TUESDAY TAP: prayer tapping on success

4 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,

   before you were born I set you apart;

   I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.

--Jeremiah 1

Like the prophets of God before and after him, young Jeremiah resisted success. He made excuses. He pointed out why God’s intention for him just wouldn’t work.

“I do not know how to speak.”

“I am too young.”

“I’m too old.”

“I haven’t done this before.”

“What if my friends stopped liking me?”

“Success would take time away from my family.”

“I might have to change my boundaries if everyone recognized me.”

There are a lot of reasons why we sabotage the success God has called us to. The main reason to pursue it anyway, is that God has called us to it!

Take a moment to think about your gifts and/or ideas. Which ones do you feel God calling you to share with the world? What are the external obstacles to letting others know about your dreams? What are the internal obstacles to letting others know about your calling? Write down the obstacles that you can identify, and give each one a SUD. If you are new to tapping prayer,

check out my basic recipe article, here.

After you have assigned a SUD to your objections to success, try and remember a time from your childhood when that issue first became an issue..For example: If my obstacle is that “nobody will want to hear what I have to say.” I could remember a time from my childhood when I had something I thought was important to share, and the people around me either dismissed me, ignored me, or yelled at me for interrupting them. Those specific events create a pattern of response in our spirit that says, “What you have to say is not valuable, and if you try and share it you will be punished...or ridiculed...or feel lousy for having tried.” Can you see how that message could get in the way of a present day project?

Once you have found an event (it may not be THE EVENT, but it will lead you in that direction) apply a round of the basic recipe to the issue. When you are finished, take a deep breath and assess your SUD on the event. Note what has happened to your concern about the event. If a new event “pops up” take a moment to give it a SUD and go back to God for relief. Keep going until you experience a SUD of 0-2. Then, you’ll be ready for the success the Holy has in mind for you!

Tapping prayer sends God’s spirit to that painful moment (or moments) in your past and places a healing balm upon them.

Tapping prayer releases the discomfort of that childhood experience and liberates us to experience our dreams without all that negative baggage.

Tapping prayer unleashes the power of God’s call to pursue our dreams and make a difference.

Tapping prayer lightens us to experience the joy and peace of using our gifts, anyways.

I received the quote at the top of this post on our church facebook wall. I believe that tapping prayer around “success” can help you bring Paulo Coehlo’s words to life.

I look forward to reading about your success.

Keep on prayer tapping. Enjoy changing the world, like all of the other prophets who received God’s assurance for their lives. Remember: You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.

Peace,

Todd

TUESDAY TAP: prayer tapping on pain

9 Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez,[c] saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.” 10 Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request.--1Chronicles 4

The Bible has a complex relationship with pain. From the early writings in Genesis 3 which cite God as sending pain upon Adam and Eve for disobeying the Holy, to Jesus healing anyone who was within his reach...and a few that were beyond his reach. The early faith community believed that God was the cause of everything that happened to us. If we were happy and healthy, that was God smiling on us. If were sad and in pain, that was God showing displeasure to us. It made God a bit of a tyrant to work for, but a lot of people bought it. A LOT OF PEOPLE.

A few people wondered if maybe God wasn’t about the pain part of life. Perhaps God was in the healing from pain that came from other sources. The environment. Accidents. Other people. Our own choices. For those people, God was/is loving and caring and aware of our hurting. God is a witness to what has happened to us from the very beginning, and God is always eager to help us go back and clean up the messes we find ourselves in.

I’ll be honest. I’m in the second camp when it comes to pain, and as someone who has found great relief from tapping prayer, I was hopeful that prayer tapping would alleviate  some of the suffering I see in the world around me.

Now, to be doubly honest, I didn’t really believe that tapping prayer could bring about this cure. I doubted. I hedged. I put a limit on God working on this particular issue.

Fortunately, for me and those who have since experienced the benefits of prayer tapping on pain, I try to practice what I preach. It really bugged me that I couldn’t minister around pain, and I was doing some prayer tapping on “doubt” when I asked God to help me with this issue. I was praying:

Top of head: This doubt.

Eyebrow: This limiting belief.

Outer eye: It could never be true.

Under eye: It couldn’t happen.

Under nose: I have this doubt.

Under lip: I have this inability to believe this...

Collarbone: I’ve gotta see it to believe it.

Underarm: I need evidence.

Wrists: I have evidence that my disbelief is holding me back.

