Over the past several months I’ve been seriously re-assessing my understanding of my Christian walk.  A number of things have happened to jar my complacency, and I have developed an ever growing hunger to really understand what it means when Jesus says “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10b)

I started to share about this journey a couple of weeks ago and since then I’ve finished listening to Wayne Jacobsen’s “Transition” series, and am just finishing up his book “He Loves Me! Learning to Live in the Father’s Affection” and I am being deeply challenged, moved, and hugely encouraged.

So much of my faith has been based on religion – not hard to understand when yoou realize I  grew up as a traditional Baptist!

But religion keeps us as far from the heart of God as rebellion.  In fact, I’ll bet God prefers rebellion, because it’s at least usually honest, where religion is not.

Anyway, I’m very grateful for the fact that my training is going to soon be forcing me into longer and longer walks.  It will give me much more time to listen, study, and focus on walking this new path spiritually, while I train for the physical part of my marathon.

Can’t wait to see where it leads…

Happy walking!

Darlene

I love the discipline of  “breath prayers” and I use them often in my day to relax, refocus, and de-stress.  I’ve started using them at the beginning of my walking as a form of warm-up, too.

I like to “collect” prayers to use in different situations.  Of course, you don’t need special words or phrases to get God’s attention, but sometimes I need them to get MY attention focused in the right place.

I’ve been reading a series of books lately by a woman named Liberty Savard and I have been really blessed by some of her teaching on prayer.  I took some of her suggestions and created a breath-prayer exercise for the beginning of my walking.  I thought I’d post it here in case you’d like to use it, too:

1. As you inhale slowly, pray “I bind myself to God’s truth, authenticity and integrity“ – and really visualize yourself “inhaling Christ” as it were. Pause for a brief second or two and then
2. Exhale and pray “I loose myself from all falsehood, lies, and deception” and imagine those things leaving your body. Pause.
3. Inhale and pray “I bind my will, passions, and purposes, to the will, passions and purposes of God” visualizing yourself inhaling these properties. Pause.
4. Exhale and pray “I loose myself from false pretensions, selfishness, greed, and fear” and exhale those things from your life. Pause.
5. Inhale and pray “I bind my mind to the mind of Christ, to hear the thoughts, intents, and purposes of His heart ”. Pause.
6. Exhale and and pray, “I loose myself from wrong thinking, behaviour, and attitudes”. Pause.
7. Inhale and pray “I bind my feet to God’s path for me, and my hands to the special work He’s ordained for me to accomplish in His Kingdom”. Pause.
8. Exhale and pray “I loose myself from the strongholds of unmet needs, unresolved issues, and unhealed hurts”. Pause.

I have a feeling that a prayer like that throughout your day could vastly change the way you see things!

Happy walking!

Darlene

(PS – don’t you think that picture looks just like me?  LOL!  I don’t know who owns it, but it’s pretty cool!)

It’s been a while since I’ve done a more “spiritual” post here. Mostly I’ve been focusing on the training. However, I never walk without listening to something, and lately I’ve been deeply challenged by some teaching that I’ve been working through on my walks.

I was born into the church. I could probably count on one hand how many Sunday morning (now Saturday night) services I’ve missed in my almost half a decade. Add to that all the Sunday evening services back when they were part of the “routine” and untold hours of volunteering as a Sunday School teacher for all ages, a youth leader, a musician, etc., I’ve spent probably half my life in some kind of religious setting. I’ve participated in everything from very high latin catholic masses to “no rules” Charismatic frenzies; I’ve been to church in dozens of countries, in several languages, and I’ve even been a missionary. I love the church. I love the lifestyle, the people, the teaching, the music. I love being a part of something that matters.

The truth is, however, that while I take my faith very seriously, and while I’ve striven most of my life to serve God faithfully, some nagging feeling in my gut is telling me that somehow, I’ve “missed the point”. For such a long time I’ve felt “stuck”. Way back in my missionary days half a lifetime ago I met a God who was actively involved in my every day. Everything I was asked to do was so far beyond my capabilities, it was literally “trust God or screw up beyond redemption”. I had no idea how to do that, but I learned quickly – on the job. And God showed up, BIG. I began a relationship with Him that had vibrance, joy, passion, delight, and lots of surprises.

Now, living in a safe city, with a wonderful husband who provides well, two kids with no issues whatsoever, and pretty much able to have/be/do anything my little heart desires, I feel so far from God and who He revealed Himself to be all those years ago. I’m in such a “safe place” that my need for God seems minimal.

And yet, I’m so hungry for Him.

A couple of months ago, in an attempt to help my husband who’s having much the same struggle, I bought the book “So You Don’t Want to Go to Church Anymore” by Wayne Jacobsen and Dave Coleman. A fictional book that really challenged the way I saw church and what it meant.

You see, most of my Christian upbringing has been about duty and behaviour: how often I attend church, how much I read the Bible, how well I memorize scripture, how many people I win to the Lord, how many hours I spend in volunteer ministry, etc. It has little, if anything, to do with relationship – either with my fellow man or with God Himself. And yet, isn’t the Bible just one long story of God’s heart longing for relationship with His people?

