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PRAYING IN COLOR
Are you a doodler like I am? My notes from meetings and classes are embellished with meaningless squiggles and curlicues around the edges. Sometimes it’s hard to find the words I intended to keep. I am not an artist, just a doodler. Have you ever thought about praying while doodling?
Sybil McBeth is a doodler who has developed a meditation/prayer tool called Praying in Color. I had participated in two sessions at two different retreats (one was a local PW retreat) where speakers used her techniques to show how to incorporate this method into our prayer life. This year, on Tuesday of Holy Week, I participated in a Zoom webinar where Sybil showed us more about praying in color. I think it is a valuable modality to think about, and maybe try for yourself.
It doesn’t take any artistic skill at all! She encourages us to put either the word God or another name for God in the center of a blank paper. Then start making lines, circles, or shapes as you begin to pray. You may write words as they float into your mind, or write people and/or things for which you are praying. You may use colors, but that’s not necessary.
If you want to see more of how she has worked with this, go to prayingincolor.com. She has examples there, and even some handouts, so you don’t have to start from scratch. (Picture above is from her website.)
A few of the things I really appreciate about praying in color: it is a whole brain experience, and even includes more of my body than just sitting still and praying; it makes my brain slow down, so I am more likely to be able to hear God’s holy nudges, and not just my own petitions going to God; it is something I can keep to remind me about my life and my relationship to God.
Prayer is the love language between us and God. Any time we can find ways to become more fluent in that language, we become better for it!
Scripture:
Psalm 5: 1-3 NRSV
Give ear to my words, O Lord;
give heed to my sighing.
Listen to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you I pray.
O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.
1 John 5:14 NRSV
And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
Philippians 4:6-7 NRSV
Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NRSV
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
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