The last few months have been very rewarding for me.  This shoulder rehabilitation has challenged me both physically and spiritually.  It has allowed me to take the common aspects of therapy and see the greater value in each step I have taken.  I have enjoyed sharing this little journey with you.  It has allowed me to get into a rhythm of reflecting and writing.  This is a discipline that I have needed to create because there is a new assignment ahead of us.  For now, this will be the last of my Lessons From Rehab series.

Because:    Carol and I have received instruction from the Holy Spirit to push forward with our first book.  For quite some time I have struggled with the obedience and the confidence to follow through with this mission.  The fact is, after 20 years of working with men and women in the area of marriage and family, we have learned many dynamic Biblical truths.  The redemption we have experienced in our lives is an undeserved gift that we want to pass on to as many as possible. We are hoping our lessons will have value for others and marriages can be strengthened.

Our first (I believe there will be more) book will be on habits that destroy or build strong marriages.  I did a video series on these seven habits a couple of years ago.  The Lord told me at that time that I had the outline and the foundation for our first book.  I didn’t listen to Him.  I am listening now.  The videos can be seen on our website.  I will be sharing parts of the book on this blog over the next few weeks.  I would love your feedback.  Please pray for us as we venture down this road.  We are still trying to figure out the financial piece of this puzzle.

Valuing Camaraderie 

  There is nothing worse for me than working out alone.  Even if I have a scheduled regime that I plan on following, it most likely won’t happen.  I can have the very best intention, motivation, and strategy, yet when left to myself….I typically fall short.  It’s embarrassing to admit this, yet it is so true.  At my core, I’m a lazy slacker who will quit when it gets tough.  This part of my lower nature is a hinderance to me in all aspects of my life.  That is why the Lord has been faithful to surround us with comrades to keep us company and help us stay in the fight.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:” Ecclesiastes 4:9

  When I workout, whether it is in the gym, pool or the physical therapist, I am much more energetic because I’m not alone.  Every morning at 5 a.m., I wake up to go to the pool to swim with a group of people that I don’t really know.  We swim together for an hour each day, five days a week.  But other than sharing a lane or a gasping breath amidst the chlorine, our paths in life do not cross.  Even though we have no other connection, they make me  stronger and work harder than I would otherwise. Our coach said the other day, “I’m here to make you do what you wouldn’t do on your own.”

We are better when we find community, connection and unity.  To me, that means I am more valuable, useful and stronger when I am in fellowship.  We are more productive, influential, and  profitable as we cooperate with God’s design for unity.  Our efforts are multiplied as we work together.

• Study the word with a group or just a friend.
• Meet regularly with others for strength and direction.
• Have someone you can be very honest with.
• Create an accountability partner to help battle the dark areas of your life.

“If one falls down, his friend can help him up.  But pity the man who  falls and has no one to help him up!”  Ecclesiastes 4:10

  One of the enemy’s greatest tactics in our struggle against darkness, is to isolate the Christian.  If we allow ourselves to drift from togetherness, we are at our most vulnerable to the enemy’s strategy.  When I’m struggling in a workout, it’s helpful to look around and see others battling also.  As I’m swimming next to someone, it always gives me that extra incentive to try harder.  I have a confession: there might be a little competitive streak in me….I know it’s not a godly trait and I’m working on it.  Honestly, I’m a really slow swimmer.  So when I try to keep up with faster athletes, they typically pick up their pace to prevent me from hanging with them.  I bear down and try to stay close.  At the end of the set, it’s satisfying to know that I pushed myself beyond my natural ability.  That is how friends pick us up, and why I desire to stay in their wake.  We challenge each other.

Have you ever felt like giving up?   your marriage?  your job?  friendships? your faith? I think we all struggle with wanting to quit in different areas of our life.  Perseverance usually requires the assistance of those closest to us.  We have to be willing to reach out and receive the grace our allies have stored up for us.

The easiest way I have found to get myself out of the dumps is this;  find someone else that needs a hand and encourage them.  Let the spirit of God use you to build someone else’s confidence and see what happens to you. Amen.

