Yoga- good for the body, great for the spirit

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." -Matthew 11:28 

Yoga has recently become one of my favorite hobbies. If you haven't tried it, I am telling you now - go do it!! You never know, maybe it will change your life the way it changed mine...in a few ways. Not only do I leave feeling physically satisfied, but recently, spiritually satisfied. I will be the first to admit, my priorities need some re-arranging. Here lately God has been way too far down on my list of priorities. Tonight, Jessie (my oh so amazing yoga instructor AND best friend) read the verse I have written above.  I have heard this verse a million times, and thought I knew exactly what it meant. But as I laid on my mat, completely exhausted from my workout and thinking of nothing but what mom was making for dinner...I breathed this verse in and it was almost like a lightbulb went off. (Don't you love those moments?!) When I am at the end of my rope, and I feel like one more move (in this setting, yoga pose) will break me, I can literally lay my burdens at the feet of Jesus and He will give me rest. In yoga, a well-known resting pose is known as "child pose." Ironically, you are brought to a position in which one looks as if they are bowing down and praying. As I took this pose, I began to pray and not only was my body stretching and healing, but so was my spirit. I want to thank Jessie for her willingness to share verses and spiritual words in her yoga sessions, because tonight it spoke right to my heart. Before I tried yoga I really thought it was for a bunch of tree-hugging hippies who thought of nature as an actual person....NOT TRUE, AT ALL! Some people go to church to feel spiritually fulfilled, for me, it's a yoga session. Not saying that it's ok that I've been to church once in the last 3 months (like I said, my priorities are real messed up) but I'm saying that we don;t have to find praise, prayer and worship in a building with a steeple. I found it on a monday night, sweating like a pig, face down on a yoga mat. I am so grateful that Jess showed me the similarity in Yoga and God. I am so excited to continue my yoga journey, but even more excited to see what God can reveal to me in these yoga sessions. Please pray for me as I begin to rearrange my priorities and make God number one, instead of number 20-something.