Today is Thursday. Thursday is social tennis day. From about 10:00-12:00 I will be enjoying the sunshine by the looks of the weather as I run around the tennis court. It's coming up to two years this October since I took up playing tennis, and there are times when It hunk to myself, "I wish I'd learnt to do this a long time ago." At school we didn't have tennis coaching, although we had plenty of courts available. But that shouldn't have stopped me, I just didn't know how to go about getting lessons and didn't have the money anyway.
It would be so easy to wonder about what might have been. I'm not for one minute thinking that I could have been a really good tennis player. In fact I suspect that had I started at school, I might not even be playing now. And that's the thing. Ho often do we live with some form of regret about what might have been when we know that like so many things we begin, we rarely finish them. Not because we're inherently undisciplined, but because we go through seasons. We have a season when something is important enough to pursue and seasons when it is not.
Had I lived out my life fully in the context of one season, then maybe I would have been single-minded enough to achieve something great. But that's not how I'm wired up and it's not how I'm ever going to be. Perhaps I should have found the one thing, and then chased it down with every ounce of effort and commitment I had. I guess that's the difference between champions and the rest of us. It's nothing to do with natural talent, it's more about the relentless pursuit of being the best.
But you can't live your life on the basis of the what if's and if only's. If we could, then I would go back in time and tell my younger self to sort out his eating habits sooner and learn about balanced diets and fitness before he puts on weight. I'd tell him to look beyond a science degree and towards other possibilities. I'd get him learning muscle origins and insertions and suggest physiotherapy as a study option. And I'd probably tell him to buy Apple shares when they are really cheap and to lend the inventors of Trivial Pursuits £100 the help them get the prototype made.
Then again, I probably also tell him not to follow that sense of call he has about ministry because it will only break his heart somewhere down the line and that people might never quite understand what it is that he is trying to show them. I'd try to point him away from the pain and heartache of what lies ahead. All of this because I want to revisit the possibilities that in later life appear to have slipped past without much notice.
So I can dream occasionally of what might have been, but I choose to live in the what is. I can change the what is, and I can affect what is to come, but I can't change what was, so there's little point dwelling on it. Perhaps in tennis I've found the one sport that I could have been good at. Well then, maybe I can be good at it now. At least I can be the best at it that I can be. I can put all my effort in to it in this season of my life. I can enjoy it and run with it and see where it takes me rather than wonder where it might have taken me. The same is true in ministry and with the Personal Training and Sports Massage. I could have done them years ago, but I'm doing them now and that's where I need to focus my attention.
Ministry is always unfolding and changing. I'm just as engaged with it I was, it just looks different. As I've said before, the Union might see me as being on leave of absence but I don't. It's not easy, but I have to decide every day not to regret the journey because win I do that I drop back into the what if's and if only's, and that is not a place I want to spend my life. It's too much of an adventure to live there.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Non-Religious Funerals
A while ago I mentioned that I'd been in conversation with a local Funeral Directors about doing non-religious funerals. I may also have mentioned the stir this caused in some circles around church. It seemed rather odd to me at the time that I was almost expected by some to turn down such invitations simply because they were non-religious and that was outside the parameters of my job.
Anyway, some people understood my reasoning and other didn't, and that's okay. even at the time it wouldn't have prevented me from taking an opportunity should fit have arisen.
Well, this last week I had two opportunities to serve families through doing a non-religious funeral. One turned out to be less than non-religious, with prayers and a hymn. The other was most definitely non-religious. And this raises an interesting point: What exactly do people mean by non-religious? For some it is quite clear that they do not want faith or God mentioned at all. For someone like me, that was quite demanding, and I had to work hard on preparing a positive, hopeful funeral that didn't include all the usual stuff. But I did it for the simple reason that even though they didn't want anything religious, I could still pray for them. I din't keep my identity secret, so they knew my faith framework, but I did as they asked and didn't mention God at all.
Did I let him down? Did I somehow fail to acknowledge Jesus? You might think so, but I don't. I believe I honoured him by serving he family in the way they wanted and not in the way I wanted. Just because God is not mentioned it doesn't mean he is neither present nor at work. Think of Esther's story.
So what have I learnt form these two experiences. Well first of all, non-religious doesn't always mean what we think it means. Second, it can be so easy simply to go through the standard process of a funeral without much thought. Sad to say that seems to happen a lot. I don't have a one-size fits all funeral. Yes, I use the same payers, follow a similar pattern and share the same basic message from the standard texts. But I always try to personalise what I do. Over the years I've developed a range of reflections of key passages, and I try to reflect on the passage in the context of the family and friends before me in the chapel or church.
My third lesson is that it is hard to plan a funeral that takes you out of your comfort zone of prayers and readings. These things so easily become the padding. Strip them away and you are left with very little if you can't improvise and think outside a religious box.
Being a minister who serves the community is not about imposing my faith upon them, but seeking to draw their faith out as I share the comfort and love of God with them as the opportunity aries. Maybe I even managed to do that as I sensitively lead my first non-religious funeral. Who knows. At least the door was open.
Anyway, some people understood my reasoning and other didn't, and that's okay. even at the time it wouldn't have prevented me from taking an opportunity should fit have arisen.
Well, this last week I had two opportunities to serve families through doing a non-religious funeral. One turned out to be less than non-religious, with prayers and a hymn. The other was most definitely non-religious. And this raises an interesting point: What exactly do people mean by non-religious? For some it is quite clear that they do not want faith or God mentioned at all. For someone like me, that was quite demanding, and I had to work hard on preparing a positive, hopeful funeral that didn't include all the usual stuff. But I did it for the simple reason that even though they didn't want anything religious, I could still pray for them. I din't keep my identity secret, so they knew my faith framework, but I did as they asked and didn't mention God at all.
Did I let him down? Did I somehow fail to acknowledge Jesus? You might think so, but I don't. I believe I honoured him by serving he family in the way they wanted and not in the way I wanted. Just because God is not mentioned it doesn't mean he is neither present nor at work. Think of Esther's story.
So what have I learnt form these two experiences. Well first of all, non-religious doesn't always mean what we think it means. Second, it can be so easy simply to go through the standard process of a funeral without much thought. Sad to say that seems to happen a lot. I don't have a one-size fits all funeral. Yes, I use the same payers, follow a similar pattern and share the same basic message from the standard texts. But I always try to personalise what I do. Over the years I've developed a range of reflections of key passages, and I try to reflect on the passage in the context of the family and friends before me in the chapel or church.
My third lesson is that it is hard to plan a funeral that takes you out of your comfort zone of prayers and readings. These things so easily become the padding. Strip them away and you are left with very little if you can't improvise and think outside a religious box.
Being a minister who serves the community is not about imposing my faith upon them, but seeking to draw their faith out as I share the comfort and love of God with them as the opportunity aries. Maybe I even managed to do that as I sensitively lead my first non-religious funeral. Who knows. At least the door was open.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Introducing myself
I noticed another funeral directors in the village, so I called in today to introduce myself and offer my services. But how do I introduce myself? I can say I''m an ordained Baptist Minister, which for the present is true, but how do I explain my current situation?