Week twelve is upon us in the rehab journey of 2013.  It’s a big week because the physical therapist is ready to start strengthening my shoulder.  We have been on the “no resistance” program until the rotator cuff surgery is “fully healed”.  Now the real work can begin.  It’s been pretty easy so far, mostly stretching and a little strength work, but not much.  The rebuilding phase is now in full motion, it’s time to……sweat.  I won’t mention here that I have actually been swimming full stroke for a couple weeks now, because the doctor would not approve of that maneuver.  Did I just confess that?  Oops, I need to reread the lesson on patience.

Talk is cheap.

It’s one thing to say you want to improve your life/work/marriage/habits/shoulder/etc, it’s an  entirely different thing to do something about it.  A belief I have about men is this:  men do what they WANT to do!  When a man really WANTS something he will make it happen.  If he doesn’t WANT to, he won’t.  My personal example:  for many years I was carrying 20 extra pounds of body weight.  I would whine and grumble about how fat I was and how terrible I looked.  I would wear baggy shirts and keep them untucked.  I squeezed into my pants and refused to move up in size.  It was awful, yet, I wasn’t willing to do what it would take to make the change.  Frequently,  Carol would look at me funny when I grabbed a bag of potato chips.  I knew what that look meant; “You can’t complain about your weight, and then eat like that!”.  She was right.  The fact was I didn’t WANT to lose the weight.  I wanted the weight to just “fall off” of me (and I may or may not have taken a lot of those “fat burning” supplements).  I didn’t WANT to pay the price that it takes to shed the unwanted pounds.

When I finally decided to lose the weight, I did.  Only because I WANTED to.   I had to work through the pain and embarrassment of being so out of shape.  I had to persevere past the aches of starting over.  We must take this same approach in our spiritual condition.  If we really WANT to experience more of God’s direction, hope and wisdom, we will have to go looking for it. Don’t be surprised if you have to sweat to get what you WANT.

“Call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.”  Proverbs 2:3b-5

This proverb gives us instruction for finding the wisdom of God.  It tells us that it is up to us to discover it.  These are not passive instructions.  Just like anything else in our lives; it is there if we WANT it.  It will make us uncomfortable and we will have to labor to achieve our goal.  I think God designed it that way, because anything that has value comes at a price.  That which is precious is not easily attained.  God’s son was a free gift to mankind, there was nothing required of us.  His wisdom however is another thing altogether.  If we WANT that, we will have to work for it.

1.  Call out/cry aloud:  If we WANT to: find wisdom, get stronger, eat healthier, become more content, resolve conflicts, understand our wife, rebuild our marriage, etc.; we will have to get outside of our comfort zone and ask for help.  These instructions are obviously written because God knows us.  He knows that we are too proud and stubborn to get assistance.  He knows that if we WANT it, we will have to do something about it.  “Ask and it will be given unto you,” Matthew 7:7a.  If you have difficulty with your finances, then find someone you know who’s good at it and receive their input .  If you have marriage issues (most of us) find someone you trust to walk through life’s conflicts with.  There is always support available, it’s up to me to call for it.

2.  Look/search:    The analogy here is a picture of a treasure hunt.  What would you do if someone told you there was a million dollars hidden in your house?  Can you imagine the lengths you would go to hunting for that prize?  Jackhammering up the concrete?  Tearing out the walls/ceilings/flooring?  Hours would turn into days, days into weeks, weeks into months….. The amount of blood, sweat and tears would not matter if you could find it!  That is precisely what looking for wisdom should consist of.  We must be willing to get out of our recliner and seek Him out.

What makes you perspire spiritually?

• One on one counseling?
• Small group transparency?
• Reading God’s word?
• 10-15 minutes of just quiet?
• Scripture memory?

Sometimes I sit for five minutes in quiet asking the Lord for understanding.  I get bored, tired and frustrated and then complain that, “He just doesn’t talk to me”.  On occasion I open my Bible and expect His wisdom to filter into my brain while I speed read.  The knowledge of God cannot be accessed like a fast food restaurant.  There is a price to pay:  time, energy, resources and ……..sweat.

The Value of Fellowship- Sharpening

It is now eleven weeks since I started this road to recovery.  The first six weeks I had to wear a sling.  I could not use my shoulder at all.  Once the sling came off, the fun began.  Going to the physical therapist has been my school room for spiritual education.  As I have opened my heart to the lessons the Lord has for me, an excitement has entered into my visits to the P.T..  It’s as though I am anticipating the next truth He is going to challenge me with.

