#89: Bridging the Gap: Christianity and Manifestation

In an effort to clarify how I view the connection between Christianity and manifestation, from my current state of consciousness, and that I didn't share in the last episode, I riff about what it means to be Christian and believe in the power of manifestation.

I believe these concepts can coexist and wasn't completely clear on that in the previous episode.  In my mind both practices revolve around allowing positive energy to flow, fostering abundance for oneself and others.

My intention in sharing this episode is to help bridge the gap between a more conservative Christian viewpoint and the more mystical "woo-woo" beliefs. I believe in using positive energy to create beneficial circumstances for ourselves and others, with the understanding that the force behind this energy is God.
 
Manifestation does not have to been seen as creating something from nothing, but rather shaping circumstances through free will to foster greater well-being. I believe that everything good and positive comes from God, and ultimately, we have to surrender to His plan for our lives, but we can indeed create the circumstances and own our thoughts and actions to live in a way that moves us towards what we want to be inviting into our lives.

Resources:
Join me in a free 30-day Gratitude Challenge during the month of November in the Energetic Rhythms for Intentional Living community here.  Come in and join anytime!

Grab your Daily Rhythms Tracker here.

Get the full show notes at www.cairnyogawellness.com/podcast89.

More episodes like this one:
#88: The Power of Manifestation in Christian Faith (with Rachel Bayford)
#75: Gratitude, the Practice of Being "Blessed"
#19: Cultivating Gratitude

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Transcript

Cathy: 0:00

Christian prayer and manifestation co-exist beautifully because both are about allowing the positive flow of energy to create abundance for you and others. That benefits everyone you come into contact with. In today's episode. I will clarify some of the connection between Christianity and manifestation as it happens in my own mind, From my current state of consciousness. That I didn't share in the last episode. Hey friends. Welcome to episode 89 of the show and to the month of November. I'm doing a 30 day

