peace - Part 1. peace and the way of jesus

Reflective Practice

Take a moment to get comfortable, sit with your feet flat on the floor, your back straight, your hands resting on the tops of your thighs. Take a couple of deep breaths and then close your eyes. In this place of comfortable alertness, take some more deep steady breaths and pay attention to the rhythm of your chest rising and falling with each breath. Allow yourself to slow down for a moment. If your mind is racing – that’s okay, it’ll do that, but here you are, giving yourself some space to pay attention to what matters.

In this space, take this opportunity to reflect on two physical postures. In the first, close your body posture down by dropping your head (chin to your chest), wrapping your arms around your body, perhaps tucking your legs up or in. And in this posture - take a minute or two to reflect on what it feels like to have this posture to the world around you, to those in your relational circles, and even toward your own heart. What might this sense of being closed down impact on your ability to enter into open and peaceful relationships?

Now try opening your posture up. Take your arms out by your sides or in another posture that feels spacious. Lift your head, open your eyes, look upward or outward. What would it feel like to approach the world this way? To approach God with openness? To approach others… or even to approach your own heart with this kind of open and embracing posture?

How might this help you think about peace?