prayer

A Surprising Place to Find God
– by Carolyn Bell

by

This is a guest post by my friend Carolyn Bell.  She is a member of First United Methodist Church in Wichita Falls, Texas where she taught preschool at the School for Little People for 25 years – and still teaches yoga to four year olds!  Currently, she teaches the High School Girls Sunday School Class and participates in several study groups.  A certified yoga teacher, Carolyn teaches at Anytime Fitness, also in Wichita Falls.  You can learn more about a transformation in her life and her personal yoga journey on her blog:  yogafriends.wordpress.com.  She is married to Dewayne, and they have two adult sons.

Growing up, I had a traditional Christian upbringing within several Methodist churches, but I was surprised to discover a deepening of my faith on my yoga mat. I started a yoga practice about 14 years ago at a time when my personal anxiety was at an all-time high level. For many reasons, I have had a struggle with an anxiety disorder over the years. No amount of prayer or positive thinking or medications had helped me to overcome my overstimulated nervous system. My body was in that “flight or fight” syndrome most of the time, and I felt very fragile.  While I struggled to remain present in my body at my first yoga experience, I soon discovered the reward at the end of class… meditation.  It was in this contemplative state that I opened myself to new possibilities and to new life. I prayed for God’s presence and for His guidance. After six years of practice I knew that God was opening a path for me to teach yoga, and I responded. Yoga has given me techniques to calm and integrate my body, mind, and breath.  The continued practice of meditation has given me the ability to open myself as a vessel for the creative flow of God. I know more than ever that, “In God I live and move and have my being.” (Acts 17: 28) God is the creative spirit of life. I see his work all around me. Meditation has allowed me to open myself in ways that I never imagined.  I discovered for myself that yoga integrates the movement of the body and mind with the breath which allows your spirit the freedom to soar.

A few years after beginning my yoga practice, I was faced with more challenges to my personal belief system. As my heart softened, I altered my view of what I thought I believed. I discovered a new vision for the Kingdom of God, one that I was already participating in here on earth. As I let go of the rigidity of my mind, I understood anew ways of understanding the stories in the Bible and the message that Jesus brought forward. By softening the hard edges of my mind, body, spirit connection I leaned more into progressive Christianity with authors like Marcus Borg, John Dominic Crossan, John Shelby Spong, Walter Wink, Brian D. McLaren, and Rob Bell. These authors make me think and re-evaluate my life purpose as a follower of Jesus. At times, I struggled with thoughts like, “Is it okay for me to think like this?” “What will others think about me if I don’t believe the standard message anymore?” and finally, “This is more exciting and amazing information than I ever thought possible!”  In years past I probably would have panicked and run away from anything that went against my traditional theology.  But because I had the tools that I needed to stand firm and open my heart to listen, and to use my mind to comprehend what I was presented, I gained new insight, new knowledge, new understanding.  I believe that my yoga practice has had an influence on how I accepted this new vision of Christ in my life.  There is something about yoga that requires you to step outside of your comfort zone… to be unafraid… to face your fears and let them flow out of your body with your breath.  Thomas Merton said, “When the heart is right, ‘for’ and ‘against’ are forgotten.”  Many yoga postures open your heart, freeing you from fear and encouraging you to stand firm, to find that balance between surrender and strength.  This balance of the body and mind with the breath allows you to flow in synchronicity within yourself, and it has an impact on how open your heart is toward others.  For me, the breath is the God given “pneuma” of life itself in God’s Holy Spirit.  You feel a connection with those near to you and to all of life.  In Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus himself tells us to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it:  Love your neighbor as yourself.” Yoga has introduced me to another culture, to another philosophy, to tools for living, and even to new music. This gained knowledge has helped me to gain new insight for my own culture and religious belief system.  I have fellowshipped with and grown closer to people that I never would have known otherwise.  I have dropped the rigid dividing walls of my mind.  Yoga has given me the tools that I needed to face my fears, to cleanse them with the breath of God’s spirit, to be still before my God, and to serve others in love.

I have heard the Christian naysayers who speak up against yoga saying that the two practices are incompatible. For me, yoga has enhanced my spiritual life especially through the meditation practice.  I have learned how to be still before my God and listen for His voice and direction in my life.  Yoga did originate in India 6000 years ago, and it does have a philosophy that is described in the Yoga Sutras by Patanjali.  It is a scientific system that enables one to build strength along with flexibility which encourages inner growth and discipline.  Yoga has taught me how to breathe correctly, how to balance effort with relaxation, how to be present in difficult circumstances, how to feel grounded with good posture, how to quiet my mind in order to think or not think, how to move my body with the breath, and how important it is to rest in order to be at ease in the world.  Yoga balances the energy in my body. If I did not feel this balance then I would not be able to interact fully with those around me; I would be on the couch with a blanket over my head!  Through my studies, I have discovered that there is a yoga ‘mudra’ or hand position which symbolizes Christ’s presence in your life, and your hands are repeatedly placed in a prayer position throughout the practice.  Yoga has helped me to free my tense body, heart, and mind to God, to others, and to my own inner wisdom.  From my perspective God has blessed me with this physical practice of yoga.

