Thought For Today - 7/31/09

For several years I taught Introduction to Computer System for incoming students at Northlake College in Irving, TX. As teacher, I found that most of the students were driven by letter grades.

As a Yoga teacher, I'm delighted that students are motivated. However, many have different incentives. One student seeks to achieve the perfect asana. Another is looking for pain relief, and a third is addicted to the post-Savasana (relaxation pose) high.

As a Yoga teacher, I seek to find what motivates the students. I have asked myself if I'm helping them cultivate self-mastery, or do they seek to please me as their teacher?

One thing I have done is shared with them that there is no such thing as a "perfect pose." I tell students to get the most out of their pose even if it means not achieving what some call a textbook pose.

My goal is to also help cultivate in the student self-reliance to help them master their own goals and become self-sufficient in their Yoga practices, rather than just becoming a "good" Yoga student.

All of the classes I teach are different because the students are different, the energy is different, their practice are different. So, I recognize the stage a student is in and teach according to the needs of that stage. We all grow in stages. We need different challenges and lessons as a child, as a teenager, and finally as an adult.

God is the same way with us as students of His class room. We grow from faith to faith and God teaches us according to the needs of that faith or stage we are in. In our Christian walk there is no perfect Christian. We are just "forgiven."

Much love,
Joseph

Thought For Today - 7/30/09

Well, it seems like I have been talking about meditation a lot lately. Some years ago meditation helped me lose many, many pounds of weight. I had to change the mental image of myself in order for that to had happen. Meditation will help you change images of yourself.

I actually use to get up 3am or 4am to spend that time with God and meditation. I spent years developing the wrong image of myself. So, it was going to take time and EFFORT to change the images.

Of course, it seemed nearly impossible to crawl out of my sleeping and stumble to my place of communion with God and meditation on His Word. However, during and after the time of fellowship, of course, I was grateful for making the choice to get up.

I had to cast down the wrong kind of imaginations. Yes, there were times creating the new images was challenging because darkness and the old images were blocking the way.

It is in that instant of choice when spiritual awakening is made, or deferred—not just in the time when you choose to commune with God and meditate on any given day, but in every instant of every day.

Every choice we make is either governed by your ego or governed by the leading of the Spirit of God. In the moment of choice, you might ask yourself "Does this serve God?" or more specifically, "Am I coming from ego or coming from being led by the Spirit of God?"

Most mornings when I would get up at 3am or 4am, my spirit won the inner dialogue and I made it to place of communion with God and meditation; some days I allowed the ego to govern and I chose to sleep in. The point, however, is not to beat yourself up if you succumb to the ego. Whatever the outcome, it is progress simply to recognize that you have a choice, and to bring mindfulness to that choice.

My choice is communing with God.

Much love,
Joseph

Thought For Today - 7/29/09

Meditation - let me talk about this again. Meditation is not as mysterious as most Christians believe it is. Some have looked at me weird or became critical of my statements "I meditate." I have been told that is sounds like positive thinking (what is wrong with that?) or transcendental meditation. But, I'm not talking about this form of meditation.

Meditation is found in many religions, including Judaism. Scriptural (Biblical) medication simply means focusing or thinking about and reflecting on the Word of God. It means putting your attention on a particular scripture and mentally applying it to your personal situation again and again until that scripture permanently gets into your spirit and becomes part of your consciousness.

Meditation is so important because it can affect our lives in a way that nothing else can. Meditation can change or alter your mind.

The Bible speaks of meditation in Joshua 1:8. Let this be an example for you. Use it to change the inner images that have held you back for so long. You will find just as Joshua and many others in the Bible, including myself, that it is truly one of God's most effective for success!

Much love,
Joseph