The First Day

Saturday 1/31/2015 4:56 AM

A few years ago I had a very structured morning routine. I woke at 4:00, went for a four mile run, sat and had a time of Bible reading, reflection and journal writing after which I would eat breakfast, shower and get ready for work. I usually ran about five times per week, played basketball on Saturday morning, and I had my time of reading and reflection every day, with a rare exception.

During that time I was in excellent physical shape, I maintained a constant weight and felt close to God, as if he were directing every aspect of my life. A year and a half ago I had a teaching schedule that did little to facilitate my morning routine. I had class at 7:00 every morning and on Monday and Wednesday I had classes until 10:00 at night. I would usually get home around 10:45 and it would take me forty-five minutes to an hour to wind down so I seldom got to bed before 11:30 or midnight. The late nights did little to encourage a 4:00 wake up call so I began to skip my morning run during my teaching week. I found my time of reading and reflection also went by the wayside, replaced instead by a routine of checking on my Facebook news feed, playing words in my Scrabble games, doing the LA Times crossword puzzle, and going online to check on the latest news. My healthy morning routine had been replaced by a more sedentary routine and it didn’t take long before I slowly started adding pounds to my weight and I began to feel more distant from God.

Yesterday I read a blog entitled The Brutally Honest 6 Reasons You Are Still Overfat, at the website strengthcoachtaylor.ca that I had, ironically, seen posted on one of my Facebook friend’s page.  In the article Coach Taylor lists his six reasons but a couple of his points really struck home with me regarding the loss of structured discipline in my morning routine. Coach Taylor suggests that I am unwilling to sacrifice to achieve my goal and that I do not take responsibility for my failure, choosing instead to blame my difficult schedule or other extenuating circumstances. When I met with my small group yesterday morning I asked them to hold me accountable for my running and my time of reading and reflection in the morning.

Part of the reason I run is because my dad died from emphysema at the age of 42. He was a heavy smoker and was a farmer, an occupation that entails breathing a lot of dust. Those factors, in addition to a history of chronic bronchitis, contributed to his disease. I realized that I might also have a disposition to having weak lungs because of my genes so I chose not to smoke and to do everything in my power to keep my lungs healthy. If I expect to be in good physical shape, and to feel a connection with God, then I need to do everything within my power to make that happen. I need to sacrifice my Facebook time, my Scrabble games, my crossword puzzles, the morning news, and stop blaming my difficult schedule if I am to facilitate the return of my old routine.

Today was the first day.