Richard Simmons

One of the things that makes long flights a little easier is the TV screens on the back of the seats. You usually have a choice of movies or television shows...along with a graphic that shows your flight route complete with your plane, how close(or how far away for us pessimists!) you are to/from your destination, and even how fast you're going! On my  most recent trip to the UK, our flight from Houston, TX to Newark, NJ had Direct TV that you could purchase, for a nominal fee! As I sat down, got "comfortable" in the undersized seat that flying coach provides you and began waiting for all the stragglers to get on board the plane, I began scrolling through the channels. I was excited to see the Outdoor Channel as one of the stations! For those that don't know, the Outdoor Channel is the best thing that ever happened to rednecks. It's basically hunting & fishing shows 24/7, guys (and a few ladies and even kids) killing or catching stuff! I was ready to get my credit card out and swipe it until ...I turned over to the Outdoor Channel, expecting to see some good ole boys blasting a whitetail or calling in a turkey to a shotgun blast to the face only to see this guy, a Richard Simmons infomercial on the Outdoor Channel!!!!  

"Ted Nugent, can I go hunting with you?"

 

I actually said out loud (do ya'll realize you usually talk just a little louder when you have those little cheap airplane headphones on?), "Richard Simmons on the Outdoor Channel, I'm cancelling my subscription!" Now, I really don't want to get into what exactly I think of little Richard, or why I don't really like him, but it was ironic for several reasons. First, I am also a GROUP EXERCISE INSTRUCTOR (not an aerobics instructor!) like Richard, and let's just say my classes, clientel, and teaching styles greatly vary. Second, alot of "friends" have called me Richard Simmons in the past because I teach fitness classes, so I know some of them will enjoy this! But third, and most important, whether you like Richard Simmons or not, you don't expect to see him sitting in a deer blind with Ted Nugent or Michael Waddell, or sitting with his back to a tree while Will Primos puts a strutting tureky in his lap! My problem was that Richard misrepresented what the Outdoor Channel stood for, and I planned to let them know about it!

 

As I thought about how aggravated I was at the Outdoor Channel, I realized maybe I didn't need to be watching hunting & fishing shows anyway and decided to  read my Bible and look over some sermon material for what I felt led to preach on in the UK. It didn't register with me as I flew "across the pond," but as I returned home and decided to give the Outdoor Channel another chance (surely the Richard Simmons Infomercial was simply a mistake...or a joke!) I realized there was a great truth for my life, and maybe for someone else's, that I wanted to share. How often do my words, decisions, actions or inactions misrepresent who I say I am as a follower of Jesus? In James 1:26-27- The writer informs us that practicing Christianity without… controlling what we say/how, when or where we say it, ministering to the helpless/hopeless at the moment of their need, keeping ourselves “unstained” by the worldliness of our culture is worthless. Throughout 1 John, John says our salvation is revealed in…whether we are “walking in darkness” or not, whether we obey/disobey Jesus’ teachings, whether we love or hate our brother, whether we continue in sin, whether we share our abundance with those doing without, and being able to discern the Spirit of God.

 

It's interesting how God can use something as funny and seemingly insignificant to teach me an incredible truth about my responsibility to represent Him in all areas of my life. As we continue to see the Christian community become more and more vocal about some critical issues in our culture, we have to ask ourselves an important question, "Are we accurately representing Christ (in ways we are instructed to represent Him) to an increasingly non-Christian culture?" As a GROUP EXERCISE INSTRUCTOR, I love the purity of leading a hard class, feeling a sense of accomplishment along with class members when we survive it!,  and seeing people transform themselves as they remain consistent to working out. In the same way, I strongly believe we can see our culture transformed by the Gospel when we acccurately represent Jesus and how we've been instructed to live our lives in Scripture. I haven't seen Richard Simmon's infomercial on the Outdoor Channel since I've been back in the US. Maybe they realized it just didn't fit into who they are. Brothers and sisters in Christ, I pray we will adopt the things that accurately reflect we've been transformed by Christ and purge from our lives the things that do not.

