Counting Steps

When I moved to Big Rapids I decided it was time to get serious about getting back into good shape.  I played a lot of basketball in my younger years and never had to even think about spending extra time in a gym trying to stay fit.  Since my seminary days I have struggled in making myself a priority, and boy is ministry a challenge to the waistline!  If there is anything sweet around I can skip real food with no problem.  It is a struggle!  I know the level of stress and the amount of sitting that come with a job in ministry can really be dangerous if we aren't intentional about making time for exercise.  Thus, as I joined the gym here in town I also signed up for a trainer who has kicked my butt for the last five months.  

The hardest part of this journey hasn't been the work of it, I actually enjoy feeling whipped by the end of the workout.  It hasn't been the unbelievable soreness that came with getting myself really moving again.  That hardest part has been overcoming that tendency that lots of us have to compare ourselves with others, or to worry that we look silly or should be embarrassed.  Thankfully my trainer and the other staff at the gym is super encouraging.

Throughout this journey (that is most definitely a work in progress) I have realized that if I want to embrace today I can't compare myself to the past or worry that I am not measuring up to the standards of other people.  I saw a picture of myself when I played basketball in college and boy would I love to be that fit again - but if I focus too much on that I will miss the joy of regaining the strength that comes in the journey of caring for myself today.  

As pastors this is an area that we are questioned about more than ever.  Pastor burn-out is a serious issue that takes good pastors out of churches.  Lots of young pastors that I know have already decided to move on and away from serving God in this capacity.  It's not only pastors though that must take the time to care for themselves.  It is all of us.  

Psalm 139 reminds me often that God is a God of intimacy and relationship.

13-16 

Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;

you formed me in my mother’s womb.

I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!

Body and soul, I am marvelously made!

I worship in adoration—what a creation!

You know me inside and out,

you know every bone in my body;

You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,

how I was sculpted from nothing into something.

Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;

all the stages of my life were spread out before you,

The days of my life all prepared

before I’d even lived one day

For me, this struggle occurs as I try to get healthy.  For others the struggle of comparison and the weight of other's expectations limits their professional or personal success.  I share this to remind us that being vulnerable can be a really great way for God to embrace and encourage us where we need it most.  Besides, God knows us inside and out anyway!

Can you relate?  How difficult is it for you to be vulnerable with others?  With God?

Prayer:  Loving God you knit me together, sculpting from nothing to something.  I pray that my heart and mind are open to receiving the love you have poured out for all of your children.  Help us to be our real selves, confident and comfortable in our own skin, quirks and all.  Help us to see Your image within us, as we also do our best to see that image in others.  Amen.