Physical and/or Spiritual Therapy

I met regularly with 13 different chiropractors before finding one who really helped me with my back issues. I have also seen several different physical therapists for my knee pain.  Yesterday, I met with the fourth physical therapist so far since my injury last October.  Each therapist has shared a few insights and recommendations with me, but I'm hoping this fourth therapist will be the one who actually helps me improve.  Clearly, treating my injuries is not an exact science with standardized protocols.

During my PT session yesterday, my therapist noted that I had the "forms", and he could tell that I had been using those forms during my daily stretching routine.  However, those standard forms required modification to best address the needs of my body.  I need to really listen to my body and note which positions and angles best address the areas of tension.  He encouraged me to find a quiet place free from distractions so that I could really focus on the exercises and tweak them as necessary to target the tight spots along my IT band and hip flexors which are causing my patella to track incorrectly.

As he summarized his proposed action plan for me, I could not help but see spiritual parallels.   Forms are necessary for physical rehabilitation and injury prevention.  We need to know the rules of proper stretching to prevent injury. For example, we should never position the knees past the toes.  Similarly, God gives guidelines in Scripture to protect His people from harm.  The ten commandments (Exodus 20) and the two greatest commandments (Matthew 22: 34-40) are non-negotiable.  If we break these rules, harmful consequences will inevitably affect us personally while possibly injuring other people and definitely impacting our relationship with God.  Out of God's infinite love for us, He fills Scriptures with commands and guidelines which will guide and protect us while making us wise and mature.  The psalms are especially filled with thanksgiving and delight over God's statutes (Psalm 119).

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My physical therapist noted that knowing and practicing the prescribed forms is not enough.  While I must maintain the hard and fast rules, some of the stretches and postures need to be modified to best address my areas of weakness.  For example, the standard supine piriformis stretch has the knee bent at almost a 90 degree angle.  However, for me, the stretch works better with my leg out instead of bent and over the other leg at about a 60 degree angle.  Tomorrow, the stretch may work better at yet another angle.  They key is knowing my body and finding the angle where I feel the greatest stretch at my area of tightness.  If I merely follow the forms without actually targeting my trouble areas, my stretching will be useless.


In the church, people often follow all the forms quite devoutly.  They recite scripted prayers, attend church services faithfully, and maybe even give the designated tithe.  They hear the sermons and sing the songs of worship but without really thinking about the words they are hearing and reciting.  Following the forms without knowing the God they supposedly worship is vanity. 
  
Ecclesiastes 1:14 (NASB)
I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind.

Changing our outward appearance through visible forms and actions will not change who we are inside, so religiosity becomes meaningless.  When Christ fills us from the inside, however, then our forms become both powerful and effective.

Ephesians 3:16-17a (NIV)
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

Our Creator knows us intimately.  

Psalm 139

 ¹ You have searched me, LORD,
   and you know me.
² You know when I sit and when I rise;
   you perceive my thoughts from afar.
³ You discern my going out and my lying down;
   you are familiar with all my ways. 

 ⁴ Before a word is on my tongue
   you, LORD, know it completely.

He knows our weaknesses and helps us through them.

Romans 8:26
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

He knows our needs.

Philippians 4:19
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

So, if He knows us so intimately and wants to help us, then by knowing Him we can know how to address our weaknesses.

John 10:14
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—

John 10:27
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

The forms teach us that we should study, memorize, and apply God's word, and they teach us to pray. We must seek the Lord personally, moment by moment, however, to know how to study, what to study, how to apply God's word in our lives, and how to pray.  When we know Him intimately, decisions that aren't clearly answered in Scripture such as which job to take, whom to marry, which Bible study to join, or which schooling option to choose for our children become more clear.

When we face areas of weakness, He will give us more specific boundaries to protect us while we grow stronger.  Within the clear indisputable boundaries established in Scripture that are for the good of all people, some people may need to alter their forms in a way that will best mold them into Christlikeness.  The forms that work best for one person may not be necessary for another person.  A recovering alcoholic, for example, may need to avoid all situations in which alcohol is served whereas someone else who is strong in that area may be led by the Holy Spirit to minister in settings that would seem compromising to the former alcoholic.  Fallen humans have no place to cast judgment on others, but rather, they must seek the Lord intimately to know what minor adjustments to their spiritual disciplines are necessary for themselves personally.

Romans 14
¹ Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. ² One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. ³ The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. ⁴ Who are you to judge .....  ⁵ One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. ⁶ Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.

My physical therapist wisely suggested that I free myself from distractions when I do my stretching so I can best listen to my body.  Similarly, communion with the Father often requires that we remove ourselves from distractions and get alone with Him.

Psalm 46:10
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

Jesus, who was the very nature of God Himself, set the example by getting alone to pray.

Matthew 14:23
After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone,

Finally, my physical therapist reminded me to relax my muscles while using the foam roller since it's impossible to roll out tense muscles.  In a like manner, when we come to the Lord, we can find rest and relief from tense emotion and anxiety.

Matthew 11: 28-29
²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.