May God strengthen you in your inner being

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“I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.” (Ephesians 3:16-17)

These last two years of the pandemic have been hard for everyone. We have all had our own individual struggles, some more traumatic than others, but no one can say they were left unaffected. We are not the same people we were when the pandemic started. The journey of the last two years changed us, perhaps even significantly. Our relationship with God most likely changed as well.

We all pray differently; some of us love set prayers, or we like to read the Scripture. Others simply sit in silence before God. However we pray, it is important that whatever is happening in our loves is also part of our prayer, and that prayer informs our life. Like ebb and flow of the ocean’s waves on the shore. Especially when there are difficult experiences we are facing, and difficult emotions within us, it helps to bring them to God. Psalms are full of the words of anguish and anger as well as hope, faith and love. In the Gospels we see Jesus angry, crying at a death of his friend, as well as taking part at a wedding celebration. So do not be afraid to bring how you feel into your own prayer. I encourage you to be real with God.

What was your greatest struggle over the last year or two? Where was God in your life?
What blessings did you encounter?

It may be scary to answer some of these questions. Take time, and sit with your answers. Set time aside each day for private prayer, and let God support you through what you have been dealing with.

God wants to strengthen our inner being. And we all know we could use this strengthening.
Bring to God what is the most precious in your heart. Bring your desires, fears, hopes. In that sacred moment when you sit before God, let Him love you. Let Him pour out His affection into the innermost parts of your soul. Talk to Jesus, but also be silent in His presence and simply let Him show you His love.

“I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth,  and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:18-19)

© Dr. Iva Beranek

Lunchtime Healing Services in St Ann’s, Daswon Street resume on Tuesday, 22nd February

After a two-year break, the lunchtime Services of Wholeness and Healing are resuming at St Ann’s, Dawson street, starting from Tuesday, 22nd February at 12.45pm.

Archbishop Michael Jackson will be the celebrant on the day.

If you are free, we would be delighted if you would join us.

From March onwards, services will take place each week on a Tuesday.

All are welcome!

CMH: D&G Monthly Online Healing Prayer Circle

The Dublin & Glendalough Diocesan Committee of the Church’s Ministry of Healing is offering a Healing Prayer Circle to be held through Zoom. The first Healing Prayer Circle will be at 7pm on Monday, 7th February 2022. From March onwards it will be held on the second Monday of every month. 

It is an hour of prayer given in two sections with a short break between. The first section is a twenty minute session of  the Welcoming Prayer and the second section is a time spent in Centering Prayer. 

The Welcoming prayer reminds us of the words of St. Paul: “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you” (1 Corinthians 6:19).

Centering Prayer is based on the word of Jesus: “Whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and you Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:6).

Both prayer sessions begin with a short introduction. These two ways of praying are likened to Mary and Martha at their home when Jesus comes to visit (Luke 10:38 – 42). Martha, as we all are at times, is worried and distracted by many things. The Welcoming Prayer helps us deal with our distractions and indeed can help heal the wounds of a life-time. Meanwhile Mary sits at the feet of Jesus and this is likened to sitting in Centering Prayer when we sit at the feet of Jesus. There is a five minute break between the sessions and anyone who needs to leave then can do so.

Centering Prayer 

There are four very simple guidelines for Centering Prayer which are part of the introduction to the prayer. Centering Prayer is a time of sitting in shared silence. We hold the prayerful silence for one another. While the time of silence is offered as a session of Centering Prayer, everyone is free to follow their own preferred way of silent prayer or their own practice of meditation. Sitting together in silent prayer helps us find a greater depth of silence before God and supports us with our individual daily prayer. It is understood that when engaged in Centering Prayer we are praying, not only for the people we know and love, but for the whole world.

Welcoming Prayer 

People are perhaps less familiar with Welcoming Prayer. This is a short description:

We are led through a body scan and given time to bring our consciousness to the body, to our relationship with our body, to our self-talk, and to whatever feelings or memories or pain is stored in the body, whatever anxiety or fears we are carrying. Often we deny or repress whatever feelings we have in order to get on with life. In the Welcoming Prayer we welcome whatever we find, whatever feelings come up for us during the prayer. We honour the truth of what is going on for us in the moment. Our body is the warehouse of every emotion we have ever felt: the container for the unresolved, repressed emotional material of a lifetime. The Welcoming Prayer addresses the wounds wherever they are stored and however they present during the prayer. The practice of this prayer brings healing and freedom. We are  turning to and placing our trust in God, the Divine Therapist. This is a gentle way of transformation.  

The Healing Prayer Circle will be led by Carol Casey who is very experienced in facilitating healing prayer groups. Anyone who would like an invitation to join may contact Revd Ross Styles, Chair of Dublin & Glendalough Diocesan Committee of the Church’s Ministry of Healing at stylesross@gmail.com and he will be glad to send you the Zoom link.

All are welcome.

CMH: D&G Monthly Online Healing Service

An online Service of Wholeness and Healing takes place via Zoom at 7.30pm on the first Tuesday of each month, hosted by Revd Canon Lesley Robinson of Clontarf Parish. Each service includes an opportunity for scripture reflection and open prayer for those who wish to contribute. All are welcome to join at the following link:

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88967248402?pwd=b1hkQ1l2b1lXRmdTaU91YVVabHE0Zz09

Meeting ID: 889 6724 8402

Passcode: 395430

“The is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: ‘I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you.” (2 Kings 20:5)