Lent Day 5: Good habits matter

We sped up to Canada to see our parents Saturday. Mom was shedding things from her craft room, her repository for sewing, knitting, and crocheting supplies for 40 years. The room has always been tidy, even packed stem to stern with supplies. Mom's "a neat packrat," according to her own description.

Over several weeks, my mother tackled the bulk of the room, organizing books, patterns, and fabrics into boxes and cabinets. She and I took everything off the pegboard hooks on the notions wall. We sorted zippers, needles, cording, and hobby tools into "keep" and giveaway piles.

With one or two packages of each thing, the wall looks much neater: Mom can see what she has. There's even a special area on the pegboard wall for Adelina, the granddaughter who loves crafting. What a treat she'll find on her next visit, with chenille stems, silk flowers, and ribbons ready for play!

Once we were done, my folks took us to their home gym in the basement. "Your father got a new treadmill. You should see this! Just what we need. One more piece of equipment," my mother shook her head.

[I've been thinking about our bodies as habitations of the Spirit. Keep this in mind as you continue: Dad's a spry 80 years old. Mom's a fit 77.]

"I work out on that 20 minutes a day," Dad said, pointing to a stair-stepper. He also uses the treadmill, eliptical, and a rowing machine. It's a true home gym, used daily! rather than gathering dust.

Meanwhile, Mom walks. A lot. (Her pedometer recorded 16,000+ steps Thursday and the same again by Friday evening.) Behind their house, a berm restrains a small slough that floods annually. The gravel path on the berm is the perfect river walking trail for the neighborhood. (My mom also lifts light weights. She does hundreds of reps when she gets going.)

My folks formed good exercise habits as young adults, reinforced by genetically-German discipline. I remember Dad calling us kids to do the RCAF workout in the living room. Awful pushups and situps. Jumping Jacks, jogging in place, and torturous leg raises. He snorkeled at the local lake after work every summer. (Is that where I got my love of swimming?) Dad kept working out after we left home: his habit of movement has kept him in good condition into his 80s.

Our parents don't eat out a lot. Mom's been the primary cook, serving her family real food (not packaged or pre-made for warmup). Saturday nights when we were youngsters, Dad's gave Mom a break by taking his chef rotation. He had two specialties: pork and onions or spaghetti and meatballs (not the healthiest, maybe?) We kids thought both options were delicious.

I'm amazed when I see my folks. They're fit, healthy, and going strong. Dad and Mom continue to learn new things, their minds sharp as they keep their bodies in shape.

My brothers and I are grateful, both for our parents' efforts and God's grace. Our folks have outlived many of their friends who neglected their health. We recognize that God provides daily sustenance. We pray for his intervention and help, regardless of our natural physical prowess (like the warriors in the scripture below).

However, taking care of yourself helps in the long run. Watch this startling video from the Heart & Stroke Foundation as you make your choices today. The quality of your last years may depend on your current habits!

Lent means giving up something dear to remember all Christ suffered. Perhaps it's a good time to think about how we treat our bodies. As whole persons (body, soul, and spirit), undivided in our service to God, surely He holds us accountable for caring for this treasure of physical presence on earth. Do you agree or disagree?

Read more:

*How then could I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? Genesis 39:9

*There were 44,760 capable warriors in the armies of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. They were all skilled in combat and armed with shields, swords, and bows. They waged war against the Hagrites, the Jeturites, the Naphishites, and the Nodabites. They cried out to God during the battle, and he answered their prayer because they trusted in him. So the Hagrites and all their allies were defeated. 1 Chronicles 5:18–20 NLT

*Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But you haven’t believed in me even though you have seen me. However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them. For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will.

And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day. For it is my Father’s will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day.” John 6:35-40 NLT

*Let us lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us. Hebrews 12:1

Moravian Prayer: Giver of strength, help us to remember that we can rely on you always. No trouble is too large or too small for your attention, if we would just ask. This we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Lent Day 7: Thankful for sickness and health

"That's as far as I can reach." Our daughter lifts her right hand to elbow height. Her other shoulder and elbow are slightly more mobile but she hasn't had full range of motion for years.

Kirsten flew home to Austin today after spending three months with us. She endured foot surgery and the recovery amid arthritis flares. Every storm heralds its immanency with swelling and stiffness; Seattle had plenty of winter storms this year. W and I watched K regain her footing as she protected her other painful joints. Hopefully the warmer weather of Austin will be kinder to her than the grey brutality of the Pacific Northwest.

Some of us suffer for a day, for a week, or for a lifetime. Many become so accustomed to pain that they cannot remember a day without it. Our daughter is among those.

