TUESDAY TAP: prayer tapping on remorse

Have mercy on me, O God,

   according to your unfailing love;

according to your great compassion

   blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash away all my iniquity

   and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,

   and my sin is always before me.

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned

   and done what is evil in your sight;

so you are right in your verdict

   and justified when you judge

King David had raped Bathsheba and was planning to kill her husband. He had a lot to be sorry about. Personally, I think he was a bit delusional in thinking that the only sin he committed was against God. David used his power and authority to have sex with Bathsheba; manipulated a scene of war in order to destroy the love of her life; and claimed Bathsheba as a prize. It seems to me that David had a LOT to be sorry for.

Feeling remorseful toward God was a start, perhaps with some healing he would be able to see other aspects of the terrible things he did to Bathseba and her family.

Hopefully you haven’t gotten yourself in as deep a mess, but even if you have, it’s important to remember that God is still with you.  The combination of sorrow and guilt can really gnaw on a person.

But back to David and God. Note how despite the egregious nature of David’s sin (yeah, that’s the word for it) he believed that there was hope for him. He believed that somehow God could right his wrongs. He believed that the Holy would take action so that David could do better in the future and teach others the folly of his ways. David had faith that the love of God was/is bigger and stronger than the things that David did wrong. God could heal David, and in doing so, free him to bring that healing to others...perhaps even to Bathsheba.

I can remember feeling such remorse after missing an important conversation with my kids. I had chosen to do some work on my computer, or go to a meeting, both of which could have waited for a bit. I can remember the dejected look in their eyes. I can remember the love that forgave me, even if it didn’t understand why I didn’t have time when they really needed me. How come I had time for other people? Was the meeting about wallpapering a room in the church building more important than a conversation about how my child had been bullied at school?

My heart still hurts when I think of the many times I’ve made a bad choice. Perhaps you have similar hurts that go with different circumstances. Remorse is a heavy thing to live with, and, it can get in the way of a healthy relationship.

Let’s take a chance that despite the awful things he did to Bathsheba and her husband, David was right about God’s healing love.

Try to identify a particular event  that you are feeling remorseful about. See it. Smell it. Hear it. Taste it. Just for a moment. Just for long enough to get a Subjective Unit of Distress on the event (if you are new to tapping prayer, check out my basic recipe here to learn more about SUDs).  Write down your SUD and when you are ready, please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray!

Karate chop: Well, I messed up, God. I did something really terrible and now I am filled with remorse. I wish I could go back and do things differently. I wish I hadn’t caused the pain I caused with the actions I took. I feel awful. I feel overwhelmed by the awful and I can’t think of how I can move forward with my life. I need your help. I need your attention on this remorse I am feeling. Even though I am feeling remorse, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I caused someone else a lot of pain and discomfort, and I feel badly about that, I am gently held in the loving arms of God. Even though I feel terrible about what I did, I am completely loved and deeply accepted by God.

Top of head: I am feeling remorseful.

Eyebrow: I feel so sad about what I did to...............

Outer eye: I am guilty of hurting..................

Under eye: I feel terrible about what I did.

Under nose: I really betrayed a trust.

Under lip: My relationship with.......is hurting because of what I did.

Collarbone: I broke..................................

Underarms: I feel awful about hurting.............

Wrists: This heavy feeling of remorse.

Top of head: Even though I am carrying this heavy feeling of remorse, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: Maybe I hurt..........because I was hurting.

Outer eye: Now we’re both hurting and I’m feeling guilty.

Under eye: I guess that didn’t work out the way I hoped it would

Under nose: Now I feel stupid, too.

Under lip: Maybe I thought...........deserved to be hurt.

Collarbone: Maybe..........did deserve to be hurt.

Underarms: I feel deep remorse for what I did to.............Maybe  I was wrong. I feel like I was wrong. If I was right I probably wouldn’t feel such remorse.