Cathy Overdub: 1:35

Gratitude

Cathy: 1:35

challenge this month in my group, energetic rhythms for intentional living. So if you're not a part of that community, it's on Facebook; head on over there and request join it. The group is all about using the rhythms in and around you to get stuff done. And this month we're doing a gratitude challenge. The challenge is simply to begin to notice the little things and big things in life that you're grateful for. And then to post about them in the group, you can either share a snapshot or text of what it is that you're grateful for. And allow for those gratitudes to be seen by others and celebrated by others and yourself. Being grateful is stopping and pausing to find or recognize those things in your life that you appreciate being in your life for whatever reason. And to express gratitude in life is one of the simplest ways to begin to cultivate greater health, harmony and happiness in your life. This is the practice that I started years ago just by keeping a journal where I would write down three things a day that I was grateful for big or little and they might be joys or challenges. But there were things that I knew I needed to express gratitude for. And yes, you can find gratitude even in the challenges of life because it's those challenges that often lead to other things unfolding or other doors opening for you. Sometimes it just might take a little bit of time before we recognize those challenges as gratitudes and that's okay. So throughout the month, I will be going live at various times and sharing tidbits about gratitude either through live videos or posts. So I would encourage you to engage with that information as much as you like. And just observe in your own life, how bringing your awareness and your attention back to gratitude actually does cultivate greater health, harmony and happiness in your life. And I know that I have an episode specifically about gratitude and it is all the way back at episode 19 of this show. So when you're done listening to this episode and maybe if you haven't listened to the one from last week, go listen to that as well. Then head back to episode 19. And listen to that short little ditty on gratitude. It's got some good tips and ideas on how you can begin to recognize gratitude more in your life. When you take just 30 seconds or a minute to pause and consider gratitude and what you have to be grateful for in your life. You get this clear view of where you're at right now. And maybe even what you've gone through to get to that point. So it's almost like you get to zoom out. And look at everything like the pieces of a puzzle. And see the things, see all the things that you have to be grateful for and by doing so. It allows you to have a different perspective on life. It allows you to shift perception to see that maybe all those things. That either weren't really that great, or maybe that were really great, but you didn't pause to recognize them. Played a big role in getting you here and they are important. NOV, friends, is definitely all about gratitude. Great. But it's also about letting go and wrapping things up because it brings us closer to the winter solstice, which is in December. And the day before the winter solstice is the end of the season of letting things go and wrapping things up. And then we start into winter and we'll get into that in another episode. But, november, along with being grateful. Is about letting things go harvesting. Um, reaping the benefits of the work that you have put in. And one of the ways that we are able to recognize some of the benefits of the things that we've done is to really express gratitude for what's in our lives. Gratitude for everything that we are and everything that we receive. So, if you are interested in also taking part in that little gratitude challenge, just to cultivate a healthier, more harmonious and happier life for yourself, then jump on over to that group. Energetic rhythms for intentional living and I will link to it in the show notes and join us, please. You can start at any time also. No judgment. If you don't listen to this until 15 days in, and then you decide to join us. We will have you and celebrate you whenever that may be. After the last episode. I just wanted to take some time to clarify some things. I know that I did not do a great job inserting my beliefs into that episode. In terms of Christianity. I was having a great conversation with Rachel and we were having fun and chatting and so I went with it, and I actually didn't make it as clear as I could have what my beliefs are and what Christianity says in regards to manifesting and Christianity. I think there's a lot of beliefs out there and. You could get sucked down a rabbit hole real quick. So here's what I want to let you know. There is. The extreme. Conservative Christian viewpoint out there. Then there is the. Extreme. New age. woo-woo beliefs out there as well. And I just want to let you know that. I don't align with either of those extremes. Okay. But I'm somewhere in the middle. Now, if you were to rate me on a scale of one to 10 woos. If you were to describe someone as woo-woo, or mystical I would say that I'm more of a 4-woo kind of girl and not just woo, but maybe. Woo. Woo. Woo. So I'm not all the way at 10. But I'm also not at one or zero or negative. And so I guess what I'm trying to say is that I lie somewhere in the middle. And so that's my intention with the last episode. And with this episode today that you're going to be listening to, is that. I trying to bridge the gap between Christianity and the woo woo world. And the new age, mysterious, mystical world. Somewhere in between and just wanting you out there to know that it's okay and that it's okay to appreciate aspects of both. It's okay too want to learn more about both. And so. It's kind of bridging that gap right there. And that's what I want you to know to kind of repair what maybe some of my misses were in the last episode. And to help give you some perspective as you listen to this episode I also want you to know that and I will take a term from my coach, this episode is very much"riffing from my current state of consciousness." So I'm just kind of going with it. These were my current thoughts one Saturday afternoon in my kitchen, after I released that blast episode. Just to clarify things. Because I did get some pushback. I did get some, um, Some. Comments that. We're trying to correct the things that were in that episode. And so. I just started talking to my phone. And this is what came about. So you'll hear some background noise at some points probably, and maybe even me eating lunch, but I had time at home and it was recording and I didn't ever intend it to be a podcast episode, but it turned out that it is so I want you to enjoy. So take what you will from it and leave