A Lesson from my Pilates Journey

Four months after starting Pilates exercises, I have a pretty good idea of the range of instructors out there — some very technical-oriented, others very free-spirited and creative in their exercises.

I need both. I need the physiotherapy-trained instructor to carefully put me through my paces in structured, fairly predictable programs. Good, but a bit boring. So I balance that with the free-spirited one who challenges me with new exercises in each session and leaves me invigorated. And, there were others who were just “okay”.

Then I decided to look at their credentials. The technical ones cited their degrees or certificates from various bodies; the “okay” ones had sports backgrounds but no certification.

The free-spirited one didn’t bother to cite anything.

Obviously, she has had good technical training. Her demonstrations were clear and precise but more important, she was quick to spot and correct any misalignment, and to lower the difficulty level for beginners like me. I could feel her passion for the sport as she cheered us on. She has many loyal followers.

I enjoy her boldness in being herself in a very credentials-oriented society.

In contrast, years ago when I was a cub reporter in The Straits Times, the bosses in an experiment hired a new employee that had a PhD in something or other. Weeks passed, and she couldn’t produce. She was one lonely woman in the newsroom. The veterans, many who started their career when degrees weren’t required and climbed the ladder through sheer grit, scoffed: “Got PhD, but cannot write.” Three months later, she was quietly let go.

In my journey, I have met those who have some credentials but cannot perform and everyone can see it; I have met those with good credentials, perform very well, but have naysayers on the side; I have met those who don’t cite worldly credentials but their life-changing, pioneering ways have changed my life and the lives of others and who have had to constantly deal with persistent, toxic criticism of them. They are like someone all Christians are familiar with.

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Can Christians take Pilates Classes?

Recently I ministered to two people who’d inadvertently gotten spiritually oppressed after taking some Pilates lessons. As a result, the natural question is, is it safe for Christians take these classes?

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My answer is first, I am very clear in my mind that every stretching exercise that benefits us is from God. As the enemy has classified some of the stretches as its territory, I would bring a court case to God and dispute that. Every good thing comes from God. Being responsible stewards of our body, we exercise to tone up, get fit, increase endurance. Stretching classes do that. So we have the right to ask God to intervene if the enemy takes advantage of our Pilates classes to oppress us. When we know our spiritual rights we can fight back.

But I wouldn’t learn yoga, which has a long occult history behind it.

So what do we do when we decide to learn Pilates which is a combination of ballet, gymnastics and some stretching exercises that the enemy claims a “copyright”? First, I would bring a court case to God and dispute that — only God has the copyright as He is the designer of our body and by extension, the exercises that would benefit it. He is the originator of all good things, not the enemy.

Second, the instructor is important. We are subconsciously influenced by our leaders. If he or she has clear occult leanings and I don’t feel comfortable, I would switch instructor.

Third, the environment. If it feels unclean spiritually, you may find another fitness centre to go to. But if you’ve already paid for the classes, go into spiritual warfare mode. Before attending the session, pray aloud appropriate bible verses proclaiming God’s righteousness and goodness and that His intention is always to bless us. It will make a difference.

The enemy has falsely claimed some territory, and it’s our right as Christians to dispute that and draw a clear boundary to keep him out. After all, every good thing comes from God and is to be enjoyed as a blessing from Him — including stretching classes.

Breaking Free from a Broken System

When the movie “The Matrix” first came out, it hit something core in humanity. It was challenging us — would we choose the harshness of reality or remain in a comfortable delusion? The red pill or the blue pill.

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When we choose the red pill, we need to acknowledge reality — that the system is broken; whether it’s family, work, or church. Second, we need to refuse the blue pill — go against the natural tendency to denial. To acknowledge that we are broken, that the system has effectively worked to break us, and we need healing. And this is hard. The blue pill is a real temptation.

In The Matrix, there’s something evil working behind the scenes using humans as its tools. So it is, in this world.

I was only a child when to my surprise and horror, I saw a whole flood of small “somethings” similar to black insects coming out from a traditional Chinese calendar featuring a pretty woman. One of those classic beauties. With all my might, I yelled, “No!” and the scene disappeared. I kept what I saw to myself. After I came to the Christian faith, I realised they were demons, a reality that Jesus dealt with on a daily basis. And that we deal with pretty often, but because we’ve been fed with the blue pill, we deny they exist. And when we deny they exist, we’re not tuned in to the fact that some of the “stuff” happening to us may not be as innocuous as it seems.

Refuse the blue pill. Take the red one. Because Jesus exists too. And He has the last Word.