I usually end up going down the route of church planting, but as I've said before, I really don't like that term very much. Too many images of a gathered community singing songs to get me excited. On the other hand, I have no idea how best to describe what the vision is without it sounding like a foreign language to most people. And you can't really tell people you are in a no-man's land sort of place, where you are not supported or, to use that favourite of phrases in church circles, accountable.
I sometimes think that accountable means justifying what you are doing as a valid expression of something. Maybe it's the cynical side of me raising its ugly head, but I find it difficult to be accountable to people I don't think understand the basic concept. A bit mean I guess, but I don't want to have to justify why we aren't trying to gather a worshipping community as our first step.
Maybe it has something to do with the metrics we use to measure the mission of God. Can we change our old metrics for something new, and we can, what would they be? Instead of people in church on a Sunday, what else might we measure? How about the number of people served in some way? By that measure I've served the man to whom I gave a lift the other day, five families for whom I'm leading funerals. Does the man who asked me directions the other count as someone I've served, was that part of God's mission? I don't know. Probably not, he was looking for a pub that had closed down! The girl at the station I met last week, she surely counts. But that was in Bedford, so would that count in the setting of Ockendon?
Interesting isn't it, to think about the things we measure, how we measure and even why we're measuring them in the first place. What I'm trying to do at the very least is to be there when someone emerges from a place of missing so that I can help them get found. At the moment my best opportunity of that is by supporting families at times of loss. Hopefully other avenues will open.
Maybe I should introduce myself as a guide for the missing, a kingdom games maker!
I usually end up going down the route of church planting, but as I've said before, I really don't like that term very much. Too many images of a gathered community singing songs to get me excited. On the other hand, I have no idea how best to describe what the vision is without it sounding like a foreign language to most people. And you can't really tell people you are in a no-man's land sort of place, where you are not supported or, to use that favourite of phrases in church circles, accountable.
I sometimes think that accountable means justifying what you are doing as a valid expression of something. Maybe it's the cynical side of me raising its ugly head, but I find it difficult to be accountable to people I don't think understand the basic concept. A bit mean I guess, but I don't want to have to justify why we aren't trying to gather a worshipping community as our first step.
Maybe it has something to do with the metrics we use to measure the mission of God. Can we change our old metrics for something new, and we can, what would they be? Instead of people in church on a Sunday, what else might we measure? How about the number of people served in some way? By that measure I've served the man to whom I gave a lift the other day, five families for whom I'm leading funerals. Does the man who asked me directions the other count as someone I've served, was that part of God's mission? I don't know. Probably not, he was looking for a pub that had closed down! The girl at the station I met last week, she surely counts. But that was in Bedford, so would that count in the setting of Ockendon?
Interesting isn't it, to think about the things we measure, how we measure and even why we're measuring them in the first place. What I'm trying to do at the very least is to be there when someone emerges from a place of missing so that I can help them get found. At the moment my best opportunity of that is by supporting families at times of loss. Hopefully other avenues will open.
Maybe I should introduce myself as a guide for the missing, a kingdom games maker!
Monday, July 16, 2012
Another day another plunge
I'm not sure I've got it right, but I've taken the plunge and registered myself as self-employed. This is quite scary, yet another road down which I have not travelled before. Now I need to keep really accurate information and get better organised for so doing. Now I need to think about paying National Insurance and tax etc. Now I need to find clients!
First step, having registered, will be to set up a system for keeping all the bits if information. I\l have to revisit my tickler file system to adapt it this task. Then it's trawl the house for all loose paperwork again. Having moved recently and also having got out of the habit, I'll need a day simply to reorganise.
But I've done it. I've taken the first step.
First step, having registered, will be to set up a system for keeping all the bits if information. I\l have to revisit my tickler file system to adapt it this task. Then it's trawl the house for all loose paperwork again. Having moved recently and also having got out of the habit, I'll need a day simply to reorganise.
But I've done it. I've taken the first step.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Angels unaware?
I don't know if I've ever entertained angels unaware, and today's opportunity didn't look like an angel, but then again it wouldn't be unaware if it was obvious!
I'm back in Bedford for a meeting about the Paralympics, and I'm at the station waiting to collect a friend. Wandering around the car park is a young woman asking for change. She is tearful and distraught as we talk briefly and I part with some change.
Sitting in the car, I wonder if that's the best I can do. How will £2 get her off the street and out of both the rain and the danger? It won't.
I find her again. This time I ask her about her story. It's a sad story, then again they always are. It's so easy to assume that everyone lies. That way you can mitigate your reason for not helping. After al, they'll only use the money for drugs or drink and be out again later telling someone else the same story.
But what if it's true? Can we afford to assume it's a lie every time?
This time I asked how much she needed and if she'd found somewhere. She told she been to a place and what the cost of night's accommodation would be. Guess how much I had in my wallet. With the £2 I'd already given her I had enough to cover one night in a B&B.
She hugged me.
I didn't expect that.
Anyone attaching probably thought the worst, but who cares. Maybe I helped one soaking wet young woman get one night in a dry bed and tomorrow she'll find a place in a hostel. It's no way to live.
And if she was lying? Well I'm a few pounds worse off, but rather that than a sleepless night wondering if I'd missed the chance to bless anther human being or even entertain an angel unawares.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
I'm back in Bedford for a meeting about the Paralympics, and I'm at the station waiting to collect a friend. Wandering around the car park is a young woman asking for change. She is tearful and distraught as we talk briefly and I part with some change.
Sitting in the car, I wonder if that's the best I can do. How will £2 get her off the street and out of both the rain and the danger? It won't.
I find her again. This time I ask her about her story. It's a sad story, then again they always are. It's so easy to assume that everyone lies. That way you can mitigate your reason for not helping. After al, they'll only use the money for drugs or drink and be out again later telling someone else the same story.
But what if it's true? Can we afford to assume it's a lie every time?
This time I asked how much she needed and if she'd found somewhere. She told she been to a place and what the cost of night's accommodation would be. Guess how much I had in my wallet. With the £2 I'd already given her I had enough to cover one night in a B&B.
She hugged me.
I didn't expect that.
Anyone attaching probably thought the worst, but who cares. Maybe I helped one soaking wet young woman get one night in a dry bed and tomorrow she'll find a place in a hostel. It's no way to live.
And if she was lying? Well I'm a few pounds worse off, but rather that than a sleepless night wondering if I'd missed the chance to bless anther human being or even entertain an angel unawares.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Ongoing ministry
I have a little time between visits, so I thought I'd blog a bit about what's happening in terms of ministry at the moment. I've had a bit of a gripe about the lack of recognition from my denomination that I'm actually still committed to, and involved in ministry, I just am expressing it in a way that doesn't involve me in leading a church at the moment. It frustrates me that while local Funeral Directors recognise my ministry (although they wouldn't use that language), my denomination appears not to. Just today I was told that I was appreciated because I'm sincere without ever being patronising. And that was from one of the cemetery supervisors!
These visits are not pastoral visits in the traditional sense of the word as far as church goes, but they are funeral visits. I've done one funeral today and I have two visits to do. Altogether I have five funerals to do over the next couple of weeks starting today with a still born little girl.
And so I ask the question: Is this not ministry? Am I not engaging with my community? Am I not serving people by applying my skills and gifts as a church leader?
Please don't read this as me venting, I'm trying to raise an important question, and I'm thinking out-loud towards it.
