BODY AFFIRMATION adapted by Rachel Miller Jacobs What’s the difference between an affirmation/confession of faith and a prayer? An affirmation or confession of faith is a statement we make in the presence of, but not specifically to, God and others as a way of concretely claiming something is true. A prayer is a spoken, silent, and/or physical “conversation” with God: it is addressed to God. I call this practice an affirmation because while we speak it in God’s presence, what we are saying is not specifically addressed to God. I am grounded extend arms wide overhead—orans posture my roots go deep bend from the waist and touch toes if possible! I am flexible raise arms above head and bend to the right I am resilient then bend to the left I am facing my past dropping arms to side, turn half-way around and am letting go turn the rest of the way to face the front; of what I don’t need to carry make a rolling motion with the hands, then a releasing motion I am honoring God from a bent position, straightening up with my body and soul while sweeping your hands up your body then extending back into original orans posture Adapted by Rachel Miller Jacobs from a STAR (Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience, Eastern Mennonite University http://www.emu.edu/cjp/star/) “prayer” A meal blessing for a celebration. I wrote this for a graduation party for a child from kindergarten to first grade, but it could be used or adapted for any meal celebrating a person: birthday, baptism, etc. Earthmaker and Lover of creation,
we know that this food before us has already been blessed by sun, earth, and rain. We are grateful for the hidden gifts of life in this food.* We pause for a moment to remember the sound of rain, the heat of sun, the hard work of many hands. This prayer/meditation/thing came to me one morning early in the COVID-19 pandemic, when I woke early Sunday morning feeling hopeless as the night leached into day. I did this first as a personal meditation, then immediately wrote it and led my congregation through it in Zoom worship.
Imagine that your belovedness is located deep inside of you. I’m talking about that core of who you are as someone made in the image of a God who loves you, that part of you that has experienced love and worth or that longs to feel that love. It’s there, whether you are familiar with it or not. Take a moment to locate it in your body. For me, it's a spot about the size of a walnut, right behind my sternum. Maybe it's larger or smaller for you, maybe it's lower in your gut, maybe it's higher in your heart, maybe it's somewhere else. Wherever the core of your belovedness is, reach down to it and give it a little nudge, waking it up. You can put your hand on your body if you like.  I wrote this while hiking ancient basalt riverbeds in northern Minnesota. Some really hard stuff was happening, and this just came to me.
God, Give me feet so I know I am on solid ground. Give me tears so I know I have compassion. Give me laughter so I know I am loved. Give me hands so I can hold on. Amen. |
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