Top of head: I have evidence that I am not as peaceful as I’d like to be.

Eyebrow: I have this limiting belief.

Outer eye: Maybe I know where it came from.

Under eye: Maybe it is connected to fear.

Under nose: Maybe it is connected to sadness.

Under lip: Maybe it is limiting me like it limited the people who taught it to me.

Collarbone: I have this doubt.

Underarm: I didn’t ask for it.

Wrists: I wonder if I need it?

Top of head: What would happen if I let it go?

And as I tapped on my doubt around healing physical pain, God healed me. I was able to let go of my limiting belief around God working on this issue through tapping prayer. I was willing to give it a try. I felt peace.

The approach to prayer tapping on pain is similar to praying for other issues. If you are new to tapping prayer read my basic recipe by clicking here. When you feel ready and willing to try applying God’s healing love to your pain, continue reading.

First, identify a pain in your body. You may be experiencing pain in many parts of your body, go ahead and make a list of everything that hurts,and then try to focus on one area at a time. Once you have identified an area of pain take a moment to ask yourself: “What emotion is connected to this pain?” Research has shown a strong connection between feelings and pain. Identify that connection for you, as best you can. If you can connect the emotion to an event, all the better. You will be adding specificity to your prayer so that as God goes back to clean up your hurt, you will both be aware of the place the Holy is attending to. The more specific you can be, the more effectively God can target and relieve the problem.

Once you have a person or an emotion connected with the pain, try saying out loud,

“I have this (emotion) (pain).” An example would be: “I have this angry sharp pain in my neck.” or “I have this sad pain in my feet.”  Rate how true or strong that statement is for you on a scale of 0-10. Write that number down. It is called a Subjective Unit of Distress (SUD). You will use this number after you pray to identify how the spirit has moved within you around this issue.

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

Karate Chop: This is ridiculous, God. I have this........................and I’m calling on you to attend to it by tapping while I pray. I doubt it will work. It doesn’t make sense. I’m going to try it anyway, because quite frankly I’m tired of living with this............................... Even though I have this..................I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I feel..........about my pain, I am wildly loved and extravagantly accepted by God. Even though I’ve been living with this....................for some time, I am completely loved and deeply accepted by God.

Top of Head: I have this.................

Eyebrow: It hurts so much.

Outer eye: It feels like.................and reminds me of..............

Under eye: I have this..............

Under nose: This pain is ongoing and ranks a SUD of …..........

Under lip: This..................

Collarbone: I doubt tapping prayer can help this................

Underarms: I can’t believe God could heal this..................

Wrists: I have all this..................

Top of Head: Even though I have all this...............I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: I consider that God could alleviate some of this................

Outer eye: This …..........makes it difficult to enjoy my life

Under eye: Living with this …............disrupts some of my relationships.

Under nose: I'm afraid that I’ll always have this..............

Under lip: I wonder what life would be like without this...................

Collarbone: I am so tired of living with this.......................

Underarms: But I guess I’m stuck with it.

Wrists: Maybe I’m not stuck with it, and I’m deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Top of head: Maybe God has something different in store for me.

Eyebrow: I wonder if part of me is holding on to this.............because healing would mean I had to do things differently.

Outer eye: I wonder if there are any benefits to living with this.................

Under eye: There are no benefits to living with this................., it stinks!

Under nose: I have this terrible.....................and I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Underlip: I don’t have this terrible...............and I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Collarbone: I am living with an awful case of..............................

Underarms: Maybe I could forgive myself and anyone else who contributed to me experiencing this................even if I believe it might be God.

Wrists: I have this........................

Top of head: Even though I have this (SUD number) of.................I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Take a deep breath.....and thank you God for moving into that painful place in my body. Thank you for sending your spirit to move me in new directions with love. Amen.

Try saying: “I have this (emotion) (pain).” and check the SUD. Did it move? Up? Down? Are there any new thoughts or feelings that have surfaced around your pain? If the number went down, but is not at a 0-2, try to identify what is keeping it at a higher number. Do you have some belief about your pain that is keeping it from a full blessing and peace? If your SUD went up, try and identify what the new issue is that has the higher number. In either case continue prayer tapping until you experience peace and healing around the pain you have brought before God.

It is important to note that sometimes the pain will move from a 10 to a 6 or a 4. While that is not the 0-2 of complete peace, it is a lot easier to live with than a 10! Give thanks to God for any progress and relief and allow the experience to deepen your relationship with the Holy.

