Week 12/52 week challenge!!! Take a chance

MEDITATION/MESSAGE
“How easily,” my heart says, “I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain.” Yet I believe in what is unseen. My pain night and day is that I believe in what is unseen. I believe in a fire that burns within me---transforming me from glory to glory. I believe in strength that is not of this world, welling up and forming within me. I believe in the power of barren prayers and unseen tears. I believe in the Holy Spirit ever abiding within me. All unseen realities.
I wait for YOU. I am still waiting for YOU. Oh, how YOU test my soul with YOUR tarrying. Yet what choice have I? There is no movement forward without YOU. So here I wait. How YOU ruin the lives of YOUR beloved ones with a love that cannot be argued away and a faith that is an immovable Rock in the journey’s way. I do not remain in this place of waiting because my heart is noble, but I wait because my love and my faith have become greater than I and I cannot convince them to depart from me. They are towers that have risen within me and now are indeed the strength of my city. I cannot move them for they are my essence. No longer portions of me but all of me. They are God Himself within me.  ~DEEP UNTO DEEP


May each of us come to know the tower that is being built within us. We are yours Lord; may we spend each breath becoming more aware that we are always in Your Loving Presence!!! Enjoy....


HEAD STAND POSE DESCRIPTION
~starting from childs pose, lift your hips up from your heal and bring yourself onto your forearms
~interlace your finger tips and create a basket shape with your hands;  creating a place to cradle your head
~placing the crown of your head into the cradle of your hands
~you must draw your abdominal muscles in and lift from the rib cage in order to move smoothly into the head stand
~shoulders are drawn together and away from the ears, supporting the weight of your body

~the head is just resting in the hands, there is little weight on the neck. The shoulders are bearing the load

~begin to lift the hips towards the sky coming onto the toes

~ then slowing start to walk the feet closer and closer towards the heart

~YOU MAY STOP AT ANY POINT IN THIS and then build up each time you revisit this pose
~If you are able take the right foot off of the floor completely, and tuck the knee up by the right armpit
~If the right leg feels secure, you may also bring the left knee to the left armpit
~Finally using your core you can send one leg at a time up towards the sky
~Understand that He gives us our strength, so wherever you find yourself in this pose, celebrate and know He will be the one building the Tower inside of you!
~Hold the pose as long as you feel comfortable and then slowly, with the core engaged, begin to release both feet to the floor
~rest in childs pose for a few moments to allow your blood flow to return to normal 

MEDITATION/MESSAGE

As followers of Jesus Christ, we should strive to have a good reputation. We are told in the Bible that having a good name is very important: 

 Proverbs 22:1 “A sterling reputation is better than striking it rich; a gracious spirit is better than money in the bank.” 

From a worldly perspective, we usually estimate the value of a person’s name by the value of their bank account, but the God of heaven puts more value on a good name than on the riches in this world. The name Bill Gates, Kennedy’s, and Mark Zukerberg may stand out in the world, But…The name of Mother Teresa, Job, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and other persons of integrity stand out in heaven!

Job 1:1 “Job was a man who lived in Uz. He was honest inside and out, a man of his word, who was totally devoted to God and hated evil with a passion.”

^{8 “}God said to Satan, Have you noticed my friend Job? There's no one quite like him—honest and true to his word, totally devoted to God and hating evil." 

Job was a man of integrity; we are able to see how proud God was over Job, a man that had a good name.

In life, there are a lot of things we can buy, but not a good name, we have to earn it. A few things to think about to earn a good name:

1. seeking truth

2. having integrity 

3. not being overcome by laziness

4. not letting anger control you

5. not becoming a busy body

6. learning how to be faithful to Christ

There is no such thing as a perfect human. Having a “good” name doesn’t mean you’re perfect but it does mean you are being perfected by the one who is! The same can be said for yoga postures, there is no such thing as a “perfect” posture. Each of us have our own variation that is perfect for us, this may change, even from day to day.

