Lent Day 4

Sometimes you just have to make yourself get up.  I remember asking Great Granddaddy, “why don’t you just get up and get active?” and he would say, “I just don’t feel like it.”  I’d ask him, “What do you mean?  Your life depends on it.  Will you just atrophy away?  Can you stand up one time?  Then why can’t you start by standing up ten times?  Just start somewhere.”  He tried to explain to me that he was old and didn’t feel like getting up any more, and I was too young to understand.  I am slightly older now and have had my share of days when I don’t feel like being active either.  Today, I simply told myself to get up.

Today was the first time I ran a measureable distance and around in the neighborhood.  For those of you keeping score, I ran exactly 3 miles, did 2 sets of 20 push ups, and 40 sit ups.  Man, those 40 sit ups are killer!   Philippians 4:13 applies well at that moment.

Commitment has a counterpart: sacrifice.  To get up early in the morning implies I must sacrifice some sleep.  To run during the day means that I have to give up time with my wife and kids.  Any commitment is going to take sacrifice.  That’s what makes it worthwhile.  Some things are easier to sacrifice than others.  This can be overcome by simply reevaluating the importance of each thing you spend time doing.  

What’s that noise?  Keep running Ben.  There’s nothing to worry about.  The neighborhood dogs are sleeping and the rednecks are all down at the Perry Mud Bog.

That thing can hurt you.  Using my Ipod while running, with my type of energized playlist . . . I am a Nike Commercial.  I am that motivational guy running through the woods with that cool song playing . . . if I just had the shoes.   I guess my internal metronome clicks fairly rapidly.  Unfortunately, some of the songs I like are a bit fast.  Running to the beat of some songs can hurt you.  Catch your breath now.

Where do you look when you’re running Ben?  Why are you looking at the ground right in front of you?  Are you holding your head high?  Are you looking up at the beautiful blue sky?  Are you strong?  Are you committed?  Where are you going if you only look at the ground right in front of you?  That dirt 6 feet in front you is not the goal.

Run fast enough to feel that burn.  Feel that exhilarating glide in your stride.  Do you feel that sensation between your steps . . . that small moment when both feet are off the ground . . . when you are actually air borne for just a moment . . . are you flying . . . are you gliding on the wind . . . feel that freedom as your body says thank you to your soul.

Try running while twisting your waist and swinging your arms in punching motions.  Get those stomach muscles some exercise too.  Reach your right hand around to your left love handle and vice versa.  There, that’s it, you look like a fruit cake.

Lent Day 3

Ha, I fooled some of you.  The commitment is a daily thing, not a first thing every morning thing.  Now that it is day 3, I suppose I should declare to all of you who hold me accountable what my commitment involves.  I am building upon the last two years of Lent seasons.  No sodas, sweets, fried foods just like 2009.  No smoking just like 2010 (and continued).  This year, I commit to those same items, but I add another factor: a personality flaw called laziness.

Back on January 1, I made a resolution that I wanted to be a better person in every way possible.  I wanted to be a better Christian, husband, father, employee, employer, friend, and in general, I wanted to be a better person each day than I was the day before regardless of how good or bad the day had been.  Unfortunately, I see a weakness in this plan, even in myself.  It all comes down to one thing: my laziness.  If I wasn’t so lazy, I would get up and help clean the house, do that fun project with the kids, do that thing at work that I don’t feel like doing, etc . . .  I have said too many times that I am too tired or I don’t have the time or whatever other excuse I can conjure up.  The reality is that I fall victim to laziness.

The first characteristic on my list was to be a better Christian.  I figure this is the most difficult and the rest will fall into place after that one.  Therefore, I will commit to God and self for a period of 40 days to overcome this personal weakness / bad habit.  God gives us the strength and ability through our talents and gifts.  The rest of life is up to us to use them.  That is my commitment to build my relationship with God.

The easiest way for me to overcome laziness is to physically move.  The first part of this involves a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise every day regardless of how I feel or what happens in my day.   The second part involves a proper balanced diet consisting of vegetables, fruits, and protein.  Of course, proper hydration is a key element which is why I have been sucking down water like a fish.  The third part is adequate sleep.  Yep, I stayed up too late last night.