Wrists: Even if.............deserved it, I am feeling sad and sorry for what I did.

Top of head: Even if I am feeling sad and sorry for what I did, I am deeply loved and completely held in God’s constant care.

Eyebrow: I wonder how I would feel if...........had done what I did?

Outer eye: I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Under eye: …........is deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Under nose: I feel good about hurting................

Under lip: I feel terrible about hurting..........

Collarbone: I can see the hurt in......eyes. I can hear the pain in.......’s voice. I can feel my breathing change as I think about what I did to.................

Underarms: God knows where my remorse is blocking me from peace.

Wrists: I have this deep remorse for what I did.

Top of head: Even though I have this deep remorse for what I did, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

And take a deep breath...and thank you God for attending to the remorse that is keeping me from peace. Thank you for sending your spirit to heal the events in my life that keep me from moving forward in healthy ways. Amen.

Try thinking about the event that you felt remorseful about. What is its SUD now?  What new issues or aspects of the event are keeping you from feeling a SUD of 0-2? I believe that David was right about God’s desire to heal us when we mess up...no matter how big the mess! Keep bringing your issues to God until you feel that 0-2 peace. Once you are there, then try thinking about how you can begin to make amends and heal the relationship that has been hard to resolve. God will go with you in that healing, too. Count on it. Better yet, tap on it.

Peace,

todd

THURSDAY THUMP: prayer tapping on grief

32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.

“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.

35 Jesus wept.

36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”

37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” --John 11

Beliefs around death in the first century were as diverse as they are today. Some people believed that when a person died, he or she simply ceased to exist. End of story. Some people believed in a resurrection of the body...or the soul...a continuation of the story in some mysterious form. Some people believed that the dead were reborn into new bodies here on earth. Each belief system created unique philosophical responses to death, but the common thread that still strings these and other beliefs together is, grief.

Grief is our response to the death of someone. The response might be spiritual, or emotional, or physical. It might involve crying, or shutting down, or wailing, or withdrawing. It is often accompanied by sadness, anger, denial, emptiness, wistfulness, relief, guilt...or some combination of the aforementioned. Grief can be pretty clear cut or pretty complicated depending on the circumstances surrounding the death or our relationship with the one who has died.

To that end, prayer tapping on grief is a pretty personal thing. It invites the Holy to attend to some very intimate and labyrinthine issues.

• Perhaps we feel guilty about feeling relieved by someone’s death.
• • Maybe we feel the person deserved to die and we are angry.
• • Maybe the persons death caught us by surprise.
• • Maybe there was violence around the persons death
• • Maybe the person died as a result of an accident or war.

• The person might have committed suicide and we are left with a lot of questions and a lot of feelings that are all overwhelming our system at the same time.

• We might cry out like the sisters of Lazarus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

The good news is, God is here with us in our grief. Jesus weeps for the pain and confusion we are experiencing, and more, He is willing and able to attend to our hurting places by way of the Holy Spirit.

If you are grieving today, take a moment to write down the unique feelings you are experiencing around your loss.

Look at the list, and try assigning a SUD from 0-10 to each feeling, depending on how strongly you are enduring that feeling. If you are new to tapping prayer, check out my basic recipe here before proceeding.

Choose one feeling that is bothering you. You may want to choose something with a low number to begin with or, you may want to dive into the deep end of the pool and get right to the tough stuff. God will be there to attend to your concerns in any order you choose to focus the Holy’s healing love. Do what feels safest to you.

Once you have chosen a feeling around your grief, please take responsibility for your participation in tapping prayer, and let’s pray!

Karate chop: My heart is heavy with grief, God. My soul is overwhelmed with feelings that are associated with...............’s death. I am overwhelmed with feelings about..................’s death. I’m going to try and focus on one feeling now, and when I am at peace with it, I may come to you again with another feeling about …............’s death. I may not. I’ve got a lot happening in me right now. I don’t know which way to turn, but I find myself turning to this tapping prayer today, and so I ask that you would bring me some healing through it. Even though I am feeling..............around my loss, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I feel............around..............death, I am completely loved and deeply accepted by God. Even though I have this...........response to ….............death, I am held in God’s constant love and acceptance.

