This exercise started out great! I envisioned the wisest person I know, Jesus Christ! I concentrated on His life, how he gave his food to others who had less, He taught us to give our coat and shirt to those without. He watched for opportunity to help others in need expecting nothing in return. I remembered His wise sayings! He said, "I Am the Truth the Life and the Way, no one comes to the Father, but by Me." He admonished us to abide in Him and He would abide in us. We can do ALL things through Him! If I do not know what to write or how to start an assignment, I ask and He gives me the know how with all the details!
The part of the Alesclepius exercise where it asked us to envision the wise person and see light to go to the throat, etc. I felt uneasy about. I only have to ask to be filled with the wisdom of the Lord as the need arises! I have been infilled with His wisdom every time I have asked. I do not believe the envisions of light provide the true wisdom. I plan to continue to ask for my needs, believing I will receive! This helps enlightening my mind, keep it clear and on what is important. Free from mental selfishness that causes, so much mental deficient behaviors and psychological illness!
"One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself," (Dacher, 2006, p. 447). If we do not embark on the journey of health, how can we lead others on this most important journey? I have studied the eight laws of health in relation to God's Word. As I apply them to my life to flourish in health, I can share them with others. These practices keep me free from illness, happy and whole - my wellness witness for others to observe.
One of the practices of the integral approach that I must steer clear of is hypnosis, because this goes against my Christian faith. For two reasons I cannot lead another in this practice: 1.) It would be hypocritical of me to lead others, where my faith cannot lead me. 2.) I do not know how to practice hypnosis, so I could damage the other person and my credibility as a practitioner.
I believe, I have an obligation to develop spiritually, physically and psychologically. The biblical eight laws of health promote each of these to the fullest extent! When others see that we are flourishing in each of these areas, others will desire to have a similar experience. There is nothing like example to promote the flourishing healthful lifestyle of integral health! Spiritual, physical and mental development is what integral health is all about and sharing the experience with others, optimal health!
I incorporate integral health through stress management, proper nutrition, and exercise, deep breathing exercises in the fresh air, bible study and prayer, nature walks, plenty of pure water, sleep/rest, sunlight, with balance and variety in all things, and stay away from harmful substances. Applying the principle of loving-kindness, calmness and unity consciousness through the biblical principles of the eight laws of health gives me the full spectrum of health, we have been promoting as integral health.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Unit 6 - Universal Loving-Kindness and Integral Assessment
In the practice of universal loving-kindness I found the rest for my body and mind and repeated the blessings upon all human kind as follows: May all individuals gain freedom from suffering. May all individuals find sustained health, happiness and wholeness. May I assist all individuals in gaining freedom from suffering. May I assist all individuals in finding health, happiness and wholeness. Since, I do not believe in repeating more than three repetitions in keeping with my faith and avoiding hypnotic reactions. I prayed to the Lord to help me in these endeavors according to His will. More than three repetitions tend towards hypnotic behavior. I must avoid this to keep myself faithful to my Savior!
For the integral assessment I closed my mind to quiet its activity and body movements. The suffering and difficult occurrences are found in interpersonal behaviors. I found myself becoming angry over something I perceived had happened that did not happen at all. I prayed that this person would find compassion, because this trait was rarely seen in the past. I also prayed that the problem would be solved without my intervention. The experience became enlightened, when he called and told me where to find what I would have asked from him. Both these prayers were answered before I prayed them! My point is that I had no need to get angry, because I did not know the circumstances. This instance created a learning experience for me that next time I should not get upset, but just pray without letting myself react. I am thankful I did not react to the other person. This was answer to prayer, also.
Another interpersonal problem has yet to be solved, although it may be solved through prayer. I just do not know about it, yet. Someone is mad at me for a mistake. I had no control over when I could make it right. I just kept my word and made it right, when I said I could. The rest is in the Lord's hands. I have not allowed myself to get upset over this, because I knew I did the best that I could in the situation. We cannot control how others react, but I have seen powerful result of prayer over such situations. We will see how the Lord has intervened tomorrow. Prayer is the best activity to receive better health and wellness in this area! Well, this prayer has been answered, too. The person is not upset anymore! I am thankful that this interpersonal happenstance has been solved!