God is here to help you. God wants you to feel whole and at peace. By working alongside of God, we focus our attention and God’s will on the pain that keeps us from these gifts. I believe that God’s hand is with you. God will heal you from harm so that you can be liberated from pain.

Peace,

Todd
Check back for the THURSDAY THUMP: prayer tapping on anger.

THURSDAY THUMP: What do you get when the Holy heals your hurt?

(Note: Due to time constraints this week I am unable to produce an original tapping prayer re: pain...apparently my blog on "not enough time to do everything" relaxed me a LOT! 

Pain is a big issue and I want to do it justice, so please hang in there until Tuesday. I promise. It will be there for you. This is an earlier article I wrote about how the Holy attends to our pain. I hope it is provides you with some good food for thought
--todd)

What do you get when the Holy heals your hurt? 

That's a very good question. It's a question I do not know the answer to, because the healing that comes from tapping prayer is so intimate and personal, that only you and God will really understand what the healing means. It may open a door to a further discovery...something terrifying and big and up til now, hidden from your awareness. It may allow you to breathe a little easier. It may give you the first good night's sleep you've had in a very long time. It may make you laugh...or cry...or wonder out loud, "What was that???"

My experience with tapping prayer has elicited all of the above, and more. It has given me a vehicle for exploring where I hurt, in a safe and sacred way. 

It's safe, because the way tapping prayer unfolds is somewhat controlled...not by me, but by the client who decides which issue they want to pray about. I won't go where you do not lead. I may nudge edges to try and make something more specific, but those are just guesses and you are free to say, "nope, that doesn't work" and we'll move on. It's safe because it is about healing, not wishing. Wishing sets up expectations that may not be possible. Wishing projects a specific outcome into the future. Maybe that outcome will occur. Maybe it won't. There is a defined end to a wish (it's either fulfilled or not), and when that end comes, the growth of the individual tends to cease.
Healing is about hope. It is about a process. It attends to the issue at hand. It is not certain of the outcome...yet it trusts that the efforts of everyone involved is focused on seeing the client comfortable, more at peace, more centered and more whole. Maybe not "wholly whole" (my theology leaves that up to the time beyond this time when the Holy makes all things new...) but better than before. That making "better" may involve dissolving an issue that once kept us from feeling peace; it may involve lifting up an issue so that we can better understand what needs to happen to experience the peace we've been seeking; healing is a journey that keeps choogling on down the tracks. It has dynamic movement associated with it. It is an adventure that keeps on challenging us to find "one more thing" to fix. Like love, it never ends...and that's what makes it sacred.

The process of tapping prayer is surrounded by love. It believes that the Holy truly loves you; truly desires to see you whole; truly has your best interests in heart and will work like crazy to be in a deeper relationship with you. That sacred relationship makes the adventure of healing less frightening and more of a celebration of discovery. We get to focus on or discover where we've been hurt in the past, and how God/the Holy is attending to those hurts in our present. We get to witness and experience a taste of things to come as issue after issue is targeted and attended to by the Holy Spirit. Trust me, She does good work. She does the kind of work that we can read about in the Bible; bringing peace and comfort to the afflicted (which I believe is pretty much all of us!), allowing God's spirit to flow freely through our bodies and our communities. This free flow state gives us the space to make clear decisions about ever changing choices in our condition. We are no longer stuck with fight, flight, or freeze. We are liberated. We are loved.

What do you get when the Holy heals your hurt?

THURSDAY THUMP: Prayer tapping on change.

18 A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”

21 “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”--Luke 18

I have heard this text taught as an admonition against wealth. I have seen ministers shake their head as a warning to parishioners who wouldn’t open their wallets a little wider. I have witnessed parishioners use this text to justify themselves because, after all, being poor allowed them to pass through the needle’s eye just fine.

I think this text is about something bigger. Something more universal. I believe that Jesus was talking about, “change.”

The young man had followed the rules. He had jumped through the hoops. He had lived a good life...and, he was richly rewarded for his good life (or so the thinking of the day would have concluded). But here’s where Jesus throws a fly into the ointment. Living well is not enough. Following the rules is not enough.

Drawing closer to God requires change.

Big change.

Sacrificial change.

That may explain the outcry of those who heard this story first hand. “WHO THEN CAN BE SAVED?”

