Help/Thanks/Wow
If I were going to begin practicing the presence of God for the first time today, it would help to begin by admitting the three most terrible truths of our existence: that we are so ruined, and so loved, and in charge of so little. — St. Anne
Anne Lamott is a national treasure and we wanna be just like her (don’t tell her that). We call her Saint Anne (you can tell her that). Anyway, she wrote a book on prayer and it resonates. A simple distillation of life and the prayers we pray. The book is called Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers.
It’s really just a framework for what rises up in us and the turning of those moments, seasons, risings to prayer. They can be spontaneous. They can be intentionally practiced as spiritual rhythm.
Help.
Help — “Most good, honest prayers remind me that I am not in charge, that I cannot fix anything, and that I open myself to being helped by something, some force, some friends, some something. These prayers say, “Dear Some Something, I don’t know what I’m doing. I can’t see where I’m going. I’m getting more lost, more afraid, more clenched. Help.”
Create a “God Box.” Literally. Write down what or who you feel overwhelmed by or helpless to fix, change, heal, whatever. Put it in the box. That’s it. Oh, go ahead and say something to God. Like, “here you go,” or “I give up.”
Thanks.
Thanks — “Gratitude begins in our hearts and then dovetails into behavior. It almost always makes you willing to be of service, which is where the joy resides. It means that you are willing to stop being such a jerk. When you are aware of all that has been given to you, in your lifetime and the past few days, it is hard not to be humbled, and pleased to give back.”
Have you ever done the ABCs of gratitude? Starting with the letter A, go through the alphabet and give thanks for something or someone that begins with that letter. For example, “C. Cheeseburgers!” It’s fun.
Wow.
Wow — Gorgeous, amazing things come into our lives when we are paying attention: mangoes, grandnieces, Bach, ponds. This happens more often when we have as little expectation as possible. If you say, "Well, that's pretty much what I thought I'd see," you are in trouble. At that point you have to ask yourself why you are even here…Astonishing material and revelation appear in our lives all the time. Let it be. Unto us, so much is given. We just have to be open for business.
Go for a walk. Notice what is appearing without any human effort. If you can, take a child or a dog with you on the walk. Let them show you what you might be missing.