I was never an athlete.
The closest I came to team sports was one brief summer in Little League. That was a disaster: couldn't hit, couldn't run, couldn't pay attention (best draw the curtain on that right now).
Then, starting in the 7th Grade, my fellow students and I spent a portion of every other school day participating in a 40-minute version of whatever sport was in season. Yes: the dreaded Phys-Ed. In the fall, we played football in PE (didn’t understand the rules, so I was always a Lineman). In the winter, we played basketball (couldn't move and dribble—terrible shooter). On rainy days, we played dodgeball (big and slow, easy target). And in the spring, we played baseball (see above) and/or track and field (still hate this).
And when we weren’t doing these things, we were subjected to a form of torture called conditioning. It was the part I hated the most: sit-ups, chin-ups, rope climbs, push-ups, running up and down the bleachers. Imitating sports wasn't so bad: You got knocked down, you got up, you got knocked down again—simple. Exercising just to exercise? Madness.
Everything changed in my thirties, though. I joined a gym and hired a trainer. I actually paid someone to lead me through the very activities I hated for those six years I was forced to take PE class. Why did I do this? Spend two, three nights per week at a gym? In short: I had goals. There were things I wanted to do—improve my health, lose weight, shape up—and I needed a coach’s insight to ensure I reached those goals.
When I read this week's scriptures, I saw a parallel between two of the passages and all my times at the gym. When I’m working out, I am focused on that moment. My coach, though, is thinking about all of it: where I've been; what I'm doing right then; how that activity, in concert with others the trainer has planned, moves me toward my objectives—and, of course, what's next.
It's kind of like that for the disciples in the Luke and Acts 1 passages. They are told to expect someone who will serve as teacher and guide, someone who will help them achieve the goals set before them. They didn't know what was coming. But they believed the one who told them a helper would come, and they acted from within that belief.
Even now, when I’m nearing the end of my treadmill time, I start thinking about stopping early. Part of me—the really tired part—suggests I don’t really need to keep at this, that it’s just too hard, that it doesn’t really benefit me. But then, I hear the calm voices of my trainers from over the years encouraging me: "You can do this. Just a bit more. Almost there." They knew what I was capable of, knew how much more I could bring to the task, knew how much more would be required of me before I could rest.
The Spirit is like that with us. When the going gets hard, we need to listen for that voice deep inside: "You can do this. Just a bit more. Almost there."
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PHOTO: Steve Orr dressed for Little League
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We're getting together Friday mornings at 8:00 for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. Join us on Zoom** or in person at the Our Breakfast Place. Great food, great Bible discussions, and great fellowship.
No sit-ups required.
Blessings,
Steve
**Contact me for the Zoom link
NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera and microphone if you don’t wish to be seen or heard.
SCRIPTURES FOR SUNDAY AND THE COMING WEEK
Ascension of the Lord (May 26, 2022)
Acts 1:1-11
Psalm 47 or Psalm 93
Ephesians 1:15-23
Luke 24:44-53
Read them here:
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/pdf//Cx_AscensionoftheLord.pdf
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Seventh Sunday of Easter (May 29, 2022)
Acts 16:16-34
Psalm 97
Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21
John 17:20-26
Read them here:
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