Show UP for…

Show UP for…

STOP before you answer that question!

I can think of countless ways we could finish that sentence. Our human existence has taught us well… to be there for others, especially for our families and loved ones.  Last week’s post I was making reference to all of the people and places where I have left a “Spiritual Footprint!” Yes, I am very proud of that and sometimes overwhelmed by it.  I’m sure ALL of you could write a HUGE long list of how many lives you have touched. However, today I want to write about showing up for YOURSELF! I am sure this is not a new concept for you, but I decided I FOR SURE needed a refresher course! So, when I asked Spirit to bring me information on that topic…wow, the Universe sure did deliver!

I think first and foremost I was fascinated by the words written by Emily Medrick in Spirituality & Health magazine in their September/October issue. The title of the article intrigued me as soon as I opened the magazine. FOUR WAYS TO TREAT YOUR BODY LIKE A SACRED TEXT. I loved the sentence you see below the picture, “We’re taught to transcend the body on the way to the sacred. But what if the body has been sacred all along?” I did a meditation one morning with just that thought in my head. Wow, the information was valuable for me. After reading the article I was quite fascinated with how she approached this topic. Very different from other perspectives. Emily Medrick was a burned out Mennonite pastor. While Bible text verses had always shaped her life, she started referring to her body as her new sacred text because it had so much to share with her! “Her relationship with scripture evolved into a conversational one instead of a strict rules-based relationship.” 

Of course from my prospective I already KNEW she was conversing with her soul and allowing her body to be the instrument to make it happen. These are simply my thoughts, but I totally LOVED the article that she wrote!

After shifting her focus and during her burnout recovery Emily Medrick still found ancient texts to be a valuable resource. She states that while our bodies are not texts, they are FULL of messages to interpret. She believes with a passion that she rediscovered how her body’s messages showed her that listening with intention can benefit both spiritual AND physical health. I know how much I agreed with her on how we need to listen to our bodies with patience, discernment and analysis! Of course our bodies are not texts, but they are sure full of messages for us…when we choose to listen! For myself I realized long ago that healing is only ONE piece of a huge puzzle known as the human body our soul has chosen to occupy for this earthly lifetime!

I have heard other people referring to our bodies as our “Temple”… too many names to mention on this reference. I’m sure Suzanne Giesemann, Wayne Dyer, Neal Donald Walsh, Gregg Braden, and Bruce Lipton would top the list! But the reality is that IF we view our bodies as a temple with texts to talk to us…we might automatically make different choices in our life to enhance and sustain the JOY we all want in this life! But, way to often so many of our involuntary responses like breathing, digesting food, and eliminating waste go unnoticed until something goes wrong! Sound familiar? But, I would like to add into your life the AWE and GRATITUDE that our human body can help facilitate. If  we allow the beauty in life’s creation to fully engage we enhance our spiritual life!

There are  four categories that this article quotes…but I would like to reword and put into my own words what they mean for me and hope they make a difference for YOU!

• LISTEN to BODY SENSATIONS
  • When you think about any Biblical passage or ancient text, you can’t interact with it if you don’t read it! So…how do we “read” our body. When we hurt or we are sick, the signals are pretty strong, but really listening to it is another matter. What is this signal trying to tell me takes deep listening skills. Your soul will help you interpret, even though difficult emotions might be triggering. What changes do I need to make in my daily habits?  I may need to make huge different food choices. I may need to change my daily routine, I may need to go see a doctor for help!
• INTERPRET YOUR BODY’S MESSAGES with CURIOSITY
  • If I’m listening and I am hearing I need to change something, how do we interpret that? I love the word…with CURIOSITY! Perhaps I need to bring in a new perspective. Perhaps a belief set in that no longer serves me. If I am curious, I’m not looking at what has gone wrong to condemn myself, I’m looking for a creative solution that might include a positive CHANGE in my existence. With curiosity I can hear a feeling that might partner with me about what I need!
• RESPECT YOUR BODY’S CONTEXT
  • Many religious practices and thoughts come from an ancient society that no longer exists. Body messages from painful past experiences are not likely to be relevant to myself in my present life. And yet, there it sits in my subconscious mind. I can respect my body’s context by lifting myself in LIGHT and LOVE. This brings the  changes that could bring me back into JOY instead of pain!
• APPLY YOUR BODY’S WISDOM
  • OKAY…here I go! Apply the wisdom from my body. Am I listening? I sure hope so. YES…it might be food changes. YES…it might be taking more time for quiet meditation to hear more! It might be taking time to breathe into my heart space, it might be allowing the blessings of more water to hydrate my system, it might be rest, it might be getting more in touch with my feelings, it might be allowing myself to FEEL the emotions that are living in my life, it might be reminding myself to laugh more and have fun. BUT…I have to continually remind myself that my body is a  conscious living miracle!!

YOU are the miracle…embrace it! Show up for YOURSELF!

I have to end with a Dr. Wayne Dyer short I heard this morning in his own voice in an old video…it was longer, but I knew I needed to write it down for all of you!.

“Wayne Dyer reminds us that we are not this temporary body trying to find a purpose, we are infinite intelligence expressing itself through form. The same organizing power that created the Universe lives in YOU!”