SURROGATE TAPPING PRAYER

Sometimes, you just can’t be there. We face all kinds of obstacles: time, geography, fatigue, emotional distance (although tapping prayer can clear that up), the inability or unwillingness of the other person to meet with us. Telephones, texting, the internet and Skype can help bridge the distance, but the reality is that there are times when you cannot meet face to face for prayer tapping, or anything else. Jesus knows your troubles.

5 When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. 6 “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”

7 Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”

8 The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. 11 I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.--Matthew 8

“Weeping and gnashing” aside (oh Matthew, you love that phrase...6 out of 7 uses in the Bible!) this is a story about what happens when we can’t be physically present to someone who needs tapping prayer. The early church wanted to make sure that everyone knew they were covered despite distances. They wanted to communicate that Jesus would be with them in their time of need, no matter the circumstances. It is a testament to the nature of God’s healing spirit, who can move through space and time at the speed of thought. Jesus’ intentional thought. Our intentional thought.

Surrogate tapping works similarly to individual or “face to face” tapping prayer...with a couple of necessary modifications:

Surrogate Tapping Prayer Recipe

1. You have become aware of an issue that someone away from you is facing. Perhaps you’ve had an opportunity to talk to them. Perhaps it comes as a vague prayer request. Gather as much information as you can from as many sources as possible (this is not gossiping folks, we are fact finding so that we can facilitate the most focused healing) and then decide on an issue to focus your prayer. In Jesus’ case above, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”
2. Rate the issue on a scale of 1-10 regarding how upsetting the issue is to the person you are praying for. Remember, this is a Subjective Unit of Distress, so guessing is acceptable. Imagine how you might feel if you were living with the issue you are about to pray about. Think about the side issues that might be part of the stated issue. This is important, because later on it will help you assess the shifting of the Spirit, and if/where there are other areas around the issue that need healing. In Jesus’ case, the words “suffering terribly” would indicate a SUD of 9 or 10.
3. Offer a prayer of awareness and thanksgiving in anticipation of the healing like you would if the individual was with you.
4. Create a set up statement for your prayer,”Even though (name) has this specific problem...”
5. Create an affirming statement for your prayer. This statement makes room for God’s hope to enter into the equation: “....(name is deeply loved and completely accepted by God.”

• NOTE: because you are doing the praying, the affirming statement is based on your beliefs. If you do not believe that God deeply loves and completely accepts your friend, then modify the affirming statement as you would for yourself. Try, “ I can consider (name) fully loved and deeply accepted by God/the Holy/Jesus....” or “(Name) deserves to be deeply loved and completely accepted by the Holy.”

Focus your prayer on the target you are aiming at. Begin tapping through points on your body while saying this statement. Tap 5-10 times on each point.

Rinse and repeat, adding details that you know of or presume.

• . End with a deep breath and a word of thanks to the Holy for using you to  bring your friend’s soul toward peace.

9. Evaluate on a scale of 0-10 how the issue feels to you. Note any residual issues that might have come up during the tapping prayer. Ask God to guide you in tapping on those issues for your friend. It is amazing how similar we are at our core. I believe that is because we come from a common source of love in God. It is that connection that allows us compassion and hope for one another despite our individual journeys. Trust the Spirit to guide you toward words that will relieve the hurt your friend is experiencing.

If possible, contact your friend and let them know you prayed for them. Ask if they have felt any recent shifts in their spirit? Have they experienced any more peace than before you prayer tapped for them? Is there any other issue that they would like you to pray for?

Surrogate prayer is a bit less precise than local tapping prayer (we may guess wrong on some of our friend’s side issues), but it often yields great results of healing and an awareness of God’s compassionate presence in both the tapper and the beneficiary’s life. I have offered this type of prayer to people in my community. some of them have known ahead of time that I am praying for them. Others have only heard about my prayers, after the event they were dreading has passed. I gauge the efficacy of the prayers by asking questions specific to what I prayed for. “How did you feel right before your procedure?” “What was your sense of God’s presence when the scary thing happened?” “Tell me about your level of anxiety as you went through that experience...” I am in awe of how issues I prayed for specifically, are named by my friends in response to my questions. “I wasn’t alone.” “The doctor heard my concerns.” “I felt a peace I didn’t expect to feel.” The spirit has eased their anxious souls. ““Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.” I hope you love being God’s partner in healing as much as I do.

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.

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.

