Practicing Breath Prayer as Clergy Self-Care

by Robin Sandbothe

Pinnacle Associate Rhonda Abbott Blevins wrote a blog at the end of September, which included this prediction: Between now and the end of the year, we are likely to experience:

• The “second wave” of the deadliest pandemic in a century

• A vitriolic battle over a seat on the supreme court

• A contested presidential election, and

• Violent clashes in our streets

Some of what she predicted seems already to be coming about. I think she was spot on.

If you overlay these conditions with how our lives as clergy have shifted during these last six months, is it any surprise that clergy are experiencing high levels of stress and a very real temptation to walk away from ministry demands? Most of us are working longer hours than ever before, often without the community contact that is so much a part of what we do – preaching to a camera, making hospital visits by phone or by zoom, consoling bereaved church members from a distance, navigating significant life events like weddings and funerals with a whole new set of rules, wondering if worship together in person will ever be “safe” again.

Among the ten things my colleague Rhonda included as a way of coping with these stressful circumstances was to take up a spiritual practice. I decided in the early weeks of sheltering-at-home that I would participate in a class on centering prayer. It was a good experience and very helpful. In the process I was reacquainted with breath prayers.

I came to understand there is no right way to do centering prayer. Everyone approaches the practice a little differently, and the main point of it is to let go of all distractions to spend time immersed in God’s presence. How to get to that place can be challenging. The practice I found most helpful was to begin with a breath prayer.

The simplest understanding of a breath prayer is literally a prayer that you breathe, a simple sentence or phrase, the first part of which you hold in your mind as you breathe in, and the last half of which you hold in your mind as you breathe out. It might be a verse of scripture, such as, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) or “Oh God, come to my assistance.” (Psalm 69:2a) It could be the Jesus Prayer, “Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” or a shortened version, “Jesus Christ, have mercy.” It could be a phrase you decide upon by choosing your favorite name for God, then adding a phrase which has to do with what you desire, such as peace or justice or rest. So, “Mother, send me your peace,” or “Yahweh, guide me toward justice,” or “Lord, let me rest in you.”

While I employed breath prayers to help me to enter into centering prayer, using a breath prayer can also be a helpful practice when we begin feeling overwhelmed or anxious. It will help us slow our breathing and renew our focus. It can help us to pay attention, to see what is important in the moment. Practicing breath prayers may even become a way for us to live out the admonition to pray continuously, as we internalize the phrases we breathe in, then out.

Now, in the midst of whatever you are doing, pick one of the phrases above or another you want to try. Focus on your breathing. Simply breathe in, then out. Breath in, breathe out. Now pair the phrase with your breath. Breathe in the phrase, “Be still and know,” then breathe out the phrase, “that I am God.” “Be still and know---that I am God.” Continue this prayer for a minute, or two, or ten. Feel the tension slip away. Become aware of God’s presence. Be well, my friend.