Saint Francis Meditation: My God, My All

My God, my All.

These simple words that Saint Francis would be heard uttering constantly by his brothers is a very powerful meditation.

My God . . .

For me, "My God" is an invocation, as it calls to my awareness that God is so close to me that He is mine. He is closer to me than any family member I have ever had, even my children, because no person, and, definitely, no thing can I really call mine. I can't possess them enough to guard them from time. Death walks with everyone who is dear to me. No, no one is mine.

But God is mine. I possess Him because He possesses me. I can never lose God to time, to death. Go has always been with me and always will be. God is in me and I am in God.

My All . . .

"My All" is a reminder that God is all I need. God is Infinite Abundance. There is nothing missing in God. While everything in this world comes and goes, God remains, filling me with each moment His Grace. He is my breath. Without Him, even for a moment, I would not be, as God is the Living Truth. And if God is not in me then my life is a lie. I am an illusion. Only in God can I truly live.

"My God, my All" is a meditation that can be done in various ways.

While sitting comfortably with eyes closed, breathe in the thought, My God, invoking the awareness that God dwells in you. Draw that breath into your heart. Hold that remembrance there in your heart for a moment. Savor it.

Release, thinking, My All. Letting that thought go out into the world, expanding as it goes. Into your family, into your neighborhood, into your city, into your state, into your country and into all the world. Imagine all the world feeling God's Presence.

Then repeat by drawing in My God.

Use this for part of your meditation or for the whole sitting time. Twenty minutes is a good amount of time to allow you time to settle into a meditative state. Longer is fine if you do not have other responsibilities. You can do this once in the morning and once in the evening.

It can also be used as a walking, working meditation. Throughout the day, whenever you think about it, just say to yourself like Saint Francis did: "My God, my All." It is especially helpful when you find yourself in a stressful situation or you are just feeling low. By repeating these powerful thoughts you are invoking God into your awareness.

Be glad as you think or say this holy invocation, for God is indeed with you.

My Lord, my God, my Friend, my All, my very Self.

Over the years I have extended Saint Francis's meditation to "My Lord, my God, my Friend, my All, my very Self." I have done this because God has taken on different guises of relationship with me upon my journey. Sometimes He is my Lord and Master, and I have the joy of serving Him. Then He is my Creator and protector as my God, Who brings to me everything I need. Then He acts as my closest of friends, my dearest confidant of my soul, who walks with me by my side at all times. Then He is my All, my only need. Finally, there are those times when Grace fills me with light and there is no sense of separation, where I and my father are One in the Silence of my Being.

May you walk in joy as you remember God in every moment.

Another St. Francis Meditation on His Famous Prayer
Meditation on the Lord's Prayer
Christian Meditations
Meditation Techniques Basics: Questions and Answers
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