Resignation vs. New Life
You are dearly loved. You are not forgotten. What you carry is not yours alone. Let us not be resigned. Let us lift up our heads, inhaling God's life for us now.
Faithful one, find a place of rest, inside or out. Choose a place that is comfortable and cozy, just perfect for you to relax with God.
Sit–or lie–down. Empty your hands.
Take a deep inhale and speak these words in your heart to God: “You are mine.”
Hold your breath for a count of four.
Then exhale and pray these words: “I am Yours.”
Repeat this breath prayer for a few minutes, allowing the gaze of your heart to turn upward to God, inviting your spirit to relax into Him. Stay here, in this posture, participating in this prayer as long as it feels right to you:
You are mine.
I am Yours.
After about five minutes or so consider what it is God might be inviting you to let go of. To help you think about what that might be, begin by reflecting on these two questions:
What emotion did you feel before you began the breath prayer
What emotion are you feeling now?
Now, turn to this passage from Psalm 22, verses 1-2, 11, 19, & 24, a Psalm of honesty, one of both lament and praise. Read it a few times, allowing your heart to join the psalmist's cry to God.
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?
How might you be angry at God?
2 My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
by night, but I find no rest.
In what area of your life are you desiring God’s clear answer?
11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help.
What trouble plagues you now?
19 But you, Lord, do not be far from me.
You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
How do you need His presence, His strength today?
24 For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
What is your deepest cry to God right now? What do you want most from Him? In what way are you most in need?
Tell Him in a letter now–or talk with Him in your heart.
Now, read the verses again, and consider these questions:
In what areas of your life have you not been crying out to God for help? How have you become resigned and complacent? In your journal, name, in detail, the areas in your life where you have felt like it is impossible for God to come through.
Your relationships?
Your health?
Your finances?
Sexual intimacy?
Your wounds?
Shame?
After you have made your list, spend time asking God to help you see where you have given up hope, where you have stopped crying out to Him for help, and where you need Him to come and heal your heart (although you haven’t realized it). Listen for (and write down, if you’d like) His response.
Conclude by speaking to Him your own version of the Psalmist’s prayer.
When you compose your prayer, hold nothing back. Be angry. Be sad. Be frustrated. Be disappointed. Be bewildered. Be exasperated. Be sad.
Let Him come. Here. In your heart.
