Search Me, Lead Me

Let us examine our ways and test them and let us return to the Lord.
Lamentations 3:40

I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.
Psalm 119:59

Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind.
Psalm 26:2

October is one of my favorite times of year. Not because of the harvest festivals, brilliant orange pumpkins and the promise of Thanksgiving turkey coming soon. No, I love October because I can finally open my windows. The punishing heat of the Arizona summer has lifted and fresh, desert breezes blow through the rooms of my home. October is like springtime for desert dwellers. We emerge from our dark caves where we have hidden from the sun all summer long and greet our neighbors whom we haven’t seen in six months. We get excited about cleaning closets and sweeping out the nooks and crannies of our homes in anticipation of the holiday season around the corner.

Housekeeping for our souls

Similarly, we need to do a little housekeeping and sweep the cobwebs out of the corners of our soul, throw open the windows and let the Light shine in, bringing in fresh air and fresh perspectives. The yoga principles of self-awareness and self-examination echo the biblical commands to examine our ways, to test ourselves, to search our hearts and to confess our sin and be forgiven. In Christian yoga we not only examine ourselves but we also lay ourselves open before the Lord for his examination of our hearts. Our prayer is that of David in Psalm 139:23-24:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Through our meditation on the Bible, we have already opened our hearts and minds for examination by it. When we fill our mind with God’s word it works to probe and search our thoughts.

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

Allow time for soul-searching

After we have filled ourselves with God’s word, we need to allow time for this soul-searching. Self-examination is not something that we can hurry through. It takes time to carefully consider our ways. It helps to be still and listen.

We listen for God to speak to us in the inner promptings of our heart and conscience. Then we check these promptings against God’s word to discern his voice over our own.

“Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything“(1 John 3:18-20, emphasis added).

Are you caught in a debilitating cycle?

Sometimes we are caught in debilitating cycles of guilt and self-recrimination or self-doubt. Have I really loved God? Am I really sorry for my sin? Am I really forgiven? Objective examination of our actions against truth allows us to determine if these feelings or doubts are false or genuine. If they are false, even though we feel them deeply, we find confidence in the fact that God knows us more intimately than ourselves, that He knows everything, yet He freely forgives us anyway.

This is why self-examination must be conducted in the context of Scripture and of listening to God, and asking him to search our hearts. If we do it merely on our own, we are in danger of getting lost in our own navels and mired in the muck of self-loathing, or being deluded in the delight of self-congratulation.

Self-examination has two primary purposes: recognition, confession and repentance of sin, and developing an ordering awareness of our own soul that helps organize our lives around God, resulting in loving him with everything we’ve got.

Examination of Conscience and Confession

In the examination of conscience we search our hearts for sin and weakness for the purpose of confession and repentance. This is the practice encouraged in 1 Corinthians 11:27-29:

“A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.”

The thought of shining a light into the dark recesses of our soul can be intimidating and not particularly inviting. It is scary to be vulnerable and open, even within the secrecy of our own hearts. We’d much rather not think about our sins or confront our fears and frailties.

But the exhortation to examination and confession is not for the purpose of punishment or naked exposure. It is an invitation to freedom. When Christ invites us to lay down our burdens in exchange for his yoke, one of those burdens is our sins and failures. When we hold on to sin or ignore it we add weight to the heavy load that is crippling our walk. Our souls groan under the heaviness of this baggage we cling too. When we acknowledge and confess our sins we undo the straps binding us to these deadweights and we experience lightness and freedom and joy.

The initial opening up and shining of the light can be painful like any physical examination of an ailing part of our body. I injured my shoulder recently (not practicing yoga!) and I needed a thorough examination to determine the nature of the injury. It was a very painful process of probing and testing the joint, but very necessary and now the healing can begin with appropriate therapy and care.

When we lay our sins before God and repent of them, the pain is temporary and the healing is promised. We do well to remember that we are not telling him anything he does not already know anyway!

“For a man’s ways are in full view of the Lord, and he examines all his paths”
(Proverbs 5:21).

When we open our hearts to His searching and confess our sin,

“he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:10-12).

When I am Weak, Then I am Strong

One of the reasons I love to practice is yoga is that it makes me so much stronger. With each passing year I have given up more of my unrealistic desire for the perfect body. I will happily settle for being strong.

I was always a strong kid; never the most graceful or coordinated and not the fastest, but always strong. Then time, injuries, motherhood - life, I guess - conspired against me and I was no longer physically strong.

This past spring I was thinking a lot about wanting to be stronger and about different kinds of strength; emotional and spiritual strength that enables you to face hard circumstances and stand, brave, resolved and enduring.