If I'd set out to do funerals as my ministry then perhaps that would have been more easily recognised. Others have. But I didn't do that, and so I found myself in this awkward and uncomfortable position of applying for a leave of absence. I'm beginning to regret that part of the process now. I wish I'd set out my plan more clearly and my vision more succinctly. But then again, doing funerals was not part of the big plan. It's just that I appear to be rather good at doing them and so I get the 'phone call to say, "Can you help?"
I think I'm going to have raise the question more directly. I'm just not sure I have the will to do it!
These visits are not pastoral visits in the traditional sense of the word as far as church goes, but they are funeral visits. I've done one funeral today and I have two visits to do. Altogether I have five funerals to do over the next couple of weeks starting today with a still born little girl.
And so I ask the question: Is this not ministry? Am I not engaging with my community? Am I not serving people by applying my skills and gifts as a church leader?
Please don't read this as me venting, I'm trying to raise an important question, and I'm thinking out-loud towards it.
If I'd set out to do funerals as my ministry then perhaps that would have been more easily recognised. Others have. But I didn't do that, and so I found myself in this awkward and uncomfortable position of applying for a leave of absence. I'm beginning to regret that part of the process now. I wish I'd set out my plan more clearly and my vision more succinctly. But then again, doing funerals was not part of the big plan. It's just that I appear to be rather good at doing them and so I get the 'phone call to say, "Can you help?"
I think I'm going to have raise the question more directly. I'm just not sure I have the will to do it!
Training for a purpose
If you are like me, then when someone asks why you train you probably say, "Because I want to get fit." The question, have you every thought about what you mean by that? Do you want to get fit enough to run for the bus or to run a marathon?
Fitness is just like anything sells you set yourself to do. It needs a goal. It might be to lose weight, but you need to quantify that by saying how much weight and by when. My goals are actually quite simple. I would like to get my body fat percentage down to 20% (I'm normal for my age, but I'd like to be lower), and I'd like to be more tennis fit. Now the second of these is much more difficult to define. Do you express in terms of how long you can play for or do you find some other measure. In the end it's probably an endurance thing, but I'm not sure I going to be able to make tennis fit into a smart goal, so I'll have to look at other things that contribute to being tennis fit and set goals for them. Perhaps goal number one is to read a book about tennis fitness and conditioning.
Another simple goal would be to achieve the recommended guidelines for a healthy heart, namely 30 minutes of moderate exercise 5-7 days a week. Two years ago, or was it three, I did my 100 day challenge (walking 10k steps a day for 100 days) and then I did my 500k steps in a month challenge.
All these little targets kept me going through snow and wind and rain. Now my goals need to be remained and reset to meet new challenges. For one, I'd like to be able to a suspended abdominal exercise on the TRX for longer than 10 seconds before I collapse in a heap!
The thing is, without a goal you are likely to just keep repeating what you always do in a pretty purposeless way. I now know that there are different ways to build cardiovascular endurance, muscular endurance and muscular strength.
I am not planning to run a marathon, although maybe next year we might get to do that 100Km walk challenge. If we do, then we will need a training programme. In the meantime I will keep experimenting with circuits and intervals, mixing them up to keep my training fresh and I promise I'll do some research about tennis fitness too!
Fitness is just like anything sells you set yourself to do. It needs a goal. It might be to lose weight, but you need to quantify that by saying how much weight and by when. My goals are actually quite simple. I would like to get my body fat percentage down to 20% (I'm normal for my age, but I'd like to be lower), and I'd like to be more tennis fit. Now the second of these is much more difficult to define. Do you express in terms of how long you can play for or do you find some other measure. In the end it's probably an endurance thing, but I'm not sure I going to be able to make tennis fit into a smart goal, so I'll have to look at other things that contribute to being tennis fit and set goals for them. Perhaps goal number one is to read a book about tennis fitness and conditioning.
Another simple goal would be to achieve the recommended guidelines for a healthy heart, namely 30 minutes of moderate exercise 5-7 days a week. Two years ago, or was it three, I did my 100 day challenge (walking 10k steps a day for 100 days) and then I did my 500k steps in a month challenge.
All these little targets kept me going through snow and wind and rain. Now my goals need to be remained and reset to meet new challenges. For one, I'd like to be able to a suspended abdominal exercise on the TRX for longer than 10 seconds before I collapse in a heap!
The thing is, without a goal you are likely to just keep repeating what you always do in a pretty purposeless way. I now know that there are different ways to build cardiovascular endurance, muscular endurance and muscular strength.
I am not planning to run a marathon, although maybe next year we might get to do that 100Km walk challenge. If we do, then we will need a training programme. In the meantime I will keep experimenting with circuits and intervals, mixing them up to keep my training fresh and I promise I'll do some research about tennis fitness too!
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Recently reading Hebrews
I tend to amble my way through the Bible these days, rather than devouring it in large chunks. I might spend days reflecting on a few verses or I might sweep through large sections hardly noticing what is going on in the text. My current readings are in Hebrews, a fascinating and enthralling letter at any time, but particularly significant to me because my call to ministry is embedded in this book.
Here are two verse from my recent reading that I found challenging.
Since moving to Ockendon we have been pretty busy with the house, but we made the effort (and it was quite an effort) to go to church. We've been loosely connecting ourselves with a church that seems to share out mindset about missional community, and we made it to their celebration in June. Hearing stories of other slightly crazy people and the ways they are trying to connect with communities was so positive that we were actually very sad that we couldn't make the July meeting because of a preaching commitment we had. Imagine that, missing church!
These verses from Hebrews were a timely reminder that my confidence is not in a system, a denomination or my own abilities, gifts and skills. That kind of confidence is unlikely to be rewarded and not what I think the writer of Hebrews is pointing towards. Their confidence is rooted in the cross and the finished work of Christ. It's confidence in that that drives, no calls me to faithfulness and adventure as I seek to obey God's will for my life.
Here are two verse from my recent reading that I found challenging.
So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.
Hebrews 10:35-36These words come towards the end of the writers exploration of the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf. They are powerful words, full of challenge. Withe everything we have been through in the last couple of years, it would be so easy to throw in the towel and give up. Battered and bruised, tired and exhausted, I could so easily have walked away from church altogether. ButI knew that there was more going on than I could see or understand. Faith is not always east to exercise.
Since moving to Ockendon we have been pretty busy with the house, but we made the effort (and it was quite an effort) to go to church. We've been loosely connecting ourselves with a church that seems to share out mindset about missional community, and we made it to their celebration in June. Hearing stories of other slightly crazy people and the ways they are trying to connect with communities was so positive that we were actually very sad that we couldn't make the July meeting because of a preaching commitment we had. Imagine that, missing church!
These verses from Hebrews were a timely reminder that my confidence is not in a system, a denomination or my own abilities, gifts and skills. That kind of confidence is unlikely to be rewarded and not what I think the writer of Hebrews is pointing towards. Their confidence is rooted in the cross and the finished work of Christ. It's confidence in that that drives, no calls me to faithfulness and adventure as I seek to obey God's will for my life.
Chance encounters
The more I think about it, the more interesting it becomes. Chance encounters are very interesting things. It's very easy to become deterministic about things, assuming that everything is somehow orchestrated in heaven and we, if we are not careful, become little more than animated characters in some grand cosmic play.
