Category: Body Work

This weekend was Anne’s dance recital. She has been taking dance for a number of years and each year we see marked improvement over the previous year. We have been seeing that there is a natural talent there, and now we are staring to see that talent become more honed and disciplined. And that got me to thinking about the talents and abilities that God gives to us.

We may have a natural talent or ability that makes us good at something, but that doesn’t mean we get to stop there. We have to take what God has given to us and use it. We have to practice certain skills, we have to make an effort to not just rest in the fact that we have been given a talent, but we need to use that talent for the glory of God.

Where would a talented concert pianist be without hours and hours of rehearsal? How good would a gifted speaker be if he didn’t spend time crafting the words he speaks and speaking at events? Would Michael Phelps have been a gold medalist without training his body that was made to be good at swimming?

Not all of us are gifted with the ability to dance, but we were given special talents and abilities that are ours and we need to put in the time needed to hone and develop those talents and abilities so that we can do them well and in a way that pleases God.

What is one of your talents that could use a little extra time and energy?

I used to be thin.

In high school and college I exercised regularly (and had a young person’s metabolism). And then I got married. And had two kids. And while I never thought of myself as “fat” (I’m tall, so it is easier to hide the fat), I have known that I could stand to lose some weight. And back in January of 2006, while sitting in my first round of LAMP classes, God very clearly reminded me that:

¹⁹ Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. (I Corinthians 16:19-20)

And He pointed out to me that I was doing well in honoring Him with my mind and my heart, but not very well with my body. Ouch. That hurt. A lot. Because it was true. I was eating whatever I wanted, when I wanted to. I was doing virtually no exercise at all. And I was frustrated with the way I looked, but not willing to do anything about it.

So I made a change. I started working out regularly and eating better, including completely cutting sweets out of my diet. I started running again – and I could do it for about one minute before I felt like I was dying. But I kept going and the next fall I ran my first 5K ever. (In high school I ran the 400 and 800 – I was NOT a distance runner!)

In May of 2008 I ran my first 1/2 marathon – something I NEVER thought I could (or would want to) do.

In April of 2009 I ran my 2nd 1/2 marathon; May 2010 my 3rd (with my personal best time); October 2010 my 4th; November 2010 my 5th; and I just completed my 6th one May 7, 2011.

While that may sound impressive, I’m not impressed. Yes, I have finished these 6 1/2 marathons, but each time I get a little more lax in my training. This last time, I really wanted to set a new personal record, but what started with some good excuses for not getting my training runs in (neck injury, illness), ended with some really poor excuses for not getting my training runs in (don’t want to get out of bed).

And over the last year or so, I have fallen out of my good eating habits and gone back to eating lots of sweets and snacks, eating after 7:00 p.m., etc.

I lost about 35 pounds that first year, of which I have put back on about half in the last 9 months. 🙁

Something needs to change. Again.

Last night kicked off First Christian Church’s Biggest Loser Competition. After talking with my running partner during one of our longer training runs, we decided to do it. She did it last year with great success. We joined a team full of amazing women, and for the next 12 weeks we are going to work together and encourage one another in our eating habits, our exercise habits, and our spiritual lives. We are going to train together to walk a 1/2 marathon this fall – something most of them have never done or ever thought they wanted to do.

Our team name: Bacon Lovers (Anonymous)

Our theme verse: I Corinthians 10:23 (NLT)  ²³ You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial.

In other words, there’s no rule that says you shouldn’t eat bacon (or sweets, or _________) by the bucket loads and sit on your couch and do nothing every evening, but that doesn’t mean it is good for you.

This is where change begins (again). And even if we don’t lose all the weight we want to in the next 12 weeks, I am guessing we’ll gain much more. Stronger friendships. Healthier attitudes about food. Leaner bodies from exercise. Deeper relationships with God. And hopefully lasting habits for healthy living.

Here we go, ladies!

How about you? What one area of your life needs attention and change and what are you going to do about it?

This past weekend was a weekend full of little joys for me. Nothing major happened – good or bad – but it will be a weekend that goes down in my memory as one of the best. Why? Here is a sampling:

1. On Friday, I was treated to a lovely Mothers’ Day Tea by my son and his first grade friends. I got to wear a big beautiful hat that he made and hear him read me a story, and read me a lovely note he wrote for me. The note particularly made my heart smile.
2. On Saturday morning, I ran my 6th 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles) – the 500 Festival Mini Marathon in Indianapolis, IN. It was a new experience in the sense that I had a running partner that I was actually with the whole time. It made the run more enjoyable and go faster. It wasn’t my best finish time, but wasn’t my worst finish time either, and the weather was great, even with a little rain shower. It is a great feeling to know that I once again set a goal and accomplished it.
3. On Saturday evening I got to have dinner with some great people, including two of my best friends from high school, Crissy and Jenny. Both of them recently got married (on the same weekend) and it was great to be able to visit with their new husbands, as well as a couple of new friends. We had a nice LONG meal and conversation and it really made me appreciate the wonderful people who God has placed in my life and how blessed I am to have such great, long-time friends.
4. Sunday, being Mothers’ Day and travel home day, I didn’t expect to be that great of a day. But it really was a wonderful day with my family. Breakfast at the hotel, shopping on the way home, finding not one but two pairs of my favorite kind of flip-flops on sale and in my size at a little store we hadn’t ever been to before and getting a free pair of sunglasses with purchase, lunch at Culver’s that included a free sundae for mom, coming home to find baby robins hatched in the nest on our porch, watching Monsters vs. Aliens with my kids snuggled up with me on the couch, it was nothing overly amazing, just lots of little things that made the day special.
5. After all this there was a domestic disturbance about a block from our house. Three people were shot and two of them subsequently died. There was lots of activity from about 6:30 p.m. to sometime after we went to bed that included police, fire, ambulance, news crews and lots of curious onlookers. At the end of what was just a wonderful weekend for me, filled with lots of little joys, comes this big, sad, tragic event for another family.

This morning as I have been thinking about the perceived turn of events in my weekend, it made me realize that we have to choose to see the little joys in our lives every day, because when we don’t and all we see is the bad, then that is what we focus on and even if the bad is small, we make it bigger by dwelling on it. The reverse is also true as I found out this weekend. All these little joys that I experienced were nothing major, but as I look back on the weekend and see each little piece fit together, it makes a huge impact on my heart.

Here are a few shots of my weekend’s little joys!

I just watched this video (you should too) and was reminded of a post I wrote a couple of months ago about always making sure we are available for God to use, as well as something that I experienced just last weekend. And I am again in awe of how God works in our lives and in the lives of those we come in contact with.

As I ran this past weekend in Alabama, I was planning on just being alone. I knew no one and it was a very small race. Not to mention, my knee had been giving me fits, so I wasn’t sure how much I could push it and still finish the race. About 2 miles in, another racer caught up to me and we started chatting. She had been trying to catch me and I would say that it was a God-thing for both of us. We stuck together and finished the race, even when she struggled and my knee started hurting. I truly believe that God brought me to her for encouragement and help, and her to me so that I didn’t push too hard and hurt my knee.

Some people may simply chalk events like this up to coincidence, but I don’t see it that way. I have experienced too many of these “coincidences” to brush them off as random. I believe that God is at work, and if we make ourselves available, he will use us.

What are your stories of God-at-work in seemingly coincidental ways?

This past Sunday, I ran my 4th 1/2 marathon, 13.1 miles. I am not sure why I got into doing these, but even after saying, “Never again” after the first one, I just keep signing up and going through the rigors of training.

When Sunday’s race started, I found myself praying for a number of things as my feet hit the pavement – strength, endurance, faith (that I could actually finish another one) and availability. The last one may seem a bit strange to some, but what I was asking for was the ability to see anyone that needed a pace setter, or encouragement, or a friendly smile, or whatever, and the courage to do something about it.

About mile 6, there was a woman who said as I passed her, “Oh, you are passing me again and still running. I keep having to stop and walk.” As I talked with Julie, I found out she was participating in her first 1/2 marathon and had only been able to train to 8 miles because of her two small children (3 years and 18 months) at home. For the next couple of miles she kept pace with me and we chatted. I encouraged her when she started to slow and praised her for going for it. At mile 8, I took a quick bathroom break and she went on ahead, but by mile 9 I was with her again and she started to feel discouraged that I could catch her. I talked with her and encouraged her some more and eventually, I ran on when she had to walk for a bit again.

About 1/3 mile before the finish line, Julie was suddenly at my side again. She had gotten a burst of energy as she realized she was about finish the race and see her kids. Then I watched as she caught sight of her kids and husband waiting for her just before the finish. The sheer joy on her face as she realized she was about to complete this 13.1 mile race and that her family was there to share the moment with her was more awesome to me than the fact that I myself was finishing the same race. I was so glad that I could be available to encourage her along the way and see her accomplish what she set out to do.

Being available to others during a race seems like a strange place to be available. I mean, when you race, the idea is supposed to be the first to the finish line and do whatever you need to get there. (That’s not why I race, but follow me for a minute.) So being available to someone else would potentially slow you down and allow someone else to overtake you.

I think that is how some of us go through life. Not intentionally, but we are so rushed and so focused on our goals and our plans that we sometimes forget that we need to think about other people and be available to them. Or better yet, come along side them and help them achieve their goals. And yet, if we would more often be available to the people who the Lord would have us help (whatever that looks like), we would be so blessed as we see them achieve their milestones, and experience their breakthroughs.

I encourage you, as you go through your week (which, if it is anything like mine, is packed full) to pray and ask God to help you to be available to His leading always, to be able to see the people who need someone to come up along side of them and encourage them along the way. See what kind of blessings come your way as you make yourself available always.