I have a link to a prayer site by the youth camp corporation or organization I am concerned about lately. This certainly doesn’t seem right to me…
http://www.sacredgateway.org/02_default.asp
If you click through the “prayer guide” a window pops up that tells a definition of God, then has breathing exercises and the like. This is NOT prayer, but clearly some other practice as it doesn’t even pretend to have a person focus on God but themselves, the sounds around, etc.
The thing is, the leaders would claim this IS prayer, and this is how to get close to God. I don’t get it at all…
I am a C...I am a CH...I am a CHRISTIAN 
Well the breathing exercises are what tipped me off. How did the saints of old (OT) ever communicate with God without this new age wisdom that is creeping into the church?
If having a relationship with God is a spiritual thing, “deep crying out to deep,” then why would we have to get any of this stinking, rotting flesh of ours involved through some sort of “breathing exercises” before we can actually meet with Him, or truly/fully meet with Him? It doesn’t make sense.
I tell you this, if this lousy body of mine, that has gotten me into nothing but trouble is now suppose to somehow be the ticket to my actually getting close, or closer to God, then forget it! I’m not relying on one breath of this filthy flesh of mine to get me anywhere near the narrow road, let alone on it or where it leads.
Don’t these people realize that in relying on their breathing, their act (Works) of breathing, that they are using their own flesh to try and attain something higher? This is not submission. This is relying, once again on ones self and that can only lead to destruction. —Our poor children. I hate this!
Okie,
Exactly. So much of this Emergent/Merging movement is based on the thought that we don’t “do enough” and have to do “spiritual disciplines” like solitude or silence to get closer to God. C’mon! Sure, it’s nice to spend time alone with God and praying and reading the scriptures. It’s great to go out in nature and enjoy God’s creation, but I can be close to God in the strangest moments. You know, I was having my baby and in PAIN when I believe I was closest to God in the last year. I was afraid, scared to death that I would have to have a c-section because my baby had a heart decel and the nurse was making me crazy not allowing me to get up from the bed or move. She kept putting me in the position that caused the first decel. I was on my side with contractions coming one on top of the other, whimpering, “Lord, help me….” Suddenly, I just said to God, “I surrender, if I have to have a c-section, let me glorify you in it. Let me not be bitter for this circumstance.” I was traumatized a bit by the birth because my nurse was overbearing and somewhat abusive and not flexible with me. However, I knew at that moment, in that pain, in my fear, with people around me preparing the room for a baby…lights, noise, and much confusion…I knew. God was there watching me, with me, helping me. I was going to be okay no matter what. I felt God come close. I did not do anything to deserve his presence, I just prayed and it didn’t involve any kind of exercise. I was desperate and I cried out, and he was there. I find it amazing that these people say God will give them the most amazing experience of Him through this exercise. I was weak, and He was strong. That’s pretty much it.
El,
I wish these people would realize that they are doing “works” to “experience” God. God is not an amusement park ride. Wake up people! I find it horrifying that they are teaching pre-teens and teens “how to pray” using this sort of thing. I keep thinking of sexual predators, actually, I feel like the methods used are subtle. First, they introduce things in a small way, maybe using the words or terms. They model the behavior. They repeat the concept over and over again. This is what is spoken or written about from them, in their methods for encouraging “spiritual disciplines.” They also start slow, maybe five minutes of silence. That’s it. Just sit and think on God for five minutes. Our pastors were doing it to us even more slowly. They’d gotten to the silence in church services. Imagine how far they’d get with teens at a week long camp? Ugh.
Paul spent most of his adult life traveling around ministering to the fledgling congregations he started. He told us to “pray without ceasing.” (I Thessalonians 5:17). To accomplish this, I believe that the Apostle made prayer a part of his everyday life; and that as he traveled, he remembered before the Lord those he prayed for – as a believer prayer was a “natural” part of his life. Meditation, breathing exercises, emptying his mind, closing his eyes (I’m sure he didn’t want to walk into trees or walls); even the folding of his hands were not part of his prayer life as he traveled. He just remembered before the Lord those on his heart. Simple; uncomplicated; “natural.”
The closing of the eyes, the folding of the hands, even being on your knees won’t bring you any closer to God if your heart is not right; if you are just going through the motions, then you are wasting your time. God is concerned with the attitude of the heart, not the position of the body.
Poor Paul; he missed out on the deeper prayer life because these new age teachers weren’t there to teach him…
Think of the times there were “experiences” where God came extremely near. Example, Moses…did Moses go through some sort of motions before he was in the presence of God? What about Saul on the road to Damascus? I think it’s worth a study to see about those times when God actually was very near to people.
Let me say up front, I agree that the prayer ideas on the website mentioned are not anything scriptural and are too close for comfort to New Age practices.
That said, I am half/ half on some of the comments above too. While they are correct, I could also say they appear one sided in some ways to make a stronger argument against the web-site.
