…the rest of us… …who have waited… and waited… far longer than we wanted or was comfortable. …who have mourned and are still mourning… and may never stop mourning because letting go of the grief feels like a betrayal of all we’ve lost. …who are struggling… with depression, anxiety, chronic pain and terminal illness… or maybe… just life. …who feel unseen… unheard… misunderstood… forgotten… by others… by God. …who have prayed all the prayers and have simply run out of prayers… whose prayers have been reduced to silence.
…if you feel lost, invisible or engulfed by pain… these prayers are for you.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. Isaiah 9:2 ESV
As we journey through Advent, we are reminded again that it is typically described as a season of waiting. Even more so, as a season of waiting in darkness. Our first week we lit a candle of Hope. Last week we lit another candle, a candle of Peace. This week we light another candle to push back the darkness… the candle of Joy.
Not sure about you, but joy in seasons of darkness can seem not merely impossible, but unreasonable. Is it even reasonable to seek joy in the midst of great pain?
Grounding practices have become “popular” of late, but it is for good reason. When we stop and feel the ground beneath us, it is a practice that puts us squarely in the present moment. For any time we might experience worry or anxiety, this is a valuable body-based resource that we can tap into in any moment. This practice works to bring the presence of God into our awareness where wholeness and healing can begin.
What does it feel like to root yourself in Christ’s great love for you? Spend some more time rooting down into the foundation of His love for you as you listen to Tree by Justin Rizzo:
May you be blessed as you root down into his love for you!
If you’d like to learn more about embodying your spiritual life consider joining me at Rooted & Reaching Lakeside studio on the shores of Pleasant Hill Lake in North Central Ohio for a Rooted & Reaching Embodied Care (RREC) REtreat or the newly launched RREC Certificate Training Program — a year-long exploration that includes a 3-day retreat and a 4-day training at my private home studio, Rooted & Reaching Lakeside on Pleasant Hill Lake in North Central Ohio. Sign up HERE to be among the first to know about retreat, workshop, trainings and other gatherings focused on living a fully embodied, whole hearted life!
Blessings of artistry, creativity, worship & BEaUty, Jody Shine Brightly!
Jody Thomae is the author of several Bible studies including O My Soul, Jesus in My Practice and Voices of Wisdom in the Body. Jody has been involved in worship arts ministry since 1997 and is a lecturer on creativity, embodiment, and spirituality with Healing Care Ministries. She is an embodied spiritual director and hosts retreats through her ministry Rooted & Reaching Embodied Care. She is a graduate of Ashland Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing a doctorate in spiritual formation and relational neuroscience with a focus on embodiment and trauma-informed care at Western Theological Seminary. Her passion is for the person of Jesus Christ to be made more real through the revelation of creativity, embodiment and worship. Enjoy other Bible studies here. If you’d like to learn more about embodying your spiritual life consider joining Jody at Rooted & Reaching Lakeside studio on the shores of Pleasant Hill Lake in North Central Ohio for a Rooted & Reaching Embodied Care (RREC) REtreat or the RREC Christian Embodiment Training. Sign up here to be notified of retreats, trainings and workshops geared towards creativity, embodiment and spirituality.
All her books are available through Amazon. Contact Jody at jodythomae@gmail.com for pricing on bulk amounts for your creative ministry team or group study. Enjoy a creative spiritual journey through her devotional CD, Song of the Beloved, available through most music outlets including YouTube and Spotify.
In O My Soul, we bring the psalmist’s cry to our practices of movement, breath and stillness. This cry of the various writers of the Psalms is a specific cry — one that includes the phrase “my soul.” Over and over throughout the Psalms we hear the cry of “my soul” — we will explore 44 of those in this book. Like my previous release Jesus In My Practice, each passage is explored through a brief summary and explanation of its context, relevant cultural notes, thoughts to ruminate as you consider the psalm, ideas for your practice of mindful movement, a short breath prayer and poem, and songs to accompany your movement practice, if desired. Also includes white space and journal prompts to write about your experience with the material.
This is a great resource for anyone who is interested in bringing their bodies to their study and experience of scripture. It can be used individually or in groups and is also a useful resource for teachers of movement, dance, meditation and breathwork, as well as somatic workers and body-based therapists. Available in hardback and softcover editions.