On the other hand it would be wrong to assume that somehow God is not involved int eh detail of our lives and the people we meet. Somewhere we have to find a balance. Here are two recent "chance encounters" that I've had that suggest to me at least that God is on the case!
The first happened a couple of weeks ago. I'd taken the TRX plunge and thought I'd go and try it out in the local park. The basketball hoop provided a great anchor point, and it felt great to be outdoors exercising. The TRX is quite a challenge to master some of the more adventurous exercises, but at its simplest it's challenging enough for a beginner like me.
Having completed my routine, I dismantled the TRX and set off home. The gate to the bowling green was open and I popped my head in to see what was there. Just at that moment someone came out and we began talking. He offered to introduce me to the club who were there setting up for an event that afternoon. We had a chat and I think I might go down one afternoon and start to build a relationship there. But that's the not the whole story. It turns out that the person I met just happens to be the Outdoor Sports Officer for the council, and we got talking about outdoor fitness, PT stuff and sport. He invited me to a meeting about sport in the local area. How cool is that?
Perhaps PT and therapy will come together in the life of the local community.
The second meeting happened at the gym. I'm not particularly fond of being indoors, especially when the weather is reasonable. Machines don't really help with fitness, they isolate muscles too much. Great for strength but not for functional fitness. Anyway, I go from time to time and this time I;d just about finished when I got into conversation with another member. Turns out he's interested in sports massage, so I gave him my card. It also turns out that a friend of his has just bought the pub in the village and wants to make it a more family friendly place.
Now these are just two chance meetings, but I can't help thinking that God is at work somewhere in all of this. Firstly, it was really encouraging personally to have these conversations. The more I think about my situation with my denomination, the more frustrated I become. Things like these two meetings fit into out exploration of connecting with a community and seeking to live mission ally in the midst of that community. It is a walk both of faith and of exploration. But apparently I'm on leave of absence so none of it counts as ministry. Tomorrow I'm doing a funeral for a family that has just gone through a still birth. tonight I'm visiting another family about the funeral of an elderly family member, and then tomorrow another visit to family that lost a baby at two days. does that sound like someone who is not involved in ministry?
I'm not for one moment suggesting that traditional, church based ministry, is not open to these sorts of encounters. It always has been for me. So I don't want to harp on about the leave of absence thing. Th point is this: God is at work in my community. All around there are probably signs of his creative engagement with people that I am missing because I do not yet have the eyes to see. I've spent so many years focussing on the internals that I've lost the ability to see beyond the walls and confines of a gathered community. Chance encounters help break you out of that box, and at this time they also remind me that I am still engaged with the kingdom of God no matter what anyone else might think.
On the other hand it would be wrong to assume that somehow God is not involved int eh detail of our lives and the people we meet. Somewhere we have to find a balance. Here are two recent "chance encounters" that I've had that suggest to me at least that God is on the case!
The first happened a couple of weeks ago. I'd taken the TRX plunge and thought I'd go and try it out in the local park. The basketball hoop provided a great anchor point, and it felt great to be outdoors exercising. The TRX is quite a challenge to master some of the more adventurous exercises, but at its simplest it's challenging enough for a beginner like me.
Having completed my routine, I dismantled the TRX and set off home. The gate to the bowling green was open and I popped my head in to see what was there. Just at that moment someone came out and we began talking. He offered to introduce me to the club who were there setting up for an event that afternoon. We had a chat and I think I might go down one afternoon and start to build a relationship there. But that's the not the whole story. It turns out that the person I met just happens to be the Outdoor Sports Officer for the council, and we got talking about outdoor fitness, PT stuff and sport. He invited me to a meeting about sport in the local area. How cool is that?
Perhaps PT and therapy will come together in the life of the local community.
The second meeting happened at the gym. I'm not particularly fond of being indoors, especially when the weather is reasonable. Machines don't really help with fitness, they isolate muscles too much. Great for strength but not for functional fitness. Anyway, I go from time to time and this time I;d just about finished when I got into conversation with another member. Turns out he's interested in sports massage, so I gave him my card. It also turns out that a friend of his has just bought the pub in the village and wants to make it a more family friendly place.
Now these are just two chance meetings, but I can't help thinking that God is at work somewhere in all of this. Firstly, it was really encouraging personally to have these conversations. The more I think about my situation with my denomination, the more frustrated I become. Things like these two meetings fit into out exploration of connecting with a community and seeking to live mission ally in the midst of that community. It is a walk both of faith and of exploration. But apparently I'm on leave of absence so none of it counts as ministry. Tomorrow I'm doing a funeral for a family that has just gone through a still birth. tonight I'm visiting another family about the funeral of an elderly family member, and then tomorrow another visit to family that lost a baby at two days. does that sound like someone who is not involved in ministry?
I'm not for one moment suggesting that traditional, church based ministry, is not open to these sorts of encounters. It always has been for me. So I don't want to harp on about the leave of absence thing. Th point is this: God is at work in my community. All around there are probably signs of his creative engagement with people that I am missing because I do not yet have the eyes to see. I've spent so many years focussing on the internals that I've lost the ability to see beyond the walls and confines of a gathered community. Chance encounters help break you out of that box, and at this time they also remind me that I am still engaged with the kingdom of God no matter what anyone else might think.
Thursday, July 05, 2012
20 minute workout
I tried the full 20 minute version of my experiment this morning. It was tough. I got the chair out and added the dips and I tried a leg exercise that starts in a press up position and then you bring one knee towards the same shoulder and take it back, then do the same on the other side. So today's routine was:
I did the 30sec on 15sec rest. It's important to use the rest period to prepare for the next exercise, so you are actually moving all the time. I repeated the routine three times with a one minute rest between repeats. So altogether it was a quite intense 20 minute workout.
My thinking is to so this three times a week for the next 3-4 weeks. If I feel like I need to increase the intensity before then, I might trying doing four circuits or maybe I'll add two exercises and stay with three circuits. After 4 weeks, I'll need to up the intensity to continue to make gains. This might be as simple as going to four times a week. We shall see.
- Tricep dips
- Star jumps
- Sit ups
- Resistance band row
- Static crawl-like exercise
- Lateral raises
- Squats
- Sprinting on the spot
I did the 30sec on 15sec rest. It's important to use the rest period to prepare for the next exercise, so you are actually moving all the time. I repeated the routine three times with a one minute rest between repeats. So altogether it was a quite intense 20 minute workout.
My thinking is to so this three times a week for the next 3-4 weeks. If I feel like I need to increase the intensity before then, I might trying doing four circuits or maybe I'll add two exercises and stay with three circuits. After 4 weeks, I'll need to up the intensity to continue to make gains. This might be as simple as going to four times a week. We shall see.
Tuesday, July 03, 2012
Where to start with health and fitness
Having done my PT course, and while I wait frustratingly for my certificate, I'm looking at ways to improve my fitness and how I would plan programmes for people I might train. I've decided to experiment on myself, a rather obvious thing to do really. My experiments include stuff at the gym, in the park, in the lounge and in the garden.