For the integral assessment I closed my mind to quiet its activity and body movements. The suffering and difficult occurrences are found in interpersonal behaviors. I found myself becoming angry over something I perceived had happened that did not happen at all. I prayed that this person would find compassion, because this trait was rarely seen in the past. I also prayed that the problem would be solved without my intervention. The experience became enlightened, when he called and told me where to find what I would have asked from him. Both these prayers were answered before I prayed them! My point is that I had no need to get angry, because I did not know the circumstances. This instance created a learning experience for me that next time I should not get upset, but just pray without letting myself react. I am thankful I did not react to the other person. This was answer to prayer, also.
Another interpersonal problem has yet to be solved, although it may be solved through prayer. I just do not know about it, yet. Someone is mad at me for a mistake. I had no control over when I could make it right. I just kept my word and made it right, when I said I could. The rest is in the Lord's hands. I have not allowed myself to get upset over this, because I knew I did the best that I could in the situation. We cannot control how others react, but I have seen powerful result of prayer over such situations. We will see how the Lord has intervened tomorrow. Prayer is the best activity to receive better health and wellness in this area! Well, this prayer has been answered, too. The person is not upset anymore! I am thankful that this interpersonal happenstance has been solved!
Monday, January 16, 2012
Subtle Mind Exercise
Hi Everyone,
The clinging, grasping, attaching mind I call a whirl-wind mind, which fosters forgetfulness of unimportant issues until reaching full circle again. This has caused problems, but helps me remember things I need to accomplish or remember! This exercise has helped to free my mind of this cycle, momentarily creating a relaxed atmosphere to enjoy the stillness that results!
I enjoyed the subtle-mind exercise better than the loving-kindness exercise. I would continue this exercise, but not do the loving-kindness once again, because of the uneasy feelings felt during its application. Like I mentioned in the earlier post, I think that actions of loving kindness need to be shown daily. Some may benefit from the loving-kindness exercise to learn how to do the exercises, but I hope that these are put into practice with those around them, who are in need!
My desk top shows ocean waves flowing quietly, subtly splashing upon the rocks with a quote from God's Word which says, "I can do all things through Christ's strength," (Phil. 4:13). The sky shows a sunset reflection on the water. As I listened to waves splashing so quietly upon the rocks with flute background, and concentrated on my breathing, I felt the comfort from the scenes and sounds before me! My mind let go of the thoughts that whirled around in my mind! These emptied out to enjoy the comfort of the still mind as the witnessing mind related the thoughts above. Then, my mind turned to the calm-abiding mind without effort. God's Word - "Be still and know that I Am God", (Psalm 46:10), came flowing into the the calm quietude of a focused mind. Last, the mind of unity consciousness with its most aware state in stillness led to grasping God without letting go! Aware of His abiding presence with me as I ask Him. Because He abides with me, "I can DO ALL things" He desires for me, "through His STRENGTH", (see above)! I know these things bring complete health, happiness, and wholeness! To learn more go to: tlc wellness living.
When our minds and bodies are well we can see better through spiritual eyes. An example of illness affecting the mind and spiritual life comes from my mother, who developed an allergic reaction to something she ate. Hives kept her up all night. She had a hard time trying to tap into spiritual strength/help, because of focusing on how she felt. Again, I was able to encourage her and pray with her to get her focus back on track!
For myself, I pray while exercising which helps in all areas of mind, body, spirit wellness. My client of most days boasts that I do not get sick! This is a result of the wellness activities that I practice, along with trust in divine help, which is a part of the wellness practice each day! For more information on my wellness practice visit: tlchealthandfitness
The clinging, grasping, attaching mind I call a whirl-wind mind, which fosters forgetfulness of unimportant issues until reaching full circle again. This has caused problems, but helps me remember things I need to accomplish or remember! This exercise has helped to free my mind of this cycle, momentarily creating a relaxed atmosphere to enjoy the stillness that results!
I enjoyed the subtle-mind exercise better than the loving-kindness exercise. I would continue this exercise, but not do the loving-kindness once again, because of the uneasy feelings felt during its application. Like I mentioned in the earlier post, I think that actions of loving kindness need to be shown daily. Some may benefit from the loving-kindness exercise to learn how to do the exercises, but I hope that these are put into practice with those around them, who are in need!
