Breath prayers ease our stress through the day
Life is filled with breathtaking moments. A beautiful sunrise, or a majestic sunset. Magnificent cloud formations on the background of an amazing blue sky. Seeing and experiencing the great wonders of nature inspired the composer to write, “Then sings my soul, my savior God, to Thee, How great Thou art.” Life is filled with beautiful moments that bring us to moving celebrations, moments that take our breath away.
In the first part of this year we have experienced moments that have not been breathtaking but rather breath restricting, not moments of celebration but rather moments of suffocation. The worldwide despair and death caused by COVID-19. The isolation as we try to follow the guidelines of social distancing.
The pressure of having to file for unemployment. Images of coast-to-coast chaos, as people in more than 100 cities express anger and disappointment at the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The reminders of the dark day a year ago when12 innocent people lost their lives in Virginia Beach. Crushing, suffocating moments that reveal how far we are from being able to exist together peacefully knowing that all of our lives matter. This year has been filled with suffocating moments that have taken our breath away.
Yet when we are feeling the pressure of stressful situations, “Take a deep breath” is often the advice given to us.
Indeed, Psalm 23:3 says (in the Message Bible), “True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction.” David shares a sentiment that we all have, to need to just catch our breath. Moments when we can pause and just breathe, not allowing our frustrations, our anxieties, our difficult circumstances to wear us down to a place of suffocation.
Fifth-century monks developed a spiritual discipline called breath prayers, prayers brief and easy enough to be prayed anywhere at any time with just a breath. In this day of overwhelming stress and mounting frustrations, we should adopt and strengthen this spiritual discipline.
Breath prayers can consist of small phrases or portions of scriptures that help to center and settle us. Breath prayers give us moments to reflect on the source of our power rather than the challenges of our pain. They help us to tap into thoughts of encouragement rather than things that discourage us.
Philippians 4:6-9 says (in The Living Bible), “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus. And now, brothers, as I close this letter, let me say this one more thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about. Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.” Paul is sharing in these verses the strength and the benefits of prayers to help us fight off anxiety and stress. He suggests that an effective way to manage stress is to turn all your cares into prayers. He reinforces this thought in 1Peter 5:7, where he says, “Cast all your cares upon the Lord, because He cares for you.” We were not designed to handle all the weight that the stress of life can bring. When stressful moments arise, try practicing breath prayers.
To practice breath prayers, you must first decide upon a short phrase that you can express in the form of a prayer. As you breathe in, say the first portion of the phrase, and hold the breath; and then as you release the breath, say the second portion of the phrase. Some examples: “Have mercy on me, oh God,” “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid” (Psalm118:6); “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31).
Start each day with a breath prayer and continue to practice it throughout your day. As you fill your lungs with fresh air, you fill your mind with fresh, uplifting thoughts.
In these days where the pressures of life seem to be suffocating us, as we see images of the worst of humanity unfolding before us in real time, please pause and breathe in and out a breath prayer that has the potential to lift us beyond any moments of despair.
Let me suggest to you one of my favorites, from Psalm 46:10. Breathe in and say,
“Be still and know”; hold that breath; then breathe out and say, “that I am God.”
In these stress-filled days, pause for strength, power and direction, and focus on breath prayer.
The Rev. Jerome Barber is pastor of Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Temple in Hampton. He can be reached at jeromeb@smzbt.org.