Look Out!

I hit a mailbox Saturday. It really hurt too. I wasn't in a car - I was out jogging. Once you stop laughing, read on to see why. . . .

Here's how it happened. Earlier in the week I discovered when jogging up hill, it helps to not look at the top of the hill. When you focus on the top, it feels like you never get there. It seemed to be more tiring, more discouraging. So, one morning I decided to keep my eyes on the road just ahead of my feet. After conquering the hills with ease this way, I decided this would become standard operation for me, especially as I look ahead to running a half-marathon through the hilly parts of Raleigh this November.

So, Saturday afternoon, I'm out jogging. I didn't really stretch well before heading out. I was already a little tired and hungry before leaving. I'm not sure I'm up for this last hill. But I have my new trusty method to get me over the hump, literally. I've got my head down and I'm powering up the hill. That's when it hit me, or more appropriately, I hit it. I ran right into a mailbox. Apparently, this particular mailbox was a lot closer to the road than all the others because its edge hung over the white line. I made it home with a minor abrasion on my left arm.

Now I'm rethinking this whole strategy. Or I'm at least modifying it some. And you know me, I began to have a few thoughts about how this might be applied to my faith journey. I can think of some leadership applications like balancing the long term and short term perspective. I know somewhere there has to be a faith journey application. I think part of it is you have to look where you are going, or something's going to hit you and try to derail your journey.

I began to think some more and wondered to my self if it was possible to have a long term perspective on my faith journey. Besides heaven, what would that even be? What are the hills and crests we need to be mindful of? What is the short and long term balance of our faith journeys? When do I focus on my feet and when do I focus on the road ahead? What are the unexpecrted obstacles like misplaced mailboxes we need to look out for? What do you think?

I Did It! (again!)

As I was running this morning, slowly and gradually getting my body ready for my half-marathon this November, several thoughts crossed my mind. "Why am I doing this? I'd really rather be in bed." "How far can I go today? How difficult will that last hill be today?" "I have to learn to relax my arms more" "Discipline is a good thing."

The thought about discipline is the important one. Discipline has been on my radar a lot lately. I have a few friends who frequently take stock trading classes. They do a lot of "practice trading" with no money to hone their skills. Their goal is to be able to retire three to five years once they start doing it with real money. One guy commented that it was important he practice because it developed discipline within him that transferred to other areas of his life - even spiritually. He reads his Bible more. He takes his faith journey more seriously.

Another friend one time spoke about the negative aspects of discipline transfer. When he was in high school, his youth pastor was really into weightlifting. The youth pastor used physical fitness as a metaphor for spiritual fitness. It was a good idea. Eventually, it became a legalistic pursuit. "If you are really following God, you will take care of your body and be in peak physical condition" became the underlying message. My friend drifted away from his faith journey for a while. You must learn to avoid those kinds of traps, not mistaking the means for the ends.

The good thing about discipline is it allows you to say "I did it!" Accountability helps with that. Accountability helps you accomplish good things, not just avoid bad things. Everyone likes a feeling of accomplishment, whether it be a clean house, losing 20 pounds, running a marathon, or even reading your Bible.

What are the things you want to accomplish on your faith journey? What type of discipline would help you? How can you implement that discipline? Do you need help in any of these areas? What traps do you need to be wary of? Do you want to be able to say, "I did it!"?

I Did It!

This morning I have a lot of thoughts. Why is it taking so long for Peter Pan peanut butter to return to the shelves? When will the warm spring weather return to stay? Has the onslaught of pollen ended for the season? On a more somber note, I wonder how the students, staff, and parents of Virginia Tech are coping this morning. Some friends and I watched the footage over a lunch meeting yesterday and it certainly changed the tone of our time together. At the risk of sounding generic, my prayers are certainly with them.

But that's not what I want to post. I am one step closer to reaching a personal goal. This morning I registered for the City of Oaks Marathon. Actually, I registered for the half marathon, but I have the option to upgrade at any point between now and Nov 3. Now my goal is to tell everyone I know, not because I want to say, "Hey, look at me - I'm going to run a half-marathon." I'm telling everyone because now if I don't do it, everyone will say, "Hey, I thought you were going to run a half-marathon!" Accountability is everything.

Some people shy away from accountability because they view it as somebody trying to catch them doing something wrong. It certainly has that feel in the public sphere of politics, corporate finances, government, etc. I prefer to see accountability as a means of helping me achieve my goals. That's one of the things that have made programs like Alcoholics Anonymous and Weight Watchers so successful - they have accountability built into their systems.