Proverbs 31 describes the wife of noble character setting “about her work vigorously” with arms “strong for her tasks.” I’d think about that in yoga class. Lord, I want strong arms for my tasks! And can I get a little definition too? Nice, sculpted arms like Michelle Obama. Classy muscles.

Then, in the midst of meditating on strength and starting to feel pretty strong, I fell.

Not a private little stumble. No, it was a spectacular public spill in front of my middle school daughter and all her friends. Down like a tree, for all to see, crushing my left arm and shattering my pride. Strong? Not so much. Blind? Quite likely.

Thankfully nothing was broken but my arm hurt like it was. I ended up in a sling. And I was confronted with a graphic reminder that you cannot consider strength without thinking about weakness.

With my injury I was forced into dependence. I had to ask my kids to help with basic things like opening a peanut butter jar. I could not even open the shampoo in the shower. Simple every day tasks like getting dressed or opening a door became serious challenges.

My injured arm also caused me to move deliberately, cautiously and protectively. It occurred to me that imposed weakness is a powerful antidote to the hubris that sometimes hangs around strength.

When we are confident in our own strength we can be tempted into cockiness and even recklessness. I think of the Bible’s strong man, Samson, whose pride in his remarkable strength led to his downfall. Moving through life a little more slowly and carefully is not a bad idea.

This is one of God’s paradoxes - strength comes from weakness. When we rely on our own strength, we are weak. When we admit our weakness and trust in God, he delivers the strength we need.

When the apostle Paul pleaded with God to take away a trial that was tormenting him God answered him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Paul then tells us that for Christ’s sake he will delight in his weaknesses, “for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

My arm recovered and I was glad to get back to regular yoga practice. I’m still pursuing strong arms and a strong body but I also want to remember who takes my weakness and makes me strong - “It is God who arms me with strength” (Psalm18:32).

Funnily enough, verse 33 says “He makes me sure-footed as a deer.” I could probably use that too!

Secure your own mask first before assisting others

Although we never anticipate a change in cabin pressure, should one occur, four oxygen masks will fall from the compartment above. Place the mask over your nose and mouth and breathe normally. If you are traveling with small children please secure yourself first and then assist the child. Finally sit back, relax, and enjoy your flight!

The flight attendant paused at my seat. We were traveling with our three children and she wanted to be sure that I understood that I must put on my own mask prior to helping the children.

I assured her that we were very familiar with the rules and turned to look into the injured and incredulous eyes of my son and daughter. “That’s not right,” my son said accusingly. “Parents are supposed to look after kids first.” My daughter was deeply perplexed and somewhat anxious, “Why should grownups get the oxygen before kids? Will there be enough for us?”

I reassured them that it was very important for me to make sure that I got the mask on quickly or I might pass out before I could help them and they would not be able to help me. They were relieved once they understood. As we settled into our flight it occurred to me that these instructions would serve us all well in life…

Although you never anticipate that you will crack under pressure, should this occur, there will not be an oxygen mask falling from above. Breathing normally will be impossible. If you are traveling with small children, or anyone else, you will be unable to assist them let alone yourself…

So often we look into the eyes of those depending on us, our families, the PTO, the church, the boss… and we can feel the pressure starting to squeeze the life out of us. We know we are starting to run out of air but somehow we muddle on, asthmatic and wheezing in our increasingly feeble efforts to meet everyone’s needs. Some of us secretly enjoy being martyrs. Some of us are just tyrannized by the urgent and the immediate. But we’re all desperate for someone to give us permission to look after ourselves, for instructions to secure our own mask first.

If there was ever someone relentlessly hounded by the needs of others it was Jesus. The crowds were always chasing Jesus, wanting him to teach them, to touch them, to heal them, to feed them. However, we read that Jesus made a regular habit of rising early and seeking time alone, meeting with his Father in prayer. He modeled the discipline of solitude for his disciples and in Mark 6:31-32 we see a beautiful picture of this:

The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.

What do you need to do to make sure you have enough air to keep going? Are you looking after your body well? Are you eating well, sleeping enough? Exercising? But, most importantly, what about your soul? We all benefit from some solitude for the sake of soul care.

In the frenzy, we need to find a quiet center where we can be still and know that God is God and ask Him to search our hearts and know our anxious thoughts. Our moments of solitude with God may be brief at times but they will sustain us - He will sustain us. The moment you step out of your quiet place, everyone will be clamoring for you, but you will be far better equipped to rise to the challenges before you, with compassion and grace.

So stop a moment. Grab that oxygen mask firmly and secure yourself, body and soul, before you attempt to assist others. Finally sit back, relax, and enjoy your flight!

