Rules! Rules! Rules!

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Who likes rules? Why do we need rules? What are they good for? Why do we like breaking them? Must we have so many rules? Are we, in this enlightened 21st century still in need of endless lists telling us what to do; where, when and how and why to do something? Have you noticed that no matter your profession or station in life…there are rules (either implied or written) to live by. No matter your age or stage, rules are everywhere erected. If you’re a driver of an automobile, there are rules that govern how you must move your vehicle about the streets. If you engage in sports, there are rules that guide your chosen game of play. If you are a writer, a teacher, a lawyer, an engineer, a scientist, a parent or a child, there are rules for you to behold and live by. If you are the least bit interested in having a healthy body, there are rules that tell you what to eat, when to eat, how to eat, and where to eat. And of course there are rules that tell us how much sleep and awake time we should take as well as how much movement (exercise) we should engage in compared to our non-moving activities. Rules….rules…rules…they are everywhere!
The sheer magnitude of rules must give evidence to the fact that they are necessary and helpful in guiding us how best to live; but honestly, if we believe that rules are so important, why do we take such fiendish delight in breaking them? Ah, this question does strike at the very core of human nature does it not? We crave rules! We want some thing, some one, some code to tell us what is right or what is best in regards to conducting our lives. As much as we like to have choices, we also want security in knowing that a certain decision or behavior is supported by others. As much as we push against rules, we really do seem to need them don’t we? Having rules to live by means that many people down through the ages have thought long and hard about what it takes to make living together in a society happy and safe; whether it be a team sport, or club, or business or? When we look at rule making from this perspective, having rules to live by really does provide us with a sense of security and safety…especially if we know and believe that those with whom we interact also value a shared set of rules. It seems to me that we love rules so much because they show us that we are capable of thinking, perceiving, and reflecting about what matters to us. If we were automatons without intellect, we would have no need for rules. Our existence would be ‘guided’ by lines of code written onto our hard drive memory banks.
So I guess rules aren’t so bad after all. Maybe we should learn to embrace the rules of life with a positive perspective rather than with disdain. Should we try never to break a rule? Probably not…but at least we can appreciate that they are in place to add to our happiness and not take away from it.

“People who play by the Rules seem to bring their luck with them, light up a room when they enter, have more enthusiasm for life, and cope better.”
Richard Templar, in The Rules of Life.

Rule Reading Fun:  The Runner’s Rule Book by Mark Remy
The Rules of Life by Richard Templar

 

Wonderfully Made

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If we were truly able to comprehend the spectacular, out of this world, design and craftsmanship of the human body, I am convinced that we would not so easily abuse, neglect and misuse our physical bodies. If scientists of every genre are still mining new understandings of the intricacies of the human body, its systems and organs, why then should I be surprised that I am amazed by the marvelous handicraft that I presently occupy? It boggles my mind…does it yours? The wonder of the synchronous harmonies of our flesh and bones?

When I consider these things, I am humbled; I am brought low; and I am grateful for the capacities of strength and endurance my physical body faithfully provides me every day; intuitively I know that its craftsmanship, its design, its beautiful form and function is meant to conjure such awe inspired feelings…not for myself, but for the One who thoughtfully knit me together. I want to remind myself today to be full of awe and gratitude for my physical body and what it allows me to do each and every day. I want to remind myself that I have been given this body, its capabilities for strength and endurance, not only for my needs, but in service to meet the needs of others. It is with these thoughts, these reasons, that I train my physical body every day. And when I do train, I think of these things, and I never cease to be amazed and inspired and grateful.

I thank you, High God–you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration–what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something.  Psalm 139:14-15
(from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)

Work and Believe

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One spark of revelation, one creative flicker of intuition, one passing image of possibility. That’s all it takes to potentially move ourselves forward into a better place: physically, mentally, spiritually. We all have moments where an idea, or hope or inspiration springs upon our consciousness and invites us to embrace the vision as our reality. The only thing this revelation lacks now is muscle! Work! Movement! Action! It must be acted upon in order to become a reality. Newton’s first Law of Motion can be applied to our thought life: objects at rest, stay at rest; objects in motion, stay in motion unless acted upon by another force. So today if you have been inspired by a vision of possibility, don’t let your logic help you procrastinate. If you have seen the fleeting possibility, then work towards that today possibility today! Give yourself 10 minutes of real work on the vision. Is your inspiration a fitness goal, then get your body moving for 10 minutes. Is it a work related or creative goal, then do that one thing that you want to put off, and do it now! You can put the work aside after you’ve committed yourself to 10 minutes of purposeful attention. String enough days together of these 10 minute bouts of purposeful work and you’ll soon see your dream taking on form and dimension.

James 2:26 The very moment you separate body and spirit, you end up with a corpse. Separate faith and works and you get the same thing: a corpse. (from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)

 

The Best Way Out

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We can have plans for today, but we do not always have the privilege of seeing our plans completed as we desired from the start. Some days the sun shines bright, the wind blows light and there is an ease in the air that gives us a sense that the day will unfold with gentle dependability. Other days begin with blustery winds from the east, brooding clouds to the north and such general upheaval that we can be easily coerced to stay under cover until the day’s tumult blows over. Most of us do not have the luxury to be fair weather travelers and we must sojourn through each micro-season that we find ourselves cast into. For those whose Captain is the Lord, we have a trustworthy guide who has gone before us in the day’s journey and who comes alongside as we plow through the stuff of our busy work days. If we live in such a mindset, that our Captain holds us and our future in his hands, then this belief will make our travels more beneficial to us. As we rest in Him, we can be certain that we are indeed safe from each and every storm that comes upon us; we can save our energies to not fight against the storm, but rather, go through the storm while holding fast to the One who travels with us, through us, before and after us. As Paul the Apostle taught us, regardless of our traveling conditions, keeping a cheerful focus on the One who leads us will safely deliver us from the ruts and rocks, the ups and downs of this day’s journey. We can pace ourselves in this knowledge today!

2 Corinthians 5:8-10 ~ Do you suppose a few ruts in the road or rocks in the path are going to stop us? When the time comes, we’ll be plenty ready to exchange exile for homecoming. But neither exile nor homecoming is the main thing. Cheerfully pleasing God is the main thing, and that’s what we aim to do, regardless of our conditions. (from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)

“The best way out is always through.” Robert Frost

 

KEEP GOING! KEEP PRACTICING!

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It’s nearly the end of January, this first month of 2015. I hope we haven’t completely put aside those New Year’s resolutions we cast for ourselves less than 30 days ago. Even if you didn’t make an official ‘resolution’ for the coming year, I hope you made some thoughtful intentions or at the least had some ideas about what you’d like to accomplish in 2015. If you proposed for yourself to become more physically fit or to eat better, I want to take this moment to remind you (and myself) that today is the day we choose to stay the course. Never mind that yesterday had some failings or shortcomings…it is finished…it is over…it cannot be re-written. But today? Today abounds with possibilities; it is a NEW DAY! Embrace the clean slate with enthusiasm and get ready to put forth some effort (mental, social, physical, spiritual) into your intentions so you can accomplish a positive step forward toward your desired goal. If we were to approach our big resolutions with the little work of taking baby steps every day, we could look back on our yesterdays with satisfaction and accomplishment rather than disappointment. In her book, The Happiness Project, Gretchin Rubin reminds her readers that, “Enthusiasm is more important to mastery than innate ability, because it turns out, that the single most important element in developing an expertise is your willingness to practice.”

I am an artist at living, and my work of art is my life. Japanese philosopher Suzuki