Wednesday: Open Hearts & Hands

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Friends, I just finished my last online class for my 225h Holy Yoga Certification. It went by so fast! As much as I've learned and as much as God has changed me, my heart, my practice ... I feel like I have not learned a thing. There has to be more. There is still so much I don't know. 

As I look forward to next week, to being with all my fellow trainees and all those who've been through this training already, I am so humbled. I know I say this a lot, but Friends, I'm just a girl. I'm nothing special. The only thing special about me is that Jesus loves me! 

Here is the thing, our journey, yoga or our sanctification, is never finished. There is always something else to learn. There is always a deeper layer than were you've been before. There is always more to grow and stretch. With that being said, I cant stop thinking about where this will take me. This Holy Yoga? God did not bring me here to learn about the body. He didn't bring me here so I could be bendy. He brought me here to grow and bend and stretch. To mold me into the image of Jesus. And, even thought it would have been enough, He didn't do it just for me. He did it for you too. And I can't stop thinking about you. 

Wednesday: Would you pray with me? Would you pray for my training this week? Please pray for God to show up in a mighty way. Pray for God to open my heart to things He wants to teach me. Pray that I'll be open and grow and stretch. Pray that I will be wrung out like a rag on my mat. Whatever needs to be emptied, let it be left behind. Whatever I need to pick up, that I'll have the strength to carry it. But I know I wont have to carry it alone. 

Friends, what God is teaching me here today and there next week, it's for you. It's for me to bring back and be a better instructor. It's for me to create a space where I can move out of the way and you and Jesus can meet together on your mat. And for you to move and grown and stretch with Him. I can't stop praying for you. I've been praying for you since He called me here in this space. This yoga thing, it's not about me. It never has been. It's all about Him all about His glory. And I am ever so thankful for that. 

Pray for me Friends, because I'm praying for you. 

Tuesday: Resting in His Hands

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Tuesday; I am resting in His mighty hands today. As I type this I am sitting Tire Kingdom. I'm trying to get things ready for my family before I leave. So, when I looked down and noticed that it's time to get an oil change, the next obvious step is to take the family vehicle and get it prepped for me to be gone and my family to be safe. The good news: my SUV will be ready for my husband to drive all week. Bad news: I waited until my mom was out of town and no one could help me and so for the next few hours, I'm sitting in a waiting room waiting for my car. Now, my OCD listing checking self is going crazy. There are so many things that need to be checked off my list before I leave. But I have to laugh at the way God is so sweet that He's given me this time to sit and be still. Because I have no other choice!

The thing is, He always knows what we need. And He will give it to us if we ask. So, how did I end up "trapped" at the car place? Because I asked God yesterday to help me relax and find some rest before I leave this weekend. You have to be careful what you ask for because the gift does not always look like what you thought it would. But I'm thankful that me makes me laugh. I'm thankful that He gives and blesses me beyond what I thought was best. 

I'm trusting Him for next week too. Would you pray with me?

For my Family: Jamie, Brewer and Eva. 

Please pray first for their safety, that God would hold us all in His mighty hands while we're apart. Please pray for good health. It always seems that when one of us is gone, those left at home get sick or hurt. So, please pray for good health for all four of us. 

Second, would you please pray for our hearts while we're away from each other. I know we'll only be gone a week. But I'll be honest with you, this is the first time I've left my husband alone with the kids for a week. I trust that He'll be just fine, but it can drain you. God designed families. God's design was perfect with a partner to carry and support the load. When your partner is gone, grace abounds. Pray for grace to about when we feel the weight of the loneliness. Pray for grace to abound when we feel the weight of the responsibility. Pray for grace to abound when we are tired and at the end of ourselves. Pray for my sweet babies to be kind to each other and respectful and kind to their Daddy. 

Please pray for the other men and women who will be with me. We are all leaving behind family and loved ones. Pray for our hearts, our health and our freedom. God is working Friends. God is faithful. God will complete what He's started. Not one of us ended up here on accident. He has called and wooed us. He has worked in our hearts and in the hearts and lives of those around us. We know this full well. And that is what gives me the strength to get up, board a plane and leave my family behind for a few days. It's all for His glory. It's all for His Kingdom. 

