SOUL CrossTraining

Here at Grace Community Church we just finished a four week series entitled Shaking the System. If you missed any of these -- you can listen online at www.gracecc.org/sermons.html How did this weekend series stir you? What questions or concerns did it raise in your heart and mind? This past week Dave Rod gave us some ideas for personal engagement -- have you or are you planning to take any steps to personally get engaged in social justice issues?

By offering a simple prayer with every breath, we can be reminded "for in him we live and move and exist" (Acts 17:28). Although rather simple, this practice requires a connection between the unconscious act of breathing and a conscious expression to God. A Bit of History The church has practiced breath prayer or "prayer of the heart" for millennia . The Eastern Orthodox Church, in particular, has seen breath prayer as a way of living out Paul's instruction to "pray without ceasing."         Examples Jesus Prayer Take a moment to become aware of your breathing. It might help to find a quiet place -- close your eyes and notice your breathing. As you breath in -- bring your thoughts to Jesus. As you breath out -- express a word of gratitude or need. For example, breath in -- saying "Lord, Jesus Christ" -- breath out saying "have mercy on me." Throughout your day -- as you notice your breathing -- take note an...

The older I get, the more I realize atrophy is innate and apparent in my life. at· ro · phy /ˈ ætr ə fi / uh- troh -fee-uh a wasting away of the body or of an organ or part, as from defective nutrition or nerve damage degeneration, decline, or decrease, as from disuse to affect with or undergo atrophy -- wither, deteriorate, or waste away www.dictionary.reference.com Think about it this way-- the natural consequence of doing nothing is atrophy. What do I mean by this? I like to think of myself as a runner. But I must admit my thoughts and actions don't always coincide. Most weeks I jog 3 or so times for a few miles. I am not consistent. I have not followed a routine or found a rhythm I can sustain. The result of this unintentional approach is heavy breathing, tired muscles, slower pace, and overall lack of desire. Here's what I experience: when I lack attentiveness, my body pays the price. I think atrophy affects my spiritual being similar to my physical condit...

Using the word friend  for an online conversation sounds a bit too familiar. I stand hesitant yet hopeful that just maybe we will mature to call each other friend as we grow together. You see, I believe that growth is best done when traveling together. So I am inviting you to travel with me as we delve into spiritual practices and experiences in this space I am affectionately calling SoulCrossTraining .  My goal is pretty simple. Together, lets create a sacred space enabling us to experience God as we weave spiritual practices into our daily lives. Who knows what can happen when we quiet our mind and listen with our souls? Those of you who love an adventure and don't like to look too far down the path -- you might want to skip the next few bullet points and just jump in. For rest of you who need to know where we are headed, read on. Between now and September 1, 2008 (that's just 3 months away) we have the opportunity to: explore a variety of spiritual practices come...