About
Hi, I’m Tonya, and I’m thrilled you’re here!
I love yoga. It’s not surprising considering I started dancing when I was just three years old and still do it whenever I get the chance. Yes, sometimes that opportunity strikes while I’m folding laundry, much to the amusement of my dogs and the eye-rolling of my husband. What can I say?
I started doing yoga when caring for my dad as he was battling cancer. I continued doing yoga after he passed, and it helped me to settle down enough to breathe and process much of the grief and tension I was holding in my body. If you want to read more about that, here’s the full story at Elephant Journal. I found yoga to be helpful and enjoyed the practice so much that I became a certified yoga teacher (RYT 200) in 2018. Years later, teaching and practicing yoga still brings much joy to my heart and life.
I’ve been a Christian for as long as I can remember. Although at times I walked away from the church, struggled with grief and pain, and blamed God for problems in my life, I’ve come to realize that He never abandoned me. His mercy and grace sustained me through it all. I’ve learned that even in the darkest of times, there is always hope and light to be found.
When I’m not on my mat, I love spending time hiking or adventuring in the great outdoors, reading, or playing with my dogs. I spend much of my free time volunteering at my local animal shelter and fostering dogs in my home. I’m grateful to have the opportunity to care for these animals in need. Volunteering fills me with a renewed sense of love, refreshed energy, and humility. It’s an honor to be able to provide comfort and care to these wonderful dogs who bring so much joy to our lives.
I have an undergraduate degree in Bible/Ministry (see Dad, I told you I would use it someday ☺️) and a master’s in Gerontology. My favorite part of school was writing papers, and I love that I still get to nerd out and write for this blog.
If you’re curious as to why I started Faithful Flow, you can read about that below.
Thank you for being here,
Tonya
Why I Started Faithful Flow
Yoga is one of my passions in life. The slowing down, the focus on breath, the challenge of the poses, the glorious Shavasanas, and the transformation that it inspires both on and off the mat. After sweating through a yoga class, my heart is open, and my mind is still unlike any other time throughout my day. It’s during these moments that I feel closest to God and hear His voice most clearly.
My journey with yoga began with the physical practice of asana and breathwork. After a few years of practicing, I wanted to share the joy of yoga with others, so I became a certified yoga teacher. It was during teacher training that I realized how much more there was to the practice. Yoga could be a lifestyle, and with it came its own set of philosophies, rules, and way of seeing the world.
The word yoga means union or to yoke. The goal of yoga is to bring together the body, mind, and spirit with the divine or universal consciousness. The more I dove into the philosophies behind these principles and tried to embrace their teachings, the lonelier my heart became.
In Westernized yoga classes, we’re told that we are fine just as we are, that we are worthy, and that we have all the answers we need within ourselves. In these circles, yoga is seen as a process to perfect yourself through your own strength. I don’t know about you, but when I look deep inside myself, what I find is a hot mess, not a source of strength.
These teachings left me feeling disconnected and hopeless. I realized that although my yoga practice initially pulled me towards God, it was now walking me further away. I was in a process of being yoked to myself rather than my Creator.
This disconnected feeling was my inspiration to create Faithful Flow. I wanted a space where yoga could serve as a tool to lead me toward God and to open my heart and mind to Him. A space where I could learn, share, and connect with others while we worshiped God with our body, mind, soul, and spirit.
My purpose here at Faithful Flow is twofold:
- To share my love for yoga and provide resources to help you with your practice; and more importantly
- To use yoga as a tool to grow deep in joy, faith, and trust in God
Faithful Flow is still in its infancy, but I’m excited to see what it becomes. I hope that it will be a resource for you. A place where you can filter the teachings of yoga through the lens of scripture. A place to learn practical skills and tools to help with everyday life, all while growing your relationship with the true Divine. We only flourish when we orient ourselves around God and live for the sake of others. My prayer is that Faithful Flow helps us do just that.
FAQ
Should Christians do yoga?
The short answer is yes, but cautiously. Christians can do asana (poses) and breathwork for health and wellbeing without any concerns, just like we can do pilates, run, or ride bikes for exercise. We need to be vigilant when participating in meditation. Before participating in activities beyond these 3 basic elements of yoga, we need to be a bit careful and review the purpose, intent, and philosophy behind what is happening. Here’s a post dedicated to just this question.
What’s the deal with your wrist?
A few years ago I hurt my wrists using a hammer drill to demo out old flooring. It was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. I ignored the pain for longer than I should have and ended up doing some real damage. I’m thin-boned to start with, and between spending too much time trying to learn how to hand-stand and the demo injury, I now get to use wrist supports any time I’m on my hands. It’s not perfect, but it is a beautiful reminder to not take my health for granted, to stay humble, and to get creative with my yoga practice.
What Yoga Teacher Training did you attend?
I attended an amazing training at The Cliffs of Moher Retreat. Spending a month in Ireland was glorious, and the training covered so much more than I had hoped for. I taught my first yoga class the week that I got back, and have been teaching consistently ever since.
Do you have a mission or vision?
Mission: I believe that yoga is not just a tool for physical and mental health, but also an opportunity to grow in faith and joy. My mission is to help you experience a balanced and fulfilling life, rooted in Christian principles and the life-changing power of Yoga.
Vision: The vision of Faithful Flow is to create a thriving online community where Christian faith and Yoga seamlessly blend. I envision a platform where people discover the transformative power of a relationship with Christ and the practice of Yoga; finding strength, resilience, joy, and a life enriched with spiritual depth and physical well-being.
Why are some of your classes Christian Yoga and some are just Yoga?
I’m a big believer in biblical literacy. Part of that includes not hunting or pecking through scripture to find something that fits a point or theme. Some classes pair very well with a theme and text, and there is time and room to discuss it appropriately in a class. Others need more time than what a few interjections into a class can provide. So, I pair scripture and themes with yoga classes when appropriate, but I try not to force things or make a square peg fit in a round hole.
Also, there are times in my own life when I just want to practice yoga and turn my brain off for a bit to take a break. With Christian yoga, I want to make sure my thoughts stay alert and active so I can absorb the content. Since I sometimes feel the need for two different class types, I figure others might as well.
I hope that having both class types can serve as a form of evangelism. If all the content is branded as Christian Yoga, then someone who isn’t a Christian or searching for that specifically isn’t likely to find my content. My prayer is that they might find some of my more traditional style yoga classes and, then, while exploring my blog and other content, consider trying some of the Christian classes or reading some of those articles. I hope that this will be an opportunity to expose them to the Gospel.
Don’t see your question here? Drop me a line!