And if you think about it, please pray that the dog gets fed. 

Monday: Breathe Fresh on Me

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Guys, I am leaving next Sunday for the Holy Yoga immersion retreat. Can you believe it?!? Since God called me to teach yoga (you can read about that here) and since he introduced me to Holy Yoga and told me it was a part of my future, and then the waiting and praying and working and refining that took place ... its finally here. 

I am in awe of who God is and how He works. I am so honored that He would use someone like me. I'm nothing special, just a girl. But I'm a girl after His heart. I'm a girl who was changed by scandalous grace. And I'm a girl who wants everyone to know they can be changed too. He's oh so good Friend, oh so good and so faithful!

So, today I'm asking for prayer. Each day until I leave I'm going to post something you can pray for with me. 

Monday: Please pray that God will use these last few days to prepare me and my family for all that God will do while I'm gone. Please pray that He will be all over the trip in general. Please pray that He moves in ways we have not yet imagined. Please pray that God would work in Jamie and the kids while I'm gone to prepare them for who I am when I get back. Please pray that I am changed by this certification process. 

Oh Friends, I have been changed. This training over the last few weeks has already changed my practice, changed my time on and off the mat in so many ways I couldn't even count. 

Thank you Friends. Thank you for your prayers and for your love and support. 

6 MORE DAYS!!

The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom: October Playlist and Schedule

October ... this is my favorite time of the year. Fall is on its way. College Football is in full swing. (LET'S GO MOUNTAINEERS!!) There are bonfires, sweaters, cookouts, chili and endless soups to devour. The leaves are turning and falling. And last, but not least, Halloween. 

My kids already have their costumes picked out and hanging in their closest ... just waiting. They are ready to dress up and for one nigh, get to be someone else. Oh yeah, and consume and ungodly amount of sugar. 

When I think about Halloween, I think about people escaping their real lives and for one night and getting to be someone they're not. Why is that fun? Because when you put on a costume, you know who you are. You're Batman, you're Hello Kitty, you're a cowboy or a nurse. You get to choose and you get to take on all the characteristic of those characters. You get to be brave and fearless. You get to be sweet and loved by all. You have an identity. 

Isn't that what we're all looking for? To know who we are and why we're here? Could it be that is what makes Halloween so fun and so scary? For one night we know who we are, but when the costume comes off, we enter back into that world of the unknown. We become Moms and Dads and Brothers and Sisters. We become (insert job title here). And we slip back into the world of confusion and struggle. And it can be hard and it can be scary. 

But the good news is that no matter how many of those titles that you do hold, mom sister friend wife ... you can still know who you are and what you're here for. Finding out who you are does not begin with looking within yourself. That's a strange place to start. To find out what you've been made for, shouldn't you first look at the one who made you?

So this month, my focus is on rooting down into who God is. It's in Him alone that I find out who I am. So join me Friends, unroll your mat, breathe deep, and root down into the word. 

And for you locals who want the yoga that goes with the playlist, find me below. If you need any more info, please comment or email and I'll get back as soon as I can!

Falling into Grace: September Playlist & Schedule

So I've been reading through the book of Hebrews. I have learned so much about Jesus and who he was on earth and what His time here means to me. It's made me look at Jesus in a completely different way and made me fall in love with Him all over again.

 

I am in a season of Grace. I'm in a season of taking control of my life away from others and placing it in the Fathers hands. He is always faithful. He is always good. And He is always right ... even when it doesn't feel that way to me. I can trust Him. And so can you.

 

So this month, our playlist is about Grace. It's about learning to come to Jesus in the middle of your yuck. He's standing beside you waiting for you to call out to Him.

 

And since some of you have asked for a way to play the playlist without having to look them all up ... look what I learned to do! (Hope it works, if not comment below and let me know)

  

 

And for you locals who want the yoga that goes with the playlist, find me below. If you need any more info, please comment or email and I'll get back as soon as I can!

 

What are you listening to this month? What's on your playlist?