This week’s lesson is an age old proverb that gets repeated over and over again and yet stands the test of time; “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”  Proverbs 27:17.  Three distinct principles regarding fellowship come to mind as I have been contemplating this verse.  This proverb assumes there are at least two men in relationship.  That can be a problem to begin with.  We have to be willing to enter into more than casual connection with other men.  Our dialogue must be deeper than fantasy football, stock markets and car parts.  We MUST open ourselves in vulnerable conversation and community.  The bottom line is WE NEED EACH OTHER and here are three reasons why:

1.  Fellowship reveals the jagged edges.  If iron needs to be sharpened, that means it has a dull edge which renders it as less effective.  The problem here is time and place.  Where do we get real fellowship?  Forgive me pastors, but deep fellowship does not usually happen on Sunday morning.  Sundays we put on our best face and try and act like we have  a lot of answers, not questions.  Rarely do we show our true selves in church.  In fact, being too honest can get you stuck in the prayer room with people laying hands on you and no real answers. We must deliberately engage with a small group of men or one on one.  The men’s group at my church is perhaps the most transparent group of men I have been around.  It is up to us to find a safe place for honest and deep conversation.  If I really want help, I have to find it.  Perhaps the most spiritual group in our churches are the recovery groups.  There are no pretensions, facades or posers. They create a “No b.s. zone” with authentic answers to real problems.  When it comes to getting help in marriage, it is imperative that you get help with your wife in attendance.  It’s not unusual that a man’s view of life’s events and his wife’s perspective differ greatly.  In our small group, it was common for me to say, “We had a great week”, only to have my wife reply, “What week were you living in?”  This process can be painful, embarrassing and profoundly life changing.

2.  Fellowship works out the weaknesses.  Once the issues/conflicts/sin are revealed, now we can begin to work on it.  When I go to see the physical therapist, he knows my weaknesses.  He understands what it’s going to take to get me stronger.  I have to trust him and the process to get to where I want to go. It’s the same spiritually.

“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.”  1 Corinthians 9:25-27

I have specific exercise that help strengthen my shoulder and the muscles surrounding it.  We may need specific actions to work on in our relationships to each other and to the Lord.  Perhaps some new habits are needed.  For instance;  when I would get home  from work, I typically picked up the mail and fretted over the bills or whatever I found.  I had to learn to connect with Carol when I first got home to see if she or the kids needed my attention.  It was awkward a first, but I was able to create a healthy habit that allowed us to feel more like a team.  It helped to know that each week in our group, I would be asked about these new habits I was working on. We cannot underestimate the rough edges that require a good sharpening.  “All a man’s ways seem right to him.”  Proverbs 21:2.  We will need others to help us see those areas that we don’t.  The question may be “Who can I be honest with?”   Do you have friends that know you well enough to help you?  It’s risky to be honest with others and more precarious to ask for help.  The fact is; If I’m not seeking help or input, I won’t get any.

3.  Fellowship can help make us more useful.  The goal of my therapy is to have a functioning shoulder again.  It’s going to take work and it will be worth it.  That is also the value of fellowship.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”  Ephesians 2:10

The Lord has work for us to do.  Our “rough edges” may be keeping us from the work He has intended for us.   That is why the “iron sharpening iron”  is so valuable.  He needs us to be razor-edged, honed, keen, accurate, acute, strong, crisp, defined, and precise.  The only way that can happen is through fellowship that is intentional, strengthening and consistent.   You can’t expect to go to the gym once a month and make any progress.  You have to consistently focus on the areas of weakness in your life and commit to exercising those areas so that they become assets instead of liabilities.