My desk top shows ocean waves flowing quietly, subtly splashing upon the rocks with a quote from God's Word which says, "I can do all things through Christ's strength," (Phil. 4:13). The sky shows a sunset reflection on the water. As I listened to waves splashing so quietly upon the rocks with flute background, and concentrated on my breathing, I felt the comfort from the scenes and sounds before me! My mind let go of the thoughts that whirled around in my mind! These emptied out to enjoy the comfort of the still mind as the witnessing mind related the thoughts above. Then, my mind turned to the calm-abiding mind without effort. God's Word - "Be still and know that I Am God", (Psalm 46:10), came flowing into the the calm quietude of a focused mind. Last, the mind of unity consciousness with its most aware state in stillness led to grasping God without letting go! Aware of His abiding presence with me as I ask Him. Because He abides with me, "I can DO ALL things" He desires for me, "through His STRENGTH", (see above)! I know these things bring complete health, happiness, and wholeness! To learn more go to: tlc wellness living.
When our minds and bodies are well we can see better through spiritual eyes. An example of illness affecting the mind and spiritual life comes from my mother, who developed an allergic reaction to something she ate. Hives kept her up all night. She had a hard time trying to tap into spiritual strength/help, because of focusing on how she felt. Again, I was able to encourage her and pray with her to get her focus back on track!
For myself, I pray while exercising which helps in all areas of mind, body, spirit wellness. My client of most days boasts that I do not get sick! This is a result of the wellness activities that I practice, along with trust in divine help, which is a part of the wellness practice each day! For more information on my wellness practice visit: tlchealthandfitness
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Loving Kindness CD
I have been trying to do these exercises in relation to my faith in a Savior. There is truth in the thought that what we give comes back to us. When we joyfully help those in need we reap positive results.
I thought of my mom's fungal infection, and followed the instructions of the CD about it for the first part of the exercise. In a similar manner, I thought of strangers and all others as prompted. When asked to embrace my thoughts, I thought of my Savior and prayed to Him for enlightenment to spread His loving-kindness to others, to experience the joy in truth that He gives in an attempt to keep faith alive.
I felt uneasy when doing the activity as asked. True helpfulness comes from doing something for others without expecting anything in return not just thinking about helping. This is the best experience for the loving kindness practice. Upon reflection of this activity, I have decided to not think these active thoughts, but to do them where I am needed as the Lord leads. For example, I was privileged to provide comfort and encouragement for my mother. I asked her to think more positively and optimistically, find things to laugh about and we prayed, if it is the Lord's will for His honor and glory, that He will unwrap the fungal infection and pass it from her body. If not we trust Him to know what is best. The next time I talked with her she sounded more positive and like she felt better.
I would not recommend this exercise to others, because I felt uneasy while doing it myself. Also, I had a hard time keeping my faith in perspective to what we were asked to do. I found the actual calling of my mom and encouraging her was more mentally stimulating than just mind stimulation without action. Mom shared the spiritual aspect to keep me on track with my faith, when this exercise confused me out of the beaten path upward! These are my sentiments, but I respect others who differ.
I thought of my mom's fungal infection, and followed the instructions of the CD about it for the first part of the exercise. In a similar manner, I thought of strangers and all others as prompted. When asked to embrace my thoughts, I thought of my Savior and prayed to Him for enlightenment to spread His loving-kindness to others, to experience the joy in truth that He gives in an attempt to keep faith alive.
I felt uneasy when doing the activity as asked. True helpfulness comes from doing something for others without expecting anything in return not just thinking about helping. This is the best experience for the loving kindness practice. Upon reflection of this activity, I have decided to not think these active thoughts, but to do them where I am needed as the Lord leads. For example, I was privileged to provide comfort and encouragement for my mother. I asked her to think more positively and optimistically, find things to laugh about and we prayed, if it is the Lord's will for His honor and glory, that He will unwrap the fungal infection and pass it from her body. If not we trust Him to know what is best. The next time I talked with her she sounded more positive and like she felt better.
I would not recommend this exercise to others, because I felt uneasy while doing it myself. Also, I had a hard time keeping my faith in perspective to what we were asked to do. I found the actual calling of my mom and encouraging her was more mentally stimulating than just mind stimulation without action. Mom shared the spiritual aspect to keep me on track with my faith, when this exercise confused me out of the beaten path upward! These are my sentiments, but I respect others who differ.
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