This morning during my second week of teaching preschool this year, I found myself in the teacher's bathroom taking a deep breath and whispering a shallow prayer.
All is going well, and I love my kids and the job. But it is exhausting, draining and challenging on a daily basis. My co-teacher and I have 18 four-year-old's who are adorable and ridiculously funny! And as busy as 4-year-olds ought to be.
My bathroom quickie prayer often sounds like this, "Father, help! Help me relax, help me look into their eyes, help me let go of my agenda and be ready for what they need right now. Thanks! Love you."
Sometimes it is more like this, "God, HELP!"
Shallow, but real.
And maybe that kind of prayer is not so shallow after all. When I am grabbing my minutes of quiet in the middle of a noisy and active day, it is best if I steer my mind and thoughts toward God. If I do not think of asking for His help, I tend to be hard on myself or others and I berate myself and them for not being perfect.
When I send God my 911....SOS....Bat Signal, it brings my heart back to where it needs to be. Calling out to God invites Him into those deep breathes and makes them much more helpful and beneficial.
A deep breath is only as good as what you are inviting in with that breath. It is calming and centering and relaxing. But we can also turn right around and walk back into frustration and tension faster than we can snap that bathroom light off. Ask me how I know.
Maybe I should make a pretty poster for the teacher's bathroom that reminds us to take a deep breath and say a shallow prayer.
Do you think this idea can apply to your day too? Your office breakroom, your car between clients, your bathroom while hiding from the kids?
We all walk around in a busy and noisy world, whether online or outside our homes. It is easy to keep carrying around the frustrations and grievances that we bump into all day. The bumps and bruises add up and we end our day stooped over with the weight of it all.
Do you think that ducking into a nearby bathroom, closet (well no, that could be embarrassing) or breakroom for a deep breath and a shallow prayer could make a difference? It sounds too simple really.
But sometimes simple works.
Susie
2 comments:
I like simple solutions to big issues...and a quick prayer...a deep breath...are great ways to de-stress yourself in the midst of the fray. God is only a breath and a prayer away...always ready to respond to our quick plea for "help!". Sometimes that's the only kind of prayer I can manage...but God doesn't seem to mind at all. He loves us and hears us all the time, even in the bathroom or closet or breakroom! This was great, Susie! I'm so proud of you!!!!
You are right, I am sure that God loves the shallow prayers as much as the deep travails. Maybe even more! Ha!
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