Check out this and all my other resources on Amazon today! All my resources are designed as explorations of discovery… of scripture… of our BEaUtiful embodied selves… of all we were created to be! Come explore what it means to live a whole-hearted, fully-embodied life… the kardia καρδία life!
Jody Thomae is a graduate of Ashland Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing a doctorate in spiritual formation and relational neuroscience at Western Theological Seminary. Her passion is for the person of Jesus Christ to be made more real through the revelation of creativity, embodiment and worship. Find individual examples of her Bible studies at www.jodythomae.com. She is an embodied spiritual director and hosts retreats through her ministry Rooted & Reaching Embodied Care. Sign up here to be notified of retreats, trainings and workshops geared towards creativity, embodiment and spirituality.
Is there a desire in your spirit to live to live a deeper, richer, fully-embodied, whole-hearted life? In the Ancient Greek, καρδία (kardia) is translated “heart,” and in scripture, it is almost always used figuratively. It means the seat and center of all physical and spiritual life, and according to the Thayer Greek Lexicon, it is “the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors.” Note it is physical and spiritual… together… as one. Its meaning holds a sense of the whole person—mind, body, heart, soul, spirit.
At Rooted & Reaching Embodied Care, we explore this καρδία (kardia) life through a series of 3-day retreats and a yearly 4-day retreat-like training, hosted and led by Jody Thomae, author and teacher on creativity, spirituality and embodiment, at her private home studio, Rooted & Reaching Lakeside, at Pleasant Hill Lake near the Mohican Forest in beautiful North Central Ohio.
Rooted & Reaching Embodied Care REtreats revolve around a variety of themes and are designed as an opportunity for you to withdrawal from the demands of daily life and set aside sacred time for rest and reflection, prayer and worship, movement and mindfulness, creativity and exploration. Together we journey with sacred rhythms—again and again—in Christ-centered community, spending time in embodied prayer, mindful creativity, adapted Christ-centered yoga practice, Biblical teaching and exploration, and worshipful movement. CLICK HERE to find out more information, including dates, costs, etc.
Resources geared towards those who want to explore how to live a more whole-hearted, fully-embodied life…
Voices of Wisdom in the Body: a Christ-Centered & Bible-Based Exploration of Energy As the title suggests, this is a Christ-centered and Bible-based exploration of energy through the lens of the body’s voices of wisdom. This Bible study and guide encourages the reader to listen to the voices of wisdom within our wonderfully created bodies. When we tune into the energy of our bodies, they speak to us with a wisdom. Tight shoulders, knotted guts, broken hearts, wringing hands, tired feet… all tell us of the stress, worry and tension we are carrying. Lightness, freedom, flexibility, resiliency, health, well-being and vibrancy tell us a different story. I invite you to join us in this exploration and discussion of the wisdom our body has been speaking and revealing all along.
8.5 x 11″ Workbook (textbook) format includes Bible studies, body-based prayers, affirmations, songs suggestions for reflection and movement, somatic explorations for engaging the body, as well as white space for reflection and journaling. This work has gone through an extensive peer review in deep conversation with an amazing group of Christ-centered body-based therapists and Christian leaders. The book is available in two formats: the original Voices of Wisdom in the Body is geared towards body-based teachers, therapists and bodyworkers and includes guided meditations, yoga nidra, EFT tapping, body-focused Enneagram activations and more! The Voices of Wisdom in the Body (Group Study GuideEdition) was created to use alongside Voices of Wisdom in a class or group Bible study or for individual client and student use and does not include the extensive review of energy nor the meditations and scripts in the back of the book.
In a devotional format with white space and prompts for journaling, this book asks: What can we learn from the questions Jesus asked as he and his friends journeyed the dry, arid lands surrounding Jerusalem? What does it look like to explore the teachings of Jesus to live a richer, fuller, more embodied life of grace, in harmony with others? A life that does not seek to cause harm to others? A life lived from a place of love rather than judgment? More pointedly: How can we bring these questions of Jesus to our “mats” — our studios, our meditation rooms, our sacred spaces — in our own practices of movement and meditation? And how do those questions inform our lives?
Each question of Jesus is explored through a brief summary and explanation of its context, relevant cultural notes, thoughts to ruminate as you consider the question, ideas for your practice of mindful movement, a short breath prayer and poem, and songs to accompany your movement practice, if desired. The book is written in a seeker-sensitive style for people of all religions and belief systems to enjoy.
Nurturing the Creative Spirit Within 