Listen and Watch, Hear and See

I think it's time for a vacation.
Or a short sabbatical.
Or some down time.
Or just no agenda for a bit.

Someone asked me the other day, "When do you rest?"
She had seen my schedule of the last couple of months which included, work at church, college classes, jackhammers in my house digging up a plumbing problem, the senior high mission trip to Louisiana, a house still in disarray for tile installation, training for a triathlon, the junior mission trip, and youth week activities.

Generally when I hit a wall, I grab some coffee and hop over it. Sometimes I take a quick nap and head off in another direction. I recently started keeping up with an online calendar that I try to put everything on, including time to sleep. I usually only get about five hours on a good night, so I wanted to make sure I didn't forget. The calendar sends reminders to my phone and I've got other alarms set on it as well. So it rings quite a bit. I've got about thirty various To Do lists because I write down whatever seems to be a good thought or idea. I've got an electronic task list that pops up whenever I look at my email or calendar. There are just two items there:
- Be Better.
- Do More.

This does not mean that I never rest. The beauty of what I do is that although it is time intensive, it is very flexible. I do manage to occasionally turn off everything; the phone, the alarms, the computer, the TV, even the lights sometimes and just completely relax. I try to do this at least once or twice a day, several times on a good day. Often this is the first step of some prayer time. It is like hitting a reset button. Prayer and a nap make me very happy.

I am not sure how long it has been since I've had a real vacation, but I am feeling the need for one. Not an activity-filled, non-stop agenda of how much I can squeeze into a trip. But some very real time off from everything. A chance to unplug completely. A chance to really relax. A chance to sleep until I can't. A chance to think slowly and deeply. A chance to watch trees and water.

When my faith became real, I was struck with a sense of purpose. God has a plan for each of us and I got right to work on mine. A big part of making sure we are heading the right direction is making sure that we take time to listen to God and watch for directions. I have learned the hard way that this not possible if we are constantly in motion.

So I'm about to take some time to listen and watch.
I'm excited to consider what I will hear and see.

Be Blessed!
Michael

Triathlete?

I've never been a particularly athletic person, but I do enjoy many sporty activities. I played baseball in high school and got the Coach's Spirit Award. That doesn't say much for my skills in the ballpark, but it does say a lot about my enthusiasm for the game. Backpacking has been a passion of mine for many years and I've done some trips of over 30 miles. Several years ago I became quite fond of running, and I recently discovered the joys of kayaking.
Years ago I watched the Ironman Triathlon held in Hawaii. This voluntary torture consists of a 2.4 mile swim in the ocean, a 112 mile bike ride, and THEN a full marathon run of just over 26 miles. This event was created by competitors trained in each of the three sports who were debating which was the best all-around athlete. A race consisting of all three disciplines seemed the logical way to settle things. The commitment of these athletes captured my imagination and I mentally vowed that I would attempt such a feat someday.
Fast forward 20-plus years and 40-plus pounds and I am not exactly the image that comes to mind when you hear the term athlete. This Spring I hit my heaviest weight ever in my life and decided to do something about it. My wife Sherri and my daughter Brooke had been training for a 5K race on Memorial Day weekend. In my previous years of running I had gotten down to a time of about 24 minutes for this 3.11 mile distance. But I had not trained regularly and couldn't even run the entire way.
As I nursed my sore muscles and aching joints I made plans to get back into better shape. This is when I found the TriWaco triathlon scheduled for July 26. Besides the Olympic distance race of a 1500m swim, 25 mile bike ride, and 10K run, there was the Sprint distances of 400m swim, 12 mile bike, and 5K run. This shorter race looked like something I could work toward. The start and finish lines for each are near the Suspension Bridge downtown and it all takes place in and around the Brazos and Cameron Park.
I started swimming a few laps at the gym, did some spinning on a stationary bike, and worked on bringing my running time back to a respectable level. I gradually increased the distances of each and experimented outside. I did some swimming at Lake Waco, rode my mountain bike around the neighborhood, kept running, and tried hard to shorten my considerable recovery times between each as I went farther and farther. After a few weeks I felt ready to try the entire length of all three sports. It took me about 3 hours and I was dead tired and worn out. But now I knew I could do this.
Swimming and running are both all about technique and my times kept dropping as I learned and trained. But biking is centered around a piece of equipment and 12 miles on a mountain bike that weighs almost 50lbs. with big, knobby tires is pretty tough. I looked around for a faster, lighter road bike and finally found an inexpensive entry-level bike. At close to half the weight, skinny tires, a more aerodynamic position, and much more appropriate better gearing, I was excited to see what my stronger legs could do. It literally cut my riding time in half the first time out.
I've learned that you don't approach these three sports together like any one of them on their own. It's not about the fastest of any particular part, but rather the whole race. I've gone from hoping I could finish to thinking about how well I can do. That is a transformation based on action and effort. I'm not going to get any trophies, but I am going to be a winner that morning.
Oh yeah, the connection to faith! I'm not going to say I'm racing for God or running to the cross, because this will really just be me trying to do better for myself. But here's some observations: I'm glad I was created as part of this wonderful world to live and play and work in. If you've got big things to do in your life, get started now; time is ticking. We don't have to learn or do everything on our own, but we do have to pull our own weight. It feels really good to see the fruits of your efforts.
Be Blessed!
Michael