EXTENDED HERO POSE DESCRIPTION
1. Start Kneeling with shins and tops of feet flat on the floor, thighs and inner knees together 

2. Slide the feet about shoulder distance apart, while keeping the knees together

3. Exhale and sit back halfway, with your torso leaning slightly forward

4. Then sit down between your feet, placing the buttocks flat on the floor

1. a. outer sides of the thighs are touching the inner sides of the calves 

1. b. soles of the feet are exposed facing up

~ If your bottom doesn’t comfortably rest on the floor, place a block under the buttocks 

~ Make sure both sitting bones are evenly supported

~ Allow a thumb's-width space between the inner heels and the outer hips
1. Then lay your hands in your lap, one on the other, palms up, or on your thighs, palms down

~ Paying attention to firm the shoulder blades against the back and lifting the top of your sternum like a proud HERO, whose name stands for integrity!

~You may also begin to lean back deepening this pose as you feel able (full expression pictured)

~ Widen the collarbones and release the shoulder blades away from the ears 

~Stay in this pose from 30 seconds to 1 minute. 

~To come out, press your hands against the floor and lift your buttocks up, slightly higher than the heels

~Cross your ankles underneath your buttocks, sit back over the feet and onto the floor, then stretch your legs out in front of you; It may feel good to bounce your knees up and down a few times on the floor.

SONG SUGGESTIONS
All the Poor and Powerless by All Sons & Daughters
Just Remember I Love You by Firefall
You Have Me by Gungor

Week 11....Already???? Ok Wk 11/52 week Challenge

MEDITATION/MESSAGE

Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” 

In the Bible you can see contrasting pairs of people; for example, Mary and Martha. They both loved Jesus, but they had varying levels of understanding, faith, and devotion. However, Jesus did not have a set standard he followed when choosing his disciples and followers… if they believed and were working towards having a relationship with God that was enough! The same holds true today, we may still have known sin in our lives but as long as we believe and are working towards a better, more true relationship with our father, the son, and the Holy Spirit that is enough! 

For some of us, this may be a big obstacle…admitting we do not know everything and that WE are not in control. When we come to the realization that there is still much to learn, we open the door to become a lifelong learner. In our walk with Him, God reveals Himself when we surrender to His word and to being lead by the Holy Spirit. God does not simply want us to try harder or sin less, but also to depend on His Spirit and allow us to be transformed into someone who loves to please Him through eager obedience. When that happens, sin will naturally become less of second nature to us and we will be able to follow Gods direction instead. 

Psalm 25:14 “The Lord confides in those who fear Him; He makes His covenant known to them.” 

COBRA POSE DESCRIPTION

1. Lie flat on the floor on the belly with the arms by the sides and the feet hip width apart
2. Place the hands on the sides of the chest, a bit behind the shoulders
3. Press the tops of the feet down and reach through the legs, feeling as if the buttocks and the backs of the thighs are widening and softened
4. Exhale and either lift up in engaging the arms one fluid motion as you widen the collarbones and upper back evenly

OR

1. Break it down into two stages:  first lifting the head, shoulders and chest, then curling the spine all the way up as you press the palms back and reach the sides of the trunk up and forward
2. Releasing the neck back and taking your gaze towards the ceiling
3. Hold this position for 20 to 30 seconds
4. Exhale and release down with control

MEDITATION/MESSAGE

Come fly with Me? ~God

 I do not know about you, but I don't want to run another day, instead I would rather stand with my wings spread wide waiting on the "Wind" to come and take me wherever I am supposed to go. In Isaiah 40:28-31 a truly profound message is revealed; a call to this very act of surrender. "God has lost track of me. He doesn't care what happens to me?" How many times have you thought or felt like this? The reply, "Don't you know anything? Haven't you been listening? God does not come and go...GOD LASTS! He's Creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn't get tired out, doesn't pause to catch His breath. And He knows EVERYTHING, inside and out. He energizes those who get weary, gives new strength to those who are week. For even young people grow tired and week, they stumble and fall. But those who wait upon the Lord get new strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles...." 

