Contemplation: Brian Taylor

With Contemplative Exercises
  
We are the body of Christ alive in the world, and he is the human face of God. But to manifest Christ in our lives, to reveal him to the world, we must undergo a journey of transformation by which we become him, and he becomes us. Contemplative prayer, practiced with faith and patience, undertaken in the context of the church's life, takes us on this journey into Christ.
   
~ Brian C Taylor
   
PERSONAL NOTE:  To contemplate means "to gaze upon".  It is about waking up.  It is to experience an event fully and deeply.  In a fast paced world and a culture that emphasizes doing, contemplation seems too inefficient and unproductive to have much value.  A contemplative person, however, recognizes that every experience offers more than meets the eye.  In every religion, contemplation is an important practice on the journey of raising consciousness and transformation of being.  Here are three contemplative exercises in the Christian tradition.  POST EXPERIENCES AND COMMENTS BELOW. 
   
PALMS UP, PALMS DOWN
CONTEMPLATING JESUS: 

• Take time to sit down and get comfortable.  Put both feet on the floor and your hands in your lap.  Breathe deeply and relax.  Place yourself in the presence of Jesus.  
• Turn your palms down.  Drop your cares, worries, agendas, experiences into Jesus' hands.  Let go of all that is heavy.  Breathe deeply.
• Turn your palms up on your knees.  Open your hands.  Receive what Jesus is wanting to give you. 
• When you are ready, tell Jesus what this was like.  Writing it down, if possible, is best.    

  
CONTEMPLATING PEOPLE:

• Take time to truly notice someone today.  Listen to them with your heart.  See them through God's eyes.  Be intentionally present to them. 
• Tell Jesus what you think you know about them, as well as what is mysterious to you about them.   Writing it down, if possible, is best.  

  
AIMLESS WANDERING 
CONTEMPLATING "WHAT IS" 

• Prepare by choosing a general location for your aimless wandering - beach, woods, back yard, city street, labyrinth, neighborhood.  Establish no goals, destinations, or agendas. Be free of intention. 
• Be as present as possible to your wandering.  There is nowhere to go and nothing to do.
• Let go of the need to keep track of anything whatsoever. As the mind seeks to set a course or recollect, drop the internal tracking and bring your attention to whatever is occurring.
• Allow yourself to appreciate whatever arises. Pause and carefully observe anything that attracts your attention. Give your curiosity free rein with sights, sounds, smells, and physical feelings that spontaneously guide your wandering.
• Be responsive to environmental cues: a bird bathing,  a breeze blowing, colors, sounds, nature — all are permitted to capture and lead your attention.
• Explore surprises and seeming coincidences. Notice and appreciate any excitement that may arise but refrain from embellishing it.
• Make no deliberate mental notes but simply disown experience as it arises. Quickly drop the tendency to overdramatize contemplative insight.
• Open yourself to the absolute freedom of having nothing to gain and nothing to lose. Simply marveling is a good way to conclude.  

    

CONTEMPLATION: BRIAN TAYLOR:  CHURCH OF RECONCILIATION