ACCEPTANCE IN NEW BEGINNINGS

This is the season of hope, joy and new beginnings...

As time goes on, in my life I have to be reminded over again that there is so little that I have control over. As trite as the saying goes, "Let go and Let God", it is really true. There is absolute freedom to move ahead when I come to the place of acceptance. However, this is not a defeatist attitude but more of the attitude of the much heard serenity prayer - "To change the things that I can; to accept the things I cannot change; and the wisdom to know the difference between the two."

As I challenged my yoga students this week, I want to challenge you (as well as myself). Let's purposefully enter into this season with expectations only of HOPE, JOY, and ACCEPTANCE. Pray for a new attitude and heart. Let's let go of the burdens and sins that weigh us down. Open our hearts so that we may embrace the love of Christ and experience His Fullness in our lives.  Receive the amazing gifts that are already right there before us!

I believe that the best way we can experience the fullness of God is to offer back the Christ within us our hands - ready to serve in small and large ways. We can offer our feet to willingly walk in the path of His peace and light; we can offer the Spirit a mind that is willing to believe in new beginnings and possibilities; offer our voice to speak of His faith, joy, love and hope! We can offer the Father our cooperation in establishing His Kingdom of Heaven here on earth.

Celebrating the birth of Christ and the spirit of Christmas isn't just for one day of the year, but for all the rest...I want a new willingness to believe that I can do my part making Christmas not just one day, but a way of living life. Consider your offerings - then rejoice in what God will do!

Wishing you the warmth of a Merry Christmas and the freshness of a New Year,
Pam

"Know the love of Christ...so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."   ~   Ephesians 3:19

Peace Out Before the Holidays

Dear Friends,

The holidays are approaching! Instead of looking ahead with dread, I am looking ahead with joy and anticipation! I am committed each year to simplify my efforts and truly embrace the essence of what these seasons bring: time with family and friends.

My prayer for me, and for you, is that we not lose sight of this reminder - the importance of people. Those we love; those we are learning to love. Let us all rest in letting things unfold naturally, and put aside our striving. May we enjoy each day's fill of God's good graces and love for US.

Below is a list of classes for the remainder of this year. I will be traveling in November and December quite a bit in addition to Thanksgiving and Christmas break, so I won't be here to teach on several days. I apologize for any inconvenience. Please continue your home practice or connect with other classes in the area while I am away. I will be happy to provide you with any information you might need to keep your practice a priority.

Happy Thanksgiving - and Merry Christmas!!
Pamela Joy

Reflections Yoga Classes
RYS-Reflections Yoga Studio WVC-Woodmen Valley Chapel


November and December 2013
Tuesday 3 pm and 5:00 pm, RYS
11/5, 11/12, 11/19, 11/26, 12/3, 12/17
No classes: 12/10, 12/24 (Christmas Eve), and 12/31 (New Year's Eve)

Wednesday 4:30 pm, RYS
11/6, 11/20, 11/27, 12/18
No classes: 11/13, 12/4, 12/11, 12/25 (Christmas Day)

Thursday 9 am, WVC
11/7, 11/14 (sub), 11/21, 12/5 and 12/12 (sub), 12/19
No classes: 11/28 (Thanksgiving), 12/26 (church is closed)

Thursday 5:00 pm, RYS
11/7, 11/21, 12/19
No classes: 11/14, 11/28 (Thanksgiving), 12/5, 12/12, 12/26

Friday 9 am, RYS

11/8, 11/22, 12/20

No classes: 11/15, 11/29, 12/6, 12/13, 12/27

Fall Yoga 2013

I will be teaching here at my new home studio THIS FALL:

25 South Sherwood Glen, Monument, CO 80132

If you are interested, please contact me!  I would love to guide you on your journey. Classes start September 10th.  I still have some room.

Also, starting September 12th, I will teach at Woodmen Valley Chapel, 9 am on Thursdays in Room 107/108 Community Center.  Come and find joy in your relationship with your loving Savior!

Shalom,
Pamela

Lost in Translation

Often I will hear a word, a conversation, a story and immediately infuse my thoughts, my experiences and my beliefs into what I hear.  I think we are all wired that way.  It comes natural because this is the only way we can relate to another human being.  Bring it back home to something we have knowledge of or understanding of.  Feelings of empathy may surface because we can relate.  We nod saying that we have walked in similar shoes or perhaps we have walked in THOSE shoes. 


Then with good intentions there are times we try to bring an understanding to what was said by entwining our definition with what was shared because we can't relate; we haven't been there.  It is during these times the best we can do is to just listen, just trust, and just accept. 


What it all comes down to is this: how we relate to others, to our life's experiences, and better still how we develop our own self awareness is largely based on what we believe, what we think about God, life/others, and ourselves. 


