Knowing when to let go....this is a practice; not a mastery for most of us. One that requires that we understand when and where to let go. I use the bow pose because I think it is a great metaphor for the reality of this concept. You see, we must first learn to draw back the bow...with strength and courage in order that we let go of it, properly releasing the arrow where it is intended to travel. Much like our walk we must first draw back into the Lord, before we are able to let go. There is so much just bubbling around under the surface of our consciousness. Things we do not see or understand about ourselves, our reality or others. We must first learn the practice of drawing back, making it a continuous method of building foundation and strength. This allows us to grow in understanding of how this design truly works. Once we understand this concept the rest seems to fall into place. We seem to find ourselves where we need to be, in the safety of His arms, when we are ready to release our bows; letting go of whatever had been long since tied around the arrow and piercing our delicate hearts. You see the simple habit of drawing back into Him allows Him to arm the bow with whatever He desires to free us from....and then with you, firmly in His grasp He watches as it is sent away from your heart....allowing you to heal; to experience freedom....no longer piercing your soul, your mind, or your body. This happens sometimes without your awareness, you simple understood it was time to draw back and it was there that God had done the rest. May each of us realize the strength of a warrior lies in their capacity to know when to draw back; when and where to release are His gifts to our practice. Sit in the tension of this pose aware of the continuous practice that contemplative prayer requires of us and may you become assured it is a practice to be partaken throughout the entirety of our journeys; with hope it will become more accurate as we grow and the arrows will be released effortlessly every time!
BOW POSE DESCRIPTION
~ Lie down on your belly with your hands at your sides, palms up. (You can lie on a folded blanket or towel to pad the front of your torso and legs.)
~Exhale and bend your knees, bringing your heels as close as you can to your bottom.
~ Reach back with your hands and take hold of your ankles (but not the tops of the feet). ***Make sure your knees aren't wider than the width of your hips, and keep your knees hip width for the duration of the pose.
~Inhale and strongly lift your heels away from your buttocks and, at the same time, lift your thighs away from the floor. This will have the effect of pulling your upper body and head off the floor.
~Press the tailbone down toward the floor, and keep your back muscles soft. As you continue lifting the heels and thighs higher, press your shoulder blades firmly against your back to open your heart. Draw the tops of the shoulders away from your ears. Gaze forward.
~With the belly pressed against the floor, breathing will be difficult. Breathe more into the back of your torso, and be sure not to stop breathing.
~Stay in this pose anywhere from 20 to 30 seconds. Release as you exhale, and lie quietly for a few breaths. You can repeat the pose once or twice more.
NO SONG SUGGESTIONS FOR THIS ONE, INSTEAD SIMPLY WHISPER AGAIN AND AGAIN "COME LORD, COME"
MEDITATION/MESSAGE
Distracted: 1. Preoccupied: showing a lack of concentration 2. Anxious: so worried or upset as to be unable to think clearly or act sensibly
Life is full of distractions!
Everybody knows you can read the Bible and at the same time think about something so far away, that you may not even remember which passage you have read afterwards. You can go to church and listen to the most spirit-filled sermon and yet, never hear one word of it. You can pray as much as you want and yet, never turn your mind towards God during your prayer. We, as people, have an amazing ability to listen and yet not hear. That’s why Jesus said: “Let those that have ears, HEAR (not just listen) what the Spirit says”.
Revelation 2:7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
The path of walking with God is a narrow road. So, we cannot afford to get distracted, as we can fall off very easily. There are all kinds of distractions at both sides of that road, which may stray us to compromise our life and calling, our family, or our leading from the Lord.
Thank you Lord for your mercy!
He has the ability and wants to lift us up every time we fall in the ditch. However, He teaches us to learn how to walk more and more steadily on that narrow path as we grow in Him. Just as a parent’s relationship with their child, the parent helps them walk steadily when they are small and inexperienced, but as they grow up, the child starts walking on their own. In the same way, as we grow in the Spirit, we are not supposed to grow only in our knowledge, activities, etc., but also in our walk on that narrow road, which includes our personal relationship with the Lord Himself and our following His purposes and intentions. That’s why the Lord tells us our lives are at stake, and not to turn to the right or the left, but to walk straight ahead in the way set before us.
Proverbs 4:25-27 “Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions. Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you. Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust.”
CAT/COW POSE DESCRIPTION
When distractions arise it’s easy, and almost second nature for us to try to hold onto them. This may lead to tension in the body in areas like the neck, shoulder, and spine. Cat/ Cow stretch is a nice pose to practice when feeling this tension.
- Starting on all fours, in a table top position with a neutral and straight spine
- Line up: knees with the hips and hands with the shoulders
If uncomfortable to the wrist, you can make fists with the hands
- Center the head and neck in a neutral position with the eyes looking toward the floor
- Exhale, get all of the air out and round the upper part of your back (the space between your shoulder blades) to the sky
- Chin tucks in towards the chest, let your head follow, feeling a stretch the back of your neck
- At the same time, your tailbone should tip down and tuck under while you pull your abdomen upward. Imagine an angry cat that has puffed up its back
- Coming back into your neutral spine
- On the inhale, do just the opposite of cat pose
- curve in the back
- tilt the tail up to the sky
- draw the shoulder blades together and down your back
- Feel a great stretch in the front of the torso as you gaze up
- Always come back to your neutral spine, and repeat for several breathes
Thank-you, this is really nice...just what I needed this morning.
ReplyDelete