I know that I struggle with changing. I wrestle with letting go of old patterns, old relationships, old truths that no longer serve my well being. Perhaps you have some areas in your life that you have a hard time changing, too.

I take heart in Jesus’ reply to our crisis of faith, ““What is impossible with man is possible with God.”

I believe that is our call to prayer today. I also believe that is where tapping prayer can set us free and allow us to pass through that elusive needle’s eye.

Try and identify one area of your life that needs changing. There may be many issues to choose from:

• My relationship with a friend is killing me.
• I hate my job.
• I can’t quit smoking/eating/hurting myself.
• I’ve never prayed like this before.

You probably have something different that is keeping you from feeling peace. Choose one issue where you are particularly stuck, and give that issue a SUD from 0-10. Use the statement: “I can’t stop............” and fill in the blank. If you are new to tapping prayer, read this article first so that you can become familiar with how it works.

When you are ready to let God start making the impossible possible, please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray:  

Karate Chop: I’m sure this will come as no surprise to you, God, but I hate change...unless I’m in control of it. It’s uncomfortable to learn new patterns, be in new relationships, figure out new ways of doing things. I like the old ways...even if they’re killing me! Or hurting me. Or not serving my ability to be at peace with you and the people I love.

I need help.

I have a problem.

I’m addicted to the way I’ve always done things, and I need your intervention.

Even though I can’t stop..........I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I am addicted to................I am held in God’s loving arms and cared for all time by the Divine. Even though I don’t want to stop...........I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: I can’t stop........................

Outer eye: I have been....................for a long time. It’s what I’m comfortable with.

Under eye: Even if it makes me feel uncomfortable, I prefer to keep on............

Under nose: I can’t stop..................

Under lip: I can’t change.

Collarbone: Even though I can’t change I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Underarms: I can’t quit...............

Wrists: I am hooked on....................

Top of head: Even though I can’t change, I am completely loved and deeply accepted by God.

Eyebrow: I wonder what I would lose if I changed?

Outer eye: Losing something sounds scary. I might be scared.

Under eye: I might lose my family or friends or job or...............

Under nose: I wonder how life would be different without................?

Under lip: What if the “different” wasn’t pleasing to me?

Collarbone: I like being in control.

Underarms: It feels like this......................is controlling me.

Wrists: I’m trapped by my inability/unwillingness to change.

Top of head: Even though I feel out of control, I am loved and respected and cherished by God.

Eyebrow: Maybe I could change.

Outer eye: Maybe God could control the things that I can’t control.

Under eye: I can never ever NEVER change.

Under nose: I can consider forgiving myself for becoming addicted to................

Under lip: I can consider forgiving anyone who has enabled me or is enabling me to continue..........................

Collarbone: Even though I can’t stop...................., God accepts me and calls me, “Beloved.”

Underarms: I have this habit.

Wrists: I am beloved by God. I can consider having compassion for myself.

Top of Head: Even though I can’t stop...................., I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

And take a deep breath.........I thank you God for being with me in the midst of my impossible addiction. I am grateful for the attention you have shown to my soul.

Check your SUD on the phrase: “I can’t stop.....................” Has anything shifted? Can you consider change in a new way? Are there any new issues attached to the original concern? What are the feelings connected to these new issues? If your SUD is at a 0-2 you are probably experiencing a new found peace, despite a “change” occurring within you! If your SUD is higher than a 2, try directing God’s healing toward the new issue, or add some new details to the above concern.

Jesus didn’t reject the young man who was struggling with change. He gave him a recipe for liberation and allowed him to try it when he was ready. Jesus had compassion for the challenge the young man was facing. Jesus has compassion for the revolution of our soul that is required of us, in order for us to draw closer to God.
Peace,
todd
Check in next week for the TUESDAY TAP: Prayer tapping on forgiveness.

THURSDAY THUMP: Prayer tapping on negative people in your life

9 Passing along, Jesus saw a man at his work collecting taxes. His name was Matthew. Jesus said, “Come along with me.” Matthew stood up and followed him.

10-11 Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew’s house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them. When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit, and lit into Jesus’ followers. “What kind of example is this from your Teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riffraff?” --Matthew 9

Sometimes you just can’t get a break...even when you get a break! There is somebody nearby who wants to take the wind out of your sails. Poor Matthew wasn’t the most trusted guy in Bethlehem, but Jesus saw something in him that led him to dine with Matthew. Jesus saw the possibility for Matthew to draw closer to God. Maybe find some healing. Perhaps become a messenger of his Good News. Who knows, he might even write about his experiences with Jesus some day!

