I DESERVE a Problem Free Life

A radio announcer this morning was bemoaning the fact that the buyer for his house backed out shortly after a tree had fallen on his home. Exasperated, he questioned, "Haven't I paid my dues?" He went on to explain that he has been through a divorce, one of his children had been born with special needs, and his other child was in the PICU for two months after he was born. He then stopped himself and confessed that he should give up the notion that he DESERVES a problem free life.

He is right. What makes us believe that we DESERVE a problem free life?

Scripture clearly states:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, (James 1:2 NIV)

Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. (2 Thessalonians 1:4 NIV)

In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. (1 Peter 1:6 NIV)

I certainly don't want to take these scriptures out of context, but they do highlight the concept that God apparently doesn't think that any of us will experience a problem free life here on this side of glory.

Today, take a quick inventory of your blessings, seek to put your trials in perspective and enjoy being a blessing to others!

Lose the Anti-Exercise Attitude....

.....gain a livelier life.

You just read the title of this post and so, now you know. I was two chapters away from the end of the book that I was drawing excerpts from and I just stopped writing. That was back in June. It's now November. You know, all of the other chapters were concepts that apply sometimes in all of our lives (e.g. unrealistic expectations, do-it-yourself mentality, resentment, etc.). But this one is just plain old practical. We either exercise consistently, sporadically, or not at all. I guess it's obvious where I fall along this continuum. Okay, enough of my personal confession.

Here is the excerpt:

Like it or not, we all need to exercise if we want to live to enjoy the blessings of life and opportunities of service God has ordained for us....:

1. Exercise helps reduce hidden belly fat, lowering the risk of [....] disease....
2. Exercise prevents muscle from wasting and helps to lose fat.
3. Exercise helps the brain deal with stress more effectively.
4. Moderate cardiovascular [....] can improve your memory.
5. Exercise helps manage hunger....
6. Exercise improves your immune system.

....attitude is more than half the battle....

If you do not carve out time for your physical, spiritual, and personal needs, you will burn out, bum out, and bail out by acting out. Overeating, overworking, increased drinking, anger, depression, worry, and anxiety are all symptoms of burnout.....

You can be victorious in this journey....

Five Keys to Success in Your Exercise Program
1. Make exercise convenient....
2. Make it fun....
3. Enjoy variety....
4. Add music to the routine....
5. Exercise with a partner or friend....

Wouldn't it be nice if we could rely upon a previous time in our life that was filled with much exercise to provide the benefits for us now? That's funny....we could probably replace the word "exercise" in that sentence with a host of different words: prayer, worship, service, or even humility. What's your word?

In the event that this blog has been guilt-inducing. Stop it. Guilt is not a good motivator. I am going to attempt to take one small step toward a life filled with exercise.....celebrating my victories and leaving the rest to God.

Lose the Stress....

....gain a relaxed spirit.

Wow!, I just flunked this chapter in Arterburn's (2007) book. He asks five questions that relate to the level of stress in our lives:

1. Do you have effective ways of relaxing?
2. Do you regularly exercise?
3. How sensibly do you eat?
4. How well do you manage your time?
5. Are you getting enough sleep?

How do you stack up to these questions?

Arterburn (2007) states:

You'd have to be living on another planet not to know that stress affects your body in negative ways. Because stress is something we all experience, we all need to learn effective ways to manage or reduce it..... Are there habits and pratices you could change today that would make you feel better? The answer is probably yes.

Since the name of this blog is "authentic, striving to be real", I am not even going to begin to suggest that I have this area of my life under control. However, that should not stop us from taking a serious look at the five questions that Arterburn places before his readers. I think I know what I need to do in this area....I am going to take one of the questions that I feel will have the greatest impact and seek to live it out.

Will you consider doing the same?

Lose the Emotional Confusion.... (PART 3)

....gain the clarity of peace.

Another state of emotion that Arterburn (2007) highlights is rejection. Rejection so often is one of the more painful states since it typically involves someone very close. It takes many forms and even after the shock of rejection wanes, it can leave some very stubborn and nasty lies in its wake. Arterburn touches on this concept when he states:

You see, the enemy used emotional pain to implant lies--that no one will want or love you; that people will only hurt you; that if only you were better...all lies!

I don't fully understand why rejection seems to cut to the very core of our being, but Arterburn does remind his readers of the following:

The truth is that there is someone who is completely trustworthy and who will never reject you. Your acceptance has nothing to do with your actions or your appearance. Jesus unconditionally loves you because you are His. He identifies with your pain. According to Isaiah 53, Christ was despised, rejected, and a man of sorrow. Because of His great love for you, He suffered the pain of rejection and crucified it once for all on the cross.

