Acceptance is the key!

Hello and Welcome.

Today I want to provide you with the encouragement to develop a practice in which you cultivate acceptance. 

Housekeeping note: If at any time I am moving too fast for you, hit the pause button and start again when you are ready.

Compassionate acceptance is one of the keys to freedom and transformation. We make peace with the present moment by accepting what happened in the past and by accepting what is, the Now.

At the heart of this meditation is this famous quote from page 417 of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous...

“And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today. When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing, situation —Some fact of my life — unacceptable to me, And I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. Unless I accept life completely on life’s terms, I cannot be happy. I need to concentrate not so much on what needs to be changed in the world as on what needs to be changed in me and in my attitudes.”

It’s been said, “that which we resist persists.” Acceptance, on the other hand, causes your triggers to lose their power.

The well known Franciscan Priest, Author, and speaker Richard Rohr says, “When we accept what is, letting go of our hope for a different or better past, we are led into much greater freedom. And as long as there is accountability and forgiveness as part of the process, healing will almost inevitably follow.” [1]

Let’s begin practicing acceptance with the breath now.

Get comfortable and consciously accept and receive your next few in-breaths and then consciously release and let go of the out-breath. Breathing naturally accept the in breath and let go of the out breath. Accept the in breath and let go of the out breath. Accept the in breath and let go of the out breath.   

Now I invite you to Imagine your breath being like ocean waves hitting the shore and then retreating back into the ocean. As the wave hits the shore, Accept the in breath and as it retreats back into the ocean let go of the out breath. Cling to nothing. 

I want to invite you to compassionately accept ALL things about yourself even as difficult as that may be.

In this present moment accept yourself just as you are and let go of whatever story that may arise about your past, present or future. Accept and let go. 

As Richard Rohr said in the quote above, accept and welcome what is. In doing so you make peace with the present moment. 

Take a moment to be conscious of “what is” for you right now. Be aware of your surroundings and your senses.  Accept and be with all things as they enter your awareness. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you feel? What are you thinking? Accept, be with, and let go.

Accept the help and abundance available to you by the Universe, or the God of your understanding. Be open to your unlimited potential for abundance and joy. Listen for invitations to any sort of action or ideas that surface. If nothing surfaces, accept that too.

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Peace ~ Rod

To connect with Rod for prayer, spiritual direction or coaching see https://www.stillwatermagazine.com/initiatives

FOOTNOTES

(1) Accountability Is Sustainability by Richard Rohr - https://cac.org/accountability-is-sustainability-2019-12-13

Music Credit - Epidemic Sound, Solitude, Peter Sandberg