I have heard it said that this life is a battlefield.  For me, I believe that the battlefield is actually the mind.  The best defense we have in this life is to be prepared mentally. There is a constant war raging on what will take up space and reside in our minds.  We can always trace sinful behavior back to the things we mediate on (ponder), the things we read, the shows, movies, and  the programs we watch, and the people we engage with. The more we digest thoughts and ideas that are not true, or noble, or admirable, or lovely, or pure, or excellent, then we are acting (or I should say reacting) from a base of distrust, disrepute, and unwholesomeness.


God's truth, His Word, is my anchor.  I trust, believe and hope in God and His ways.   I acknowledge and accept that I will never understand all of God's ways and the reasons behind His ways.  I also know that just because His ways are above my own it doesn't mean that He isn't at work or doesn't love or care for me. 
 

When I first read or hear God's Words of truth, sometimes I have to admit it sounds foreign.  I have questions; I don't understand.  Through so many, many, years of striving and forcing understanding and then questioning in disbelief - I have decided to just trust and come to Him as a child.  Acceptance doesn't mean that I have stopped seeking wisdom or understanding - it's just that I seek HIS wisdom and understanding.  Not my own.  Children enter rest through believing.  So as a child of God this is what I believe: God will translate and apply what's in my head to my heart. 


Each of us can decide what to believe or not believe about God, about life, about ourselves.  That is our choice.  We hold that key.  For me that vital key was to put my trust in God through the person of Jesus Christ.  Since I made that choice, my life has changed. I have experienced a tangible joy through this faith.  The language is more and more discernible and understandable.  Outward experiences over which I have no control no longer wreck havoc over my soul.  I have a confidence and an ability to navigate successfully through the circumstances and influences that I do have control over.  My inward attitudes, beliefs and thought patterns are the admirable expression of a whole being: body, soul and spirit.


The challenge to us all is to remain pure in thought - to guard our minds. To be careful about what we entertain. Am I going to believe the God of the universe who has proven trustworthy and faithful or believe my own version of 'truth' based on my lack of understanding? It's your choice, too. I pray you choose well.

 

"For as he/she thinks in his/her heart, so is he/she." Proverbs 23:7

This Present Moment

"The meaning of our earthly existence lies not as we have grown used to thinking,
in prospering, but in the development of our soul."  

~ Alexander Solzhenitsyn 

as quoted in the book, The Good and Beautiful Life

If you were like me, you probably did at least a cursory evaluation of this past year - even if you didn't make any New Year's Resolutions.  As I reflected back on 2012, I recognized successes and failures, gains and losses.  Each have taught me so much and from each experience, I do believe I have grown wiser.  Or at least, I hope I have!  And for that I can release this old year with a grateful heart.  One of my resolutions is to be grateful not only for the good times in my life but also the hard times. And to eat more vegetables.

In contemplation of 2013, I pray that I will be more teachable, more humble, more generous, more kinder, more patient, more forgiving, more hopeful, more inquisitive (to my husband's dismay, perhaps!), more graceful, more understanding, more repentant, more accepting, more loving, more trusting, more accountable, and certainly more open and transparent.

Three years ago, I would have not prayed for all this.  Instead, my attention was on my definition of a 'good and beautiful life'.  Definition: I could be happier I had fewer problems or heartaches - I even talked myself into believing that everything status quo was better than the mountain top.  I was wise enough to know I couldn't stay on the mountain, but I sure as heck didn't want to go into the valley any more. Middle ground.  That's safe.  Right?  We all believe the lie that life isn't worth it or doesn't even resemble beautiful if raddled with heartache, pain, problems or suffering.  Or perhaps this one: God must not care or love me if I have all these struggles in my life.  But the reality is that no matter where we are in life, there will always be the problems of this world, the heartaches of our lives, and the suffering.  NO one is excluded. BUT the other side of that is a more powerful truth.  God is our refuge and our strength.  An EVER PRESENT help in our troubles.

Whether you are excited or full of apprehension of this coming year, remember that God will empower you to meet every situation with confidence and strength.  With this embedded as a vital part of your foundation, you can release any of your concerns about your future to Him.

Perhaps you don't believe this or you just have serious doubts.  That's OK.  God is a tender God.  He approaches us with gentleness and care.  Let your unbelief or your doubts be the door to His Presence in your life.  He cares for you and will keep pursuing you with His Love. Just be open to the possibilities that await and see what happens!  Allow Him to shape and mold your soul into who He designed and created you to be - a person living in joy and freedom in His Presence despite life's circumstances.

Today, I am ready to stand tall in this present moment.  I appreciate the now - perfectly balanced between the blessings and the afflictions in my life. This is the moment of power and action!  Release and let go.
My resolve is to be ready to make the most of this present moment.  Are you ready to join me?

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer." Romans 12:12
                                       
                                                                                                                               ~ Shalom,
                                                                                                                                   Pamela