Body weight exercises are the easiest things to do because you can do them anywhere at any time. Resistance bands (I got mine from Amazon) add a little intensity to the workout and give you some variety too. The TRX is great and I hope to become more proficient at some of the exercises using that bit of kit.
For a simple, no-nonsense 20 minute workout I devised a simple routine using an interval approach that went like this:
Interval time = 30 seconds
Rest period = 15 seconds
Having warmed up, which should have included a few stretches, but I didn't do that this morning, I did 8 exercises.
I did as many as I could of each exercise during the 30 seconds and then took a 1 minute rest and did it all over again. Do three circuits of exercises gives you a 20 minute workout that should raise your heart rate and get the blood pumping. Obviously you can extend the workout by adding extra exercises, and there are plenty you could add. For example, get a dining chair and do triceps dips. And you can increase the intensity by using stronger resistance bands, or by putting you feet on the chair to your press ups!
I reckon that doing that three times a week will be quite a good programme for anyone who wants to build lean muscle and burn some fat, but we shall have to wait and see. I experimented with a few different resistance band exercises along the way, so I didn't actually perform the same exercises each time through the routine and I did it twice today because I have a tennis match to play and didn't want to overwork myself.
Body weight exercises are the easiest things to do because you can do them anywhere at any time. Resistance bands (I got mine from Amazon) add a little intensity to the workout and give you some variety too. The TRX is great and I hope to become more proficient at some of the exercises using that bit of kit.
For a simple, no-nonsense 20 minute workout I devised a simple routine using an interval approach that went like this:
Interval time = 30 seconds
Rest period = 15 seconds
Having warmed up, which should have included a few stretches, but I didn't do that this morning, I did 8 exercises.
- Press up
- Lunges (one interval on each leg)
- Lateral raises (with resistance band)
- Sit ups
- Standing row (with resistance band)
- Jumping jacks
- Standing chest press (with resistance band)
I did as many as I could of each exercise during the 30 seconds and then took a 1 minute rest and did it all over again. Do three circuits of exercises gives you a 20 minute workout that should raise your heart rate and get the blood pumping. Obviously you can extend the workout by adding extra exercises, and there are plenty you could add. For example, get a dining chair and do triceps dips. And you can increase the intensity by using stronger resistance bands, or by putting you feet on the chair to your press ups!
I reckon that doing that three times a week will be quite a good programme for anyone who wants to build lean muscle and burn some fat, but we shall have to wait and see. I experimented with a few different resistance band exercises along the way, so I didn't actually perform the same exercises each time through the routine and I did it twice today because I have a tennis match to play and didn't want to overwork myself.
Monday, July 02, 2012
Tennis, fitness, theology and church!
Now I'm a PT I think I ought to look the part, so I'm working on a plan to improve my general fitness and lose some body fat along the way. I have a semi-final match tomorrow and I'm aware just how unfit I seem to have become, although I guess I've not be very fit for a long time now.
The thin is, how do you define fitness? It's easy to look fit but being fit is more of a challenge. There are fitness measures, and interestingly I came about above average in some fitness testing I did the other week. But I don't feel fit when I play tennis. So it's time to train again and see where we get.
An important aspect of this has to be the goal I set. We all know about smart goals, so let's not bother defining what that means, let's focus on setting the goal. Just wanting to be fitter is not specific enough, so I guess I need to work out something more focussed, but that's quite hard in a tennis setting. I have a book on my Amazon wish list that might help, but I think I can work something out myself.
So what's the connection between tennis and fitness and theology and church?
Well, it's obviously connected with the idea of functional discipleship, but do goals have a place in the life of the church? Some might say yes, others might say no. The problem with goals in church life is that church is not a business and any goals have to be more than smart, they have to be biblical and most decidedly Spirit-inspired.If we are not careful, our goals can be prescribed by our limited imagination or even dare one say our over zealous faith. Yes, God can do more than we ask or imagine, but that needs to be handled carefully God is not some sort of divine slot machine of blessing, whose purpose is to bless your brilliant idea.
I'm more conscious of the need to plan and pray and envision in one way as we face not having a legacy church to serve. I've always been a visionary sort of person, but historically it's been within a church setting. Now I have no church. I'm considered to be "out of ministry" and my context is undefined and in many ways unexplored territory.
Yesterday I had the privilege of preaching at a church we've been visiting on behalf of the denomination. It got me thinking about what we have left behind. There is a lot about church that I do not miss at all. In fact there is very little that I think I'd say I really do miss. I certainly didn't feel any great surge of desire to return to leadership in a legacy church. So it becomes more significant to think through what our call is in our new situation and to discern what God is doing in our new neighbourhood.
Perhaps, if I commit myself to getting fit by exercising outside, I'll get to meet people with whom I can build both a working relationship (I am a PT after all!) and some spiritual connection too. Who knows. What I do know is that the model of leadership in the legacy church would not have allowed me to explore this at all.
The thin is, how do you define fitness? It's easy to look fit but being fit is more of a challenge. There are fitness measures, and interestingly I came about above average in some fitness testing I did the other week. But I don't feel fit when I play tennis. So it's time to train again and see where we get.
An important aspect of this has to be the goal I set. We all know about smart goals, so let's not bother defining what that means, let's focus on setting the goal. Just wanting to be fitter is not specific enough, so I guess I need to work out something more focussed, but that's quite hard in a tennis setting. I have a book on my Amazon wish list that might help, but I think I can work something out myself.
So what's the connection between tennis and fitness and theology and church?
Well, it's obviously connected with the idea of functional discipleship, but do goals have a place in the life of the church? Some might say yes, others might say no. The problem with goals in church life is that church is not a business and any goals have to be more than smart, they have to be biblical and most decidedly Spirit-inspired.If we are not careful, our goals can be prescribed by our limited imagination or even dare one say our over zealous faith. Yes, God can do more than we ask or imagine, but that needs to be handled carefully God is not some sort of divine slot machine of blessing, whose purpose is to bless your brilliant idea.
I'm more conscious of the need to plan and pray and envision in one way as we face not having a legacy church to serve. I've always been a visionary sort of person, but historically it's been within a church setting. Now I have no church. I'm considered to be "out of ministry" and my context is undefined and in many ways unexplored territory.
Yesterday I had the privilege of preaching at a church we've been visiting on behalf of the denomination. It got me thinking about what we have left behind. There is a lot about church that I do not miss at all. In fact there is very little that I think I'd say I really do miss. I certainly didn't feel any great surge of desire to return to leadership in a legacy church. So it becomes more significant to think through what our call is in our new situation and to discern what God is doing in our new neighbourhood.
Perhaps, if I commit myself to getting fit by exercising outside, I'll get to meet people with whom I can build both a working relationship (I am a PT after all!) and some spiritual connection too. Who knows. What I do know is that the model of leadership in the legacy church would not have allowed me to explore this at all.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Taking the TRX plunge
I trimmed the luggage straps to a more useable length and used some plastic tubing to fashion the handles. Each strap went through the ring and the excess strap became the anchor point, using the carabiners to connect everything up. It worked rather well, and although a bit tricky to adjust was a good place to start.
The only issue, and I'm sure I could resolve it, was the overall adjustment to the length of the straps. It wasn't very much and that limited it's use.