Thursday Thump: Tapping prayer on sleeplessness

When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, 2 when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. 3 After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank.4 And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.

5 He fell asleep again and had a second dream: Seven heads of grain, healthy and good, were growing on a single stalk. 6 After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted—thin and scorched by the east wind. 7 The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven healthy, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up; it had been a dream.

8 In the morning his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him. Genesis 41: 1-8

Even the most powerful people sometimes have bad dreams, or restless nights of sleep. Pharaoh was managing a lot. He was Egypt with a capital E. There were meetings to attend. Subjects to oppress. Overlords to usurp. It was a lot to juggle. Things were good at the moment. He had it all under control...but what if all that changed? The thought kept him up at night, and furthermore, troubled his days. If Pharaoh was troubled, EVERYONE was troubled.

It works like that at my house, too. One person’s tossing and turning, pacing and prowling, turns into a nightmare for everyone! Our mood turns sour and  our ability to make good decisions get’s cloudy. Sleep is important. Not getting a good night’s sleep can lead to all kinds of health problems. According to WebMD ( Excessive Sleepiness on WebMD) sleeplessness can :

• Cause accidents
• Dumb you down
• Put you at risk for:
• • Heart disease
• • Heart failure
• • Irregular heartbeat
• • High blood pressure
• • Stroke
• • Diabetes
• Decrease sex drive
• Contribute to Depression
• Age your Skin
• Make you Gain Weight
• Lower your Longevity
• Impair your judgement, especially about sleep!

God knows you need some rest.

Today’s Tapping Prayer will seek to bring God’s calming spirit to the issue. If you are not familiar with tapping prayer, read this first. It will teach you the basic recipe for tapping prayer.

When you are ready, think about how it feels to think about having another night of sleeplessness. Give that experience a SUD from 0-10.  Please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray.

Karate Chop: Oi, I’m tired, God! I haven’t had a good night’s sleep in a while. I don’t know exactly why I can’t relax and keep on sleeping through the night (although I do have some suspicions...). I am tired and frustrated, and getting a bit irrational about the prospect of settling in each evening. I need some help. I know that you want me to experience peace, but no matter how hard I try, I just get more fatigued. I’m willing to try this tapping prayer today, because quite frankly, nothing else has worked. Even though I have these sleepless nights, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I toss and turn and can’t get to sleep, I am completely loved and fully accepted by God. Even though I am restless when I should be sleeping, I am held in God’s extravagant love and acceptance.

Top of head: This sleeplessness.

Eyebrow: I can’t relax.

Outer eye: I can relax but then something wakes me up.

Under eye: I can’t fall asleep.

Under nose: I feel anxious about trying to fall asleep.

Under lip: I’m only going to wake up anyways.

Collarbone: What’s the use of trying?

Underarm: I have this sleeplessness.

Wrists: Maybe the mattress is lumpy. Perhaps my pillow is too hard or soft or the blanket keeps mysteriously shifting around my body.

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

Eyebrow: I hear the floors creak, or a dog bark, or a mouse scurry in the wall beside me, and I am wide awake.

Outer eye: I remember things that I should have done.

Under eye: I remember things that I need to do.

Under nose: Maybe someone is snoring...loudly...again.

Under lip: I just can’t fall back to sleep.

Collarbone: I’m so frustrated, I could cry.

Underarm: I’ll never sleep again.

Wrists: People will call me THE MONARCH WHO NEVER SLEEPS.

Top of head: Even though I will NEVER sleep soundly again (because I am THE MONARCH WHO NEVER SLEEPS and sleeping would rob me of my title), I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: I wonder if I could pass some of my anxiety on to God? I wonder if God could hold on to my frustration until the morning? If I had a better night’s sleep I could handle things in the morning.

Outer eye: Maybe I was yelled at as a kid when I didn’t go to sleep at night.

Under eye: Even If I got yelled at as a kid for not being asleep, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Under nose: Even though when I was a kid the sounds I heard in the middle of the night might have scared me, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. God is watching out for me. God is caring for me.

Under lip: Even if I don’t feel safe in the night, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Collarbone: Maybe I can rest my eyes even if I can’t go back to sleep. Even if I am just resting my eyes I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Underarm: Even if I never sleep again, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Wrists: Even if I sleep a deep and restful sleep, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Top of Head: Even though I have this restlessness when I could be sleeping, and even though that restlessness causes me to feel anxious...or frustrated...I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

God I thank you for sending me your spirit of peace to address this issue of sleeplessness. I might be willing to give up my title in order to let you do your healing work in me. Perhaps if I sleep, they will call me a King or a Queen of Peace instead. Honestly, I don’t need titles. I just need you. Amen.

