened.
Wrists: I am hurting because of what happened.

Top of head: Even though I am hurting because of what happened, i am deeply loved and completely cared for by God.
Eyebrow: I wonder how my relationship with.....might change if I am healed from this pain?
Outer eye: I wonder what boundaries I would need to feel safe in …............’s presence?
Under eye: Even though I don’t feel safe with.....I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God
Under nose: ….....is deeply loved and completely accepted by God, even if God doesn’t condone what.......did to hurt me.
Under lip: Maybe.....needs healing, too.
Collarbone: I feel ashamed of this hurt I am feeling. I feel like maybe it was my fault that.......hurt me. Even though I was hurt as a child, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.
Wrists: I am hurting because of what......did to me when I was a child.

Top of head: Even though......hurt me, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.
And take a deep breath....Thank you God for being with me in my pain. You were there when it first came upon me as a child, and you are here with me now as I seek your assistance in healing from that hurt. Amen.

Check your SUD on the incident you were praying for help with. If the number has gone down, are there any issues that remain which keep you from reaching zero? If so, try bringing those remaining issues to God using the same format for the prayer. If your SUD went higher, note the issues that spiked the SUD and attend to those with prayer. God will be with you in your healing and help you to bring those SUD’s down to a manageable level.
Family often know us at our most vulnerable places. Their words and deeds can lift us to great heights or dash us into rocky pits. Call on the Holy to lift you up when family has let you down. Who knows the kinds of choices you’ll discover when the hurts of the past have experienced God’s love?
Peace,
Todd

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