Life is just so daily

Life is just so daily. Some days just aren't that thrilling. More like "blah" and it's ok. NEWS FLASH. It's OK to have "blah" days.

Being enthusiastic about a lot of things has its downfalls. You can get disappointed if you're not careful. Maybe that's why training for this summer event is leveling my playing field. Working out keeps you honest and real. There are ups and downs. I need these kinds of things to keep me anchored in reality.

My greatest anchor comes from my faith in Christ. His words always bring me out of the ruts and into forward motion. Nori came over tonight and it was great to study the bible, eat dinner and watch a movie together. We are going through a Biblical Foundations book and right now we are on the part about Christian character. We read 2 Peter 1:3-11 and looked at each verse, talking about its meaning.

I've always been inspired by athletes and especially Olympic athletes. Not that I know their names or their stats, but the fact that they worked so hard to make it where they are in the Olympics catches my attention and takes my breath away. There's something about having to train daily, to develop consistency and a routine based on self-discipline that is similar to living a Christ-centered life. It takes discipline for both things because in both instances you are training your mind and your body to line up with a different way of living.

When we first started talking about following Christ, I mentioned to Nori that she'll have to develop the mentality of a long-distance runner. For me, this is the best way to look at this life as a Christ-follower. Being a Christ follower is not for the faint-hearted or for those who are looking for a quick and easy fix. Don't think you're going to sprint through this one because it's not going to happen. You must develop a slow and steady pace so that you cross the finish line.

And maybe that's why people don't want to look at Christ and His claims. It's much easier to just live how you want to live without being accountable to the one who created you to know Him and be an expression of Him in your daily life. He always goes to the heart of the matter and makes your life legitimate, real, genuine while in the process rooting out the illegitimate, the unreal, the masks. So yeah. It's a journey -- a long-distance journey. And that journey takes place one moment at a time.

Just as there are things I can do to train for this upcoming triathlon - such as learn swim techniques, biking posture and running, there are also ways to make it through the day living the Christ-centered way. 2 Peter talks about building things into your life so you can make it for the long-haul. It starts with trusting Christ but it doesn't end there. Cultivate goodness, faith, perseverance, self-control and brotherly love in your walk and the Bible says that the result is an effective and productive life. It says people who do these things will never fall away!! What a guarantee. That's something I want. If I start something, I want to finish it. The guarantee that I can finish my life with no regrets and look God in the eyes and know that even though I stumbled, fumbled and bumbled things up sometimes, I never fell away - that is the long distance goal I'm shooting for.

But you can't get away from the fact that life is so daily. Our faith gets tested. But the reality is that lyou have to choose every day how you're going to live your life. But what you choose is building on the long distance picture and it's good to remember that.