We've cried to God for help for fifteen years, since she first was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. I wept at her bedside last year as she groaned through the sores that erupted over her body and inside her stomach. W sat with her for hours as her foot lay immobile in its post-surgery cast in December and January. Oh God, when has she suffered enough?

W and I are so grateful for parents who still enjoy strength for each day. We thank God for our own health and the sound bodies of our three sons and their wives. We gasp with pleasure at the normal stages of our new grandchild. Thank God for healthy bodies!

Somehow, the grief of watching someone we love has made good function all the sweeter. We are glad that Christ bore the brokenness of soul and body on the Tree. We trust that at some point he will turn to Kirsten to say, "It is enough" and apply the hard-won healing to her body. In our view, sooner would be better than later.

Lord have mercy on Kirsten and all those who suffer today.

Read more:

*Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. Lamentations 3:22-26 NIV 

*Psalm 31:10-20, Exodus 6:13-7:24; Matthew 20:1-16

*Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble. Job 14:1 (NIV)

*It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 1 Corinthians 15:43

Moravian Prayer: Father God, help us follow in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus who was born, remained sinless and was raised in the power of your glory. Amen.

Be in good health!

"Thank you, thank you!" I said to God, driving back from an errand this morning. The women I met with have smoker's voices, rough, raw, coarse. Their skin has wrinkled and their lips have puckered from smoking. Sin is its own punishment, says my husband, and it looks true on these dear women's faces.

I'm transcribing the diaries of Alice Wood, missionary to South and Central America in the early 1900s. Alice suffered mental and physical anguish, yet she was determined to share Good News. She writes of fevers, nervous attacks, and migraines, among her other ailments. Typing out her journals brings her suffering into my office, where I sit with a cup of tea, good health, and warm shelter.

In contrast, our daughter-in-love Rebekah ran, cycled, and swam this weekend in a women's event. Her sister, who does similar competitions each year, persuaded R to join her in the fun. They successfully completed the race and beat their time goals to boot! We are really proud of both sisters. Their training efforts and health choices paid off! (However, we miss her smile in our family photo below, taken Sunday.)

My folks remain healthy in their late 70s, walking daily, eating well, and boosting food with supplements. Dad's become knowledgeable in vitamins, minerals, and alternative health therapies. Compared to their siblings and peers, my parents are energetic, able to work and play with vigor, and continue to thrive.

Seattle weather, which recently cooperated with dry ground or sunny skies, turned ugly and rainy yesterday. Our daughter Kirsten is visiting for a few weeks from sunny Austin. She came out of her room this morning barely able to move, handing her dog Zoe over so I could take the dogs to the groomer. Yesterday, Zoe got her vaccines and a vet exam so she can travel on the plane to Austin with K Thursday. Zoe must have been uncomfortable from the shots: she was restless in the night. That didn't help Kirsten rest after RA joint pains hit her during yesterday's rainstorm. (We're reminded every time a storm blows in why K can't live in Seattle. Even visits are debilitating and painful. Sincere thanks to each friend who remembers to pray for her!)

Thinking about all these circumstances, the struggling and the successful, I felt most grateful for health and strength to complete my daily tasks. I wiggled my toes, moved my spine around the driver's seat, and tapped my fingers on the steering wheel, singing along with hymns of gratitude on my playlist.

God reminded me of missionary and scientist Paul Brand's work with lepers. Instead of focusing on the horrors of the illness, Brand remained joy-filled because so much "was going right," even in leprous body systems. Humans are complex creatures, Brand maintained. His research showed that the most gravely ill body compensated internally to maintain its health and strength. When systems were overwhelmed, the body kept trying alternatives. "Miraculous!" Brand said. "Our bodies are the amazing work of God!"

Thank you, God, for every bit of well-being!" My heart soared, so glad to be healthy and living in a country where medical treatment is available. None of our privileges are deserved or earned. We could be destitute, mortally ill, or isolated. Some of us may have these things in our past, present, or future. Somehow, God's presence is always enough for the hours. "As your days, so shall your strength be," says scripture.

I am grateful for the mercy of this day, beginning with the rising of the sun. God is good. He is Enough and Abundance, in pleasure or pain.

I walked a mile with Pleasure;
She chatted all the way;
But left me none the wiser
For all she had to say.

I walked a mile with Sorrow,
And ne’er a word said she;
But, oh! The things I learned from her,
When sorrow walked with me.

by poet Robert Browning Hamilton

Read more:
*O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, for You have done wonderful things; your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. Isaiah 25:1 NKJV

*I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1-2 NKJV