I have continued as a yoga teacher for the past 8 years and even share my passion with children by teaching yoga through story and movement.  There are wonderful yoga stories available for children that teach ways for them to deal with their emotions, to playfully imitate animals, and to learn to quiet their mind and bodies. My yoga practice has been an amazing and opening experience for me. Each class is a time of present moment awareness and of opening myself to God’s presence and to His creative flow. I believe that God is working within me to share this practice with others. Relationships have grown with those who practice with me as we have become more connected through our shared experience. I know that I can’t help but include my Christian faith as part of my yoga practice. It is a part of who I am; however, I have discovered that yoga encourages the same qualities of love, compassion, peace, patience, and humility that Jesus shared with us as the fruits of the Spirit. I encourage you to add a time of meditation to your daily life and experience the ever present Spirit of God for yourself.  Every breath we take connects us to God if we acknowledge Him. That breath flows through every organ and vessel of our bodies, cleansing our systems and filling us with new life.  Experience the connection for yourself, and open your heart to new possibilities.  Find your strength in stillness before God.

Namaste – Carolyn

A Prayer for the Nation

by

This was a prayer I shared on October 31, 2010, the Sunday before election day, at a prayer rally for the nation.  It is a prayer that I believe still needs to be prayed today in this election year.  That is why I share it now.

O God of heaven and of earth
On this day before All Saints day,
we give thanks for all who have gone on before
who have been a shining example and beacon of truth and light.
We pray that these examples of faith and courage
will give insight and wisdom as a nation going forward.

Lord, we are definitely in need of insight and wisdom in our country
as we are a divided nation.
We have many opposing views on how
our country should be run
and how we should deal with varying issues.
The sad thing is that in many instances,
we are not approaching these differences
from an attitude of love – agape love – unconditional love.
Rather, we forget what the Apostle Paul wrote about
unconditional love in 1 Corinthians 13.
We forget that he said that
“Love does not insist on its own way,”
and we insist that the only way is our own way.

Lord in the midst of these divisions that we all face,
let us remember the true words that Jesus spoke,
“If a kingdom, a nation is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.”
Lord, we pray that we may not be divided
but may find common ground to better our nation as a whole.

Lord, we are definitely in need of insight and wisdom in our country
as we are a divided nation
and many of these divisions come from fears:
fears of the unknown;
fears of ways that we are not accustomed to;
fears of people who are different than us.
Lord, You bring light and salvation to all,
whom shall we fear?
You are our stronghold.
Of whom shall we be afraid?
Lord, You are our helper;
let us not be afraid, for what can anyone do to us ultimately?

Lord, in the midst of these fears that we all face,
remind us and our whole nation of these words in 1 John 4:
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear;
for fear has to do with punishment,
and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.
We love because You, O God, first loved us.
Those who say, “I love You, God,”
and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars;
for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen,
cannot love You, O God whom they have not seen.
The commandment we have from Jesus is this:
those who love You, O God, must love their brothers and sisters also.”
Lord, we pray that these words from Scripture may inspire us not to fear,
but to look beyond our fears to love all people unconditionally –
friend and enemy both,
loving as You love O God.
You show no partiality.
Help us not to show partiality,
for as Jesus rightly said,
“You cause the sun and rain to come down
on both the righteous and the unrighteous.”
We need to be like You in this way.

Lord, we are definitely in need of insight and wisdom in our country
as we are a divided nation,
many divisions coming from forgetting the two greatest commandments
that Jesus gave us:
First, loving You with all we have: heart, soul, mind, and strength;
and the second like it, loving our neighbors as ourselves.
We have forgotten the words of the Apostle Paul in Philippians 2
where he reminds us that we are to have the mind of Christ,
looking not to our own interests, but to the interests of others.
At times, we are driven to treat others harshly,
forgetting that Jesus said to
“Do unto others as we would have them do unto us.”

O God, I’m reminded that Jesus was very much concerned with bringing healing.
Not only did He heal people himself,
but when he sent the disciples out two-by-two,
an instruction he gave to them was that they were to heal also.
Lord, inspire each citizen of this country to accept Your healing balm,
and to share that healing balm with each other,
following that command of Jesus to his disciples.
Draw us together; may we find peace and unity.

Lord, I pray that when it is time for judgment,
when the Son of Man judges the nations
I pray that all of us will be counted among the sheep,
“for we saw those who were hungry and we gave them food.
We saw people who were thirsty and we gave them something to drink.
We saw folks who were strangers and we welcomed them.
We saw those who were naked and we gave them clothing.
We saw people who were sick and we took care of them.
We saw some in prison and we visited them.’
For in so doing, we believe we were doing this for Jesus, who taught us to pray saying:

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil
for thine is the kingdom
and the power
and the glory forever.
Amen.

Prayer on Prayer

by

Our Ever-Present Refuge & Hiding Place,
we come to you again, today, to worship You
and to seek refuge and to hide from the troubles and worries of life.