So again I say, "Come Fly with Me~

Before you find your way into this pose, I beg you to find a song....through your own collection or click the song title for a wonderful recommendation... Wait Upon the Wind  

Clear your mind and come with a surrendered will, opening your hands to let go of any control you may think you have, releasing your need to try to climb the wall in front of you, or fly by your own mechanism.....simply surrender and respond, "I will come fly with You Lord; take me away...."

EAGLE POSE DESCRIPTION

~starting in Mountain pose begin to transfer your weight over to your right foot

~root down all four corners of your right foot 

~gently bring your left foot onto the ball, resting your weight on the right foot

~taking your right arm out in front of you, bending the elbow to make a 90 degree angle

~gently taking the back of the left hand under the right arm and wrapping it around as far as you are able

~ now lower the shoulders away from the ears, lift the elbows towards the sky and send the hands away from you slightly

~you should feel a strong stretch across the shoulders...breath here and realize that this strain is from all you are carrying; with each breath let it go

~sitting your hips back as if sitting in a chair

~ begin to cross the left leg over the right, again wrapping it around as you are able. *you may want to keep your toes on the floor the first few times you practice this pose* You go where you are able and leave the rest to Him

~now spread your wings, open your arms and soar

~release your left leg back to the floor and keep the back tall and flat with the arms soaring...now breath and let Him take over...wait upon the Wind

~Repeat other side

SONG RECOMMENDATION

Wait Upon The Wind by Jason Upton

Be Still by Josh White

With Wings by Amy Stroup

Week 10/ 52week challenge! Crazy stuff.....

MEDITATION/MESSAGE
No one ever makes it alone. Hands praying are a symbol for the sacrifice of one man, for another. It is an awareness that someone is lifting you and your struggles up to Our Father. Often we may picture this as Jesus'. It is said He is our intercessor and therefore we imagine all of those paintings of hands praying to be His hands. But as we come to know Abba God, we come to see we too are intercessors for our family; the children of our loving God. This simple exchange of words or groans for and about our brothers and sisters is seen as an offering by God; one that He comes and drinks deeply of, at our sides. This pose is about a confident gesture that you are making to the world behind you, to everyone you have come in passing with throughout your day, week, month or year. That you are giving of your time and your gifts in order to lift them up in conversation before the King of Kings. You are saying I will pray and asking simultaneously will you pray for me. Not out of responsibility but out of ease and with simple pleasure to commune with the Father about one of His children. It is a thoughtful act, filled with humility and uncertainty. It is also an act of sacrifice and surrender. It is a risk and  reward.  A time of willingness to be led into what to pray and sometimes even how to pray. May we never cease to recognize the value of this act and confidently enter this gesture with the awareness no one ever makes it alone; we need each other and we need the sacrifice of prayer....


REVERSE PRAYER POSE DESCRIPTION
~You may enter this pose through mountain(standing pose) or simple cross leg(seated pose)
~ warm up your shoulders with some circles and shrugs, using your breath to deliver you into an awareness of His presence
~As you breath and enter conversation draw you arms behind you first just trying to touch fingertips
~If you have it available begin to draw the whole hands together into prayer
~ the beauty of this is that whatever you have to offer is enough.....the Holy Spirit will fill in the rest....so wherever your hands meet know that your prayers are being heard and transformed as He is working within that space. 
~Rest here in prayer for whomever the Spirit leads you to pray for, allowing for God to direct the conversation and yourself to be receptive to the exchange. Breath.....stay as long as you wish!!!


