Spiritually Renew Your Mind

I have been a part of Jessica Shakir’s Beautiful Mind Academy for 2 weeks. The first week, we learned about the spiritual element of beauty and this week, we are focused on renewing our minds.

During our study and discussion, the topic of “my body” keeps coming up.

My first thought was, come on, God. I have already told the world about my college eating disorder. I have already embarked on a fitness journey motivated by wearing bike shorts and a sports bra on stage last month at the Mrs. International Pageant. I’m good. I have a healthy relationship with my body.

But, why would He keep bringing it to the forefront of my mind?

Oswald Chambers said, “Ultimately, God will allow nothing to escape; every detail of our lives is under His scrutiny. God will bring us back in countless ways to the same point over and over again. And He never tires of bringing us back to that one point until we learn the lesson, because His purpose is to produce the finished product. God is trying to impress upon us the one thing that is not entirely right in our lives.” -My Utmost for His Highest

Growing up, I never saw the connection between my body and God. We were separated. The Holy Spirit had nothing to do with it. I thought I was unlucky and that God only gave some girls a perfect body. I thought I was stuck as I was; always slightly heavier than I wanted to be. I had no hope to change. I was not exposed to proper fitness or nutrition. My belief was limited and distorted.

This distortion led to insecurity, depression, and an eating disorder.

This mindset has since been transformed and I now know that hating my body grieved God. After all, He made me. His powerful and gentle hands formed me with great love and joy.

So, why is God continuing to remind me of my body perception if my mind is at peace with it?

Because He knows there is something that is not completely right. Cue Oswald Chambers’ piercing words from above.

I got really honest with myself this week because I heard God’s gentle voice telling me that there is more freedom waiting for me. He didn’t grab me by the shoulders and yell at me to straighten up. He doesn’t want me to be a perfect prodigy. He wants me to live fully free, hand in hand with Him, flowing with the Holy Spirit.

So, what’s going on, Laura? What is your problem?!

The revelation is that I am not fully in charge of what I eat. I lean toward overindulgence. This sin leads me down a yucky path. My mind becomes filled with guilt and frustration. The guilt and frustration is not in relation to aesthetics, it stems from me dishonoring God by the way I choose to make my body feel. This sin pulls me out of alignment with the Holy Spirit. This spiritual imperfection creates in me the opposite of a renewed mind in Christ.

Faith without works is dead. “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:14, 17.

To finally tackle this, I decided to fast once a week. Every Thursday, I fast for 10 hours. This isn’t anything drastic, but it is a tangible step. This fast tells my mind that I am in charge. I am in charge of physically living out my faith. My faith fully believes I am the Temple of the Holy Spirit. This action is making sure my mind fully believes it, too.

Put authority into the hands of your spirit, not into the hands of your sin. 

I am sure you have heard that God can create something good out of something bad. For example: He pointed out my sinfulness (something bad) and created within me a boldness and conviction (something magnificent) to teach my daughter the following truth:

She is 8. She and I both have a sweet tooth. She and I are both calm and lean toward a slower pace in life. She is on the brink of becoming aware of her body and what she looks like versus what her friends look like. That scares me. I see the enemy waiting, waiting for his moment to attack. To jump in and speak lies to her and to distort the truth.

This Momma Bear is ready for the battle. I have risen up to take the lead. I will be the Voice of Truth over her body image.

I have started to teach her that our bodies are the Temple of the Holy Spirit. She and I are physically embracing this truth by doing yoga together. During yoga, you stretch hard, focus on breathing, and really connect and align with your body. Your muscles, ligaments, heart, digestive system, etc.

At the end of the workout, we have a 4-minute, completely still time of meditation. The proper term is “savasana” but we call it “Ruach ha’Kodesh” which is the Hebrew word for Holy Spirit. It is truly a spiritual moment. You are told to close your eyes and pick something lovely to focus on. (Cute side note: last night, she and I unknowingly chose the same focal point: the beach from our summer vacation!) During these 4-minutes, you stay still intentionally focusing on beauty (GOD) and intentionally focusing on breathing in and out the breath that God has given you. You feel your physical body aligning with God’s spiritual being. The Holy Spirit washes over you, soaks into your skin, and you arise FREE. Light. Your body is literally tingling, and you feel so loose and peaceful, as if you only weigh a few pounds.

I am grateful for this on many levels. One, I am sharing this with my daughter. Two, my daughter is connecting with her Creator and His Holy Spirit. Three, she and I are physically and emotionally experiencing 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

What is it in your life that God keeps pointing out? Does it have to do with your mind, talent, voice, waiting, pain, body, relationships, faith, life, or your appearance? I encourage you to let God show you what is really going on. He desires you to live in perfect freedom. Not only for your good, but for the good of those around you.

"I'm living in the light of my Savior, dancing in the arms of forever, I'm singing like I'm walking on water, You are life, alive in me." -You Are Life by Hillsong. 

#legacy #Spiritual #holyspirit #beauty #Motherhood #yoga #mindset #pilates #renewal #renew