Silence Once this week, meet with your client partner (as assigned by your professor) and in a role play fashion lead them through a silence exercise as outlined below where they will sit in meditation. Meetings should only last 30-60 minutes and should include the practice of leading your client through the practice of silence and meditation and a short time for debriefing with your partner. Your client has regular anxieties and stressors that have begun to affect their performance at work because they cannot seem to focus. Further, they are irritable and reactive to family members and this is especially troubling to them because of their commitment to a relationship with Jesus Christ. The etiology of these problems seems to come from being overworked and under tremendous pressure for a number of years. You are trained in DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) but know that it can be, in philosophy, contradictory to your client’s Christian beliefs. Being a wise and thoughtful counselor, you know that meditation and mindfulness are originally Christian concepts. You talk through the following topics with your client before you lead them in a meditation exercise (for more information read Garzon and Ford, 2016): The importance of silence and meditation from the Christian perspective. Benefits of silence and meditation to mental health. Christian Accommodated Mindfulness – Week 3 Accepted Tenderness Meditation The Wisdom of Accepted Tenderness by Richard Johnston This Prayer Meditation is focused on the tenderness and love of God. By praying and meditating on these themes, the goal is to internalize these Biblical truths as an experiential reality in our hearts. First, seek to be still in God’s presence. Sitting in a straight-backed chair, make yourself comfortable and relaxed. Your posture should be upright so that you can remain alert during this time. You can close your eyes if you wish, allowing my voice to guide you through the prayer. Now gently come to focus on your breathing, remembering that the Holy Spirit Himself is described as the breath of God. As you breathe in, physically seek to breathe in the very presence of God, who is with you right here and right now. Spend a few moments simply breathing in the presence of God. The Scriptures describe the Holy Spirit as the breath of God. Welcome now the presence of the Holy Spirit who is the breath of God in you and around you. TODAY O LORD I ACCEPT YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF ME Notice any questions or commentary that arise in your mind at this time. As you become aware of any thoughts arising in the mind, gently seek to let these come and go, returning your focus to God and the words of the Prayer. TODAY O LORD I ACCEPT YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF ME YOU ARE ALWAYS WITH ME AND ALWAYS FOR ME As much as you are able, use these words to express your own faith to God, but if you sense any resistance in your heart, don’t criticize yourself in any way. Simply acknowledge with kindness your honest response. As much as you are able, seek to identify with and pray these words from your own heart: YOU ARE ALWAYS WITH ME AND ALWAYS FOR ME I RECEIVE INTO MY SPIRIT YOUR GRACE, YOUR MERCY, YOUR CARE God is the most gracious, kind, merciful, and caring being who exists. And He cares for you personally. In these moments, seek to accept and receive His grace and mercy at the core of who you are. Spend a few moments in the silence seeking to be aware of these realities. If your mind wanders, gently bring your awareness back to the silence, and back to the presence of God, here with you now. I RECEIVE INTO MY SPIRIT YOUR GRACE, YOUR MERCY, YOUR CARE I REST IN YOUR LOVE O LORD Knowing that God loves you and accepts you for who you are right now, you are free to rest in his love. Notice if any struggling or arguments or questions arise in your mind, gently watch these thoughts come and go and return your focus to the love and tenderness of God towards you personally. I REST IN YOUR LOVE O LORD In these moments, continue to rest in the accepted tenderness of God towards you personally, using the stretches of silence to simply enjoy being with Him. In a few moments, I will say Amen to signal the end of this Prayer meditation. Breathing in your presence, I REST IN YOUR LOVE O LORD AMEN For this session, write a 1-2 page reflection paper on your experience while integrating your reading from Session 3 to inform your experience. Please include a title page and format your paper according to APA standards. You may use 1st person references for a reflection paper. For more specific APA information,
