Well, I finally did it. As
my youngest daughter said the other day, "You finally drank the
Kool-Aid!" I left my old gym and joined the big franchise gym that my wife,
daughter, and son-in-law are members of. (I know...never end a sentence with a
preposition but the other way sounds stuffy!) For a long time I was content to
drive the two miles to my old gym, put on the headphones and do the elliptical
trainer for an hour and maybe do some weights. Recently, I became bored with
that routine. Also, I noticed I wasn't making any progress and did not feel
challenged. I was also paying a monthly fee there. Peggy had been going to the
big gym for quite a while now and loved it. Our health insurance covered the
membership fee there.
I decided to visit the
facility last week. Many smiling,
helpful people greeted me as I entered. (That worried me! What did they know
that I didn't?) As I toured the place, I saw many new machines and plenty of
bright spaces in which to work out. "O.K., I thought. I will give it a
try." The next day I decided to take a class. It was called
"Power". It should have been called "Pain." It was one hour
of lifting light weights while doing other exercises involving every other
muscle group. (and I thought I was in really good shape before the class. I
found out quickly. Not!) The next day, being a glutton for punishment, I took
two classes. One class called "Core" which should have been called
"Torture." It was the longest half hour of my life! Not content with
suffering, I went immediately to "R30". It is a workout on a
stationary bicycle. After finishing that half hour, I felt as if I had done the
Tour De France! I limped out of the gym on legs that felt like spaghetti.
Do you know what? As much
as I thought I hated those sessions, they did me as much good as though I loved
them and I am going back for more because I love a challenge. The instructors
there challenged us to finish strong, not quit, not give up. This reminded me
of our UGA football coach, Mark Richt, who constantly encouraged his players to
"Finish The Drill" in their workouts and in their games.
At my old gym, I realized
I had become complacent and comfortable.
I was not growing, not progressing. I came to understand that I could
not do it alone. I needed someone to push me. Sometimes I wonder if my
Christian life is like that. Have I gotten too comfortable? Am I doing things
to stretch myself to help me grow in my faith? Do I take for granted God's love
for me expressed in the Cross? What is it that will challenge me in my
Christian life as those workouts at the gym challenged me? How can I accept the
call to finish strong, to "Finish The Drill"?
As I knew the instructors
in the workout classes were watching me, I worked hard to keep going. Don't we
all do better when someone is watching us? This is where an accountability
partner helps us in our Christian walk, someone who will walk with us, be given
the freedom to call us to accounts when we stray, someone to lift us when we
stumble, someone to celebrate our victories and weep with us in our losses. Do
you have such a friend? Ask him or her to help you to keep growing.
Net Work News
and Needs
I have been working
with a 58-year-old disabled man to "wade through" the bureaucratic
red tape of government assistance programs to get him re-admitted to Medicaid
programs, get home delivered meals, get his motorized wheel chair repaired, get
the furnace and electrical outlets in his apartment repaired, and his financial
affairs protected from those who would seek to take advantage of his good
nature.
I have been visiting
our 95-year-old neighbor, who now lives in an assisted living facility, for
friendship and prayer.
I have networked with a
new friend from church network to secure new employment.
I continue to meet
individual men on a daily basis for counsel and encouragement.
I continue, on a weekly
basis, to facilitate the Friday Morning Men's Group.
Our Friday Men's Group
raised about $1000 towards Christmas boxes for the children House of Hope
Mission in Guatemala
Blessings to You and
Yours As We Enter the Season of Celebration of the Birth of Christ
NET WORK MINISTRIES, INC. EXISTS FOR THE
PURPOSE OF BRINGING TOGETHER GOD’S PEOPLE AND HIS RESOURCES TO PRESENT THE
HEALING MESSAGE OF CHRIST’S
UNCONDITIONAL LOVE, THROUGH WORD AND DEED, TO A HURTING AND LOST WORLD.
NET WORK MINISTRIES, INC.
2671 OLD HICKORY DRIVE, N.W.
MARIETTA, GA., 30064-1833
678-986-4814
E-mail address – buckreese41@yahoo.com
Website: www.networkministries.blogspot.com