The Value of Fellowship: Healing

I am now ten weeks post op (torn rotator cuff surgery). My progress has been slow and steady. This little journey has provided for me an abundance of insight regarding my inner thought process and I have stumbled onto some wonderful spiritual truth along the way. Carol and I spent the first part of August in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. We celebrated our 28th anniversary (8/3) in spectacular style. The mountain views were amazing and the Lord graciously provided rainbows just for us. The richest part of our adventure was the time we spent talking, laughing, and crying with our friends.
When we returned to Arizona I was anxious to see the physical therapist and have him appraise my shoulder’s condition. On our trip, I was deliberate about protecting my arm (no motorcycle riding, cliff jumping or handstands), yet doing the prescribed exercises. I was afraid that perhaps I didn’t do enough work, and that I had fallen behind in my recovery.
I would like to think of myself as a “positive person”. I try and spin things in a favorable direction looking for “the good in all things”. I wish this applied to how I view myself. There are times I feel that I’m chasing a ghost that I can not please. I am constantly pushing and pressing and I usually view myself as wanting, needy and inadequate. This tendency of mine has revealed itself again, during this rehab. I am deliberate about my exercises, yet I am always worried that I’m somehow failing or not making enough progress. As the therapist did his usual testing of my arm, it occurred to me how much we need each other. We need each other to help us have a healthier view of the world and ourselves.
In fact; our healing is a byproduct of fellowship. In the book of James, chapter 5 verse 16 says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” The idea that we can be totally honest with one another and still be accepted is healing. It gives us the grace that we need to continue forward. Fellowship allows for His mercy to be transferred. When my therapist told me I was “right on track”, I was so relieved. It was the same feeling I had meeting with our friends in Colorado.
The obstacle that’s more difficult than “confessing our sins”, is confessing our weakness, our pain, our horrible thought life, our faithlessness, and our needs. It’s difficult being honest because we are never sure how we will be received. We have all been vulnerable at one time or another and received the trite responses of; “I’ll pray for you brother”, or “here’s a scripture to help you with that”, or “you shouldn’t feel that way because of blah blah blah”. Not one of these encounters met the need of my spirit, which was “you are ok”, “I’ve felt that too”, “that is so painful”, or “let’s work on it together.”
Three things come to mind as I reminisce about our healing time in Colorado. They are cornerstones of deep relationship and true spirituality.
1. Honesty: We were able to be extremely vulnerable in all that we were thinking and feeling. It takes great courage to dig in your soul and share the darkest parts of ourselves. True fellowship is found in those spots that we are genuinely afraid of. You discover who your real friends are.
2. Freedom: There was no judgement regarding our thoughts or emotions. Even though we were brutally transparent, no one took offense or criticized our condition. Sometimes when we bare our hearts there are no answers, there is just empathy. Entering into another’s hurt is the essence of ministry, no words may be needed.
3. Confidentiality: We know that our hearts are precious to those that love us and we were never in fear of having our honesty used against us. Some of us have been burned from time to time when we let our true selves be known. It’s comforting to realize that unconditional love……has no conditions

Jesus said “Come to me all who a weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29. Jesus invites us to bring our baggage to him and he doesn’t shove it back in our face. He receives it, listens and brings peace to our soul. Amen!

Wait for it….wait for it…

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been in a hurry. I eat fast, I drive fast, I talk fast…. I’m not sure if I’m running away or running toward something. My favorite motto in the car is, “I’m not sure where we’re going, but we’re making great time”. I’m confident that it is a diagnosable disorder and perhaps there is medication for it. It does come in handy when things need to get done around the house, I can be super productive. It’s being productive that makes me feel alive, valuable and worthy. I’m in a hurry to prove myself. This can be counter productive in the healing process. Sometimes, you have to let the healing occur, you can’t “will” it to happen.
I am now six weeks post op from rotator cuff surgery. I am finally out of the ugly black suffocating shoulder sling that has plagued my existence for the last month and a half. The time has gone by quickly, yet it seems like this process is taking forever. I know I have a long ways to go in recovery and there is a “big picture” I must think about. Since my surgery I have had several people tell me that there is a 50/50 chance of re-tearing the rotator cuff in the first year. My physical therapist confirmed it, and admitted the failure rate is even higher in many cases. He explained that is why my doctor is being so cautious in my treatment, wanting the repair to attach to the bone sufficiently. So I guess I shouldn’t play water polo for a while? Oops.
I keep hearing words like “take it easy”, “take your time”, “don’t rush it” and my favorite of all, “be patient”. What is patience anyway? It seems so passive, cautious, and wimpy. However, patience as we know it, is a fruit of the spirit. I must grasp for it, moment by moment, day by day, every day. It seems to always be a little outside my grasp, I want to try and achieve it and that is not possible. I am forced to regularly step back, evaluate life, search my heart and…..wait. Deep down I know it’s good for me, it just makes me very uncomfortable. I have to do something that is unnatural to me….surrender.