 

 



Back to Reality...humidity and adults not being adults

Returned from an incredible time of serving with a great mission team and an incredible church/group of believers in the UK early yesterday. After a few hours of sleep...and a much needed shower, haha, I walked outside and was unmercifully slammed in the face with at least 100% humidity (isn't it possible to be 100% plus during Mississippi summers?) Being the type of person who doesn't believe in wading into pools, cold rivers/lakes/creeks, I jumped head first into reality. Very enjoyable lunch/conversation with my wife I missed so much this trip, couple of hours in my office, teaching my fitness class (yes, I killed em but was trying to hide the fact I was struggling!), and then off to the softball field for a couple of games with my church teams (Men's & Co-Ed).

The reality of "adult" softball, and I think it serves as an allegory for the culture to which I've lept back into, hit me as hard as the humidity. Plenty of bad attitudes, foul mouths, immature actions on full display by some "adult" players and our men's team forfeited. Apparently some of our guys either thought the game was rained out, didn't want to play in the rain (just kidding guys), or too many had to work or were on vacation. The humidity was excruciatingly high after a passing rain storm and caused me to think about the SPLENDID weather we'd had during our 10 days in the UK. Coupled with the poor behavior I was observing, I pondered why I was I even there.

But, then our Co-Ed team...a team of friends, fellow church members who are faithfully serving the Lord in various ways, took the field and for an hour it all seemed worth it. Sure it was humid and I know I was not at the top of my game due to all the travel (and I'm old!), but I was greatly encouraged and  God reminded me of something. As we follow Christ and desperately desire to represent Him to people who, honestly, are often difficult to love we will get frustrated, disillusioned, and simply feel like the sojourners in a foreign land that God says we actually are. For an hour, we encouraged and played hard for one another and the team, and actually won! Post game, we invited the other team to pray with us and I lifted up the name of Jesus/prayed for the souls of all gathered in our sweaty post game circle. Walking to my truck post game, soaking wet, tired and muddy, I realized this is what faithfully serving the Lord looks like. It's draining, puts us into direct contact with an unredeemed culture, it's frustrating, but ultimately should be so fulfilling, especially when done in community with others. I reminded my England mission team that the key to allowing God to transform us through our opportunity to serve in the UK was to adapt our thoughts, our lives to the concept of living each day "on mission," incoporating a desire to be difference makers for the sake of the Gospel in the various contexts we daily engage in. I just wish I could change this heat and humidity!
 

Fitness...What's your motivation???

Catalyst...I love this word! Whether used in the field of chemistry or in our lives, a catalyst is an element, a substance, an event, or a person that causes change. Lots of us think about change during January of every year. Seems most of the conversations among my friends and others I've overheard or eavesdropped on lately have been about eating healthier, working out more, getting finances in order...all connected to the New Year's Resolution mindset that is contagious the first 2-3 weeks of every new year. What are some of the catalysts for these desired changes? In the area of finances, the fallout of an out of control Christmas gift buying binge, too many Saturdays tailgating at football games,  or (in my region of the US) a malady that infects some of us each year during the late fall/winter months known as Buck Fever has our budgets and bank accounts in disarray. But, the most common New Year's  Resolution conversations center on getting healthier...in the kitchen, the gym or both.

What are the catalysts for getting in shape/losing weight? Some of the most common are: clothes not fitting like we want....during the holidays, they get a little, or a lot tighter than they were in the summer! don't like what we see in the mirror! just don't feel good or good about myself, or, I'm trying to impress/attract, even keep a significant other or a spouse happy. While all of these are catalysts for getting healthier and in better shape, are they ultimately catalysts that matter and are sustainable? Clothes go out of style(some need to hear what I'm saying here), eventually we age and outgrow certain fashion trends (some REALLY need to hear what I'm saying here!). Ultimately, even the mirror and the people we try to impress/keep or make happy just aren't impressed with how we look. People change, their eyes often lose appreciation for us over time and the mirror? It can just get on our nerves, can't it?

