ContemplativeJourney

Happy New Year to you! I am anxiously awaiting the kick-off to another long holiday weekend...waiting for the plumber! Seriously...I have some kind of "mainline plumbing stoppage", which means that there is not a functioning bathroom or sink in the house. Fortunately, the world's friendliest plumber, a young man named Chad, is on his way to rescue me from a holiday weekend tragedy. I've decided that plumbers are among the most valuable of service personnel, and am truly grateful for Chad. He was on his way home for a long weekend, and was called back into service in order to rescue me...what a guy! Tomorrow morning I'm leaving for Central Texas, and look forward to spending a long and quiet weekend...enjoying the outdoors, a good book, and a few dozen college football games. I'll be back again next week, and in the meantime, I wish you a very happy and safe new year's celebration.

I've made a commitment to participate in a 1/2 marathon on March 27th, 2011. To be precise, the event is the Rock 'n'Roll Dallas 1/2 Marathon, and we are raising money for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Foundation. You might have noticed that I've made a commitment to participate , rather than to run , and there is a reason for the distinction. I'm using a training system for first-time 1/2 marathoners, and the process requires that you run 1/2 and walk 1/2 of the race...interestingly, the most challenging part of following this system is that I don't feel like I'm doing enough . Do you ever feel that way? Like you're not doing enough? At work, at home...in school...with your friends, for your family? I think it's a common experience, and it can wear you down, if you let it. As I've mentioned before, running has become an enormously helpful metaphor for how I understand life. I said in another blog this morning that my new life philosophy i...

Am I the only one who buys stuff for myself while Christmas shopping for others??? No? Good...I didn't think so! I bought a small book during my 'last minute' shopping trip...a devotional of sorts, but specifically for runners . And...as you know...even though I am very, very slow...I am a runner! I wasn't exactly sure what this book of inspiration might contain, and to be honest, I was probably expecting a scripture verse for the day, and then a devotional thought that linked the scripture to running...not so. There is an inspirational quote for each day, but so far, no scripture. I've started at the end of the book, since it works through the calendar year, and we're in the last week of December, but this morning I thought it would be good to read the introduction and the preface...and I found this quote: "For longtime runners, novices...joggers...walkers...it's all the same. If you're enjoying yourself, you're going to do it. Enjoyment fuels...

With Christmas come and gone, it's the time of year when many of us ponder resolutions...making plans for changes in the new year. The temptation is often to make a long list of lofty goals...diet, exercise, no more smoking, no more drinking...the options for improving our lives can seem endless. In August of this year, I began using an online tool at sparkpeople.com, and found enormous support and encouragement through this virtual community...support for making small adjustments that would lead me down the path to a healthier life. I've come to believe in the power of small adjustments, rather than big changes that are hard to make, and even harder to maintain. While watching TV last night, I heard an ad for a new movie that opens this weekend...tucked into the snippet of dialogue in the trailer was this quote: "...we are all just one small adjustment away from making our lives work..." I love this quote, and it rings true for me. It reminds me of a discussion I hea...

When I started writing these blogs a few weeks ago, I remember asking the question: "What are you waiting for?" Last night, as I sat with a few family members, chatting quietly in the aftermath of a very large Christmas party, I thought again about all of the anticipation of Advent... We had arrived...it was the Night ...O Holy Night...Silent Night... and in a way, I began to feel the icy fingers of disappointment and let-down creep around the edges of my mind. In our common experience of dashing through the traffic (or snow, depending on your location), we have rushed for these last few days to get everything taken care of...to buy the food, wrap the gifts, remember not to forget those things that we always forget...I forgot what they are, but you know what I mean! We forgot the butter...the juice...the gift for Aunt Julie! Suddenly, the clock on holiday preparation runs out...and the frantic pace must give way to stillness... And now...here we are...Christmas Day. What is ...

"Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear..." Thus begins an important prophetic passage in the Old Testament book of Isaiah. The sub-title for the chapter is "Sin, Confession and Redemption." It speaks to the fact that all of mankind are similarly stuck in a state of separation from God. We stumble through life, the blind leading the blind, unable to work ourselves into reconciliation with the God whose blessing we crave and need. At this intersection of God's love and the neediness of man, we find the one thing that separates Christian teaching and belief from all the other religions of the world...after surveying the situation, and the fact that mankind is in such a state of need, Isaiah says this about the Lord's response: "The Lord looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene, so his own arm worked salvation for him , a...

Last night I joined with 3,000 other folks to participate in Dallas' annual Jingle Bell Run. Among the highlights? A man dressed as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, including the full body of a reindeer (with legs...and wheels). How he was able to run 3.2 miles with that thing attached to his body, I'll never know...but he absolutely wins the prize for "best costume." Among the runners were Santas and Elves, and people with Christmas tree lights wrapped around them...it was very cool! Way cool! I'll have to work harder on my outfit next year, since my only costume last night was peppermint-striped socks with white fur cuffs, and a jingle bell bracelet. I guess my socks were pretty cool though, because 4 or 5 people stopped to ask me "where did you get those socks??" Note to self: Keep the peppermint socks in 2011, but add Christmas tree lights to complete the outfit (multi-colored, flashing lights would be best). The Gospel reading is from Luke today, and...