As I searched the scriptures I discovered another perspective about patience that I need to embrace.
Patience vs Pride
Ecclesiastes 7:8 “The end of a matter is better than its beginning and patience is better than pride”. I would not have placed pride as the antithesis to patience? Yet, here it is. Pride is having to have life my way. Pride is being self absorbed and consumed with what I want. Pride seems to be an issue that keeps coming up in my life. This rehabilitation is turning out to be more for my soul than my shoulder.
It seems that nothing in scripture happens very quickly. Jacob waited and worked 14 years for the father of his love Rachel before he married her (Genesis 29). Fourteen years, can you imagine that? I have a hard time waiting 14 seconds for someone to answer the phone. Joseph spent at least 2 years and possibly much more in prison before he became overseer in Egypt (Genesis 39-41) Two years….that’s a long time to be faithful, steadfast and consistent. How about the Exodus out of Egypt? Forty years wandering…..waiting….hoping (Exodus-Deuteronomy). By many estimations the apostle Paul spent over five years imprisoned. He wrote four epistles from behind bars…. and I get frustrated in line at Starbucks. It’s up to me to find perspective and seek Him in the process.
Learning to quiet myself in a hectic world has never been convenient for me. I liken myself to the dog (Dug) in the movie “Up”. Do you remember the one who was distracted all the time by “squirrel”. It requires an intentional act of discipline for me to stop. Just stop. Do nothing. Just listen…….
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him” Psalm 37:7

The value of pain…

July 1, 2013, almost three weeks post-op. I have been back in the pool for a week now, just kicking. The shoulder feels great…maybe too good. I want to push it so bad and I know I’m suppose to ‘be patient’. I hate being ‘patient’, it slows me down.

I was reflecting about the injury and how I got to this place. The first thing that came to my mind was, “You didn’t listen to the pain.” Back in November, my shoulder was getting sore. I didn’t pay it a lot of attention, in fact I just worked a little harder. “Push through it,” I thought. Isn’t that what you are supposed to do if you are a man, “Push though it,” act like it’s not there, overcome the constant nagging and “Man up”? Men don’t hurt, right?

There is the problem. Pride! It tells you to push when you should stop. It tells you it doesn’t hurt, when it does. It tells you to act like everything is fine, when it’s not. It tells you not to admit your weakness, not to confess your struggle. It tells you not to let anyone know you are vulnerable. What a pack of lies! Boy, I sure believe those lies a lot! When I believe those lies, I always pay the price. That price has never been worth the pride that caused them.

The fact is: we can be hurt. We are fragile, and it’s really ok. Pain is the body’s way of telling us, “Stop what you are doing and figure this out,” and “There is something wrong here, you need to look into it.” If we don’t do this, it’s just going to get worse and the damage will increase. It really relates to reaping and sowing. You will reap the grief if you don’t manage the pain. First, I have to admit that it hurts.

If this is true physically, and I believe it is, wouldn’t it also be true spiritually? If we do not honor and value our spiritual/emotional pain, we will reap destruction. Proverbs 14:12 “There’s a way that seems right to a man, but its end is death.” I have lived this so many times in my life that I have lost count. If I don’t discover the value of emotions, the pain will always turn to anger. Then my anger will spill over to everyone who is close to me. For me, this is the death that Proverbs talks about. It seems right to ‘suck it up’ and act like everything is ok, but in the end it inevitably leads to more pain.

Learning to honor my spiritual condition has been a very long process. For instance; if finances were tight and we received an unexpected bill, I would start to worry. My spirit would get anxious and I would get really uptight. I’m feeling like a loser who can’t handle money. Before long I’m agitated, impatient, cranky and not very nice to be around. Typically, I’d get upset with one of the kids for no real reason. Carol steps in to protect the kids, and now it’s on! She and I would argue, and before you know it, I’m walking out the door in a rage. Now I really feel like a failure, I’m a terrible husband and father who can’t provide for his family. This is death…..all because I didn’t honor the pain that I was experiencing regarding the bills. Insecurity is painful, fear is painful, distress is painful, doubt is painful. If the pain goes unchecked it will create more damage. That damage will affect everyone that is close to us.

I see this as all part of God’s grand design for us to surrender to him. He created the pain; Genesis 3:17b “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.” Painful toil is our lot. The Lord knows it. The question for us is, “What are you going to do with it?” In Matthew 11:28 Jesus says, “Come to me, all that are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
This is our opportunity to take Him at His word. Will we ‘come to Him’? Or, will we do ‘what seems right’? Jesus is the only one who can offer rest. He is the only one who can offer peace. He is the only one who can offer joy.