So putting aside all good sense and practical thinking, I took the plunge and bought myself a TRX. Now I might have gone for the less expensive versions, but there's something about the original that is just appealing. Perhaps it's the the ease of adjusting the straps to equal lengths because of the small amount of play in them, perhaps it's just the TRX logo and the black and yellow combination!
Having unpacked it and checked everything was in order, I set out for the local park to try it out.
My anchor point was a basketball hoop-not the hoop but the upright. It was just the right sort of height for me at least, and I had no problem wrapping the securing webbing around a fixed point and attaching the TRX straps.
I chose to do a series of fairly simple exercises. No point falling over trying to do a handstand press up first time around. My chosen routine wasn't scientifically planned, but included some simple bicep curls, chest presses, flyes, rows, squats and a core exercise that was very entertaining to try! Once you're feet are in the stirrups you discover quite how strong, or weak, your core muscles actually are on this thing.
If you want a go-anywhere, gym-in-a-bag solution then you have to try TRX or something similar.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Functional discipleship
I bet someone else has used this phrases somewhere else before I have, but it's a term I'm beginning to think about using to describe a pattern of discipleship that prepares us to function within the setting of our everyday lives. I know that all discipleship should do this, but too often our programmes are actually geared to making us better at being followers of Christ in church rather than in the world. Or so it sometimes seems.
From an exercise point of view, we talk about functional fitness to describe exercise that in some way mimics daily tasks and helps us develop appropriate fitness for those tasks. When you go into a gym you might see people using free weights (barbells and dumbbells) or resistance machines to isolate particular muscles. But very few of our daily movements isolate muscles. More often than not they are compound movements involving groups of muscles. Having big biceps and well defined pectoral muscles might look good in the mirror, but it won't help you get out of your chair!
A second principle of exercise that might be helpful when thinking about discipleship is about the core. Our core provides the foundation for all pour movements. A strong core means efficient and smooth movements. A weak core leads to poor posture and inefficient movement that typically involves compensation by recruiting other muscles to help with tasks done by muscles that have grown weak.
So how would this apply to being a follower of Jesus Christ?
First of all we would need to think about what constitutes our core. What drives every movement of the disciple? Are they simply the core disciplines of prayer, bible reading, fellowship and witness, or are there more things that are core, or maybe fewer things or even just different things.
Secondly we need to think about what is needed to help us function properly as followers of Jesus partnering with him in his mission.
I haven't got a prescription for this as yet, maybe you have some thoughts. I guess the thing that floats around the back of my mind is this idea that maybe we don't necessarily need lots of theological teaching in the church in order to ensure we're picking the correct doctrines, we just need to figure out how to live for the gospel. After all, we will have an eternity to discover how wrong our theology is, there are thousands of people around us who don't have that option.
From an exercise point of view, we talk about functional fitness to describe exercise that in some way mimics daily tasks and helps us develop appropriate fitness for those tasks. When you go into a gym you might see people using free weights (barbells and dumbbells) or resistance machines to isolate particular muscles. But very few of our daily movements isolate muscles. More often than not they are compound movements involving groups of muscles. Having big biceps and well defined pectoral muscles might look good in the mirror, but it won't help you get out of your chair!
A second principle of exercise that might be helpful when thinking about discipleship is about the core. Our core provides the foundation for all pour movements. A strong core means efficient and smooth movements. A weak core leads to poor posture and inefficient movement that typically involves compensation by recruiting other muscles to help with tasks done by muscles that have grown weak.
So how would this apply to being a follower of Jesus Christ?
First of all we would need to think about what constitutes our core. What drives every movement of the disciple? Are they simply the core disciplines of prayer, bible reading, fellowship and witness, or are there more things that are core, or maybe fewer things or even just different things.
Secondly we need to think about what is needed to help us function properly as followers of Jesus partnering with him in his mission.
I haven't got a prescription for this as yet, maybe you have some thoughts. I guess the thing that floats around the back of my mind is this idea that maybe we don't necessarily need lots of theological teaching in the church in order to ensure we're picking the correct doctrines, we just need to figure out how to live for the gospel. After all, we will have an eternity to discover how wrong our theology is, there are thousands of people around us who don't have that option.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
On becoming a PT and leaves of absence
As you all probably know, PT is an abbreviation for Personal Trainer. I mention that because I know that all too often we get used to using language specific to certain environments and cultures that doesn't translate easily for people outside that community. Hmmm. Remind you of any particular community like the church for example?
Anyway, I finessed my level 3 PT course yesterday and am emerging back into the normal world of not getting up at 5:30 and not spending my whole day in a gym. It's been an interesting experience to say the least.
Now just to be absolutely clear again, this is not a career change. I have not left the ministry as many seem to think. What I am doing is exploring pathways that will allow me to be self-supporting while serving the mission of God. If someone came along and offered to cover the costs of a basic stipend I wouldn't say no, but I think I'd do it on the understanding that I would continue to pursue my studies while seeking to learn how to be missional in my community. Not because I like to be awkward, but because I think there is a need to find new ways of expressing leadership without having to add more and more paid staff to an organisation. I do not believe that the mission of God is a business that needs to be managed. It is an adventure that needs to be explored.
Because I am no longer in pastoral charge of a church or in some other form of denominationally recognised ministry, I have to take a leave of absence. I understand this, but it rankles with me. For the last four weeks I've spent my day with a great bunch of people who wouldn't normally cross my path or me theirs. We've sat together, learnt together, exercised and stretched together. We've laughed and shared stories, measured each others body fat, and debated the use of supplements (generally speaking, don't waste you money, just buy better quality food!)
Throughout all that time I've tried as best I can to not be overzealous and preach but rather simply be there amongst them answering whatever questions someone has for me, and there have been a few. I feel more engaged in real ministry even though I feel totally inadequate for the task. If that's what leaving the ministry means, then I'm glad I've left, although of course I haven't!
Time to leave that one alone I think. I must write to the ministry department in the next week or so and share my thoughts with them. I'm sure they understand more than we credit them, but the no-man's land feeling doesn't help.
Back to PT-ing. I'll write another blog post about how learning about exercise has helped me reflect on discipleship. Perhaps Paul was onto a good illustration when he talked about athletes preparing themselves. Perhaps we need functional discipleship in the same way we need functional fitness!
Anyway, I finessed my level 3 PT course yesterday and am emerging back into the normal world of not getting up at 5:30 and not spending my whole day in a gym. It's been an interesting experience to say the least.
Now just to be absolutely clear again, this is not a career change. I have not left the ministry as many seem to think. What I am doing is exploring pathways that will allow me to be self-supporting while serving the mission of God. If someone came along and offered to cover the costs of a basic stipend I wouldn't say no, but I think I'd do it on the understanding that I would continue to pursue my studies while seeking to learn how to be missional in my community. Not because I like to be awkward, but because I think there is a need to find new ways of expressing leadership without having to add more and more paid staff to an organisation. I do not believe that the mission of God is a business that needs to be managed. It is an adventure that needs to be explored.
Because I am no longer in pastoral charge of a church or in some other form of denominationally recognised ministry, I have to take a leave of absence. I understand this, but it rankles with me. For the last four weeks I've spent my day with a great bunch of people who wouldn't normally cross my path or me theirs. We've sat together, learnt together, exercised and stretched together. We've laughed and shared stories, measured each others body fat, and debated the use of supplements (generally speaking, don't waste you money, just buy better quality food!)