SONG SUGGESTIONS
One Thirst(live feat Jeremy Riddle) by Bethel Live
Peace Be Still by Rush of Fools
To The Only God by David Crowder & Shane and Shane





MEDITATION/MESSAGE

Grab a hold of the Truths of God

In times of sorrow we may feel lost, like God is not with us, and not know where to turn to. In times such as these it is vital to grab a hold of the truths of God. On earth we have the chance to worship through our tears, leaning into the pain, and become closer to Him! A few things to remember in hard times:

1. When we are hurting, hurt with God
2. He knows what it’s like to suffer! He will understand our pain
3. Get honest with God; tell him how we are really feeling; if you feel like he isn’t with you….tell him. He wants to be in relationship with us in the good, bad, and the ugly!
4. Realize that what you feel IS what you feel, but just because you feel a certain way doesn’t make it the ultimate truth
5. It’s ok to feel a certain way, like God isn’t with you, heartbroken, lonely, etc. BUT do not become obsessed in those feelings and make them the center of your world. Those feelings are NOT the ultimate truth of God!

When we are hurting and experiencing pain and maybe not able to rest in God’s peace and joy, below are a few tips:

1. Trust in God’s steadfast love
2. Romans 5:8, God shows us his love, Christ died for us
3. Preach the gospel to yourself
4. Rejoice in his salvation
5. Sing and worship to the Lord

SUPPORTED SHOULDER STAND POSE DESCRIPTION

~Shoulder stands are designed to help people with every aspect of their physical and mental well-being, said Jillian Moriarty

1. Lying flat on your back, lift your legs up and over your head until your toes come as close to the floor as possible
2. Then reach your legs up toward the sky, supporting and balancing your body by placing your hands on your lower back

There are three important connection lines of the body to pay close attention to in the Shoulder Stand:

■ the upper back should be inward and upward direction 

■ the chest pushing in an upward direction 

■ the sacrum pushing toward the pelvis

Check these connections as you build up strength in the position. Never force yourself and never lose sight of the element of relaxation during your efforts.

Week 9/52 week Challenge....Thank you for your support!!!!

MEDITATION/MESSAGE

Fear is a natural and necessary part of staying alive. However, moments arise when we lose ourselves in a “trance of fear” and anxious thoughts and emotions take over, confusing the larger truths God has for our lives. We forget the love between us and loved ones; we forget the beauty of God on Earth. We forget God’s promises of goodness and wholeness. We may become so caught up in the fear, expecting troubles to arise becoming unable to just live in the present moment where we are able to connect with our Heavenly father. When we bring the Lord’s presence to the “trance of fear”, we create the chance to become closer to Him, and for the healing of our wounds and fears to begin. In our walk with God, as we learn to face our fears with Him, we discover the love He has for each of us. God created ALL of us with this need to feel loved and understood. Trusting and knowing God has this unconditional presence with each and every one of us, is a true place of restoration that can settle our fears.

Yoga encourages us to push personal limits we may put on ourselves because of fear or many other reasons. As we progress with yoga we will try new poses, some may be very challenging, and will require moving out of our mental and physical comfort zones. This is great practice for us, as we can apply the same stretching of boundaries to our daily life. When we push our own emotional boundaries, fear may become less of an issue for us.

Isaiah 54:4 "Don't be afraid - you're not going to be embarrassed. Don't hold back - you're not going to come up short. You'll forget all about the humiliations of your youth, and the indignities of being a widow will fade from memory."


Matthew 10:28 "Don't be bluffed into silence by the threats of bullies. There's nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life - body and soul - in his hands."

STANDING FORWARD BEND POSE DESCRIPTION
Evidence has shown there are a few poses we can embrace in our yoga practice that may help when we’re experiencing fear, one is a standing forward bend.
1. Start standing with the legs together, centering the weight of the body on the balls of the feet
2. Inhale, as you stretch the arms straight up alongside ears, feeling like the entire body is extending upward
3. Exhale, slowly stretching down toward the floor
4. If possible, with knees straight, bring the palms or finger tips to the floor slightly in front of the feet, or bring your palms to the backs of the ankles
~If this isn’t comfortable, cross your forearms and hold the elbows
5.Press the heels firmly into the floor and lift the sitting bones toward the ceiling
6. Breathing gently as you feel the hips stretch upward
~ With each inhalation in the pose, lift and lengthen the front torso just slightly
~ With each exhalation release a little more into the forward bend
~The head and shoulders, hips and legs should stay relaxed, you want to be comfortable, allowing the face, neck and back to relax
~ Stay in the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute

