How long has it been since you really took a regular break each week?

If you’re anything like me…I was far too busy and important to take a break for years…I even took “work” ( it was usually church stuff or writing I wanted to get done) away with me on holidays, and Sundays were more often than not busier than regular work days.

Right up until a couple of months ago my work ethic was my crowing glory and my sense of whether or not I was a good person/Christian/worker was wrapped up in how busy I was, how productive I was, and let’s be honest here shall we…how stressed I was feeling. I was getting some kind of sick self-righteous satisfaction from being continually under pressure and feeling as though I was always running from one thing to the next. I felt needed and affirmed when I was doing everything for everybody. Which, looking back at it now, is totally pathetic.

It has taken some not-so-gentle prompting from a friend and some stress-induced medical problems to make me wake up to myself. Life was never intended to be this crazy, and that in fact, it is counter-productive in the long run to be so frantic all the time. It is not sustainable, and the only ones that suffer are you and your family, who often get steamrolled or completely forgotten in your misguided quest to be all things to all people. And from a broader perspective…if you go until you crash and burn, it will take a long time for you to recover and come back to the point where you can function normally again.

We were designed to work hard. That is not in dispute here. I think it is absolutely necessary that we be productive and effective in everything we do. But in order to do that we MUST take time out, we must find the point of balance where we can maintain our pace for the long haul.

Over the course of the next week or so I’ll be posting about what I’ve been learning about Sabbath, sabbatical, rest, focus, leisure and balance.

Do you take time to rest regularly? Or do you go full-tilt until you’re worn out?

Michelle

I’m proud of myself this week! On Sunday I did the 5km Canada Day fun run here in Canberra. I didn’t run the whole way … and I was so sore that I could barely walk  for two days afterwards because I hadn’t trained at all beforehand…but I did better than I thought I would. I haven’t really run for any length of time since I broke my foot at the end of last year. I followed it up with a run on Wednesday night, as well as my usual lunchtime 5km walks. So the exercise has been regular this week. I think I need to up the intensity a bit though. I haven’t really lost any weight yet.

I managed to eat a lot more fresh, raw veges this week … and I have noticed that my skin is clearer. Bonus!

The thing I am happiest with is that my body and my brain chemistry are starting to tell me that I need to exercise. My body is starting to recognise the benefits of exercise for stress management and for maintaining an even outlook on life.

I’m doing well taking baby steps! How did you go this week?

Michelle

This week I finished reading The Shack by William Paul Young, and I have to say that I think this book is one of the most moving books I have read in a long time. The book is fiction, but it contains within it a parable that vividly paints a picture of what it means to live in relationship with God. For me it was so deeply convicting and profound that I had to put the book down and pray…all the while crying because I have so misunderstood the nature of God.

I had to ask myself… do I have a truly biblical vision of what God is like? Or do I have a vision of God that is more a reflection of Roman, Greek and whatever other cultures have added a bit of spin in the last 2000 years? It’s important for me to find answers to those questions because it will be those answers that govern how I relate to God, and how I live as his child.

Aside from the insights into the unity and function of the Trinity, there was one other part of the book that completely freaked me out. God took the main character (Mack) for a walk through the forest. God’s purpose for this trek was to bring healing and restoration to Mack’s life through confession and forgiveness. As God led Mack through the forest, he pointed out little red crescent markers along the way. The markers were on trees and rocks, some were easy to see, some were hidden, but there and God knew what he was looking for. These markers were the guideposts that would ultimately solve one of the book’s mysteries.

Those of you who have been following my adventure will have read about my own set of little red markers in the bush (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, you can read about it HERE). When I read the passage, the hair on the back of my neck and on my arms stood up, and my heart started to beat so hard it was like I had been doing a workout.

My initial reaction was to be freaked out. This was way out of the ordinary. The imagery was identical, the spiritual journey was so similar. The coincidence was too much for me to take in. I emailed a good friend and relayed the story. My friend suggested that it was perhaps God’s way of confirming that he is working in my life.

