Movement for Your Whole Self

"Where your body goes, your mind will follow."  I've heard more than one evangelical preacher use this sound bite to support their call to take a supplicatory position while praying--either on your knees, or even better, face down on the floor.  And they're right; although God can certainly "hear you," no matter what position you may be in, it is a distinctly different experience to pray on your knees, or to fully prostrate yourself before God.  That is because, to reprise a theme, you ARE your body, and what you do with your body affects your thoughts, feelings, and sense of self. 

And vice versa:

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/pray-and-workout-strengthening-soul-and-body/

Personally, I love going for a walk and praying the rosary.  I get fresh air, sunlight, and bird song; the breeze in the trees, the artwork of the Lord, unexpected encounters with my fellow creatures; and meditative MOVEMENT for my body, psyche, and spirit.  All parts of you need to MOVE to be healthy.  Sitting on your backside, passively taking in somebody else's notion of what you should be consuming from a screen, atrophies your body, stultifies your psyche, and quenches your spirit.  A walk in God's creation, or a dance to uplifting music offered up with--or AS--a prayer, whether of gratitude, joy, or even pain and sorrow, moves all of you, and most importantly, moves you toward Life.  (Choose Life!)

Reconciling With Our Bodies

So many people in our modern culture view their bodies as if they are some kind of vehicle that they, the "real person," ride around in.  You probably have that habitual view, too.  But you know that this view is mistaken, when somebody injures or against your will grabs hold of your body, and you say, "Hey, you hurt ME," or "Let go of ME."  Your body IS you.  Your psyche IS you.  Your spirit IS you.  As we are made in the three-person image of God, so we, too, are a "mini trinity."  Because of this, we can learn a great deal about our SELVES from our bodies. 

Our Walking Dead Culture, by Emily Stimpson (from Aleteia)