Christian Meditation: Focusing on God’s Word

Many questions come to us about the practice of meditation.

While the outward appearance and technique of Christian meditation and eastern meditation may be similar, there are profound differences in the object and purpose of our meditation.

Richard Foster explains the difference very clearly in his classic on spiritual disciplines, Celebration of Discipline:

“Eastern meditation is an attempt to empty the mind. Christian meditation is an attempt to fill the mind. The two ideas are quite different. Eastern forms of meditation stress the need to become detached from the world. There is an emphasis on losing personhood and individuality and merging with the Cosmic Mind. There is a longing to be freed from the burden and pains of this life and to be released into the impersonality of Nirvana. Personal identity is lost and, in fact, personality is seen as the ultimate illusion. There is no escaping from the miserable wheel of existence. There is no God to be attached to or to hear from. Detachment is the final goal of Eastern religion.

Christian meditation goes far beyond the notion of detachment…No, detachment is not enough; we must go on to attachment. The detachment from the confusion all around us is in order to have a richer attachment to God. Christian meditation leads us to the inner wholeness necessary to give ourselves to God freely.”

~Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster

Meditation on God’s word is a practice commended to Christians through out scripture. Joshua 1:8 records God instructing Joshua to “study this Book of the Law continually. Meditate on it day and night so you may be sure to obey all that is written in it. Only then will you succeed.”

Meditation is a key part of our Christian yoga practice and the means through which our practice is given its spiritual dimension. Through Christian meditation and contemplation we quiet our hearts and minds and we come into God’s presence, ready to listen and receive, ready to be filled with Him.

Are some yoga postures offensive to God?

Since some of the yoga moves started out as Hindu prayer moves, aren’t they wrong to do, or wouldn’t they be offensive to God?

This question comes to us from Cecely, who is often asked this question in her role as a Christian Yoga teacher. This is a very common question about Christian yoga and makes some assumptions that are not true.

Postures are not worship

The first misconception inherent in the question is that it assumes that hatha yoga postures are all postures of prayer or worship. While some postures do assume prayerful or worshipful positions, they were originally developed as physical exercises to prepare the body for extended periods of stillness and contemplation.

Activity itself does not have meaning

The second assumption this question makes is that any action or activity can have a fixed and exclusive meaning, intention and object regardless of who performs it and the context it is performed in.  If we follow this line of reasoning, then it must be that anyone who eats bread and drinks wine at the same time is participating in communion, knowingly or not and therefore doing it inappropriately. That does not make sense, of course.

What about the prayer posture?

The prayer posture, with your hands pressed together in front of your chest, standing or seated, is sometimes objected to by Christians, assuming that is exclusively an act of prayer to Hindu deities.  But this is a posture of prayer in most faiths and cultures.  It is also the sign of greeting in Thai culture. Again, if we follow the reasoning of this objection, then millions of people are unwittingly praying to a Hindu deity several times a day. It is superstitious thinking that underlies a question like this.

Only you add meaning to your postures

God made our bodies and He designed the ways they move best. Postures and exercises that enhance our strength, balance and flexibility are exercises that are part of His design. A posture is only invested with meaning by our intention, our faith and our theology.

When I bring my hands into the prayer posture, I address my prayer to God in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ.  When I lift my hands in a posture of worship, I am worshiping my God, the one true God.

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Do you have a suggestion for a topic about Christianity and yoga? Please share your question with Jenni and watch this blog space for answers to select questions.

Please note: While we endeavor to answer as many questions as we can, we cannot promise a response to every question. If you thirst for additional learning, please refer to our book Christian Yoga: Restoration for Body and Soul, or our Christian Yoga Philosophy online course.

Spirituality with Jenni

By Jenni Zach, Yahweh Yoga Spiritual Director

A conversation on Yoga and Christian Spirituality

The regular practice of Christian yoga has extraordinary potential to improve the health of your whole person. Many Christians wonder, however, if yoga is an appropriate practice for them. In this blog we will explore some of the questions surrounding yoga and Christian spirituality together.

At the heart of our exploration is a commitment to truth and the exercise of biblical discernment. As we seek answers to our questions we want to think rightly in light of God’s Word and then go on to live freely, confident that God will lead us as we follow Him.

We invite you to join this conversation. We look forward to our journey together.

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Do you have a suggestion for a topic about Christianity and yoga? Please share your question with Jenni and watch this blog space for answers to select questions.

Please note: While we endeavor to answer as many questions as we can, we cannot promise a response to every question. If you thirst for additional learning, please refer to our book Christian Yoga: Restoration for Body and Soul, or our Christian Yoga Philosophy online course.