I know that there really are no coincidences when it comes to God, and that there doesn’t have to be a burning bush for him to speak to me…but this just blew my mind.

An added element of confirmation for me was this: I have had this book sitting on my desk since Christmas. Mum gave it to me and said that it was good, but I hadn’t really felt like reading it. I don’t normally read a lot of fiction books, and I had heard conflicting reviews about it. It wasn’t calling to me. But then when I was packing to go away on my retreat, I remembered the book and threw it in my bag. I read the first couple of chapters while I was away, but didn’t really get into it. By the time I got into the meat of the book (in this last week and a half) I was well and truly in exactly the right place to hear the message within. Another example of God’s amazing timing.

Have you read The Shack? What did you think? Did it challenge your thinking in anyway?

Michelle

Before I went away on my retreat weekend I asked for ideas about things I could take away with me to help with my spiritual boot camp. My good friend Ron suggested that I check out labyrinths and gave me a link to check out. I had heard of them before, but had never had any experience with them.

The particular labyrinth described on the website was set up in the year 2000 as part of the new-millennium celebrations in England. The organisers incorporated interactive and multimedia elements to lead the pilgrims through various stages of confession and focus. They used a recorded soundtrack with ambient music and narrative to lead them people through the stations in the labyrinth.

The website says this about them:

Labyrinths were a feature of many medieval cathedrals – one of the best remaining examples is found in Chartres Cathedral in northern France. Unlike a maze they have only one path – there are no dead ends. People walk the labyrinth slowly, as an aid to contemplative prayer and reflection, as a spiritual exercise, or as a form of pilgrimage.

The path has three stages – the ‘inward’ journey, the centre and the ‘outward’ journey. The theme of the ‘inward’ journey is letting go of things which hinder our wholeness and inner approach to God. The centre of the Labyrinth is a space of meditative prayer and peace. The theme of the ‘outward’ journey is relationship – with ourselves, with others and with the planet – seen in the light of our relationship with God.

I quickly discovered that I was able to download the soundtrack, and got it loaded onto my iPhone ready to go for the weekend. I intended to walk the paths around the resort and meditate. But then the rain set in, so rather than walk, I lay back on the bed and closed my eyes and relaxed for the hour-long meditation.

What followed was one of the most intensely powerful times of focus on God that I have ever had the privilege of being a part of. It has been a very long time since I was able to concentrate so completely on examining my relationship with God. Normally I struggle to last five minutes without my mind whizzing off on a dozen different tangents. The challenge to make changes in my life was clear and unmistakable…and hard work. The understanding that God loves me and has plans for my life was clear and unmistakable…and soothing for my soul.

I listened through the meditation again the next morning as I walked around the foreshore of Lake Jindabyne and savoured the snowflakes that I caught on my tongue. This time my experience with the Father was invigorating and energising. A gentle push to get me moving and ready to face the world again.

Have you ever walked a labyrinth? Do you meditate on Christ? How do you do it?

Michelle

I resurrected Fit Friday a couple of weeks ago and then promptly forgot about it << note to self…WRITE down your posting schedule!>>

Here’s the deal. I need to loose about 20kgs. I want to lose it before I turn 40, so that gives me about 18 months. More importantly I need to get fit. I am coming to learn that life is to be lived as a whole…my physical health impacts my spiritual health, my emotional health and my relational health. I can’t push it off to one side and ignore it any longer. But I have a problem.

You see, I am a good starter. I know that I can very easily stick to a diet or an exercise regime for maybe six or eight weeks max. Then I fail and don’t get back into the routine again. What I really need to do is to build these healthy habits into my life so that they are sustainable in the long run. I’m not sure how to do that.

So far I have started by adding exercise every day for a minimum of 30 minutes (preferrably longer)…I’m thinking I need to raise the intensity for a couple of those to really burn some of this post-baby fat off.

I’m also working at introducing healthy eating habits, but that is harder, and I find weekends especially difficult.

Do any of you have the same problem of being a great starter but not able to sustain the effort? Are any of you lifelong exercisers and healthy people? Can you help me find the way forward?

Michelle