the rest. This podcast is not intended to polarize people. But rather to give you a different perspective. To invite the opportunity for you to cultivate your own version of health, harmony, and happiness in your life. It's not meant to judge others. Or to shame others. But instead to give you tools that might help you feel more comfortable and confident on your own journey... whatever that might look like. When I think of manifesting, I don't think of creating something from nothing, and that could be an incorrect definition or belief, but that's my definition, or that's how I see it, and as God being the creator of all, and the hand that ties everything together, we as humans still have free will, which means we have the ability to make choices, but ultimately God is the power that makes everything happen. God can change hearts. He is the only one who can change hearts. I'm not into witchcraft. I'm not into whatever new age movement, I'm not even sure what the definition of that would be, but that's not my intention. When I speak of manifesting, I speak of creating the right circumstances because of your own free will, so that you can cultivate greater health, harmony, and happiness in your life. It's not that if we do things well, or if we do things... Perfect, we are rewarded. If we follow a certain set of rules or steps or give a certain amount of money that we are rewarded. Indeed, that is not the intention that God has for us. But instead, it's that we live in a way that shows love and treats others the way we want to be treated. So what does that have to do with manifesting? Well, I believe that if we live with an open and receptive heart and mind and put our trust in God that we will experience His goodness In the Old Testament, it got to the point where people thought they just had to do certain rituals. They had to follow all these rules that God created for them. But then that humans, we as fallible people, decided to twist into our own definitions so that it became the belief of the system of: do something, be rewarded. Do something, God will reward you. But that's not how our God, that's not how the God, the creator of all works. So can we just do things really really well and then create something out of nothing? Absolutely not. But we can create the right mindset, manifest the right mindset, We can create the right opportunities for good things and for positivity to happen in our lives based on the choices that we make, based on the things that we allow into our hearts and into our minds, and based on the actions that we take, based on the choices that we make and how we impact others. Now, you may not agree with the podcast I released last week. It may be so far out. And I didn't really touch much on actually my beliefs and, how God comes into the story. And that's my mistake. I messed up there. I needed to insert more of that into the episode, but I didn't. I'm human. I make mistakes. I am not in any means, and I apologize if this was portrayed in the last episode, I, I do not in any way believe that we can create from ourselves. I think that anything that we do create, anything we put out into this world, is through God, is from God. God, the Holy Spirit, resides in us and works through us. And if something is being used in a positive way, and positively to make a positive impact in this world, and share love, and to help treat others the way they want to be treated, then it absolutely is from God. And if that means that you spend time focusing on the things that are positive, Important to you, the things that you desire, the people that you desire in your life then create those opportunities in your mind so that you can see them so that you can see God's work in all the little things around you. And perhaps those things that you do desire will come into your life because you are looking for them instead of focusing on the negative or the lack or the scarcity. Our thoughts create outcomes. Right? Our thoughts don't necessarily create things like producing a rock right in front of me. I can't think that I want money and then it comes into me. But our thoughts do create the right environment and the opportunity for us to do the work, for us to do the things so that we can create the best possible outcome. So that it gives us the drive and the motivation to do the work so that we can be compensated for our work. And that drive and motivation comes from the Holy spirit, comes from God. I'm not in any way saying that we rely on ourselves and that autonomy is the thing that we, we are the only ones who do that. My view of manifestation, and from a Christian perspective and standpoint, is that because we have free will, we get to decide how we show up in this world. We get to decide what we focus our minds on. We can't create something from nothing, but our thoughts can do create the way that we perceive and the way that we encounter this world. Our thoughts create the things that we focus on, the things that we bring into our awareness. So if we're always focused on the negative, if we're always focused on what we don't have. Then we will continue to experience that. But if we open our hearts, open our minds and focus on the positive, focus on the goodness, the abundance that we do have in our lives and give thanks to God, indeed, give thanks to God for all the things big and small that we have in our lives, then yes why wouldn't we be able to see more of that in our lives? To call more of that in simply because we are more aware and we are seeing more of it? And I guess when I talk of manifestation, that's what I think of. That's what I talk about. That's what I mean. Yes, we are all energetic beings with free will. Jesus was too, he talks about his power going out of him. When the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years touched the tassels of his robe. Power is energy, right? It's energy on a cellular level. And if you believe that you have the holy spirit within you, you have that same power that Jesus had. I just look at it as maybe a little bit of a watered down version, but we still have the capacity to tap into it. And Jesus talks about that. He talks about using the energy we are provided by God. To serve others. To do good in this world. Jesus created and healed and helped others through the same power that is within each one of us. And that we have access to if we believe in him. We were given the gift of being able to work with that energy and to take ownership of our lives and align our thoughts and actions to make things happen through him. We still have the energy that connects to other people and things. Think of a time when you have thought of someone and then you see them, or you get a phone call from them, or a text message from them. That's an energetic connection that you cannot argue with. Does God