Take a deep breath....and let it out. Check your SUD around sleeplessness. Did any of the scenarios in the prayer cause your SUD to skyrocket? If so, take those issues to God and pray them down to a 0-2. Use specific language associated with your concern, and keep the focus on the problem instead of the solution. God desires you to have peace. Try and trust that to be true. The Spirit will bring you to that peace, one way or another.

Sweet dreams sweet Prince and Princesses.

-Todd

ps. Stay tuned for the next tapping prayer on Tapping Tuesday: prayer tapping on fear.

Easter tapping on feeling overwhelmed

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  Matthew 28: 1-10

Violent earthquakes. Rolling stones. Empty tomb. Folded clothes. Sadness. Fear. Excitement. Bewilderment. Joy. There were a lot of feelings pulsing through the veins of Jesus’ followers on that first Easter morning. Probably more feelings than the average kid experiences upon opening his or her Easter basket and spying a year’s worth of candy compressed into a single morning! It was certainly enough to overwhelm those early disciples. I imagine that their wiring was maxed out.

Intense experiences can leave us feeling overwhelmed. Unable to speak. Unable to respond. We might take flight. Or fight. Or freeze when we are impacted like the Easter morning disciples...and that makes it difficult to process what is actually going on, let alone respond to the moment. Can you think of a time when you were feeling overwhelmed? When you think about that experience, does it still make you feel that sense of disorientation? If that’s the case, it is quite possible that when you are in a similar situation, those same feelings will flood your brain.

God’s spirit can bring us peace when we are feeling overwhelmed liked the early followers of Jesus. Because God has witnessed all of the moments of our life the Holy can bring peace to lingering feelings of being overwhelmed.

This Easter day, choose an event that still leaves you feeling overwhelmed when you think of it. Give that specific event a SUD of 0-10. If you are new to tapping prayer, you can learn the basic recipe here. After noting your SUD, please take responsibility for your prayer tapping, and let’s pray:

Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen today! We are so grateful for the gift of new life and new opportunities and forgiveness and grace and mercy and hope...and we are a bit overwhelmed by what it all means. We are overwhelmed by a lot of things that have happened in our lives, and like the early disciples, that sense of disorientation can keep us from feeling the true peace that Jesus sought to fill us with. We ask that you would help us feel a bit of that peace today, God, as we call on you to relieve us of a particular incident of being overwhelmed. Hear me as I pray,

Karate Chop: Even though I feel overwhelmed, and that overwhelm has a SUD of …..., I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though the incident I am thinking about completely frazzles me, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though the chemicals in my brain are keeping me from experiencing peace on this Easter Sunday, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Top of head: This overwhelming incident.

Eyebrow: I can’t believe it happened.

Outer eye: It caught me off guard.

Under eye: I lost my breath.

Under nose: I might have felt a little dizzy.

Under lip: I might have felt afraid.

Collarbone: I feel so overwhelmed.

Underarm: I can’t get my bearings around this incident.

Wrists: I am so overwhelmed.

Top of head: It’s hard to concentrate.

Eyebrow: It’s difficult to make a decision.

Outer eye: I wonder if I could think about just one aspect of this incident at a time?

Under eye: I’ll never feel peace.

Under nose: Jesus has peace for me.

Under lip: I’ve been overwhelmed for so long, I don’t know what I would do if I felt peace.

Collarbone: Maybe I could take some of the peace Jesus has for me.

Wrists: I feel so overwhelmed.

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

I thank you for offering your peace to me today, God. It is a great way to celebrate Easter.

Take a deep breath...and then check your SUD regarding feeling overwhelmed. Are you able to think more clearly about the issue you were praying? Do you feel a shift in your spirit? Perhaps the incident has become “just something that happened” without a lot of emotional charge to it. If you are still feeling more than a 0-2 of “overwhelm” try to identify a single aspect of the “overwhelm” and pray for God’s peace on that issue until it comes down to a 0-2. Then, work your way through any other elements of the incident until you can think about the thing that was overwhelming you, and just feel peace.

Easter Peace be with you.

--todd