Tonight I ran.  It had gotten dark by the time I was able to change clothes and go outside.  Even though my closest neighbors are plenty of squirrels, a few foxes, many birds, and an occasion deer, I am still a city boy.  I started to run down the road away from my house and then I realized something really important; I don’t like running from anything.  I turned down the back driveway listening to my Ipod when all of a sudden there was a furious rustling of the leaves around me.  I picked up the pace instantly.  My heart raced even faster.  Then I was under the light and realized, “Man!  That is one seriously fast Mexican dog!”  Monte really likes to mess with me.  I stopped occasionally to drop and do sets of 20 push ups.  Of course, Monte had to attack me from every angel possible.  I’m starting to wonder about his sense of humor.

Christy joined me for the last 15 minutes tonight.  That was a nice treat.  We walked together toward the back of the property were the Jasmine vines are in full bloom.  The fragrance was really nice in clear night air while looking up at the stars.  I’m starting to think I might even enjoy this.

Lent Day 2

That horrible sounding alarm clock must be broken. I just went to bed a little while ago and it's raining. 5:45 and I call a delay of game on account of it's raining and dark and anything else I can come up with. Maybe I'll just exercise when I get home tonight. What if I don't have time, something comes up, or I just don't feel like it after a long day? What if God's blessings were like that with us? Didn't I give up "laziness" for Lent. Awe man, this is why a challenging commitment is so hard. Again, I don't want to get up and do this.

I get up, get dressed, and say a prayer. God tells me he has already given me everything I need; there is nothing I need to ask for. Let's go do this! I go out side to the sound of rain, but . . . really, it's raining so close I can hear it falling in the trees but it's not raining here!?! Get to running, Ben.

Molly is a good companion, yet slightly stupid. She forgot how we were doing dog crunches yesterday. Oh well, the occasional reach down and pet her is fine. Monte was overcome with laziness today. He just stayed in his bed on the porch.

I decided I need to do something besides run around my yard. I love my yard and there is ample room, but I need more than running. Besides, switching up movements helps the whole body. So, I started running while wildly swinging my arms in large punching motions. This is two things: 1) it is much harder to run like this than you think. The heart rate is getting way up there. 2) it looks like I have lost my mind. I love the privacy of my own yard.

Of course there are distractions and obstacles. That is part of the challenge that emphasizes the meaning of my commitment. I am not afraid, I will be strong, and I will endure all elements. I switched it up some more by running a quarter mile at a time from my garden to the tire swing then stopping at the porch. (Sure, that's a quarter mile :-) ). On the porch, I started doing push ups - 40 is the goal. How about 10, then a quarter mile run while flailing like an idiot, then repeat 4 times. Monte is a distraction. First he wants to knock my arms out from under me, then he actually jumped on my back. Some might say he's the devil, but I think he's an obnoxious dog that thinks he's being funny.

Time to go inside and wake up the boys. Is that . . . Look at the rain come down now. Inside, I decide it's time for those famous stomach killing 40 sit ups next to Tyler's bed. Wow, those are the most difficult part of the regime! It must be strange to be a sleeping 7 year old and wake up to your Dad huffing 31, 32, 33, . . . next to your bed. Naw, he knows me well enough; he just goes right back to sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~
Benjamin J. Grass

Lent Day 1

The alarm clock makes a horrible noise at 5:45, but today I welcomed it. I got up, got dressed, and went in the living room to warm up. Before starting, I stopped to "wake up" and motivate myself. It was at that first moment it all hit me, why am I doing this? So, I started praying. Oh, that's right; to build my relationship with God. So we had some words about strength, endurance, commitment, and if I do well, there might be some physical reward for my body, my temple. I quickly realized this was not about some diet or exercise plan.
Once outside, I began thinking do I need to wear different clothes? Maybe I should go back in and change shoes? Maybe I should get my bike out instead of running? Oh wait, get moving Ben. Remember, the devil and my own laziness will try to stop me in any way possible. However, on the first trip down the dark dirt road in front of my house, I noticed a shadow of a man running. I immediately thought of that poem "Footprints" and at just that moment, my shadow disappeared.
The dogs quickly became amusing companionship. While running only inside their perimeter, they quickly met me at the other driveway on my return loop. They were just as excited to see me with every lap. Sometimes they would run past me, behind me, and even under me. Stopping they were my obstacle course. I'm training Molly to stop and let me pet her by saying "ok, pet" at which point I have to bend over, pet her, raise up, and run again. It's similar to those crunches they make you do in the military, but with a dog.
The last 10 minutes and counting down were becoming more and more difficult. Again, this is about my commitment to God through endurance, no matter what happens or how tired I get. He continues to give me strength.
After my dedicated 30 minutes, I decided it was time to go inside and wake the boys. While trying to wake Tyler I decided to do some sit ups. How many should I do? Oh, of course, 40. Wow, that is a hard number!