The Grinder

The best thing I love about working out is that it is something you have complete control over in your life. You have more influence in your own physical appearance than you do in cheering on professional sports teams. You can either choose to be a champion and start kicking hein dens and taking names or allow someone right next to you to do the kicking and you be the recipient.

I love that fact that now I have been working out I don't need 10 cups of coffee to keep me going every day. I wake up not dreading the day but embracing it. I get a leg up on everyone else now. No more lagging to get out the door and flying through traffic just to duck in before the boss sees me and while en route to work I am formulating excuses on whom to blame my tardiness on.

Those days are history.

Now I am first to the office and the first one out the door now with all my tasks completed in a timely matter and when I do get called to the carpet I am not sweating and formulating more lies to cover myself. I am well prepared and have thorough responses. Now when I leave the office I am on time to get my kids and when I get home I have more than enough of an evening left to prepare dinner, focus on homework and devote time to the Misses.

Life is tough, but it's good. My life has color again. To the Lord I am thankful that he rescued me in my weakness to set me upon the anvil and bang out my impurities. I love being tempered and when it becomes too much I get dipped into the water of grace to cool me off, only to repeat the process again.

I remember I had posted on my facebook page. That the hardest thing to do in life was to start something and the second hardest thing to do is to stop it. I remember my biggest motivation for working out and lifting came after I had been diagnosed with two herniated discs. I made excuses as to the reasons I shouldn't lift and that I would only aggravated it. As I packed on the pounds and wallowed in self loathing, I remember reading a story of a man who had suffered a stroke who was around my age who had been "locked in". Locked in is a term the medical experts use when a person seems to be in a vegetative state but is fully aware of his surroundings and cannot physically communicate with others.

I read this guys story on how instead of playing a victim and giving up he fought through all that pain to be able to rehabilitate himself to train hard despite his severe limited mobility and without being able to communicate. I thought to myself; if this guy can do it...then I surely can!

Starting out with fairly basic calisthenics to working out with just the basics and light dumbbell work really helped get me to settle in my pace. As a good friend put it "You don't need the gym. The gym is all around you, you will just be throwing your money away. If you can't get on a schedule and stick with it, then you'll never be able to convince yourself to go to the gym and push yourself when you really have to and are paying for it."

He was right.

This is the season that I feel God whispering in my heart to be faithful.

Focus on the little things and I will add to you He says. I created you for a great purpose..one to give you hope and a future. I won't harm you. Trust me. Come follow my path I have laid out before you...make my ways your ways, have a positive attitude, practice integrity, be on time. Don't go to others when you have problems, come to me and I will listen to you. Follow through on your word and let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no. Stand up mighty warrior and be counted. More people are coming...just wait and be faithful!

Stay on the path. When you are looking to rebuild look to his word on making a new start. In it he states the correct way to begin again when you have failed: "As Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the Israelites. He built it according to what was written in the book of the law of Moses- an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. On it they offered up to the Lord burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings. Joshua 8:31 (Bold print, my emphasis)

Right there. We can see that your focus cannot be divided. I thought it was peculiar that no tools may be used. The way I see it and how the word speaks to me is that God wants no outside interference when it comes to his attention and devotion, rather have this perfectly sculpted monument from tools that could have been crafted by idol worshiping heathens, he would rather have rough, uncut stones set atop of each other. He would have you come to him broken than to be puffed up and made all full of yourself expecting a blessing.

You can't run one mile? Good walk one instead. Don't have access to a gym? Good. Drop and give me twenty right now. Yes. Right now. Push your chair back from your desk, hit the dirt and crack out a set of 20 right now. All the way down! No cheating. There...That pump feels pretty cool doesn't it? =)

You don't need the "iron" with expensive running shoes and or the latest new "sweat wicking technology" these are all distractions from focusing on the real meat of the matter. Which would be to commit to yourself. Consecrate yourself. Get in the habit of changing smaller things so more can be added to you. Wake up with a quick read of a verse in the bible. A superset with push ups, squats and a military press with dumbbells. Complete the circut 3 times within 10 mins and head out the door for a morning run, hit the showers and stroll into work 15 mins early.

The key is to start, because you know when you do...

you won't be able to stop!

Solider on...