Heart song

I took a deep breath and sighed as I watched the moon tonight.  It had been a long day, and it was so nice to find my old friend waiting for me as I got out of my car and looked east towards the mountains.  It was right where it should be...and a comfort to know it is there.  There is great beauty in predictability, and equal beauty in surprise.  Today contained enough surprises that I wrap the predictable around me like a warm blanket and offer thanks for the comfort.

Lately I've been taking comfort in a rather new experience that has brought surprising joy into my life.  Back at SFTS we had Chapel morning and evening, and our music focused on Taize-like prayer chants (many written by Stephen Iverson) that were hauntingly simple.  The practice was to repeat a chant several times, and each time we would sink deeper into the words and their meaning.   Within a matter of days some of the prayer chants were deeply embedded in my psyche and soul - they played in my heart at the most interesting of times.  This was a much better experience than having a 60's song or advert stuck in my head and playing at full volume!

I wondered - what would happen if I intentionally brought certain chants into my day and allowed them to be the scaffolding for my prayer?  I began by intentionally focusing on certain chants at specific times of the day.  The results have been better than expected, and often very helpful.

Waking up in the morning my heart sings:  "Look this new day is dawning for us.  Such a bright welcome to life for us.  Gratitude fills my heart.  This moment I spend with my God (Iverson)."  Or instead I might hear:  "A sound arises out of the earth.  A singing, a welcome, a joyfulness (Iverson)." 

As I get close to the the church I hear:  "May every word that I speak, to everyone that I meet, be filled with tenderness."  If I'm heading into a stressful or conflicted situation, I hear:  "Right before me, Jesus, right behind me, Jesus.  All around loving grace, all around there is God (Iverson)." 

When there is something that I'm struggling to understand, I will often hear:  "Your way, your time, your will/not mine, sweet light, not mine (Iverson)."  As this sings in my heart, I find myself relaxing and letting go of my need to know and control.

At night when my mind is racing with a million concerns and I'm unable to shut it off, I pray:  "Peace, be still.  Peace, be still.  The storm rages.  Peace, be still."  I may sing that simple prayer chant in my heart a hundred times before my mind finally quiets down, but it is eventually still.

Standing outside my heart sings:  "Surely God is in this place - Holy Ground (Dreitcer/Iverson)."

Having these prayer chants available in my heart allows me to pray spontaneously, and sometimes without thinking - it comes from a deep soul level just below conscious thought.  In a moment of emotional pain today I suddenly became aware of this prayer song being sung deep within my heart:  "Lord God heal me.  Heal me O my Lord, that I might fulfill all your plans for me (Iverson)."  My heart was praying this prayer before my brain had even engaged the thought. 

Heart song - heart prayer.  It is a great gift to listen to one's heart pray.

What song is in your heart right now?  When you are still, what song does it sing?  Is it a song that helps you to be your best and truest self - does the song lead you to God and a greater experience of love?  If not, perhaps it is time to teach your heart a new song.

Listening to a song of love,
Kim