Sharon Kinsey's Reflections

I just purchased a new book called “Breath as Prayer” by Jennifer Tucker. The author explains what breath prayer is and how it can calm anxiety, focus our mind, and renew our soul. If we think about it, the purpose of praying isn’t to convince our Lord to do what we want Him to do, but to become aware of what God is doing already in our lives and getting ready to work with Him.

One form of scripture-based prayer is called breath prayer. It makes a connection from a short, simple phrase or Bible verse to the rhythm of breathing. While you inhale, you softly whisper the first part of the phrase, and then the second half as you breathe out. Breath prayers can be done anywhere and anytime when you are able to be still, slow down, and breathe. During Covid, I was blessed to be part of a small prayer group led by Leila Buford. We brought lawn chairs and sat outside in the pavilion where we could distance ourselves from the other members. Leila always started our time together by playing “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” As anxious as I was, I felt my breathing slow down as I listened to those beautiful words. Leila would tell us to, “Breathe in Jesus, and breathe out love.”

Ann Voskamp says that “…these short breath prayers might soften our hearts to be able to surrender into the shape of God’s hands.” We all get anxious or stressed from time to time, and although they aren’t a cure for anxiety, breath prayers can be an effective addition to one’s mental health toolkit!

Life can get very busy at times, can’t it? It’s feels like we race around from one place to the next, one project to another, tending to the needs of those around us…I think I actually get so caught up in the minutiae of life that I forget to pause and breathe. I am trying to lean into this ancient Christian contemplative practice so that I can feel the deep sense of God’s presence.

Remember, it is a Biblical instruction to “pray without ceasing” (1Thessalonians 5:17) and how better to fulfill this than to follow the natural rhythm of our own breathing. We can read in Luke 18:1 that Jesus said His own disciples, “…should always pray and not give up.” On certain days and at certain times in my life, breath prayers might be the only offering to God that I can manage. But, they have become an integral part of my spiritual life. Here are two of my favorites:

Inhale: Still my soul;

Exhale: You are God.

Inhale: God of hope, I trust you;

Exhale: Fill me with joy and peace.