Accountability helps my faith journey. At times in my life when I have experienced particular struggles, I have benefitted from accountability relationships. I had good friends who were there to love and support me. They let me know when I messed up and did not blow it off as
"Okay". They also prayed for me, helped me come up with ways to avoid or overcome my struggle. And I did the same for them. My journey has always been the most exciting and strongest when I have been in an accountability relationship.

How do you feel about accountability? Does it scare you or do you welcome it? Do you have people you could trust to keep you accountable? How do you see it strengthening your faith?

Shifting to Neutral

I'm a little later posting this week than usual. That's partly because I've taken some time off and gone on a mini-vacation with the family. It's also because I haven't had any thoughts. We've been at my mom's for a couple of days. Two or three times I've logged on and stared at the screen. I told my wife I need to post something but I can't. My mind has shifted into neutral and I have none.

That's the good thing about vacation for me. I am very successful at forgetting I have real world adult responsibilities, except of the parenting and husband-ing type. My mind shuts down. So, a-la Jerry Seinfeld, I'm writing about nothing.

I've been trying to relate this thought (or lack of thoughts) to my faith journey. What happens if my faith journey shifts into neutral? Is that even an appropriate description? Because my mind is in neutral, I can't even come up with any more questions, much less answers.

So, I need your help. What do you think? Can we shift our faith journeys into neutral? What are the effects & circumstances surrounding such a shift?

Christ is Risen!

The grave is empty. There are no bones, nor were there ever. Jesus is alive because he did rise from the dead. On this Easter morning, I hope you experience the life-changing power of the resurrection we celebrate today.

The Disappearing Man

SPOILER WARNING! Some of the female readers may be offended by what I'm about to say. Before you read any further, let me say that I am in no way trying to diminish the efforts of the women who have worked so hard with our children, boys AND girls. However, I am continually disturbed by the absence of good men in the lives of our young boys. At this point, you have been warned. Continue reading at your own risk.
************************************************

Over the weekend I attended a Cub Scout Camporee with my oldest son. There were over 700 Cub Scouts and 1600 people total at this weekend event. This particular weekend was special because it was also the moment when the oldest group of boys "crossed" over from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts. It was a very cool and yet solemn occasion. Each scout was greeted by his Cubmaster and the "Chief" of the Order of the Arrow on one side of the bridge. The scout then crossed a bridge where on the other side he was greeted by the Scoutmaster of his new Boy Scout troop. There, the scout was given the insignias and colors of his new standing.

As I watched this ceremony take place I was bothered by what I consider to be a stark inconsistency. I was shocked by how many women hold positions of leadership in an organization whose purpose is to train and empower boys to become capable men. Some of the roles and duties performed by women this weekend appeared to be largely administrative or organizational in nature. From that perspective, one might write this off as affinity differences in genders. Some might say that the women were doing the jobs that the men did not want to do. The guys rather be out in the woods - hunting, camping, starting fires, etc. True, given the chance, most men rather be out acting on their primal urges - myself included.

But that does not explain the number of women who were den leaders - the adults who week in and week out lead the smaller groups of boys, guiding, directing, planning all the activities, and ultimately, modeling "manhood". How are young boys going to understand what it means to be a man if a woman models it? We have several women den leaders in our pack. I'm thankful for their willingness to serve. But I am more disappointed that there are not men to fill those positions.

Church is no different. In many churches, especially smaller churches, there is a desparate need for male leadership. A friend once remarked to me that a single mom began attending his church, hoping to find some stable males who could model what it means to be a man. She had tried Cub Scouts, but all the leaders were women! Problem is, most churches have few men who are willing to work with children. (I'm thankful that in my church, we have good strong men working with ALL our age groups in our children's department. As a father of two sons, I am so thankful for them.)

Veering from the societal implications and problems that the growing percentage of women leadership in Boy Scouts presents, I think we have a bigger problem in the absence of good strong male leadership in the church. We have done something to the notion of what it means to be on a Christian faith journey that has overly feminized it. Is there something about being on a faith journey that naturally has feminine undertones? Is there something about being on a faith journey that naturally repels men but attracts women?

Someone asked me the other day if many people left comments on my blog. I told him that the type of things I write usually generate introspective thoughts, but not necessarily discussion. Please, I'd like to know your thoughts. I'd like to see some discussion on this. Am I barking up the wrong tree or am I getting close to the target? Is this a real problem, and if it is, what do we do about it?