Peace in the midst of struggle

For the last 4-5 years, I carve out some time to indulge in a bit of yoga practice.

Today, while in my yoga class, I was nearing the end of the strength building sequence that the instructor constructed for the class. Right in the midst of near muscle failure from repeated vinyasa flows from upward facing dog to downward facing dog to headstand preparation, the instructor informs us that we will be holding downfacing dog for 2 minutes. “2 MINUTES!!! Are you nuts?!!!” my mind AND body wailed.

“Now, release to child’s pose. Rest here.”

Elated, I had to resist the urge just to plop down on my mat from exhaustion. As I rested in Child’s Pose, I really allowed myself to go limp, and truly relax, allowing oxygen to perform as a healing balm to rejuvenate my aching muscles. Within 5 breaths, the instructor instructed us to exhale and come to all fours, and come to downward facing dog, where we would be for 2 minutes.

Amazingly enough, the five breaths was more than enough time to endure holding downward facing dog for 2 minutes. At the end of the 2 minutes, I actually felt rejuvenated and like I could do another 2 minutes easily.

In life, sometimes we’re constantly bombarded by thoughts, people, and experiences that cause us to struggle through, often times, everyday activities. From the example I learned on my yoga mat, when life seems to be constantly pressing down on you, take a mini-vacation from the person or situation, which could be a walk, a drive to clear your thoughts, or by simply taking the time to focus on breathing deeply and consciously.

When you come back to the situation, you will return with a clear head and a newly found resolve that will help you tackle any situation head on!

Namaste’!

Gene Williams
Certified Personal Trainer/Yoga Instructor/Owner of Nirvana Fitness(www.NirvanaFitnessMemphis.com)

No Scriptures? No Problem.

I love it when God lets me know that I’m hearing His voice and following His leading. Don’t you?

Take this week, for instance. I was in our church’s regular mid-week Bible study when someone asked the question, “Why were certain books omitted from the King James version of the Bible?” I answered, ”Just each person who authored books of the Bible was attempting to write for a specific audience with a specific purpose, so the theologians who cannonized the KJV had an audience and purpose in mind when doing so.”

The person who asked the question was satisfied with my answer, but I wasn’t satisfied myself.

The question that arose in my own mind was, “What did people who believed in God do before there was a Bible? Or church?” Even the Bible speaks of people who had a relationship with God before any scriptures were ever written.

Take Enoch, for example. He was the father of Methuselah (the oldest man who ever lived according to scripture). His life is summarized in Gen. 5:24: “And Enoch walked with God 300 years, and after that he was no more, because the Lord took him.”

Wow.

A man who consistently walked with God. For 300 years. Without scriptures to guide him. No church to hold him accountable. No religious rituals (prayer, fasting, attending services, doing good deeds, etc.) to make him feel pious.

Today, modern Christians and followers of other faiths as well often have a hard time actually walking with God on a consistent basis (at least, I know I do). With all the aforementioned “supports” (or “traps” depending upon how you look at it) and then some, I still occasionally falter in my performances as a believer.

I was still contemplating Enoch’s life with my wife on the way home from a church meeting last night. “How did he do it?”

Fast forward to early this morning. I was at my mother’s house browsing the many books she has accumulated over the years when I came across one entitled, “The Lost Bible: Forgotten Scriptures Revealed” by J.R. Porter.

Intrigued, I opened it and began perusing its contents. Guess what I found? You guessed it; “The First Book of Enoch”!

While I plan to read it more in depth (I love to study all things spiritual and natural), I’ve already learned a few lessons from it.

Lesson One: “If you seek, you will find”. God always puts both the desire to understand and the material to be found within our reach.

Lesson Two: “The Just Shall Live by Faith”. That’s how Enoch did it and ultimately how everyone does it (more or less). “He/she that comes to God must first believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Lesson Three: “Don’t Always Accept Everything That You’ve Been Told”. The “forgotten” books of the Bible were actually censored by the religious machinery of a specific group with a specific agenda. Jesus was crucified by just such a system. He said all those who dare to truly, fully follow God would also be persecuted at the very least. Blessed are all who don’t allow any person, group or culture to limit their personal pursuit of God and truth.

If we’re bold enough to ask the hard questions, God will show us the right answers. They really are always there waiting to be found. Just like God. Just like us.

Thanks, Lord, for being so easy to get to know.