Bottom-line, rejection has the potential of carrying emotional confusion. To begin cutting through the confusion, realize that even Jesus was rejected.

Lord, rejection hurts deeply. Help me to fully understand that even you experienced rejection. Expose the stubborn lies that are seeking to embed in my thought life due to the rejection. Fill me with your peace.

Lose the Emotional Confusion.... (PART 2)

....gain the clarity to peace.

Be sure to look back at the previous post for greater understanding of this one. While Arterburn (2007) hightlights many emotional states, I would like to focus attention on two that easily entrap many folks: inadequacy and insecurity. Crassly stated, inadequacy tells us that we really don't measure up and insecurity reminds us of our many vulnerabilities.

Arterburn states:

You are inadequate because you are human. [....] If you start to look at your emotions and find that inadequacy is at the top of the list, give up on trying to feel better about yourself and start focusing on feeling better about God. Look at what God has done through you. Look at what God has allowed to happen in your life even though you did not have it all together or have all that others had.

I am going to take the liberty of paraphrasing (maybe, embellishing) Arterburn on the matter of inadequacy; here it goes:

If you have bought the deception that you have to be darn near perfect for God to ever use you, give it up.....you will never be good enough. Remember, we are human. But get this-- God would like to use us anyway, even with all of our imperfections. I know, it makes no sense that God wants to use me or you to build His kingdom, but that's just the way it is. Maybe you and I should worry less about measuring up and just start looking for what God may simply want to do through us.

Regarding insecurity, Arterburn states:

The only place you are truly secure is in your relationship with God. A multitude of scriptures speak to who we are in Christ-- we are loved, forgiven, saved by grace through faith, joint heirs with Christ, blessed with all spirtual blessings, sons and daughters of God, complete in Him, and so much more.

2 Corinthians 1:21-22 God is the One who makes you and us strong in Christ. God make us his chosen people. He put his mark on us to show that we are his, and he put his Spirit in our hearts to be a guarantee for all he has promised (NCV)

Here goes another Fox paraphrase:

You really think anything in this world is going to provide lasting security? I can tell you right now, the only real security in this world is in our relationship with God. It's your choice....you can either base your security on your feelings or on what God's Word says. I'm choosing His Word!

Lord, when those feelings of inadequacy and insecurity rise in my spirit, help me to apply your Word to my life.

Lose the Emotional Confusion....

....gain the clarity of peace.

"Clarity" is such a great word; and "clarity of peace" is even better.

Take just a moment and try to define the two phrases, "emotional confusion" and "clarity of peace." Can you see yourself in either of the two phrases or even in both? Do you prefer one over the other? Seriously.

You may be thinking, who would prefer "emotional confusion" over "clarity of peace." Plenty of folks. Just look around....you and I both know miserable people.

Anyhow, Arterburn (2007) states:

Our emotions are very much part of who we are and how we perceive the world, but all too often we give our emotions too much control in our lives. We need to get better understanding of them, so we can manage them in better accordance with God's will.

Arterburn then follows this statement with some of the main emotional states that cause us trouble. So, for the next few days, I will be making my way through these emotional states and maybe you and I will pick up a few pointers so that we will be able to see more clearly.

Lose the Negative Thoughts....

....gain a renewed mind.

Arterburn (2007) states:

Renewing the mind is different from positive thinking in that truth must be experienced from the One who is truth. [....] Although we are saved and our spirits are made new in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), our minds are still in need of renewal. Yet we cannot be free of the lies and distorted thinking on our own power. A renewed mind comes as we receive truth from Christ and deeply plant His Word in our hearts.

In 2 Corinthians 10:5 we are told to take our thoughts captive: "We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ" (MSG).

How do we live this out within the context of the continual onslaught of negative thinking at every turn these days? Just as soon as we wake up in the morning, it begins. Walk into any institution and negative thinking has won the day. So what can we do?

Well, the easiest way to lose negative thinking is to ditch the source. Actively move away from folks who are clouded with negativity. But, what if the negative thinking is from within?

I like Arterburn's idea of treating any negative thinking like spam mail on a computer. He states that "the thoughts just show up and keep on coming. As with email, the trick is not to click on the thoughts to open them. Instead, delete them instantly and avoid giving negative thoughts a foothold in your mind, because they are messengers of Satan, not God."