Two Prayers on Love and Beholding

May we live beyond separation, knowing that nations and cultures are made up of individuals. May I be as one who rethinks my life, my actions, and aligns to the glory we are all capable of.

May I follow where I am spiritually guided and embrace what is new that is of love. May love flow through me and lead my individual life and light towards a better world.

Jacqueline T. Snyder (Eagle Speaks Woman)

O Great Spirit, whose care reaches to the uttermost parts of the earth;
We humbly beseech Thee to behold and bless those whom we love,
now absent from us; and defend them from all dangers of soul and body.

Adapted from The Book of Common Prayer Both citations from Prayers for Healing

One of the principal and foundational aims of my 4 book series, (Seasons of The Soul-Amazon) is to encourage reading more of the world’s wisdom, and to appreciate more of the timeless devotional and their inspirational words; words that can assist any independent seeker, and support their journey through the insights-that are both startling and consoling-that these book(s) can provide…

Among the returning themes that these various selections will repeat and emphasize is the welcoming and offering of blessings, as a part of our greater brother/sisterhood.

The aim and intent of offering love and blessings is altruistic, disinterested yet sincere, as they are words that encourage the heart and support the journey each of us has to take.

Simply, there is a spiritual and affectionate concept I will continually return to in my professional life as a spiritual director, theologian, and coach. It connects to my personal life as a man who is working on his own understanding as a caring human being, and with his own struggles to tame and befriend.

The theme or subject is called “beholding.”

In its Biblical sense, it is a blend of surprises and announcement- Behold! And while that has its own value, the way I am using it is more tender and accepting, more caring and compassionate.
It asks me to behold myself honestly, knowingly, and to see myself and others in the light and love of God; This is not an exclusionary light! It is the light of radical acceptance!

The aim is not to see only the good, the perfect, and the true! While that exclusively loving and positive approach has a certain merit of its own, it is not the way that I perceive my/our humanity best.

I feel that it is important to see or behold each person in their integrity- as a whole person, on their own path; a path or a lifelong journey which has its travails, and has the soulful task to accept wholeheartedly that I/we are unfinished, unpolished, and sometimes raw in what we know of life.

From that acceptance, that shared human experience, we are to behold each other compassionately, and with a full acceptance that we are spiritual witnesses observing and responding to our lives with imperfect awareness. Yet this awesome fact does not prevent us from being wholehearted helpmates to others, as we work to redeem/affirm/heal ourselves.