Throughout all that time I've tried as best I can to not be overzealous and preach but rather simply be there amongst them answering whatever questions someone has for me, and there have been a few. I feel more engaged in real ministry even though I feel totally inadequate for the task. If that's what leaving the ministry means, then I'm glad I've left, although of course I haven't!
Time to leave that one alone I think. I must write to the ministry department in the next week or so and share my thoughts with them. I'm sure they understand more than we credit them, but the no-man's land feeling doesn't help.
Back to PT-ing. I'll write another blog post about how learning about exercise has helped me reflect on discipleship. Perhaps Paul was onto a good illustration when he talked about athletes preparing themselves. Perhaps we need functional discipleship in the same way we need functional fitness!
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Suspension Training
One of the guys in the PT course was telling me about suspension training with a thing called a TRX. I'd never heard of it before, so I looked it up and it certainly looks interesting! Mind you at the price of a kit (£150+) it ought to be exciting.
A search for an alternative threw up some possibilities. So far the Rip 60 looks good value, but I just found a UK alternative called Flexstrap which looks rather inviting.
Short of poping to Halfords for some luggage straps and the Ellis Brigham for a Caribiner or two, these look good value at £60. I shall have to put them on my wish list!
A search for an alternative threw up some possibilities. So far the Rip 60 looks good value, but I just found a UK alternative called Flexstrap which looks rather inviting.Short of poping to Halfords for some luggage straps and the Ellis Brigham for a Caribiner or two, these look good value at £60. I shall have to put them on my wish list!
Evangeliguilt
These past few weeks have been interesting to say the least. The learning curve has been quite steep, and if it were not for my previous experience and study of anatomy, physiology and nutrition, I don't think I could have passed the exams. It's not that they were particularly difficult, just that the time I've spent travelling to and from the gym hasn't left me much time for home study.
So what must it be like for those folk in our churches who commute everyday and upon whose shoulder we place the burden of Bible study? I say burden not because it's a tiresome weight to carry, although I wouldn't be surprised to hear it described that way, but because of the pressure it applies. It's hard enough to to get through and ordinary day without some sense of guilt over something, let alone adding a sense of failure because we're not reading our
Bibles and interrogating the text on a daily basis.
It's made me wonder again about how we can make the Bible accessible and engaging and yet avoid the extremes of either bit-sizing it to fit a busy lifestyle or making it unmanageable. It's a tough challenge and maybe it's a challenge that reflects on the role of preaching too.
I'm sure I'm repeating myself when I say that I think preaching should be inspirational all of the time. There is a place for teaching, no doubt about that, but our preaching should inspire people to go out and solve problems, address issues and live differently rather than look for alterations and keywords in texts. Perhaps our goal if we preach on a Sunday morning ought to be to give everyone one thought to ponder through the week. Something they can carry with them to turn over in their minds and figure out how to apply in their lives.
After my current course finishes, which should be Tuesday if I pass everything, I hope to take a little time to look at the principles of personal training and see what they have to say to the concept of discipleship. There are some interesting principles and parallels to be explored. Maybe I need to write a programme for getting spiritually healthy and spiritual fit while I write programmes for physical health and fitness.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
So what must it be like for those folk in our churches who commute everyday and upon whose shoulder we place the burden of Bible study? I say burden not because it's a tiresome weight to carry, although I wouldn't be surprised to hear it described that way, but because of the pressure it applies. It's hard enough to to get through and ordinary day without some sense of guilt over something, let alone adding a sense of failure because we're not reading our
Bibles and interrogating the text on a daily basis.
It's made me wonder again about how we can make the Bible accessible and engaging and yet avoid the extremes of either bit-sizing it to fit a busy lifestyle or making it unmanageable. It's a tough challenge and maybe it's a challenge that reflects on the role of preaching too.
I'm sure I'm repeating myself when I say that I think preaching should be inspirational all of the time. There is a place for teaching, no doubt about that, but our preaching should inspire people to go out and solve problems, address issues and live differently rather than look for alterations and keywords in texts. Perhaps our goal if we preach on a Sunday morning ought to be to give everyone one thought to ponder through the week. Something they can carry with them to turn over in their minds and figure out how to apply in their lives.
After my current course finishes, which should be Tuesday if I pass everything, I hope to take a little time to look at the principles of personal training and see what they have to say to the concept of discipleship. There are some interesting principles and parallels to be explored. Maybe I need to write a programme for getting spiritually healthy and spiritual fit while I write programmes for physical health and fitness.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Sunday, June 10, 2012
There's not really a lot to reflect on this week. It's just been another week of getting up at 5:30 to go to the gym to learn more stuff. We did have a good day on Monday at the tennis club Jubilee party. Like churches, clubs rely upon a few enthusiasts to get things organised and clearly the enthusiasts had done a great job. Now we're not "in a church", as people like to point out to me (I'll moan about that in a minute or two!), we had the chance to not be at a church-based celebration. Probably the first time for 20 plus years that we've been able to do this. In some ways it was remarkably similar to a church event, and in others clearly not. Somewhere there has to be a balance between organising a church-based event and inventing people to that, and on the other hand encouraging folk to attend non-church events where they can interact with friends and fellow human beings. Perhaps if we did more of the latter we'd realise that the missing are not as unhappy as we think they should be.
The PT course is now underway. The downside of doing a Personal Trainer course is that you think you know about exercise! I'm supposed to be a professional, but I feel like an amateur in comparison to some. As I've said before, I'm not a big fan of the gym. It's great to get on the treadmill and walk and run, and to pick up a few weights and put some of those hidden muscles to work, but overall the gym is not an exciting environment for me. Hopefully I'll be able to do some creative, non-gym based things in the community for people who don't want to be athletes but would like to not get out of breath walking to the shops!
Designing exercise programmes is quite a complicated job. There are lots of things to take into consideration. Repeating the same routine over and over again is not only monotonous bordering on boring, but in the end once you've adapted to the routine you won't see any changes because your body won't be asked to do more. So you need to keep upping the intensity or frequency or type or time spent exercising. Then there's this thing I've been reading about called periodisation with micro cycles, mesocycles and macrocylces. It might as well have a unicycle in for brain to get on and ride around in a state of confusion!
I have 7 more days to get my head around it all and then the rest of my life to build the experience to do it as well as I can. Maybe I'll enlist the help of few friends to practice on. At least if they injure themselves I can offer remedial massage!
Before I go, let me point you to a short post by Simon Jones. Simon and I were at college together and he often writes thougthful stuff on his blog. His most recent post raises a pertinent point about what we focus upon as churches.
The PT course is now underway. The downside of doing a Personal Trainer course is that you think you know about exercise! I'm supposed to be a professional, but I feel like an amateur in comparison to some. As I've said before, I'm not a big fan of the gym. It's great to get on the treadmill and walk and run, and to pick up a few weights and put some of those hidden muscles to work, but overall the gym is not an exciting environment for me. Hopefully I'll be able to do some creative, non-gym based things in the community for people who don't want to be athletes but would like to not get out of breath walking to the shops!