Top of head: I have this...........feeling.

Eyebrow: I am so.............about............death.

Outer eye: I feel............

Under eye: I have this overwhelming sense of..............

Under nose: I can’t shake this feeling of..................

Under lip: This deep …..........

Collarbone: I feel..............

Underarms: I am...............

Wrists: This …......feeling is keeping me from peace.

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

Eyebrow: I wonder if I’ll always feel this..... grief?

Outer eye: I think I can feel this........in my body.

Under eye: This overwhelming...........is getting in the way of feeling peace.

Under nose: I might have unfinished business with........that is contributing to this feeling of .............

Under lip: Even if I have unfinished business with..... that is contributing to this feeling of ...........I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Collarbone: I am experiencing a SUD of …..around this aspect of my grief.

Wrists: I have so much grief effecting my life.

Top of head: Even though I have all this...........grief, I am deeply loved and held in God’s tender care.

Eyebrow: ..(name of person who died)..is deeply loved and held in God’s tender care.

Outer eye: Maybe I can forgive myself for feeling.......about..........’s death.

Under eye: Maybe I can forgive anyone who may have contributed to...........’s death.

Under nose: Even if I can forgive myself and everyone else who may have contributed to.......death, and even if I can forgive.........for dying, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Under lip: Maybe I don’t have to hold onto this...........grief forever.

Collarbone: I have this...............grief in my soul.

Wrists: I am feeling..........about …......death.

Top of head: Even though I am feeling.......about........death, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

and take a deep breath...Thank you God for being with me in my feelings around..........’s death. Thank you for sending your healing spirit to attend to my needs. Amen.

When you are ready, test your intensity around the feeling you were asking help for. What is the SUD associated with it now? Higher? Lower? Same? Where has God brought you new insights into your feelings about.....’s death? If your SUD is lower, you are beginning to heal with God’s help. Keep prayer tapping on the issue until it gets to a 0-2, and then move on to another feeling on your list. If your SUD went up, check to see if the issue you began with might be gone, and you have moved to a more intense feeling. If so, apply the prayer to that issue until your SUD goes down to a 0-2. If your SUD stayed the same, drink a glass of water and then try the prayer again. Sometimes if we are dehydrated, our awareness of God’s spirit is diminished.

If it would be helpful to use this prayer one on one, please contact me at tapping.into.prayer.now@gmail.com and we can set up a time to work on your grief, together.

Peace,

Todd

THURSDAY THUMP: prayer tapping on anger

23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs,which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. --Matthew 23

Jesus was ripping mad. His frustration with the Pharisees had reached a tipping point and he was tired of playing Mr. Nice Guy. Mr. All in Control. Mr. I’ll never take out a whip and upset a marketplace set up in the Temple. 

Jesus was angry. The chemicals were rushing through his brain, his heart rate increased, his fight or flight impulse was activated in the amygdala portion of his brain. He was ready to fight these self righteous Pharisees on behalf of God, on behalf of the people who were suffering under the hypocritical laws and practices of the established religion.

Been there, done that. Felt that surge. My face getting hot red with derision. Mouth dry...or salivating all over the place like a rabid dog. The veins in my neck start to surface. Fists clench. Sometimes I’ve gotten angry over something noble like an injustice that I’ve witnessed or experienced. Sometimes I’ve gone ballistic over being cut off in traffic or being served the wrong order at Taco Bell. I have been known to explode when I witness an injustice in court or on the sidelines of a pee wee soccer game. I get all riled up and then perseverate on the anger I’m feeling. I hold onto it and nurture it and share it with anyone who will listen to me rant. I’VE BEEN WRONGED! SOMEONE I CARE ABOUT WAS GIVEN A RAW DEAL! RAWWWWWWWR! (insert your image of me doing a Hulk impersonation here).

