Weight Room Wisdom

One of the most memorable sayings of my teen years is “no pain, no gain.” It was the weight room mantra. Every coach I ever had indoctrinated us with the idea that if we did not endure some difficulties off the field, we would not improve our performance on the field. I was reminded of that teaching this morning as I added a few pounds to my workout. And with every ounce of strength within me I fought back the retort that I had grown fond of during my teen years as I heard another coach chanting the oh-so-familiar mantra. My juvenile retort was, “no pain, no pain.”
I have never been a big fan of weightlifting… scratch that – I have never been a big fan of exercising. Loved sports. Loved playing the games. But did not like the discipline of exercise. Now as I approach my ___-ieth birthday, I find that I need the discipline of exercise. So this morning I fought the urge to skip my weightlifting and actually added a little bit of weight to my not-so-routine routine.
It was in the midst of this exercise in pain that I began to think about the spiritual condition of … . I hesitate to identify any one group here, because I think this is one of those issues where all groups are united. We are all united in the spiritual condition of adequacy. If it were a syndrome (sin-drome), it might be labeled the “just enough” syndrome. Mark Buchanan would call it living in the borderland worshiping a safe god syndrome (see his book “Your God is Too Safe,” Multnomah Press, 2001).
The essence of this mindset is that we look for the least amount necessary to be saved. Some view that as a prayer asking Christ to be Lord of their life. Some define that as baptism. Some believe the prayers of a priest are necessary. However they define the least amount needed to be saved, they go to that mark. And there they sit for the rest of their lives, content with the notion that they are safe.
As I was working out this morning and struggling to keep a positive attitude toward increasing the amount I was lifting and wrestling with the idea that I had been guilty of spiritual laziness along with the rest of …, this passage came into my head:
“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.
“Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” -- 2 Peter 1:5-11
Make every effort.
Add to.
Increasing measure.
Life as I know it is best when we don’t settle for spiritual minimalism. Or, life as I know it is best when we add spiritual disciplines in increasing measure to our lives. Yes, it is difficult – at first. But just like lifting weights, we become accustomed to them and get to the point that we can increase a little more. I am at the point of realizing that more exercise is needed in my life for me to get in the shape I need to be in – which means the even more painful step of adding cardiovascular activity to my exercise. (YUCK!) It will be painful. But it will be beneficial. Perhaps there is a spiritual discipline that I need to add as well. And, yes that will be painful, too. And just like lifting weights, results will not be seen overnight. It is a discipline that yields results with extended intentional use. But that’s life as I know it and I know that I don’t want to repeat the spiritual mantra of “no pain, no pain” anymore. I want to be effective and productive. And for that to happen I must make every effort, add to, and increase the measure of my spiritual walk each day.

Ouch!

Let's be honest - there are times that reading through the Bible is about as exciting as reading a Chinese phone book. Now, I haven't actually attempted to read a Chinese phone book, so maybe this comparison is a little bit unfair - but since the Chinese language uses different symbols, I know that it would not be exciting for me to try to read it.

Recently I have been reading a chronological Bible that is divided up into daily readings. It is called the Daily Bible and was edited and arranged by F. LaGard Smith. For the past month my daily readings have consisted of the laws of Deuteronomy and Leviticus fame, the numbers of Numbers fame, and most recently the physical description of the borders of the territories of each of the tribes of Israel. I made it through the laws...it was hard, but I made it. The parts of numbers where everything is numbered and repeated for each tribe...I kind of skipped over about eleven of the accounts. And yesterday, when it was time to divide Canaan among the tribes - I just turned back to the map in my other Bible...one glance told me what several chapters in Joshua tried to tell me.

In addition to reading from the Daily Bible, I also read a chapter in Proverbs - the chapter that corresponds to the day's date. Typically I read the chapter from Proverbs after I read the other.

I say all of that to say that sometimes the Bible just doesn't speak to me for a long period of time. But this morning was different. This morning just took one verse. In fact, I haven't even made it to Joshua's farewell address yet (at least it isn't more land divisions!). This morning I read Proverbs 15 first. Well, not first. Before I got to Proverbs 15, I had a couple of encounters with the kids... one of them grumbling, all of them not answering questions, one lying ... In the midst of trying to sort out the laundry and explaining myself rather bluntly, I was asked, "are you not happy that we're home today?"

Moments later I read Proverbs 15:1. "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." One verse was all it took today for the Bible to speak to me. I was guilty of having harsh words and stirring up anger within my own home.

Life as I know it is frustrating sometimes. In my desire for my kids to mature, sometimes I become immature. And that's why I have made it my goal to read the Bible every day...so that I can receive instruction in the moment that I need it, encouragement in the midst of trials, peace in the middle of storms, and wisdom for tomorrow.

