Al Mohler on Yoga

Should Christians Practice Yoga-Al Mohler

The last paragraph of this article sums the issue of Christians and yoga up well. If you are a Christian, especially a Christian woman without strong, godly leadership from your husband, please consider this article. I say that because the yoga movement is infiltrating our culture through the daughters of Eve primarily.
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The embrace of yoga is a symptom of our postmodern spiritual confusion, and, to our shame, this confusion reaches into the church. Stefanie Syman is telling us something important when she writes that yoga “has augured a truly post-Christian, spiritually polyglot country.” Christians who practice yoga are embracing, or at minimum flirting with, a spiritual practice that threatens to transform their own spiritual lives into a “post-Christian, spiritually polyglot” reality. Should any Christian willingly risk that?

Do the Ends Justify the Means?

Something to think about as Christians...

Just because the end results might look fruitful, is how we're going about getting those results pleasing to the Lord? 

Are we holy? 

Yoga promotes great circulation and flexibility, possibly allowing us to serve Him more, but does He want His children connected with this Hindu form of worship in any manner?

Throwing block parties with worldly music might bring people in to the church, but will this method of evangelism go hand in hand with solid Bible preaching, or is this what is happening in the church at large, which has left its first love? 

Isn't this what seeker-friendly means? 

Too many think they can get really close to the line and draw people in while themselves holding to Biblical, traditional Christianity...but we're seeing that isn't the case. As the methods shift closer to the world, so does the doctrine.

The Word is powerful, the message is powerful.

Where are you on the spectrum of trust in this?

Age of Awareness

There is a sad reality that hits every young person, the age where they notice their body shape and compare it to other people. As a Christian mom, this is a day of heart-break. Your child, typically a girl, comments on something you've noticed (because let's face it, we all understand vanity) and hope she never does. But, maturity brings with it eyes that see things a young child doesn't see.

It just pains me that my girls wouldn't think they are 100% perfect physically. It is a challenge to my own heart in answering certain questions--honesty is a must, but so is taking the opportunity to teach Biblical truth and give wise counsel. The truth of life is that we need to be healthy, as healthy as we reasonably can be, and yes, extra weight or eating poorly really does need to be addressed...but it's so important to be careful in our word choices. I don't want to lie to my children and tell them being fearfully and wonderfully  made is a pass to live like a glutton and be physically lazy. How can we serve the Lord if we're taking this body for granted? I cringe to say that though because there is such a craze right now of running 'halfs' or marathons...the idol of physical fitness lurks beyond many a Krispy Kreme case, beckoning us to jump on board if we are not inclined to bask in the sugary-fluff of a donut. So-called Christian yoga is yet another trap ensnaring the unwise; we're told it's just a form of stretching and a safe way to get in shape. Mentioning being healthy means teaching our kids to be discerning and wise on many fronts.

Navigating these issues in the sin-riddled world we're in is not easy. I really want to walk the line in a balanced manner. Realities of life are that those with slower metabolisms often want to be more sedentary, so gaining extra pounds is not difficult. Likewise, those with faster metabolisms are usually bundles of energy and can eat whatever they want. I'm thankful God allowed me to have an injury that ended any running in my life because were it not for that, I'd surely still be able to eat whatever I want, confusing thinness for health. What a mistake!

Mom's let us work hard to take care of the body God has given us, not only as a gift to our husbands, but as a gift to our daughters and sons--an example of thankfulness, balance and wise (sometimes self-sacrificing) choices. It will ultimately be a gift to God if we feel well enough to serve Him as we also serve our families tirelessly. I want to be a woman whose family rises up and calls her blessed!

John MacArthur on Yoga

John MacArthur on Yoga

Christians need to be careful

Is Yoga OK for Christians?--Mark Driscoll

I may have posted this at some point but figure I'll just post it again. If you are a Christian involved in yoga, please watch this YouTube. I do not endorse Mark Driscoll in general, but on this topic, he is on the money. As my husband says, yoga is not synonymous with stretching. There are plenty of good stretching books and videos available. (just go to Amazon and look for stretching videos to purchase) Postures in yoga can have spiritual significance, so if stretching is what is wanted and desired, realize that if it's called yoga, it involves more than that. Those who are Hindi know that yoga is a form of worship and the object of that worship is not the King of Kings.

I hope this helps you as you seek to walk the narrow path. In this era of postmodernism, we have to be vigilant to stay on the side of truth.