It’s not pretty.

Maybe you’ve been there, too.

The hard thing is when I can’t let go of the anger. When it get’s into my blood and keeps on boiling long after the triggering incident has passed. I’m grateful for tapping prayer, because if I can think to use it, I discover that God can ease my angst and replace it with peace.

If you are still stewing on something that has made you mad, please join me in a round of tapping prayer. If you are new to prayer tapping, you can check out my basic recipe here.

Because anger involves the amygdala, it is likely that whatever has us upset right now, has gotten us upset in the past. Perhaps the same situation. Perhaps a similar event. The amygdala is like an early warning system in our brain and it alerts us to feel certain things based on previous experiences and patterns of experiences.

Try and identify something that has your blood boiling right now. Before bringing that issue to God, try and remember an incident from your childhood that had you feeling a similar way. Once you have that incident in mind, give it a SUD (see basic recipe) on a scale from 0-10 and write that number down on a piece of paper. There is such a wide variety of things that can get our goat, so let’s call the incident that you have identified, THE PURPLE. Naming our anger after an abstract symbol (such as a color or shape) serves 2 purposes. 1. It gives us a little distance from something that may feel overwhelming or frightening to us. 2 It gives us a common language to use when offering up our prayer.

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

Karate chop: Dear God, I am mad! Angry! Ripped!. Something Purple has happened and I’m beside myself with rage. It’s hard to think of anything else. I keep going back to why the Purple happened. Why it made me feel so ticked off. Why I can’t let it go. It’s kind of exhausting, and at least around this Purple, I am ready for you to bring me some peace. Even though I have this Purple anger, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though this Purple makes me feel angry, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I have all this Purple pulsing through my veins (and my amygdala!) I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Top of head: I have this Purple anger.

Eyebrow: This Purple is so strong.

Outer eye: I feel overwhelmed by this Purple.

Under eye: This Purple feeling is out of control

Under nose: I don’t like feeling out of control

Under lip: This Purple is kind of scary.

Collarbone: I have all this powerful Purple

Underarms: This Purple is painful

Wrists: I don't deserve all this Purple.

Top of head: Even though I have a lot of Purple, I am deeply loved and God completely accepts me.

Eyebrow: I wonder when I learned to be afraid of the Purple?

Outer eye: Maybe the Purple wasn’t safe

Under eye: Perhaps I was told not to express my feelings about the Purple or I would face terrible consequences.

Under lip: I might have been punished for feeling Purple

Collarbone: Even though I was punished for feeling Purple, I am deeply loved and completely cared for by God.

Underarms: All this shame filled Purple...

Wrists: The Purple is everywhere. Maybe I deserved it.

Top of Head: Even though there is Purple everywhere I look, and even if I deserved it, I am completely cared for and accepted by God.

Eyebrow: Maybe Purple is nothing to be ashamed of. Maybe people just feel Purple when something like this happens. Perhaps the Purple is just another feeling that can come and go like waves on a shore

Outer eye: This Purple is crashing down on me

Under eye: I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God as I try and catch my breath

Under nose: This rage filled Purple

Under lip: This Purple that is just another feeling

Collarbone: My Purple is boiling over. I can’t contain it.

Underarms: Maybe God can contain it. God is, after all, pretty big.

Wrists: I can consider forgiving myself or anyone else who contributed to this awful Purple.

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

And take a deep breath...Thank you God for being with my Purple in this prayer. Thank you for sending your healing spirit to attend to the Purple that has been keeping me from feeling peace. Amen.

When you are ready, take note of the Purple anger and check the power it is still holding. On a scale of 0-10, how strong is your Purple? If the number is not down to a 0-2, what issues are keeping it at a higher number? Did new issues around the Purple become more prevalent? If so, try writing them down and bringing them to God with more specific language.