Designing exercise programmes is quite a complicated job. There are lots of things to take into consideration. Repeating the same routine over and over again is not only monotonous bordering on boring, but in the end once you've adapted to the routine you won't see any changes because your body won't be asked to do more. So you need to keep upping the intensity or frequency or type or time spent exercising. Then there's this thing I've been reading about called periodisation with micro cycles, mesocycles and macrocylces. It might as well have a unicycle in for brain to get on and ride around in a state of confusion!
I have 7 more days to get my head around it all and then the rest of my life to build the experience to do it as well as I can. Maybe I'll enlist the help of few friends to practice on. At least if they injure themselves I can offer remedial massage!
Before I go, let me point you to a short post by Simon Jones. Simon and I were at college together and he often writes thougthful stuff on his blog. His most recent post raises a pertinent point about what we focus upon as churches.
Tuesday, June 05, 2012
Still on the planet!
Time certainly flies around here, and you don't even need to be having fun for it to happen! For the last two weeks Ive been getting up at 5:30, catching the 6:58 train and spending all day in the gym. Monday to Friday commuting just like I remember it. Ah, the joy!! The reason for all this resides in my brilliant idea to add a personal trainer qualification to my portfolio. So far I've passed the gym instructors part of the course and the next two weeks is the PT bit. To be honest, I'm not looking forward to it. I'm not the "in your face" sort of person that seems to be the industry standard for PT's. Ah well, as long as I get through the course I can then stamp my own personality of the world of personal training.
The point of all this is not to become some sort of gym-bore. I'd like to work with people where they are, in the park etc., and not be stuck in the gym environment surrounded by people lifting weights that are too heavy for them and the thing they are trying to do. Hopefully the PT qualification will integrate nicely with the sports massage and will open a few doors to a few clients so I can earn some money. But I also hope that it will help me get to know the community a little better. I have these idealised pictures of me and a small group of people getting fitter as we have fun in the local park and walking around the village. I told you it was rather idealised.
Away from the rigours of PT qualification, I've learnt a lot just by travelling daily on the train and tube. I've remembered just how draining it can be and how little you want to do when you get home at the end of a long day. I've realised again how important it is for those of us in church leadership (I may not be in a church, but I don't see myself as having left church leadership just yet) to remember that and not prioritise church over family or even friendship. It's a tough balance to hold, but I think I'd rather sway towards the priority of family and friends than church meetings and even dare one say Bible studies. For me, I'd rather get to heaven having known a lot of people, sought to share my faith with them, sought to help them reconnect with the God who misses them, rather than be able to answer obscure questions about abstruse passages of the Bible. I'm not sure I'm going to get tested on my theology on that great and final day.
In the end this al comes down to one simple truth. We all have a fixed amount of time in any given day or week or month. How we use that time is largely up to us. Yes we have the demands of our jobs if we are fortunate to be in employment. and work is where we spend most of our waking time. If we are part of a family, this too takes up a fair amount of our time. The rest is up for grabs. This is Oldenburg's Third Place, and this is where the church must find it's place. If it can't find it's place here, then it will have to take time and resources away from the other two, and if it absorbs all of the third place time, then it will exclude connecting with those who are missing from the kingdom.
Working out the balance is the challenge we face. Perhaps I can figure that out on the train tomorrow morning between reviewing all the muscle origins, insertions and actions I'm trying to learn!
The point of all this is not to become some sort of gym-bore. I'd like to work with people where they are, in the park etc., and not be stuck in the gym environment surrounded by people lifting weights that are too heavy for them and the thing they are trying to do. Hopefully the PT qualification will integrate nicely with the sports massage and will open a few doors to a few clients so I can earn some money. But I also hope that it will help me get to know the community a little better. I have these idealised pictures of me and a small group of people getting fitter as we have fun in the local park and walking around the village. I told you it was rather idealised.
Away from the rigours of PT qualification, I've learnt a lot just by travelling daily on the train and tube. I've remembered just how draining it can be and how little you want to do when you get home at the end of a long day. I've realised again how important it is for those of us in church leadership (I may not be in a church, but I don't see myself as having left church leadership just yet) to remember that and not prioritise church over family or even friendship. It's a tough balance to hold, but I think I'd rather sway towards the priority of family and friends than church meetings and even dare one say Bible studies. For me, I'd rather get to heaven having known a lot of people, sought to share my faith with them, sought to help them reconnect with the God who misses them, rather than be able to answer obscure questions about abstruse passages of the Bible. I'm not sure I'm going to get tested on my theology on that great and final day.
In the end this al comes down to one simple truth. We all have a fixed amount of time in any given day or week or month. How we use that time is largely up to us. Yes we have the demands of our jobs if we are fortunate to be in employment. and work is where we spend most of our waking time. If we are part of a family, this too takes up a fair amount of our time. The rest is up for grabs. This is Oldenburg's Third Place, and this is where the church must find it's place. If it can't find it's place here, then it will have to take time and resources away from the other two, and if it absorbs all of the third place time, then it will exclude connecting with those who are missing from the kingdom.
Working out the balance is the challenge we face. Perhaps I can figure that out on the train tomorrow morning between reviewing all the muscle origins, insertions and actions I'm trying to learn!
Saturday, May 26, 2012
A Busy Week
In a moment of sheer madness I decided that adding a Personal Trainer qualification to my Sports Massage would be a good idea and might open a door to some potential income while I continue my trying as a therapist. So I signed up for a 4-week intensive course which began this week.
At the time of signing up I didn't realise how much online reading there was going to be. I knew there was some, but it turns out to be more than I imagined. So now I'm trying to learn Pt and Sports Massage and my brain hurts. It hurts a lot.
What this leaves me with is the thought that if only I'd behaved myself and been a a good little minister, then none of this would have happened. I could have continued to think that one day I might do something in the area of sports and bodywork and/or fitness, but never actually needing to apply myself to it. Dreams are easy things with which to live as long as you don't try to realise them.
I, of course, am mad. Completely and utterly mad. No one in their right mind would toss everything in the air at 54 and start over. At 54 you should be planning how you're going to spend your retirement.
So here I sit, after a long and draining week of learning to be a gym instructor (you have to do that first) and then a full day doing MET (that's a massage thing) and I feel like giving it all up as my brain slowly melts as I try and remember my ischial tuberosity from my anterior, inferior iliac spine.
Madness. Sheer madness.
At the time of signing up I didn't realise how much online reading there was going to be. I knew there was some, but it turns out to be more than I imagined. So now I'm trying to learn Pt and Sports Massage and my brain hurts. It hurts a lot.
What this leaves me with is the thought that if only I'd behaved myself and been a a good little minister, then none of this would have happened. I could have continued to think that one day I might do something in the area of sports and bodywork and/or fitness, but never actually needing to apply myself to it. Dreams are easy things with which to live as long as you don't try to realise them.
I, of course, am mad. Completely and utterly mad. No one in their right mind would toss everything in the air at 54 and start over. At 54 you should be planning how you're going to spend your retirement.
So here I sit, after a long and draining week of learning to be a gym instructor (you have to do that first) and then a full day doing MET (that's a massage thing) and I feel like giving it all up as my brain slowly melts as I try and remember my ischial tuberosity from my anterior, inferior iliac spine.
Madness. Sheer madness.
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