Faith is about trust. About connection to that, or more specifically to that One, who is greater than yourself. God is simultaneously close, even closer than your own breathing.
How do you stand in your faith? Are you also curious how this can be experienced through the wisdom of your body? Below I share some thoughts.
In the Bible we read about cheering, balling fists, dancing, kneeling, falling down, raising hands and clapping. Singing, posturing and dancing are used to give thanks, celebrate, fight, mourn and show love. Dance was for the people an ultimate expression of intense feelings such as love, sorrow joy and gratitude.
Believing in our culture has long been a mental matter, a matter of the head. But what if believing is also physical? In this you can learn a lot from your body. After all, you experience through your body. But sometimes that head gets in the way. Do you recognize that?
I feel so I am
he body stores all your experiences. Thus it contains a lot of impressions, wisdom and knowledge. Tuning into this is often difficult and sometimes you prefer to avoid it. Living "in the head" seems safe, it gives you a certain control. You take in much through word, hearing, thinking, the head. But precisely what you experience through your body influences your emotions and consciousness. Scientist Damasio therefore states: I feel therefore I am. Time, then, to tune into the wisdom of the body.
Experiencing faith
Have you ever considered that you can experience faith through your body? Jesus promises to give you peace and life. This is quite something! This is something not only to know but rather to experience and live out. What would it be like if you actually lived out this peace (tranquility) and this life (aliveness)? How do you do that?
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; not as the world gives it, I give it to you. I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (Jesus)
Back to the base In the beginning. In Genesis we read how God made the heavens and the earth and from the dust of the earth created man. The name Adam seems to be related to 'ădāmāh (earth / ground).
Spiritual life often associated with something from 'above' and sometimes even separate from oneself. Just finding grounding gives more grounding, more connection to one's own ground and the body. You can do this by literally feeling your feet on the ground. This 'grounding' is also something to be able to return to again and again. You have solid ground under your existence.
And I ask Him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3, The Message)
My search About 10 years ago I started my own search more consciously. I longed intensely for more grounding, more peace. I didn't want to feel jaded but alive. In my head I kept going in circles. After a process of development, I finally started working with bodywork and Body Mind Language. Here I learned to work with body language, posture and movement. This gave me the deepening and coming home I was looking for. I was convinced that if God is a living and giving God I could experience more of that. That turned out to be possible! Christian body work? From my own experience I can say that things can be totally different. It is absolutely possible to live from more peace and energy, from a clear foundation. To experience unconditional love and acceptance. I love to guide others in their search for a strong connection with heart, body and head.
Putting the word 'Christian' in front of something does not make it suddenly Christian. Nor am I in favor of a 'Christian sauce'. Working with the body is pure, raw, real and loving. My concern is a natural intergration of how God's Spirit (the mover) is working in your life. Whatever your background or (dis)faith, you are invited to work on healthy connections and a healthy food source. Whatever stored experiences we encounter along the way are allowed to be there. Nothing is rejected. You also get to know your deep desires. This is how you find wholeness and intergration. Welcome!
My desire is that we not only think and talk about faith but that we begin to embody faith.