The lessons we learned about Purple kinds of events when we were children often inform how we experience Purple as adults. God has been along for the whole of our journey, so trust that the Holy is capable of getting back to the beginning of our anger and healing us up into the present. If the whole Hulk thing is starting to wear thin for you, try prayer tapping on the many shades of Purple that might be turning you green.

Peace,

todd

PS. Check out next week’s TUESDAY TAP: prayer tapping on grief.

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.

Good Friday tapping on the death of a loved one

50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and[e] went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” --Matthew 27: 50-54

I have been with many people as they died. Sometimes the passing from this life into a next is peaceful. Sometimes it’s restless. Sometimes (as in Jesus’ case) traumatic. When death comes, the person is still. They are at peace. The family and friends who gather by their side at that moment, have lots of other responses ranging from sadness, to disbelief, to anger, to regret, to relief, to confusion. People might even cry out something unusual, like, “Surely he was the Son of God!”

All of these emotions can leave the survivor feeling less than peaceful. God hopes for us to have peace, even in the midst of our grief. Today’s tapping prayer is targeted at the grief we experience after the death of a loved one.

Before we begin to pray, please take a moment to identify a loss in your life. Take an inventory of the feelings you have associated with that loss, and give those feelings a SUD. If you are new to tapping prayer, you can learn the basic recipe by clicking here. After you choose one feeling (there will be time to attend to other feelings around your loss after we pray for this first issue), please take responsibility for your tapping prayer, and let’s pray:

Surely you know the pain of loss, God. You watched Jesus die a terrible death. You were there with his family and friends as he drew his last breath. You gathered Jesus up into your arms and brought him into new life, even though those by his side could only think about the days that they had already spent with him. We have experienced such a loss in our life. We have deep feelings associated with that loss, and we are bringing those feelings to you today, in prayerful hope that you can heal us, and bring us peace.

Hear us as we pray,

Karate Chop: Even though I have this loss, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though my loved one has died, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. Even though I have this heavy feeling associated with my loved one’s death, God is loving me and accepting me completely.

Top of Head: I have this loss.

Eyebrow: I miss my loved one a lot.

Outer eye: I have this deep feeling about my loved one’s death.

Under eye: I have this deep feeling about God concerning my loved one’s death.

Under nose: I have this death I am dealing with.

Under lip: This death that is keeping me from feeling peaceful.

Collarbone: I am distracted by this feeling I have.

Underarm: I can’t feel peace with this feeling pulsing through my soul.

Wrists: I have this death of a beloved person in my life.

Top of Head: Even though my loved one has died, and I have this disruptive feeling, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Eyebrow: Even though I feel angry at God I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Outer eye: Even though I can’t believe in God, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Under eye: My loved one is deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Under nose: I accept that I am feeling this loss.

Under lip: I do not accept that I am feeling this loss.

Collarbone: I hate this feeling...but here it is. I feel this way about the death of my loved one.

Underarm: I can’t understand how this happened...

Wrists: ...But it happened, and now I have this uncomfortable feeling.

Top of Head: Even though I have this uncomfortable feeling about my loved one’s death, I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God. I am deeply loved and completely accepted by God.

Take a deep breath, and note your SUD concerning the feeling you were praying for relief from. If the number has gone down, but not to a 0-2, try to identify what about the feeling is keeping you at a higher number. Try to remember when you experienced that issue around a different event in your life. Ask God to follow that path for healing, and pray with that focus. When you are now feeling peaceful about the original feeling you were praying about, check back on your SUD regarding the death of your beloved. Where else could God’s spirit attend to you? If you are too disappointed in God for allowing the death of your beloved, try using the words, “I can consider being deeply loved and completely accepted by God.”

May the peace that transcends our deepest sorrow be yours today.

--todd
ps. next post will be on Easter Sunday re: feeling overwhelmed.