But the negative nellies who represented the established religion of the day couldn’t cut Matthew any slack. They couldn’t cut Jesus any slack either, presuming that they understood the situation at hand better than he did. The naysayers had a fit. They lit into Jesus’ followers. They complained, “What kind of example is this from your teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riffraff?”

I’m sure those cruel words did wonders for Matthew’s self esteem, let alone his imagining himself as something better than he already was!

Everybody makes mistakes. Some are real doozies. Everybody has a bad day now and then. We usually don’t need people to remind us of our failures or our humanity. But there they are. On the telephone. In our email. On our news feed. Squawking through Twitter.

You blew it! You’ll never amount to anything. You’re a loser. You’ve always been a failure...you always will be.

If you have a negative person in your life, try and remember a time when their negativity really hurt you. Try and recall how their words or actions created a barrier to your growth as a human being. Assign that person or event a SUD of 0-10. If you don’t know what a SUD is, or you are new to tapping prayer, read my basic recipe by clicking here.

When you are ready to focus God’s healing spirit on the hurt that negative person has brought into your life, please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray!

Karate Chop: Dear God, you know I’m human. You know I make mistakes. You’ve been there for all of them. Hoo boy. It’s a bit embarrassing, and to add insult to injury, I have this negative person in my life who keeps reminding me of how I messed up. I try to make amends. I try to move on. They keep me locked in that moment of humility. They label me “a hopeless case,” and they are getting other people to believe them. I’m starting to believe them. I need your help.

Even though this negative person calls me a hopeless case, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though this naysayer continues to hoist my past into full and humiliating view of the public, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by you. Even though this negative person is holding me back, I am completely loved by you...and I am completely accepted by you.

Top of head: I have this negative person in my life.

Eyebrow: This negative person.

Outer eye: This person who labels me a loser...a ne’er do well...riff raff.

Under eye: This person who pushes me down every time I try to get up and move on.

Under nose: This naysayer is really bugging me.

Under lip: This person’s negativity has started to get to me.

Collarbone: People are believing this person’s negative talk about me.

Underarm: I don’t know what to do. I feel trapped.

Wrists: I may be believing some of this negative person’s beliefs about me.

Top of Head: Even though this person is saying negative things about me, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: Even if I’m as bad as this person is saying, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Outer eye: I’m probably not THAT bad.

Under eye: This negative person is relentless.

Under nose: I don’t know why they are relentless.

Under lip: When I was a child and someone behaved like this s/he was called a “bully.”

Collarbone: This bully is deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Underarm: When a bully hurt someone when I was a child, I could find an adult to resolve the issue.

Wrists: Perhaps God can resolve this issue through this tapping prayer.

Top of head: I wonder what’s in it for me to continue my relationship with this person? Maybe I could change this relationship.

Eyebrow: Maybe I could put some limits on this relationship.

Outer eye: The negative person might get upset.

Under eye: I’m upset.

Under nose:I can consider letting go of this negativity.

Under lip: I can consider claiming my own truth.

Collarbone: I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Underarm: I can consider that I am free from this negative person’s remarks and behavior.

Wrists: I have this negative person in my life.

Top or Head: Even though I have this negative person in my life, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Take a deep breath...and thank God for being with you as an advocate and healer regarding this bully in your life. Check your SUD and determine if the spirit has shifted any when you think about this naysayer who has been bringing you down. If there are any new issues that came up while you were praying, write those down, give them a SUD, and try prayer tapping on those issues.

When Jesus heard the naysayers complaining about Matthew, he let them know that they had it all wrong. He affirmed that Matthew was on the right track and that it was the religious leaders who had some “‘splaining to do.”

Peace,

todd

ps. Check out next week’s Tuesday Tap: prayer tapping on not having enough time to do everything.

TUESDAY TAP: prayer tapping on fear

16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. --1 John 4

The early church believed that Jesus’ return was imminent. 1John in particular was preparing for him to come back and physically reestablish God’s reign on earth at any moment. It had been 60 years since the first Easter and folks were wondering...and waiting...and watching. The Christian church has been watching for that moment for 2000 years, which may ultimately be just a blink in God’s time...but it’s a lonnnng time in our life span. Doubts eek in. Fear rears its head.