This One’s for YOU, DAD

Eighty years ago today, my father was born. He was the next-to-the-youngest of 13 children conceived and raised by a God-fearing, hard-working couple living in rural north West Tennessee and, later, North Mississippi. Like many of his era, Dad was educated in segregated schools, served his country during the Korean War, returned to complete his college education, went to work, married and started a family. After decades of working as an administrator in higher education, Dad ultimately went on to become the first African-American to be elected mayor of my hometown. He was in his third term if office when he passed away in 2001.

While I am confident in my writing talents and abilities, summarizing recollections of experiences shared with Dad almost leave me at a loss for words. Not because I can’t remember them; well do I remember the pleasant and not-so-pleasant things about growing up.

Rather than meander down memory lane, I’m going to use this space to say “thank you” to the man who, even posthumously, continues to most influence and shape my life.

You see, my father (and mother) taught my two younger brothers and I many virtues and principles by both precept and example. Through him, I learned things like discipline, a strong work ethic, self-sacrifice, independence, sensitivity, courage, and reverence. But, lest anyone think I’m overlooking my father’s “flaws”, let me say he DID have a “way with words” when he occasionally lost his temper.

From Mama I learned things like respect, humility, service, responsibility, an appreciation for the fine arts, and passion for life itself. Without the guidance, correction and support of my parents, I would undoubtedly not be who I am today.

So, let me end this by saying that I truly thank our Heavenly Father for my earthly one. I could never have hoped to have been born into a more wonderful family. Enjoy eternal glory, Dad! One day I know that we’ll all meet again.

“The SHACK” Attack

I’m sure some of you reading this blog have probably already heard of (maybe even read) “The Shack” by William Paul Young. It has been at the top of The New York Times Bestseller List, has more than 3 million copies in print, and has earned praises from literary critics to theologians, entertainers and professional athletes.

I’m reading it at the moment, and am thoroughly enjoying every word of it! Young is more than an a master of prose; he covers (and uncovers) profound spiritual questions and truths through imaginative storytelling and dialogue.

Without divulging the plot, “The Shack” requires the reader to suspend ALL preconceptions about the Person, Purpose, and Power of God and be open to God’s revelation of the Divine (and Self, too).

Like the main character in the novel, I find myself provoked, confused, intrigued, challenged, hungry, thirsty, and ultimately satisfied in the process.

In the past I’ve read and enjoyed other highly-acclaimed Christian fiction writers (C.S. Lewis, Frank Peretti, Gene Edwards are among my favorites), and gained new insights in doing so. Young’s book, however, hits me in the gut with exhilarating, pull-no-punches transformational paradigms masked as a thriller.

By now you’ve discerned that I highly recommend “The Shack”. Once you’ve read it, I’m sure that you’ll agree it is a most delightful, refreshing attack on conventional, traditional, conservative religious thinking. And for those who think such an “attack” is a “bad” thing, remember: “For we know that ALL thing work together for the GOOD of those who love the Lord and are the called according to HIS purpose” (Romans 8:26-28).

Wayne Dyer on the Tao Te Ching

A few of my favorite things:

Wayne Dyer, in case you haven’t heard of him or seen his profound specials on PBS, is one of our great modern spiritual teachers. I’d seen his books long before I ever heard him speak or saw him on TV. Suffice to say, his quiet and humble teachings inspire me, always giving me a different and more empowering way to look at things. If you have 10 minutes or so, check out this short clip from his PBS special, “The Power of Intention.” You’ll probably want to see more:

In fact, it was while listening to one of his cassettes (yes, that relic of audio recording from last century) that I first heard of the Tao Te Ching (pronoucned Dow Deh Ching).

The Tao Te Ching is a book of ancient Chinese wisdom, written probably about 6,000 BC by Lao Tzu. Having read it multiple times now, I can see how its language and poetry might seem nonsensical to some people; for me, I always feel like its wisdom bypasses my logical mind and implants itself directly into my soul. I always feel peaceful when I read it — which, for me, is plenty reason enough to read it over and over again. For instance, from the Gia Fu-Feng/Jane English translation:

Eleven
Thirty spokes share the wheel’s hub;
It is the center hole that makes it useful.
Shape clay into a vessel;
It is the space within that makes it useful.
Cut doors and windows for a room;
It is the holes which make it useful.
Therefore benefit comes from what is there;
Usefulness from what is not there.

So anyway: Not long ago, Dyer published his own teaching guide of the Tao Te Ching. And I found this short sampling of it over on BeliefNet. I hope you like it, and I hope it brings some calm to your life as it does to mine. Here’s the link again:

Wayne Dyer’s 10 Ways to Go with the Flow