Jesus has specfic instructions on prayer (Matthew 6: 5-8)……if you take it literal you are to go into your room, pray in in secret, and God will reward you. We would not pray outloud in church anymore if we looked at this verse out of context. We would ponder why Jesus prayed outloud in other areas of His ministry. However in context, He was talking against praying to be seen like the religious leaders of the time.
Also, Jesus, would make special time for prayer (and I believe Paul did too). When it came time for Jesus to sacrifice himself, He didn’t just walk to the courthouse and say a casual prayer of “OK, God it’s time. Let’s do this.” He went to His special place in the garden. He had his friends praying too (or at least asked them too), He fell on his face, He sobbed, begged, and sweat drops of blood from the intensity seeking His Father.
I am pleased if people are seeking deeper prayer as well as casual prayer. I do think people need to be made aware and warned when they are getting into New Age makings like these.
That said, I wonder if there is a such thing of getting so focused on the junk that the enemy has to offer that we spend too much time there? That we forget to spend time looking to God and magnifying Him?
There have been times in my life that I have gotten so caught up addressing the evil that I forget to worship and celebrate God to a level that would please Him. I also started to alienate the people in those situations to a point that they shut the doors with me personaly (not because I was a martyr but because I was being a jerk) and I could no longer give them the truth. I watch this even today as I address my concerns within the Emergent church. To not water down the truth but to talk with people with respect so they will hear it.
May I suggest, that at times, I see that concern here. Now this is not my site, I am a guest, and I tread lightly. You can use this forum for whatever you like. I get that.
But I am convinced that you guys (especialy Christian Lady) has a GREAT heart of love for their God and for His truth. Sometimes, it seems like we are looking more at the tactics of the enemy than we should be here……Sometimes, it seems like a hunt against evil instead of following and worshiping God, letting Him point out what He wants to use us for to attack, and then move forward as He calls. I find the best way to be in step with God is to look not for the darkness, but to look for His light. Then His light can illuminate the battles He wants me in on.
For instance (and now I fear I am babbling), if we get to the point that we are spending hours on blogs to find the corruption……it may be a personal hunt and a little off balanced. If a web-site comes across your way through a friend or series of conicendences, then maybe God is leading you to address it.
I don’t know, use your own discernment. It’s just been some things on my heart to say here for awhile so I did. Blessings!
tsfgodguy,
I know what you’re saying. I think I have been hyperfocused on the evil side in terms of learning what they are about. What I have learned though is that people are not aware this camp is like this even though it’s right there on the web page. The link to this prayer page is right on every single page for the camp. It was not hard to find at all. However, yes, reading blogs for hours to find error, that can make me crazy and I have done this. So, what to make of it? I do believe some of us are called to shed the light on the truth. I also believe I have responsibilities given me that are more important than heresy hunting. I’m looking at my life and trying to find the balance. My personality is to persist to try to correct wrong (ask El, she knows more about me on this front). I am a woman who met with a Jehovah’s Witness for over a year until we moved out of the area, and I’ve met with Mormons in the home. All out of love, trying to speak with them and witness. They come to my door, I let them in so I can speak the truth in love to them. Hardest training sessions for me I have ever had, taught me to dig into the Word to find the truth…seriously.
One thing, this is the WordPress account I set up specifically for discussing THIS particular issue. It is not my whole life. I do have another blog outlet and I do write about family, and other aspects of life. I may transition this account at some point to something else. We shall see. I tend to hyperfocus on a topic when it’s a problem in my life, I get all the angles, and almost feel I have to understand it as much as possible for me. Then, one day, that topic goes to the backburner. I have done this with health issues, with some politics issues, with things such as trisomies in children and disability, and on and on. I am not sure why I have this information “thing” but I do.
Basically, I do think it’ okay to research as it has allowed me to know what to look for in a church. Probably, and this is what I figure not revealed by God to me or anything, probably I need to protect my children from the errors I see OR someone might get caught up in this. God only knows for sure.
So, you do see a lot of focus here on this, and I really respect your concern and have actually been thinking about that myself. It’s brave of you to say something as you know my opinion on these things….
I don’t know if I posted this here, but the pastor at the last church we visited had a sermon on truth. Be very familiar with truth so that when a lie is presented you know it right away. I think this is a message for all of us. Things are scary out there, but we need to know more about Jesus than we know about those who would distort Him and His message.
Oh, and I do think praying in a closet has a specific meaning, not to be out bragging with big wordy prayers to show off. I’m not against secluded prayer at all, not against sitting in silence and talking to God. I’m not against nature walks or praying while walking. It’s all in the intent and heart of it….
Hey Christianlady,
Thanks for the response. I fully get the purpose of your blog. It is a good thing to have a place to have an outlet and I get that. That’s the main reason I hadn’t said anything along these lines to date. I appreciate your open heart and where God is leading you. I will continue to keep you in prayer as you search for a new church home.
Blessings…..