Ring Tone Deaf

"Someones purse is ringing!"

"Are you going to answer that?"

"I think someone is trying to call your pocket..."

Confession: I hated cell phones. My first experience with a cell phone was a large bag phone. It wasn't the fact that I looked like I was carrying a purse that bothered me as much as the reason I was carrying a cell phone that looked like a purse. The first cell phone I used on a regular basis was the cell phone for a suicide hotline. Each time that phone rang my stomach churned because I knew that when I answered it I was probably going to be talking to someone who wanted to end their life.

Even though I only carried that phone for about a year, for the next several years my stomach would churn every time I heard a cell phone ring. We've had cell phones for several years now, but I continued my hatred of cell phones...until I succumbed to the pressure of getting an iPhone last year. And part of the reason I enjoy my iPhone is that I can set ringtones so that it doesn't sound like a phone. When someone calls I can enjoy music, or a quacking duck, or crickets chirping... I even downloaded the Geico boss's annoying ringtone. (I love it and it makes the kids laugh everytime they hear it.) I set several of my contacts up with different ringtones so that when they call I know who is calling before I ever pull my phone out of my pocket.

But with all the different ringtones on all the different cellphones ... sometimes the world becomes polluted with ring tones and we become ring tone deaf. We don't hear our own phones ringing. Or we don't recognize that it is our phone ringing. Or we're just not sure where that strange noise is coming from. Forget about global warming - we are experiencing global deafening. Its happened to me many times, but here's one example of my being ringtone deaf. While in the dugout of one of the girls softball games last year, my phone started quacking. I heard the noise and began looking around for the location of the ducks thinking, "why are there ducks quacking at a softball field?"

Recently I've been thinking about God's calling. I'm pretty sure that God calls to us more than we hear. I'm also pretty sure that God calls us to more than we've heard. As I've thought about God's calling, I've been reminded of Elijah sitting in a cave listening for God's voice. Elijah experienced all those things that we typically associate with God speaking - violent earthquakes, strong winds, fire - but God did not call in any of these methods. God's ringtone for Elijah was a still small voice. Sometimes I think life would be easier if God would call and tell me exactly what I need to do. But lately I've been realizing that God is calling - I've just been ring tone deaf because of all the busyness in my life.

Life as I know it is best when I take the time to be still and listen for God's voice. This is a discipline that doesn't come naturally for me. It is something I practice rather poorly at times. But I've found that it is beneficial beyond what I can describe.
Listen. I think God is calling. Are you going to answer?

Help, My iPhone is Syncing!

If you laughed at the title - you don't have an iPhone. Those owned by iPhones moaned an instictive sympathetic sort of growl. They've been there, helplessly watching their iPhone sync, staring at the little gray bar trying to figure out if it stopped moving, tapping their foot impatiently... You see, you can't do anything with your iPhone while it is syncing. And in the nine months that my iPhone has owned me (you thought I had put the words in the wrong order the first time - let me assure you that the ordering of the words is correct, I don't own an iPhone - my iPhone owns me), it has never failed that right in the middle of syncing my iPhone with my computer I needed something from my iPhone. This morning it was Angie needing a cell number. And I stood helplessly staring at my phone... waiting... pleading with it to hurry before she had to run off to work... all to no avail. I stood helplessly and watched my iPhone sync.
In order for my iPhone to operate at its fullest potential, it is essential to allow it to sync every now and then. The only way to update some of the features and receive some applications and podcasts is to allow the iPhone to sit there connected to the computer. And it is essential to leave the iPhone and the computer hooked up until the sync is complete. I don't think it will ruin the phone - but if you cancel the sync before it is done...you have to sync it again. Yuck.
My anxiety over my phone this morning caused me to stop and think about how synced I am. Have I allowed myself to be fully connected to the source of true life? uninterrupted? receiving the information and support that I need to live life to my fullest potential?
My tendency is to run fast and furious. (Not the exercise kind of running - more like the chicken with its head cut off kind of running.) Often I pause for just a moment and try to plug in to God in a hurry, but I don't spend the time I need to fully sync up with him. Instead I get a quick fix - attending church on Sunday, reading a verse or two in my Bible, maybe even pausing to say a quick prayer when I find myself in trouble - then I unplug and try to live life on my own again.
Life as I know it is best when I take the time to sync on a regular basis. I am learning to sync by starting out every day listening to God's voice through reading scripture, listening for God's voice through prayer, spending time in silence (without my iPhone near me). It is after significant time in these disciplines that I can start my day in sync with God. It helps me tune in to God's will for the rest of the day. What about you? Are you synced?