The early church was dealing with fear. Fear of persecution. Fear of rejection. Fear of abandonment. Fear of falling apart. Fear of being wrong about Jesus coming in the flesh to save them. Fear filled their world from within and beyond themselves.

Maybe you have that experience of fear, too. Perhaps you are experiencing it now. 1John believed that God’s love could help drive out fear. He noted that the elimination of fear was a holy process. It was not a one time fixer upper, but an ongoing journey bringing us closer and closer to God.

1John wisely observed that fear often had to do with punishment.

Do any of your fears connect to a sense of being punished? By someone? Something?

Today we will call on God to help us drive away some fear, and replace it with a peaceful love. Tapping prayer focuses God’s healing on events or issues in our lives that keep us from experiencing peace. Try and identify a single fear that is causing you distress right now. Say, “I am afraid of..........(and fill in the blank).” On a scale of 0-10, how true is that statement for you? 0=not very true. 10-very true. The number you come up with is called a Subjective Unit of Distress. Write it down so that you can refer to it after you do some prayer tapping. If you are new to tapping prayer, read this article first so that you can learn the basic recipe.

Before you begin prayer tapping, please note that sometimes when we are praying for issues like fear, our SUD may suddenly spike upward. This can be very distressing and cause us to feel even more afraid. I am telling you this ahead of the prayer so that if it happens, you will be prepared and know that you can just shift your focus to whatever is causing the SUD to spike, and ask God to shift to that fear instead. There is no need to ignore the strong feeling and muscle forward with your original prayer! God derives no pleasure in your pain. What has probably happened is that the fear you were originally focusing on has been alleviated by God’s love and in the process, a deeper seated fear has bubbled up...blooop!...to the top of your awareness. You can use the same format of the prayer to attend to this new issue. Tapping prayer is a very versatile tool.

Ok? When you are ready to apply God’s healing spirit to your fear, please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray:

Karate Chop: (taking a deep breath) Ok God, here we go. I am nervous just thinking about praying for this thing I fear. I am concerned that invoking its name will somehow hurt me. I need your help. I need your protection while I pray. I need you to fill me with your peace and especially, target the thing that I am praying about today. 1John said that perfect love drives out fear...I’m ready for your love to do its work on me right now. Even though I am afraid of.........., I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though...........scares me, I am completely loved and deeply accepted by God. Even though...................makes my skin crawl and my heart race (and not in a good way) I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Top of head: I am afraid of …......................

Eyebrow: This.......................makes me feel anxious.

Outer eye: My fear of …...................has a SUD of …...............

Under eye: I can feel my anxiety rising just thinking about.............

Under nose: I’m so afraid of....................

Under lip: I have this fear.

Collarbone: I feel terrified.

Underarm: I am afraid of....................

Wrists: So afraid.

Top of head: Even though I have this fear of …........... I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: This fear has power over me.

Outer eye: This fear keeps me from doing things I want to do.

Under eye: I wonder if this fear is keeping me safe?

Under nose: I can consider feeling safe without this fear.

Under lip: Collarbone: I have this fear.

Underarm: What would happen if I let go of this fear? How would my life change?

Wrists: So much fear.

Top of head: Even though I am afraid of................. I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: Afraid of …..................

Outer eye: Feeling peaceful about.....................

Under eye: I can taste the fear of........................

Under nose: I can consider God’s love replacing this fear.

Under lip: That would be so cool.

Collarbone: Even though I am  considering replacing this fear with God’s love, I am deeply cared for by God.

Underarm: This fear of....................with a SUD of …..................

Wrists: So much love. So much love. So much love.

Top of head: Even though I have this fear of................ I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Deep breath.....and thank you God for sending your spirit to attend to my fear today. You are working on my behalf to bring me peace.

Try saying, “I am afraid of.......................” On a scale of 0-10 how true is that statement? If your SUD went up, what are the issues that raised the number? Try applying God’s love to those concerns. If the number went down, is there any remaining fear? Assign it a SUD and experience the kind of peace and healing that God has in store for you. When God has tamed cleared this particular fear for you, try bringing another fear to God’s attention with tapping prayer.

Being a person of faith does not mean that you will live without fear. In fact, acknowledging our fears is a great way of inviting God’s love into our lives. There is always room for more of that!

Peace,

todd

ps. Check out the Thursday Thump later this week, when we will bring tapping prayer to bear on negative people in our lives.