My Intentions are Good

I belong to an intenders circle, where we help each other manifest wishes and dreams and good things in our lives. It can be as simple as setting an intention for getting your house cleaned before your mother in law comes to visit to as esoteric as world peace. I love the community that has developed with this group, as well as seeing peoples wishes and dreams come true. One of the rules is that everything must be stated as a positive. For example, you don’t say I don’t want any more bills. Instead, your intention would be I want financial abundance.

 

There are intenders circles all around the world, and it’s really cool to be part of something bigger than you and your local community. The circle reminds me of the stories of the early Christian churches, where they met in homes or other places. Like those early Christians, our circle starts with an agape meal. I love the potluck snacks that everyone brings. There is something about sharing food with others that transforms strangers into friends. Its my opinion that when you celebrate communion in church, and especially when it’s the center of the service (like in the Episcopal or Catholic churches), its not only the transformation of the bread and wine-but also the transformation of strangers into friends.

 

After the meal, we gather together in a circle and prepare for our sacred time. We open with prayer. Each person in the circle has a turn to offer up our gratitude and our intentions. I have been a practicing Christian for most of my life, so I tend to equate things with what I am most familiar with, and that is the Church. When I pray, I always start with thanking God for what I have-because I feel if I am not grateful for what is there already, how can I ask for something else? It is the same with the intenders circle. We share what we are grateful for before we set new intentions. At the end, we tone-everyone says a word or sound sacred to them, in unison. Its an amazing feeling hearing several dozen folks all chanting together, but saying different things, all for the greater glory.

 

The intenders circle is not just for adults. Just as our children pray for wants and needs, they too can set intentions. There are some pretty awesome friendships that have developed between the kids who attend-they are from different schools, churches and even communities-but they have this common bond. They all are working to make their dreams come true.