We hear it all the time, from friends and family. We even say it ourselves sometimes. I'm sooooo busy. It's true, we are busy people. Our lives are filled to the brim, over-packed, and scheduled to the max. And when that happens, when all the “To-Dos” build up, we often lose sight of what’s important. We lose touch with ourselves, with love and compassion. Instead we get worried and stressed, and the stress stays with us in our bodies. When the body is tight and tense, it is harder to relax, to settle down and to be quiet. When we take the time to unwind we can feel the peace that God so wants us to experience. This past Sunday, Pastor Jerry said that "God breaths on us" and into us the Holy Spirit and once filled, we experience peace. Not the simple kind of peace you find when someone is noisy and you ask them, “Can I have some peace and quiet, Please?” But the deep peace, deep within you peace, peace that fills us to the brim, utterly – peace that almost overwhelms us with its fullness. The fullness of God’s love - that kind of peace. This week's practice will be about peace. Quieting ourselves enough to that we can feel God's peace, God's presence. Blessings and namaste, Vick
0 Comments
Faith & Yoga will be starting at CRC on April 26th. We'll start at 6:30 p.m. so come early to set up and sign in!! Doors open at 6:15. Come to the lower level. Bring your yoga mat and a friend. We will be active for about 50 minutes then spend 20 to 30 minutes in a guided relaxation or meditation. Please read the Tips page for more information.
See you there! I went to a "Faith and Yoga" event this morning at the Newman Center at the Ohio State campus with Father Thomas Ryan. Father Ryan opened his session by saying "today will be a time of prayer, together, in heart and body."
He asked why do people do yoga? Then he mentioned two types of yoga alive today "Contemporary" and Classical." Many people enjoy "Contemporary yoga" as a way to exercize. To stretch and tone their muscles. However, originally, in the classical form of yoga, people did yoga to help them meditate better. To help them sit quietly in meditation. Yoga was and is used today to settle the mind and relax the body. By doing the asanas - the movements and postures - we release built up tension and we learn to focus the mind on the here an now. So at the end of your asana practice your whole being is ready to focus on meditation and prayer. Meditation throughout Christian history has used a mantra, a mental instrument, something to anchor the mind. So we use prayer words to focus the mind and then we can pray with faith and with love. Father Ryan led our large group through a series of warm ups and then taught us postures that can be done to the Lord's Prayer. By doing this we essentially participated in a moving meditation. Praying and focusing our minds on God while we actively worked our bodies. I think Father Ryan is right. Yoga is a way to pray holistically using your mind, heart and body. It truly is a beutiful way to pray. Have a wonderful week! |
Schedule Notice!Classes at back at CRC Archives
December 2017
Categories
All
|