O Great God, as we pray this morning,
we are mindful of our need to pray
in order to grow in our relationship with You.
Yet, we have difficulty with our prayer life.
How should we pray?
Is there a book that will tell us how to pray?
How will we know we are saying the right words to You?
How will we know that You, O God, are happy with our prayers?

O Lord, calm us in our anxieties.
Remind us that prayer is a dialogue with you.
Remind us that our prayers are just communicating with You
as we would a beloved friend or a loving parent.
Help us to be so close to you that we are not afraid to say anything to You
just as we are not afraid to say anything to our closest friends –
even if we are mad, sad, confused, or excited – just as the writers of the Psalms often did.

Yet, O Ground of our Being, calm us and slow us down more to remind us that
prayer is dialogue between two parties.
Help us to listen to You, as well.
Remind us that our communication is a two way street.
Lord, You are ALWAYS with us, no matter what.
Help us to see, then, that You are always trying to speak to us.
May we hear You in people that we speak with.
May we hear You in the people that we help.
May we hear You as we read our Bibles and other writings as well.
May we hear You in the music we listen to and the music we sing.
May we hear You in the beauty of nature.
May we hear You in the routine of life.
Help us, O Lord, to take the time to listen.
Help us, O God, to listen with great expectancy
for what You have to say to us.
Amen.

Was I Short-Changed?

by
1st Day of 1st Grade

I started kindergarten at the Howe Independent School District in Texas during the fall semester of 1978.  In May 1991, I graduated Salutatorian of the same school district.

Howe, at the time, could really be described as a small farming community in North Texas with a population of 2072.  Some of my friends were sons and daughters of farmers.  The parents of others were similar to my parents who worked in the larger town of about 30,000 to the north, Sherman.

By far the largest church in Howe was First Baptist of the Southern Baptist Convention.  There was a “conspiracy theory” going around among members of other denominations that the only way to get on the school board or city council was to be a member of that church.  I now realize (I didn’t then) that the reason that seemed to be the case was because members of that church were more well known among a larger base of the community.  No conspiracy there.

During that time period, I don’t remember our family ever formally praying at home unless Uncle John was visiting.  If he was there, we’d always say a prayer before meals, but only then.  We were, however, regular church attenders at First United Methodist where my mom taught the 4-5 year old Sunday school class for years.

I remember evolution being taught in school as a plausible theory for how the world was created; evidence for why this seemed plausible was shared.  I don’t remember anyone ever mentioning the biblical story of creation period.  It wasn’t affirmed; it wasn’t bashed.  Evolution was just a good theory.

The only time I remember the Bible being brought up in school was in world history when a student asked, “Why is it that Adam and Eve were the first people, but after they leave Eden, there are other people?”  Coach Fry (who taught the class) responded that he believed that Adam and Eve were not the first people, just the first people with souls.

I never once remember there being a single prayer said in school, though we did usually have a prayer before football games – a task shared among local clergy.  I also don’t even remember there being a set aside “moment of silence” at school in which I could take a moment to say a prayer.  If there was ever a “See Ya At the Pole” rally, I don’t recall it.

To hear many people tell it, I was somehow short-changed.  My education was somehow “less than.”  School must have been unbearable.  According to them, I should have become a heathen as all my other classmates should have.

For me, school was unbearable but only because I’d have rather been on my bike riding around my neighborhood or watching TV.  Yet, in no way do I feel like my education was somehow “less than.”  I feared, going off to college and later seminary, that I’d be behind since I came from little ol’ Howe, Texas.  What I discovered was that my education was really good.  We really had good teachers there.

Although I really don’t remember anything being formally “Christian,” I remember that for the most part the teachers were fair, caring, and supportive – even though I often wanted to look for something I didn’t like in a teacher.  They worked to make sure we tried to get along.  If one of us made fun of others (and were caught) we suffered consequences.  There were consequences if we fought, and reconciliation seemed like the goal that was being promoted in those instances.

Explicitly Christian?  NO.  Christian in practice?  In my opinion, YES.

One of my favorite quotes is attributed to St. Francis of Assisi:  “Preach the Gospel.  Use words only if necessary.”  Yet, many think that the Gospel is only about words – predominantly adjectives, occasionally nouns.  “Is that Christian?  Are you a Christian?”  Instead of taking the Gospel as something that is our own responsibility to do, we want others to make it a responsibility for us.  “You need to make sure someone prays at school, and be sure to teach the theology I have there, too.”

One of the things that I learned at my church in Howe was that I could pray anytime I wanted in the secret closet of my mind and heart (see Matthew 6:6).  I didn’t need anyone to set aside a time for me to pray.  I didn’t need anybody to pray for me.  I could take that personal responsibility for myself – and occasionally did.

In the United Methodist Church (of which I am an ordained Deacon), we have the slogan, “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors.”  These are typically interpreted as things we have.  Rather, I think it is something we are to do.  My experience at a school that didn’t have prayer or a designated “moment of silence” were teachers who sought to open my heart, my mind, and the door to a larger world.  They did this without explicitly being “Christian” in words they used but certainly were Christian in their actions.  They showed me their Christianity.  They didn’t tell me their Christianity.

Was I short-changed?  Was my education un-Christian?  Not in my opinion.