I wanted to share my catalyst for taking better care of myself physically. I'm a believer and a servant of Jesus Christ. I believe my number one priority in life is to serve Christ and that all other areas in my life...wife, family, finances, health, friends, ministry, church, activities, recreational pursuits, etc. should be enriched by my relationship with Him as well as how I serve Him and others. From time to time in the past, my average, even poor physical conditioning limited my effectiveness in serving Christ and others. I believe the writers of Scripture communicate to us a desire God has for us to be healthy, spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
"I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul." 3 John 1:2
"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Cor. 10:31
"...for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." 1 Tim. 4:8
There are certainly others, but these communicate a thought that our healthiness is a concern of God's.

So the question that we need to ask is, "How/Why does my physical health matter in terms of my life, eternity, and with the people whose life mine touches?" If we have committed our lives to Christ, we are now His and ultimately will answer to Him as to how we treat/use our bodies in service to Him and others. A healthy lifestyle/body increases our productivity for the kingdom of God. In terms of impacting eternity and the lives of those our lives touch, training our bodies to serve God to our greatest potential is a catalyst that will never disappoint, never get old, stuck in a rut, or seem mundane. When I finally GOT this personally, it gave my workouts, eating healthier, and even going to the doctor (Ugh!) a higher purpose that drives me to desire the most out of myself. I hope this resonates with anyone who takes the time to read, but more importantly, I hope those who read either know or take time to seek out who Christ is and how He can transform your life. I would love to talk with you about how Christ can transform your life. I'd love the opportunity to help transform your body. I take great joy in administering "transformation" ,,,spiritually AND physically! hahaha. 

Controversial Post...Guaranteed to offend!

Haven't blogged in a while, wanted to get 2013 kicked off with a bang and renewed commitment to blog more regularly. So here goes...I get alot of comments/criticism about not smiling enough. Folks say I look discouraged, pre-occupied, depressed, sad, mad, unhappy, etc. And although this is not always true, they would be correct alot of the time. Excuse me for being transparent, but as a man who loves Jesus, has committed his life to doing His will and leading others to do the same, 2013 American church and society has evolved into a difficult environment to "just smile."

In the recent weeks/months, we've been reminded how Christianity is increasingly losing its impact and relevance in our culture. Just today, another popular pastor (Louie Giglio) was demonized by the media for simply accurately relaying to listeners in a sermon what God's word says about the issue of homosexuality. One of  my comforts is in the writings/sermons I've read and heard from ministers like Francis Chan. In his book Crazy Love, Chan made these statements that both affirm and discourage me...“I quickly found that the American church is a difficult place to fit in if you want to live out New Testament Christianity. The goals of American Christianity are often a nice marriage, children who don’t swear, and good church attendance. Taking the words of Christ literally and seriously is rarely considered.” and "But we need to realize that how we spend our time, what our money goes towards, and where we will invest our energy is equivalent to choosing God or rejecting Him.” I feel a bond with a man whom I've never met through his transparent, less than encouraging honesty.

For anyone who refers to themselves as a disciple of Jesus Christ and who's tolerated my less than encouraging, less than positive, non kumbaya-ish post so far, please take the time to read Luke 14:25-35 and understand where my non-smiling face often derives from. One of my New Year's Resolutions is to smile more, be more positive and friendlier. I challenge my brothers and sisters in Christ to evaluate your 2013 plans/goals/agendas/happiness through the challenging statements of Christ in Luke 14:25-35. Did God call us to spend more money on dog food, football tickets, our recreation, shoes, clothes we wear to church, etc. than His command to "Go and make disciples?" I'll make a deal with anyone who wants me to smile more...redirect some of the money you plan to spend on non-eternity impacting activities/hobbies this year, intentionally invest your time/money into taking the Gospel to this lost world, come tell me about it and I'll grin like a possum!

I'm praying God works in and through your/my life in a powerful way in 2013.(I smiled when I typed that)