It moved! My yoga mat doesn't stay in place!

​I was not in the mood for the electric slide!

My mat was set in one place and then it wasn’t.  I was in my groove and then I was off kilter.  I pressed pause, re-centered my frog-green yoga mat, and drew myself back into a focused state of mind.  I took a deep breath, pressed play and I began to practice again.  Before much time had passed, I had gravitated to the left again! I stopped, moved myself to the right, and resumed. I was losing patience. It’s hard to stay at a place of peace when my underfoot world is moving against my will.

Joshua 1:7b: Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.

Ever wonder why your yoga mat wanders to one side or the other during your moving meditation?  Perhaps one of your legs is longer than the other and it’s causing a slight rotation of the mat under foot.  Are you right or left dominant, causing more pressure on one side of the mat than the other?  Are you suffering from an injury on the left and favoring it with the right?  Regardless of the cause, it’s a thing.  Like the gradual shifts in life, all J’ogis suffer from mat shifting and there’s no judgement.  Embrace the change and let it be!

During that online class, my trusty Manduka shifted a total of three times and I was ready to throw in the towel! But then I realized from what my issue was stemming.  I had placed its rubber bottom onto an area rug that had no gripping abilities.  What I would normally place my confidence and stability on, which is that wonderfully gummy pad, was actually more like attempting physical poses on shifting sand.

When are we ever in a mood for unwanted shifts in our lives?  (If you’re like me, it’s never!) 

Jesus gave us a clear understanding and expectation that our life would slip sideways.  He said something to the tune: you will have troubles but take heart because I have overcome the world.  His stability was in knowing that our heavenly father had a plan in the shift and when we read the Bible it demonstrates how Jesus lived that truth.  We can too.

God’s stabilizing plan is not just for Jesus, but for all with faith in Him.  To re-center and align with God’s will sometimes takes more than a deep breath and putting two hands on the edges of our problem to move life back into position.  It takes perseverance, prayer and patience, the things we learn while participating in community yoga classes.  Have the confidence that our solid ground is in a relationship with Jesus.  Standing firm in his Word when things feel shaky underfoot allows us to better accept a small adjustment onto life’s path instead of pressing stop, throwing up our hands in disgust and walking out on ourselves and those around us.

When my class was over, I laughed at myself, feeling stronger and more connected to God as I had deepened the understanding of Him as my solid rock on which I stand.  I was glad I didn’t give up.  Whether your yoga mat of life is staying put or moving unexpectedly, know that God is there in the frustration, shoring you up on both sides. Have the confidence that He will see you through.  Don’t give up the fight and stand firm, then.
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Join us this month for Christian park yoga, Tuesday mornings at 9am and Wednesday's at noon, where the biggest yoga mat issues are going to be wet grass and the occasional pile of goose poop.  Regardless, make the adjustment to the positive and join in.

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