~When ready, slowly roll back up, being sure not to move too quickly, you may feel a touch lightheaded

                                              MEDITATION/MESSAGE

You are unique, you are created beautifully, you are His.....Herons are quite the design. They are unique, beautiful birds often captured in photography amongst the stillness of nature. With many different shapes and sizes they implore the creativity of God. Much like we do, as human beings. We are His creation and therefore His Masterpiece and Delight. He loves to gaze lavishly upon us in His stillness and breath deeply of His design. But often the world tells us the opposite; that perhaps we are ugly ducklings instead of remarkable creatures. So today's pose is about you finding stillness to recognize Who's you are, and then celebrating with Him the beauty you possess; for it is His offering of Love. Not the beauty you see, but what He sees. That you will look through His Loving eyes and find yourself captivating. Recognizing His creative design woven into the very fibers of who you are, and with excitement and pleasure you rejoice. Allowing all of the negative beliefs to fall away and embracing the deepest Truth.....You are precious, you are beautiful, you are "the Crescendo of His creation", you are His Masterpiece. But above all else you are His and He does not create with error.....So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them....as we cling to Him, He restores us back to the original beauty He intended to shine in each of us. He draws us into awareness, and as we know Him, we begin to recognize His beauty in ourselves and in others around us. We stop seeing as the world has tried to lead us to see and we begin to see the Light, the glorious, breathtakingly beautiful Light that shines uniquely from the depths of our souls. May the revelation of the Heron rescue you from what you may have been told, and usher you before the Creator to hear the Truth! Take a breath and a moment to listen; He has much to reveal to you today!

HERON POSE DESCRIPTION
~This one requires some warming up. Much like our thoughts must be trained and prepared to believe, so must our bodies be trained and prepared to practice. I recommend standing at the front of your mat and flowing through a "Son" salutation. Orienting yourself to the Creator and His presence. saluting the Son. Flow through this series 5-7 times. Do not worry about having it all correct or memorized, just let your body move and flow through what you do recall. Leave performance at the door and truly enjoy your practice today. Create from the space in which you have been created. Only He can see you and He is delighted, be free and flow.
~Once your muscles are nice and warm, make your way to the floor
~ You can either bend your right knee towards your midline or away from it, whatever feels right to you.
~Right knee bent towards or away, leg is resting on the floor. Left knee bent and drawn in towards the heart, foot firm on the floor. Wrapping your hands around the knee.
~Rising through the crown of the head. Come into awareness of how you are feeling here and embrace the simplicity and beauty of this pose if this is your offering today. Celebrate and breath.
~ If you would like to go further, begin by extending the left leg slightly, taking the foot off of the floor and interlacing the fingers around the soul of the foot. Drawing the knee towards the heart and rising through the crown of the head. Again see the beauty, find His gaze upon you and celebrate with Him.
~ If you like you may deepen your expression by straightening the leg away from you and holding around the thigh, calf, ankle or soul of the foot. Knowing now how beautiful He designed you and embracing it.
~ As you grow in this awareness draw the leg closer and closer towards your heart, until the Truth can no longer be exchanged for the lies. You are His!!!!
~ Repeat other side!

SONG SUGGESTIONS

Remind Me Who I am by Jason Gray

You Saved My Soul by Bryan and Katie Torwalt

Beautiful Things by Gungor

Beloved by Tenth Avenue North

Week 8/52 week challenge....

