TODD'S TAPPING INTO PRAYER NOW RECIPE

(Please read the DISCLAIMER before reading. Continued reading indicates that you accept the terms stated therein)

Here is my “basic recipe” for Tapping Into Prayer Now. It is a derivation of the process created by Gary Craig, the founder of EFT. Gary is pretty specific about how this process works, so I am quite sure that he would not approve of or endorse my “recipe.” That said, the basic TAPPING PRAYER may be done on oneself or a partner may facilitate the “tapping” process.

Because tapping prayer is reliant on focusing our intentions on a particular issue,  it is important to identify a place of anxiety or discomfort in yourself or the individual you are praying with.

Basic Recipe

• 1. Decide on an issue to focus on. Rate the issue on a scale of 0-10 regarding how upsetting the issue is to you.(This number is called a Subjective Unit of Distress, or SUD). 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.
  2. Offer a prayer of awareness and thanksgiving in anticipation of the healing
  3. Create a set up statement for your prayer,”Even though I have this specific problem...”
  4. Create an affirming statement for your prayer. This statement makes room for God’s hope to enter into the equation: “...I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.”
  • NOTE: some people do not believe this to be true, in which case you need to modify this statement to something they can believe such as, “ I can consider being fully loved and deeply accepted by God/the Holy/Jesus....” or “I deserve to be deeply loved and completely accepted by the Holy.”
  5. Begin tapping at the karate chop point while stating the set up and affirming statement together. For example: “Even though I have (this specific problem), I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.” I use 3 fingers to cover the most space when I am prayer tapping. You can use one hand or two (more about that later). After tapping on the karate chop point while saying the set up/affirming statement three times, move on to other tapping points. At each of the other tapping points, tap 5-10 times while saying the set up/affirming statement. See diagram for details.
  • Karate chop (area below the small finger and wrist). State the set up and affirming statements 3X while tapping here.

• Karate chop x 3
• Top of head
• eye brow
• outer eye
• under eye
• under nose
• under lip
• collarbone
• under arm
• wrists
• Second time through, start at top of head and just use set up phrase and additional details of your problem on all points
• Third time through, alternate between set up phrase and affirming statement. End with whole statement on top of head.
• End with a deep breath and a word of thanks to the Holy for working to bring your soul toward peace.,
• Evaluate on a scale of 1-10 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.

Here is a link to an excellent video re: tapping. It is a little bit different from the order I suggest, but it will demonstrate the basic motions involved: How to Tap Video . I should mention that although The Tapping Solution does not focus on tapping as a spiritual discipline it is a great resource for tapping information.

*Additional Resources: http://tappingintoprayernow.blogspot.com/ , thetappingsolution.com, eftuniverse.com, garythink.com

I am available for individual tapping prayer as well as group demonstrations in your community. Please contact me at tapping.into.prayer.now@gmail.com for more information about scheduling tapping prayer.

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: Tapping and Prayer

I had a great conversation with a leader in the tapping community yesterday. She was gracious enough to give me 17 minutes of her time and expertise. It was an eye opening quarter hour, plus.

I have been trying to get a publisher to pick up my book on tapping prayer. Chalice Press gave it a couple of looks but ultimately decided it was too New Age for their company. I don’t know what that means because I don’t see tapping prayer as “new age.” “New,” I get...but “new age” always strikes me as being a departure from mainline Christianity. I see tapping prayer as a continuation of that story.

Anyway, through a series of emails I was able to connect up with Carol Tuttle (My Energy Profile)  yesterday. Thanks to Cassy Elliott from thetappingsolution.com for making that possible.

We began our conversation talking about the importance of honoring everyone’s foundational belief systems, and then moved on to the wisdom of self publishing and how to reach the widest audience. Carol has developed something called; Energy Profiling, and it helps people understand their most natural state in relationship with other people’s natural states. The upshot is that knowing our profile helps us live in greater harmony with one another...not a bad thing. I am new to energy profiling, but Carol seemed to think that I am a Type 1 personality. You can read a little about that on her website by clicking here.

As the conversation was winding down, Carol shared that she did not believe that tapping was a form of prayer. She experiences tapping as an tool in energy psychology that clears away past trauma or negative beliefs so that we can experience hope...which ultimately leads to faith.

I knew that our time was limited, so I didn’t try and explain how I DO believe that tapping is a form of prayer...but I have all the time I need in this blog, so here goes.

Throughout my life I have witnessed  lots of different models of prayer. From my earliest years when I would kneel by my bed and pray, “Now I lay me down to sleep...” to learning how to hold my hands for the Lord’s Prayer, I have been exposed to different postures for communicating with God. More recently I have heard of and seen people who use walking as a form of prayer, dancing as a form of prayer, gardening as a form of prayer...even reading the newspaper as a form of prayer! The means to reaching out to God and experiencing God reaching back are all about that...interacting with the Holy. They are ways of communicating our holiest concerns to the holiest of holies. No one way is better than the other. They are just different means to the end of being closer to God. They all have some sort of ritual attached to them. They all have some sort of intention attached to them. They are all not that different from tapping prayer.

Tapping prayer utilizes a ritual motion that comes out of energy psychology and imbues it with a holy intention.

When we practice tapping prayer, we are calling on God to connect to our concerns through pathways that have been shown to be conduits for spiritual energy. We are asking God to travel those paths and with a sacred memory of our hurts, bring peace to places that have been troubling us. We are acknowledging where we are with our distress before and after the prayer, and as we experience healing, we are responding with thanksgiving to the one who facilitates that peace.

If you would like to learn more about tapping prayer (or try it for yourself) check out my website at: www.tappingintoprayernow.org . If you have any questions about tapping prayer, click the Interact page and leave me a note. I will try and get back to you as soon as possible.

There are a variety of gifts of the Spirit, and I am glad to share tapping prayer as one of them.

Peace,

todd

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.