Windows and Popcorn

On the way to 5 Senses to Prayer Book 2 - #29

Hi friends

Today’s two prayers come from suggestions from paid subscribers. The first two prayers are based on windows and are sitting above the paywall. The third prayer (below the paywall) uses dust bunnies as an entry point but it’s a complex prayer about emotions. It’s based on identifiying and celebrating emotions. Below the paywall is additional reflection on how emotions are made, how this relates to our sensory experiences and how our faith is intertwined in our emotional processing.

The first prayer is a simple cleaning windows prayer. I have a vivid memory of visiting one of my closest friends before we had children and still had time and energy for having spotless houses. She was in a high state of anxiety and had been cleaning her windows every night after work. They were clean and clear, but her mother was about to visit and she was sure she’d be proven to be a failure in her mother’s eyes if her windows weren’t clean enough. As life got busier she’s cared less about having the perfectly cleaned windows and more about some of the challenges of being there for her mother in ways she couldn’t have really imagined back then.

“Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a musty cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!

Matthew 6:22-23 The Message

All Scripture quotations are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

Looking out through a clean window is extremely satisfying, especially if the view is a visual treat or provides interest and stimulation. Looking out beyond ourselves into the world outside our windows stretches us to think beyond ourselves. It builds empathy and understanding. It gives us a birds-eyed view of God’s creation and the people in our world. The second prayer about windows connects into this thinking and it is particularly relevant in our world today. I’ve written it as a praise prayer but you could adapt it to become an intercession prayer.

I loved this song written and sung by Olivia Newton-John and her daughter, Chloe Lattanzi. It seems to tie together these thoughts about looking through windows.

We're waging war, we've died enough
Fighting for everything but love
It's time to heal (it's time to heal)
To turn the page (to turn the page)
Too much to lose, so much to save
We have to change

Window in the Wall by Chloe Lattanzi, Olivia Newton-John

May God be with you this week as you look through windows and take notice of God’s world.

On the journey

Caroline

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Cleaning dirty windows

Sense of Sight – Supplication & Petition (SP.SI.6)

Find a window that is clearly in need of cleaning either outside or inside. Grab your cleaning equipment; a brush, a spray bottle of window cleaner and a softcloth. As you spray and brush, building up a foam on the window, notice how for a short time the window is not able to be looked through. Sometimes when we’re in the middle of resolving challenges, of figuring out a way forward with a problem, or on a journey of healing we lose sight of the end goal. We are busy cleaning up in the moment. As you brush, pray for the things in your life right now that are challenging. When you wipe the spray away with a soft cloth notice the way the window sparkles and becomes clearer. Pray with thanks for the glimpses of the future you can already see and give thanks to God for hearing your prayer and being with you on the journey until you can look through a clear window again.

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Windows to the world

Sense of Sight – Adoration & Praise (AP.SI.8)

Look through a window. What can you see? Sit and observe for several moments. Allow the view from the window form prayers of praise. Say aloud your one sentence prayers of praise to God for what you can see in front of you.