MEDITATION/MESSAGE
A bind is a way to secure two things together. Binding is also what God does to our wounds. As humans we find ourselves binding to one of two major concepts! We either bind to fear, or to Love. In every experience we encounter we have the choice what we will become bound to; Fear or Love. They both are powerful, tho Love wins. They both are real, tho Love is the Truth. They both are present, tho Love is greater. They both are necessary, tho Love is prevailing. You have a choice to make in every moment....will I be bound by Fear or bound to Love. God created you, He bound you to His Love despite your lack of understanding or acceptance. This is simply the Truth. But we as we face this world often chose the lesser reality of fear. Because ultimately fear seems much more tangeable in a world like ours then does Love. So be honest with yourself, in this moment are you in fear of anything? Beware fear takes the form of anger, sadness, shame, anxiety and other emotions. So really get still and ask God to reveal the areas that fear is shadowing out His Love and ask for Him to let you feel His binding Love deeply. Take that fear and hold it up to the Lens of Love and see what God sees. For example, if your fear is that you are all of those things that another person just called you. Or that you are all the things you think you are. Then take those and hold them before God'and ask Him if any of those things would change His Love for you? Let Him answer you.....silence your thoughts, so you can find your breath, silence your breath, so you can feel your heart, silence your heart, so you can recognize your spirit; then silence your spirit so that you can Hear His Spirit whisper of the Story of His Great Love for you and be bound there as long as you need!!!! Nothing can seperate you from it....not your insecuriities, not your confusion, and not your fear....

BINDING SEATED TWIST POSE DESCRIPTION
~ starting from a seated pose
~ keep left leg bent and in contact with the floor
~ while drawing the right knee in towards the heart
~ placing the right foot down onto the ground outside of the left leg, which is on the floor
~ Begin by twisting left through the torso first
~ really rising up through the crown of the head and twisting deep through the torso
~ Taking your right elbow and lining it up with the right knee
~ placing the left hand on the ground behind you, twist even deeper
~ then if you have it available take the left hand and reach it behind you grabbing hold of your hip, thigh or tshirt
~ finally if you have it available reach your right arm down and around the right knee and attempt to grasp onto the left hand; creating a bind
~ breath here and deepen the twist, asking for God to bring the bind of His Love into clarity for you...Hold until you feel this or you can no longer hold on in your own strength
~ repeat on the other side

SONG SUGGESTIONS
I Knew What I Was Getting Into by Misty Edwards
After The Storm by Mumford and Sons
The Light Will Come by Phil Wickham

MEDITATION/MESSAGE
All of us long to connect with someone who can identify with our circumstances and share in our day-to-day life. God is available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and prayer allows for just that, a personal experience and intimate connection with our loving Heavenly Father. The invitation to pray is given to us each and every day. Throughout the Bible, we read stories of different men and women responding to the invitation to pray and engage in conversation with God. Prayer is the ability to stand before God at any time and share your wants, needs, desires, hopes, and dreams with Him. It is simply an open and honest conversation between you and the creator of the universe. God's “voice” invites us into a deeper relationship with Him through prayer. He knows everything you ever did and He still loves you! He knows your future and He has the best plans for your life. He cares for you so much that He gave His Son so that you could be with Him forever.

“For God so loved the world, the He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” John 3:16.

Prayer is important because God created us to have free will; He wants us to come to Him willingly. He has given us a mind to make decisions and the most important decision is about eternity. Even though He knows the future, WE don’t know the future choices that WE will make; it’s important to live by His guidance to make the right ones. As you pray consistently, you are affirming the existence of God in your life. You are building your faith as you see God’s hand do His work on your behalf, all just because you asked.

1 John 5:14-15 "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of Him."

CHILDS POSE DESCRIPTION
A comforting pose that encourages a sense of nurturing and security, as we can imagine resting with God as we pray. It is a great pose to simply breathe into, slow down, and just be with Him.

- Kneeling on the floor
- Bring the big toes together and sit on the heels, separating the knees about as wide as the hips
- Exhale and extend forward, laying the trunk out over the thighs

Arm options:
- Reach the arms forward, placing the palms down and shoulder width apart OR
- Bring the arms back alongside the shins and rest the backs of the hands on the floor
- Stay in this pose as long as you like
Child’s pose is considered a restorative posture that can be done to precede or follow any pose. It stretches the hips, thighs and ankles gently. It also helps relieve stress and fatigue, and calms the brain.