Yoga – Godinterest

Recently I’ve been on a spiritual journey that includes deep prayer, meditation, and mindfulness to help me to connect with God. At the same time, I’ve also been on the hunt for some low-impact stretching that could potentially help with chronic pain in a natural way.

Meditation and stretching. Put those two together and what do you get?

Yoga.

So, I’ve said I need to stretch. And I find that meditation brings me closer to God. These all naturally come together in the form of yoga. But, as a Christian, should I do yoga? Am I allowed? Will Jesus love me less?

Well, first, let’s see”¦what does the Bible say about the word “yoga”? Nothing. Zero. There’s no record of that word being used.

So now what do I do? Since the Bible doesn’t talk about yoga specifically, I have to use the brains God gave me to dig a bit deeper. Then I can determine how best to deal with this current cultural trend.

Let’s start with a few of the basics:

Yoga began as a spiritual disciple in Hindu which includes breath control, meditation, and static postures of the body. Some people who practice yoga are active Hindus or Buddhists. Many are not.
In the western world, yoga is a broad term that is often descriptive of people engaging in the physical body postures that encourage strength and stamina. Sometimes this is combined with meditation for mental strength, but not exclusively. Some yoga classes used sacred words such as “Om”, “Namaste”, and certain chants that hint to Buddhism and Hinduism. Other classes make no reference to the spiritual world at all and are simply a form of physical exercise. Yoga potures have Sanskrit names that have spiritual meanings. Many times these are replaced with English names that simply describe the form the body is taking. (For instance, “lotus” has become “criss-cross applesauce”.)

The word “yoga” in Sanskrit means “yoke” or “union with God”. God tells me to not worship another god, and I must obey.

So I know that yoga started as an ancient spiritual practice of another religion which should lead me to move forward with caution. But I also know that Jesus came to redeem all things.

Is it possible to engage in a moderated form of yoga that feeds our Christian souls, or should we avoid it altogether? Can we be aware of the potential pitfalls and dangers of the spiritual side of yoga and then practice it in a meaningful way with a Christian bent and attitude?

The famous American minister John Piper seems to think that we can’t. He says we should avoid yoga completely, citing it as antithetical to Christianity.

Don’t get me wrong, I think Piper has some good things to offer. But in this situation I tend to think that maybe he’s throwing the proverbial “baby out with the bathwater”.

Christians have often taken “secular” symbols or practices and re-stored them into something that is healthy and even God-glorifying. Take Christmas, for example. December 25, the day on which we now celebrate Jesus’ birth, was reclaimed from the pagans. That date was redeemed from a pagan holiday to a Christian celebration.

Jesus has come to redeem all things. Even pagan holidays. Possibly even stretching and meditation and breathing?

Over the ages, Christians have used wisdom and the discernment to choose what is right for them as individuals and as a Body of believers. To apply Jesus’ redemption to various non-Christian things.

“Everything is permissible but not everything is beneficial.” 1 Corinthians 10:23

So I need to decide if yoga could be beneficial (or detrimental) to me. In my case, I truly believe God has given me the wisdom and discernment to be able to stretch and strengthen my body without accidentally worshipping a false god. I even believe that I can meditate and breathe while I simultaneously reflect and contemplate how incredible God is. All without slipping into the devil’s snare.

But I am aware that this may not be the case for all people.

Personally, think that I can apply the idea of a “yoke” or “union with God” in yoga to my relationship with Christ. But that doesn’t mean I’ll just sign up for any yoga class that is offered. I need to be wise and first ask questions about how spiritual a class is before taking it. For my own purposes, I tend to learn at home with videos, so there’s not much of a risk of me getting caught in an awkward situation. If something gets a little weird, I can just turn it off.

Holy Yoga is a practice that is gaining traction, offering the grounding of the Gospel while reframing the positive aspects of yoga in a Christian way.

“Holy Yoga embraces the essential elements of yoga: breath work, meditation and physical postures. In all of these elements, Christ is the focus of our intention and worship.”

