Soaring

A brief flirtation with Pilates taught me that before I bend or stretch or twist or turn, I need to strengthen my core. I found the concept pretty hard as it is basically an invisible action which can only be described. I can’t see what’s going on. I never quite knew if I was doing it right or not. 

‘Those that wait on – hope in – the Lord will renew their strength.’ The recipe for strengthening my spiritual core can be equally as hard to follow. How long do I wait? How do I wait? How do I keep my hope up? I can’t see what’s going on.

Linger longer is really my mantra. I am sorely tempted to pop up and get on with my day if I don’t immediately ‘get’ something I think is from God in my prayer or Bible reading time. 

Lingered longer this morning, thinking of yesterday’s blog and the visual aid of water-based exercise done on floating mats. It occurred to me that if I were to be doing such exercises, I would imagine that if/when my neighbouring exerciser plunged off her mat into the pool, the waves would chop and sway and threaten to pitch me into the water as well. 

When someone near me is struggling to keep afloat and occasionally falls in, I need to be extra vigilant in maintaining my core spirituality strength. Not just to keep my own wings dry, but also to inspire others that in God, everything is possible.

He never lets go. As we trust in him, we will soar on wings like eagles. Not just cling on but soar. Not like sparrows but like eagles.

I have a funny feeling that although I need to make an effort, it is God who is doing all the work.

Pushing a Pram Uphill

One of the delights of having a beautiful granddaughter only half an hour away is the opportunity to pop in for a couple of hours and give Mum time off to do what she wants. Of course, at five months old, Flick’s attention span is not long and each time we end up saddling up and heading out for a walk, so she can nod off and I can get a break.

Well, I hesitate to say that as my break includes pushing a pram up-hill. Yesterday I realized just how much strength my body has lost since my twice-daily walks with Dusty ended. ‘Use it or lose it’ used to be a mantra when I was growing up with regard to physical exercise, and yesterday I was reminded of that. 

Yet again I determine to take a walk at least five times a week. To practice Pilates that often as well. To use my body so that it retains whatever strength it has now and doesn’t deteriorate at a faster rate than it should.

The Christian life is a journey, a way of life, and if I am going to continue fit and strong to live the life Jesus calls me to I need to keep flexing my spiritual muscles as well, on a daily basis. This requires more than the odd ‘Help!’ prayer groaned or shouted in times of need. To walk in the strength of Jesus I need to refuel daily on his Word, storing it up and relying on it to power me forward as I encounter obstacles and challenges. 

Just as my body is only as strong as recent exercise makes it, so my spirit is only as strong as what I feed it through reading, praying, meditating. Spending time with God tends to get side-lined in the whirlwind of daily activities, but it is essential for building a strong spiritual core capable of bearing many burdens, confronting evils, and discerning the right way forward.

Then, even when the Christian walk feels like pushing a pram up-hill, we will be fit and strong to manage.

Easily Distracted

Every one of our children received the same corrective admonition on report cards: easily distracted. Well. It was obvious a teenager would be easily distracted when sitting in an open-plan classroom where everyone was working at different speeds, moving around freely. 

But it isn’t just teenagers in open-plan classrooms who are easily distracted. I was easily distracted on my walk this morning. I like to spend the time talking and listening to God, but this morning my mind, when it wasn’t snoozing, was jumping randomly here and there. Worries and concerns. Joys and sorrows. Mainly, a to-do list that is longer than the day.

There is something to be said for chanting, or reciting, a mantra. Other religious disciplines do it in order to slip into an altered state of consciousness. To repeat the name Jesus Christ on each breath in and out helps focus the mind. It opens us up to God’s influence. It clears our head of all the jumble so we can hear his voice.

In Mark 4 there’s a story of the disciples being caught in a terrible storm on the Sea of Galilee during the night, a storm through which Jesus slept until they, in a panic, wakened him. Then, with a commanding voice, he spoke to the storm. “Quiet! Be still!” And the storm subsided. 

My thoughts today are not a perfect storm, but they are a distraction. I want to focus in on the Lord who has the power to calm the turbulence and to restore peace to my soul.

Jesus Christ.