WholyFit In Jesus August 25, 2010
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WholyFit Devotional Exercise:
Fitness for the Whole You!
 Here's Chapter 5 of my NEW book coming to you through WholyFit In Jesus. Please give me feedback, edits and pre-orders by contacting me.Thanks, Laura |
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SELLING MY SOUL TO SHIVA?... Hey George!In the days when I mistakenly taught "Christian Yoga" I also attended classical yoga classes. I prided myself on being open minded, inclusive, and tolerant, overlooking the picture of the 8-armed "Shiva the Destroyer" on the wall at the Ashtanga class I took in Marietta, Georgia. When I moved to TX, I didn't pay attention to the elephant god with food and flower offerings up front at the Anusara Yoga Teacher Training workshop at the Rice Hotel in Downtown Houston. I didn't acknowledge the little statues of idols on the window sill at the Iyengar yoga class on Silver Strand beach in Oxnard, CA.
At the last yoga teacher training I ever went to, I brought my Psalms on an index card, tucked it under my mat and did my own thing. But that day it would be too much even for me.
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The Destroyer
At this nationally accredited yoga training, they passed out prayer cards that said in Sanskrit, "I give my soul completely to Shiva." We were supposed to chant it, but I objected to a leader that my heart belonged to Jesus so I would not give my soul to Shiva.
She patiently asserted that Jesus and Shiva were "the same person and that I could call my god whatever name I wanted to." I vehemently rejected that idea and still do. Shiva is called "the Destroyer" in yoga religions, but Jesus came to give life and give it abundantly. Shiva and Jesus are definitely NOT the same guy. Jesus said,
John 10:10
"the thief comes only to kill, steal and destroy. I have come that they might have life and have it abundantly."
In the Bible, The Destroyer is called "Apollyon" in Greek, Abaddon [destruction] in Hebrew.
Footnote: Abaddon is destruction, the Hebrew name (equivalent to the
Greek Apollyon, i.e., destroyer) of "the angel of the bottomless pit"
(Rev. 9:11). It is rendered "destruction" in Job 28:22; 31:12; 26:6;
Prov. 15:11; 27:20. In the last three of these passages the Revised
Version retains the word "Abaddon." We may regard this word as a
personification of the idea of destruction, or as sheol, the realm of
the dead. (Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary)
The "Destroyer" is called "Beelzebul," the prince of demons, a god of
the Philistines. In Hebrew, Ba`al zebub means Lord of the Flies (from
ba`al
lord + zebub fly.) Flies are a symbol of destruction and death.
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From Your Mouth
Exodus 23:13
"Now concerning everything which I have said to you, be on your guard; and do not mention the name of other gods, nor let them be heard from your mouth.
The enemies of Jesus sought to discredit the miracles He did by accusing Him of casting out demons by "Beelzebul...the ruler of the demons." (Mark 3:22, Matthew 12:24) Jesus replied that the very idea is ridiculous because in order to cast out demons, one must bind them first with opposing power: power greater than that of Satan. (Footnote: Luke 11:14,15,17,18,20-22)
By His response, Jesus Himself reveals that Beelzebul is the 'strong man,' "the the sovereignty of the evil spirits; Satan, the prince of the devils." (Footnote: Smith's Bible Names Dictionary)
Yogic meditation is spiritism, Transcendental meditation, commonly referred to as "TM." TM mantras are the names of Hindu deities. (Footnote: My friend Vail Carruth used to be a TM teacher. Her book is called, "Kiss of God.") We are not to call on the names of other "gods" because in reality, they are evil demonic spirits.
1 Corinthians 10:20
No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons.
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How Did I Miss That?
I never went back to a single yoga training ever again after that. How could I have missed the idolatry all that time? It was so subtle, but the Anusara website articles make it clear that every pose is dedicated to "the goddess."
Deuteronomy 20:18 so that they may not teach you to do according to all their detestable things which they have done for their gods, so that you would sin against the LORD your God. On the website it also said that all the teachers in the Anusara community are united in their belief system. How could I have my name associated with that organization as a Christian, especially, as a worship leader in an "upfront" worship ministry in the local church? I guess I was blinded or didn't want to see. The point is that I could not see the truth until I removed myself to a place outside of the situation. |
Think When You Drink
My brother, the alcohol and drug rehab counselor, says that the advertisement "Think when you drink" is ridiculous because alcohol impairs judgement. If the alcohol vendors really cared about people the slogan would be "Think BEFORE you drink." If I had done real research BEFORE I started yoga the whole fiasco could
have been prevented. Once inside, I didn't see.
I think one reason I didn't see the idolatry and blasphemy was because I
genuinely like yogis. They are nice people. I seriously
considered staying in the organization so that I could get to know them
better, develop relationship and some day be able to tell them about
Jesus. Jesus is the One they are seeking,
they just don't know it but condoning yoga by my presence only promoted the idolatry and added credibility to it. Besides, to be present in the
spiritual atmosphere, once my eyes were opened to it, required such
constant spiritual warfare that yoga became counterproductive for stress
management.
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Hey George!
I wrote my yoga teacher a nice letter telling her of my decision to stop yoga. She was very sweet but marveled at my problem because she said, "Other Christians are certified by Anusara and they have no problem with it." Yogis, like my former teachers, believe that God is an impersonal being or force without a name or personality and is embodied in all the gods of all religions.
If someone called you "George!" from across the mall (and your name is not George) would you turn around? No, likely you would keep going. Deists do not know God personally, and so they call Him by other names than the One He has given us. But the Bible says that Jesus has a Name and He does not answer to "Shiva" or "Brahma" or "Buddha." The God of the Bible is intensely personal and worthy of our single-most focused devotion.
Jesus is the only name in heaven and on earth by which one can be saved. (Acts 4:12)
The problem with calling God by the names of other entities is the risk that evil spiritual forces will answer. The Bible says to be aware of the evil "principalities and powers" of the spiritual realm.
We battle... against rulers, against principalities and powers in the heavenly places. (See Ephesians 6). |
Other Christians
I wonder about these "other Christians" who are supposedly united in their belief system with Anusara. If these "other Christians" believe Jesus is the only way to be saved, how can they also believe that all religions lead to salvation too?
"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me." - Jesus
I feel compassion for these "other Christians" who may be compromising themselves with yoga. I made the same mistake. After the Shiva fiasco I quit taking teacher trainings, but I stayed in the yoga community in other ways. I taught yoga on Saturday and lead worship in church upfront on Sunday.
For a season, God gave me grace at 24HR ,and I even got to tell people about Jesus after class. I was committed to "my people," with capacity crowds of 50-90 every Saturday for years. But there came a time when I had to cooperate with all seasons God calls me to, not just the ones that are pleasant and draw big crowds.
Ecclesiastes 3 says, "To everything there is a season and a purpose.''
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Die of Yoga
The last yoga class I ever went to cured me forever. I went
to a Hot Yoga class and got heat exhaustion that laid
me up for 3 days and could have killed me, had Lord not been gracious.
How terrible if I would have died from yoga! That's what it took for me to finally quit all
involvement in yoga and ever since my focus is solely on WholyFit. God was patient with me and maybe He's being patient with you too.
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Meditations
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set
before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life
in order that you may live, you and your descendants" (Deuteronomy 30:19)
Lord, please show me anything bringing destruction into my life.
Thus says the LORD, 'Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? (2 Kings 1:6)
Lord, please show me if there is anything that could be considered an idol in my life.
Help me to identify anything that I call to instead of You and give me the power to overcome it.
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Laura Monica
Author
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