Breathing prayer

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Here’s a simple version of an ancient practise:

Use a breathing prayer to ‘chew over’ a Bible verse.

This is less of an understanding exercise and more of a feeling, meditative one. If you’ve found a verse that jumps out at you or is particularly meaningful to you at the moment, this might be something you could do with that verse to ‘Let the word of God dwell in you richly“.

This isn’t something we quickly associate with children, but given a little time and practise, it’s amazing how children relate to this kind of prayer.

Here’s an example:

Breathe in slowly and deeply as you whisper or think:
“You, LORD, are my shepherd.”

Picture God being with you, looking after you.

Then breathe out as you whisper or think:
“I will never be in need.”

Imagine God making sure you have everything you need.

Repeat this sequence slowly for a time, letting the words and the feelings and images which come to you develop.