play a role in that? Absolutely. He puts the thoughts in your mind or the other person's mind to connect you. Absolutely. It's still energy. And it is still a connection that we can't even wrap our minds around. It is so big. And that's the beautiful thing of it all. But we have a choice then when we think of that person, we have a choice to either ignore that thought or reach out to them and say, Hey, you know what? I haven't talked to you in a while and I'm just thinking about you. And I just want to let you know that I'm thinking about you. We have that choice as humans, or we can block that flow of energy. And then the next thing, you know, maybe that person's gone from your life forever. So we get to decide, we get to use the energy that we are given. We get to use the Holy Spirit within us to either share positivity, share, love, share goodness. Or to block the flow of energy, to stay within ourselves, to stay withdrawn, to retreat, to not engage, to not go for the things that we want in this life. God does not ever say that it's all going to be unicorns and rainbows. It's not all going to be easy. It's through the challenges, through the struggles, through the low times that we receive this. realization that we have to rely on a higher power, that it's not all from us. We aren't the ones who are all powerful. God is, and God can do amazing things. He can do amazing things. He can create life from nothing. He can create life from a single tiny seed. He is so powerful. There's no way we as humans could ever do that. Ever. And when we can through science or whatever other means are out there, then it's because God planted the seed of the idea or the wisdom to know how to create something. and still, we have the opportunity to set intentions, put ourselves out there, show gratitude for the things that we do have, even the challenging things, and then ask for what we do want. And trust, let go of holding on, let go of gripping, let go of the expectation that it is going to happen, but then focus on the goodness that we do have. Focus on the goodness of God's love. Even when it's challenging, even when it seems like the world is against you. Let me bring this all together. Does God want us to be self reliant? Nope. Absolutely not. Absolutely not. Nowhere in the Bible does it ever say that we are to be self reliant. Quite the opposite actually. That we are to put our trust in Him. To learn about Him. To celebrate His goodness. And to walk in His ways. So when those things do happen in your life that you have been thinking on, that you have been asking for, that you have been praying for, when they do show up in your life, it's not to your own accord. It's to God's and that's where the glory needs to go. It's not to some magic that you can do within yourself. And do I believe that you can tap into that energy within yourself and actually move it around and actually use it to positively connect with others. And change the way that you feel. Yup. I sure do. Because I've done it. Do I believe you can use the energy that's within you and tap into it at such a level that you can actually bring about healing and nurturing to yourself or to others? Absolutely. I've done it to myself and I've experienced it. That does not give us permission to use that energy to negatively impact others, to place harm on others. But like I said before, it is energy. It is the energy of God's power within us. And we absolutely can tap into that and use it to shift the energy within our body, within our systems. That's kind of what yoga is about. It's doing postures to move energy around. It's using your breath work, using your breath, the same breath that God breathed into you to move energy. So, yes, I do absolutely believe that we have the power and the ability to move and shift energy within ourselves, because it's about placing intention around that. And it's connecting with that and it is connecting with that energy on a higher level of consciousness. Not everybody. Is there not everybody is ready for that. But we can do all of that. Because of God. It's to the grace of God, to the all powerful God who holds everything together in this universe, the stars, the moon, the sun. He created it all, all beautifully to be intertwined together and to work together. He created the stars to be a keeper of time. He created the universe. He created pictures in the stars for us to look at at night. He created the leaves on the trees, the beautiful landscape to be bounty for us and to be something to enjoy the beauty of. So if you think of manifestation as getting your heart's desires and all the things that you absolutely want in this world, whether that's the yacht, the private jet, the millions of dollars. If that's your view of manifestation, that's not what I'm talking about. This podcast is not for you, but I do believe that as Christians, We can manifest by putting ourselves, our spirits in the right mindset, in the right situations. We can cultivate those attributes that help us see health, harmony, and happiness in life. And when we do this, it's absolutely not to be done in a self righteous way. Thinking that we are better than others. As a Christian myself, I'm going to say that some of the most self righteous people I've met are also Christians. And some of the most open, loving, and welcoming people are not. Some of the people who have the most mindset and actions that align with Jesus's, which was to love everyone, to not judge are the people who are not Christians. Now, I also know a whole lot of people who are Christians, who do have the heart of Jesus, but before you throw stones. Take a hard look at yourself is what I have to say. And I know I'm not completely right on this. I know I'm probably missing the mark in a lot of ways in this, but right now in my journey, in my faith journey, in my life journey, these are my thoughts. These are my beliefs. And I still love Jesus with all my heart and I love God and I know that he is the one that gives us those little God winks, those little nudges. Like, hey, you thought about a keyboard? You think you need one? Here you go, I'm going to provide one for you. That wasn't me creating that. Of course not. I absolutely know that that was God. That was absolutely God saying, oh, here you go. Sometimes he gives us those little God winks or those God nudges. And you better believe that When I experience those, I give thanks to God because it's his energy, his power that is doing it all. Not mine, not my own. I don't in any way think that it's, that's kind of a miracle when little things like that happen. And the only power who can create miracles like that is God. I'm Cathy Struecker thanks for tuning in. Helping you flow with life's ups and downs. Cheers to cultivating your own version of health harmony and happiness in your life.