Today’s question: How do you manage your pain? Do you medicate with: television, alcohol, sports, hobbies or pornography? Or do you take your burdens to the One who really cares? Matthew 11:29-30 “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden light.” Amen.

Lessons From Rehab
Volume One

I have to admit that I don’t always follow my own advice. Just recently someone was telling me an amazing life story. I immediately recommended that he should write his story for others to enjoy and gain strength from. This is something I challenge people with all the time. Write it down, tell your story, people need to hear it! I love telling others what they should do, it’s easy. Allowing myself to be convicted by my owns words doesn’t always happen. So, here I am in the middle of another life lesson with an opportunity to share its value. It’s time for me to put up or shut up. I am committed to writing my discoveries and sharing them. If you don’t get an email each week feel free to call me and let me know I’m slipping.

I recently had my second major surgery in 26 months. Two years ago I had a total knee replacement. When I was recovering I read several blogs from others who had gone through this same procedure. It was encouraging to read the day to day progress that others experienced. It gave me peace and hope. I wish I had documented my own journey. There were many amazing revelations in the midst of the misery. They are now a distant memory.

So I get another chance to share my post operative revelations. This time it was my left shoulder. It started bugging me in November 2012. For the past four years I have been swimming four days a week and playing water polo on Fridays. I had finally started lifting weights again since my knee surgery. I was in my best shape in over 20 years. I was making progress and feeling really great. I was getting so strong on the bench press that I was beginning to think I could reach my old college goal of 300 lbs.. I was a long way from it, but it seemed possible now. Then, the shoulder started to “tweak” on me. Without prolonging the details, I tore the rotator cuff and bicep tendon. After six months and four cortisone injections, it was time for surgery.
“Perseverance must finish its work,” James 1:4

Surgery was June 11th, 2013. After 11 days I was sick and tired of laying around. My body was still recovering from the anesthesia and pain killers, but I was feeling much better. I decided it was time for a little work out. The words “be patient” have been thrown around a lot during this process, so I knew I should not push it. I just needed to feel human again. I borrowed our son’s gym membership and headed out the door. I got a little leg work in (I will forever be rehabbing the knee) and went to the pool.

My initial goal was just to get in the water and see if I could sufficiently strap down my arm and do some kicking. At this point I can only do passive movement with the left arm. I tied a theraband around my body to hold the left arm snug against my ribs. It seemed to work fine. I barely got my goggles on (try that with one arm). I decided that I should do 1000 yards kicking. It seemed like a legitimate goal and not too lofty. I had only been out of the water for three weeks so I can’t be in that bad of shape, can I?
I started pretty slow. It seemed awkward not extending my arm, but I made the most out of it. Then it happened. I got to 200 yards, and I was spent, done, finished. ‘I’m in terrible shape’ I thought. No one was there to push me. Nobody cared what I did at this point. It was just me and my arbitrary goal of 1000 yards. It didn’t matter if I finished or not. It wasn’t going to make the paper or worse facebook. Just as I was about to get out of the pool, I decided to do one more lap. Then another, and another. I was gaining momentum. I was starting to feel pretty good. I kept going and I got stronger and stronger. I finished the 1000 yards with anticipation of getting back to my normal practices.
When I was getting dressed I realized that there was a lesson here:
In almost everything that we do that has value, there will be a moment early in the endeavor that will be difficult or even painful. At that time everything in you will want to quit. This is the moment of truth. How committed are you? Will you persevere?
If we persevere, we will gain strength to continue. If we get past that initial urge to quit, He will give us “wings to soar like eagles” Isaiah 40:31. The problem is always getting past the initial discomfort, discouragement, distraction and doubt. Even before writing this I battled with thoughts of “who do you think you are?, That’s a stupid story and no one wants to hear it!, You won’t do it, you never do.” The Lord wants us to tell our stories, that’s what the Bible really is. It is HIS story. His work in the lives of men and women since the beginning of time.

James 1:2-4 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because the testing of your faith develops perseverance Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

If perseverance must finish its work, that means it must start its work, which means I must face trials, I must face adversity, I must be confronted with doubt and anxiety. The work will continue in my life and the benefit is maturity. That is why we are to consider it with joy, he is equipping us so we are prepared for anything. Amen!