So as I‘m making a decision about yoga (or anything in my life!), I need to ask if it creates a risk of becoming a detriment to my walk with Jesus. If so, then I absolutely shouldn’t do it! But if yoga can be practiced in a way that is healthy to my body and mind, while drawing me closer to Christ with mindfulness and meditation, then is it possible that even John Piper can’t argue with that?

A friend and I recently started a women’s circle in our town, inviting friends and fellow church-goers. We told everyone it would be a time of guided meditation, solitude, and spiritual connection with God. A time to be mindful and present. We knew this might be a new concept to some women so we explained it through written communication and face-to-face.

Very quickly we realized that a lot of confusion exists around meditation. Or at least in our little evangelical Christian corner of the western world. And I’m guessing we are not alone.

Some women thought we were planning to do yoga. Others were uncertain whether meditation is even appropriate for Christians.

Thankfully, we weren’t calling our sisters to do anything unbiblical. In fact, David, the “man after God’s own heart” wrote about his heart’s meditation in the Psalms.

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14

So what is meditation?

More than those quick prayers we say while driving or just before a big meeting. Different than the times we spend in corporate prayer. Not quite the same as worship—although the two are related.

Meditation is about taking a dedicated time to stop, contemplate, and consider. It doesn’t happen on the fly.

According to the Cambridge English Dictionary, meditation is “the act of giving your attention to only one thing”.

Focus. Fixate. Concentrate.

Consider. Reflect. Contemplate.

Ponder. Ruminate. Deliberate. Speculate.

In an age where people are constantly busy and value is placed on activity or productivity, the idea of sitting still, thinking or pondering scripture seems foreign. But could this be the very reason that anxiety, stress, and chronic illness are so pervasive? Could it be that putting our lives on pause to meditate has the power to change things?

We are instructed by the author of Hebrews to “fix our eyes on Jesus“. (Heb 12:2)

As we fix our eyes and hearts on Jesus through meditation, we gain innumerable benefits. Of course, the spiritual benefits are obvious. Deepening our relationship with the Father. Keeping us in step with the Spirit.

Certainly, emotional benefits come from spending time communing with God. And these can extend into our personal relationships with family and friends.

But what about physical benefits? Is it possible that God created our bodies in a way that we are physically healthier when we spend time communing with him?

The answer is yes. Emphatically, yes.

Our brilliant Creator made our bodies to respond to meditation, contemplation, stillness and focus in a way that offers a myriad of benefits. And while scientists can’t quite understand why research shows that times of meditation are healthy for the human body.

While the details vary depending on the specific study, the basic concept remains the same. Research shows that, on the whole, people who meditate have better health in specific areas as well as overall.

Here are some of the ways studies have shown meditation benefits the health:

Lowers Blood Pressure. Young people were found to have significantly lower blood pressure rates after mediation when compared to a control group.
Reduced Heart Rate. When compared with people who were simply resting during the same amount of time, people who meditated had significant decreases in their heart rate and blood pressure levels. And the longer the meditation lasts, the lower the heart rate.
Serotonin Levels. Critical in relationship to mood, bone health, digestion, and wound healing, people who meditate have higher levels of this critical neurotransmitter.
Melatonin Levels. Vital for proper sleeping rhythms, people who meditate have higher levels of melatonin.
Immune System. After eight weeks of meditation training, study participants were found to have much higher functioning immune system response than a control group.
Reduced Chronic Illness Symptoms. In various studies, people who meditate have shown significant improvement in symptoms of chronic illness such as fibromyalgia, high blood pressure, psoriasis, and even cancer.
Overall Sense of Health and Well-Being. As extra dopamine is released during meditation, our overall feelings of pleasure and joy are triggered. Dopamine is useful in balancing blood pressure as well as fighting against depression and anxiety.

It is important to note that meditation can be physically beneficial whether practiced with or without religious beliefs. But, as Christians, we understand that the only true self-reflection and enlightenment we can find comes from the God of the Universe. As we commit to meditate and commune with God, we are rewarded with a deepening eternal relationship as well as health for our temporal bodies.

It seems that God has thought of everything.

If you aren’t sure how you feel about meditation, why not try it? Tell us about your experience.

Tag: Yoga

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