I am not the Holy Spirit

I am no the Holy Spirit. That seems a silly thing to think let alone say out loud. But it’s something I've had to tell myself a lot lately. I am not the Holy Spirit. I am not God. I am not Jesus living a perfect life. I don’t draw people to God; I point them in the right direction.

This summer. You may have noticed I’ve been gone a while. And two posts ago I added at song called “Dry Bones” by Lauren Daigle.  That’s what this summer felt like for me. I felt like I was running around doing a lot of pointing and yelling and directing, but no one was listening. I was speaking to dry bones. I watched people around me, people that God has placed there, being overwhelmed and walking away. And I’m begging them to stand up … but they can’t they won’t. And it makes me feel like a failure.

God is the one who brings the dead to life. Not me. I only point.

I am learning how to work and find rest.

Rest.

Freedom.

It sounds wrong to say. As a stay-at-home mom with two kids in school now, rest feels like I’m being lazy. I’m not lazy. I’m tired. I am constantly pouring myself out to others and feel guilty to even need time for myself. But if I’m totally honest, when I’m tired the time I’m giving to others doesn’t count. Be completely honest with me for a moment. When I’m tired, I am making dinner for my family, but I’m cranky and want the kids out of the kitchen so I can do it myself. Shouldn’t I be inviting them in and teaching them to cook? When I’m tired and having lunch with a friend, all I want to do is unload my problems on her and I have no time to listen. And even if I do, I’m mentally comparing her world to mine and how mine is so much harder. I tend to be less patient with my kids and with my husband. Even though I have time with people, it's not quality time, just time. And when I’m tired, I’m rushing through life and miss the little opportunities God gives me each day. The opportunities to point others to him. The opportunities to hear him answer a prayer I’ve been praying for weeks.

Sometimes God speaks through the big things, like my computer crashing this summer. Sometimes God speaks in the little things like your kids talking in the backseat.

I think I’ve become so busy in doing the good work, that I’ve missed the real work. What I’m doing, all of it, is good work. But some of it isn’t mine to do. I’m taking up space where someone else is praying for space.

I’m taking a step back … again. I’m taking my eyes back to Jesus. I’m asking Him to show me my good work. I'm finding space to breathe in who He is and what it is that He wants me to do. 

So things are changing for me. Pray for me as I keep my heart open to his calling.

But today. 

Right now.

This moment.

I’m unrolling my mat.

I’m rooting down.

I’m pushing play on this song.

I’m turning my eyes to Jesus.

And for the next 12 minutes, I will worship.

August: Playlist & Schedule

Ok Friends, Here it is! The August Playlist. I can not tell you how pumped I am about August! I can not wait to see what God has in store for us on our mats this month. Summer break is over and our kids are back in school. While I hate to see them go, I'm sure thankful to get back to a regular schedule. We all need it!

Healer: Hollyann
Beautiful: Mali Music
Shake It Out: Florence & The Machine
Anchor: Beautiful Eulogy (Josh Garrels)
Keeps Me Going: Melinda Doolittle
Wanted: Dara Maclean
Beautiful Day: Jamie Grace
We Are Brave: Shawn McDonald
Lose My Soul: Tobymac (Kirk Franklin & Mandisa
The Mountain: Trevor Hall
Only Love: Ben Howard
I Believe: Mali Music
Beautiful King: Danyew
Be Still, O My Soul: The City Harmonic
Calling on Fire: Bellarive

There are several questions that are recurring at the end of my yoga classes. One is about the music I play. The other is about my schedule. A few months ago I started posting my music because it was just easier to direct my student here. I thought, why not do the same with my schedule? That way, even my husband can look it up when he forgets!

So this is my schedule for August. These are the classes and locations I'll be at if you're looking for me. Theses are subject to change as life happens, but for the most part, it's correct. I do want to mention that the two facilities I work at have other amazing instructors whose schedules are not mentioned here. This is just for those who are looking for me.

  

I want to thank you all so much! I love what I do and I'm still in awe that I get to do this job. I couldn't do it without you!

So, if you can, join me in class. If not, grab the playlist and your mat. Move your body and worship. Friends, we are called to love the Lord with all our hearts and all our souls and all our strength. In Him we move and breath and have our being.

Anything you want to hear next month?