Somewhere we’ve allowed this to degenerate into a guilt fest – we are constantly checking to see how well we measure up. How much more we can add to our list of accomplishments. How squeaky clean we can make ourselves.

Through my walking and listening, I’m learning about a whole new way of living out my faith. Jacobsen’s book led me to his website which in turn has led me to some more teaching about transitioning out of the guilt of the religious mindset.  In other words, how to be a Christian without being religious.

I’m deeply challenged by what I’m hearing.  I’m seeking God’s heart to learn how to move forward here – or not.

Wherever this takes me, it’s bound to be an interesting journey! 

I’ll keep you posted.

Happy Walking

Darlene

To call me a “driven” person is an understatement (friends might use the term “scary”…) There’s something about my makeup that doesn’t allow me to tackle a day without to-do list of at least 30 items. I kid you not. There are always 27 different projects to work on, and I take my relationship with my kids and husband very seriously, so time needs to be set aside for that, as well. This means I live each day highly focused, and heaven help you if you get in my way when we’re not in “relationship” mode!

And there’s something about today’s society that makes this kind of lifestyle something to be deeply proud of. I mean whenever someone asks you how life is, “busy” and “stressed” seem to be appropriate, praise-worthy responses. Weird.

In my Monday’s Post I shared about the trip my husband and I took to Montana and the incredible sense of rest that it afforded us. My own faith stresses highly the importance of Sabbath.

This is an idea that has been buzzing around in my head and my heart for a long time. I actually do start each morning very slowly with time for devotions, praise, walking, and the like before I hit the ground running, but the idea of a whole day of Sabbath every week? That’s tough. Weekends are so short and so fully of “busy-ness” that it’s hard to figure out how to make it happen.

I believe more and more, though that it’s a vitally important part of true wellness, regardless of your spiritual beliefs – or lack of such. It takes some work to make it happen (that sounds like a contradiction in terms…) but the results are well worth it. Here are some links that you might find helpful (if you’re not religious, these ideas can be used as a starting place and be adapted to suit your own needs):

• Here’s a great sermon about the Sabbath from one of the Pastor’s at my church. This will give you some great, balanced teaching about the Sabbath to get you started.
• What is Sabbath? This site will help you explore the idea of Sabbath and offers some good questions and suggestions for getting started. There is also a section on this site specifically for kids, and some specific activities you can try out together as a family.
• Here are some more ideas for things you can do as a family on the Sabbath
• Here is a whole book of ideas put out by the Seventh Day Adventists: 100 Creative Ideas for Sabbath

Of course, you could also try going for a walk as a family (couldn’t miss the opportunity of saying that, now could I?

• You could check out this site for ideas for younger children, and this site has games and activities for the whole family.
• If your family is as dependent on iPods for life and sustenance as our family is, you can download this 99 cent app that creates a sort of treasure hunt while walking.
• You can even download a FREE copy of my “Kids are No Excuse” e-report that shows you lots of different ways to involve your kids with walking

So those are some ideas that can help you get started. I honestly don’t believe it matters what day you chose – pick a day that works best for everyone, and then fight to keep it sacred.

I’d be really interested in hearing your ideas about Sabbath and to have you share in anything you might have tried that works for you. Post your comments below.

Happy resting!

Darlene

(For those of you who recognize this post, know that it posted itself  TWICE before it was finished last week.  Silly post.  It’s now under control and properly finished.  Take another read if you think  you’ve already seen it!)

So, I’ve been AWOL from my walking since last week. I have lots of excuses, but I’m thinking mostly it’s a motivational problem. I hate the cold. Probably not so legitimate. I’ve also got hit “quick and heavy” with the flu, and found that while the most uncomfortable symptoms passed within 36 hours, I was tired, foggy-headed, and just dragging myself around for a good week afterwards. I decided to take the week off and just go slow.

So what do you think? Was that right? Was that wrong? Was I just lazy? I find I’m a genius at rationalizing my behaviour. Years of practice have made me an expert. It’s hard to be objective.

The good news was that I was out and walking this morning. Last week when I was unmotivated I did put together some great playlists (working through the Bible and a bunch of podcasts I want to catch up with) and they’re all in sequential order, so if I miss a day, I mess up the whole system.  Good way to stay on track!

And I’m back walking my longer distances this morning.  I’ve gotten myself better organized so I can manage longer walks.  Monday and Tuesday is 1.5 hours, Wednesday is off, Thursday and Friday is 2 hours, Saturday is 1 hour and Sunday is 3 hours. It feels great to be back in the game!  Woohoo!

If you’ve been slacking, I hope my new found motivation gets you going as well!

Happy walking!

Darlene

On Wednesday I shared the experience I have with walking with a Rosary. Another cool meditation tool for walking is walking a labyrinth.

I heard about labyrinth’s a few years back when I got very involved with studying Catholic Mysticism. After that I looked for opportunities to walk one, and while there aren’t many around here, there are a couple – one at Kingsfold Retreat Centre, and one at the FCJ Christian Life Center

I love walking the Labyrinth because there’s a slow rhythm, there’s mindfulness, and there’s peace. You go into the centre with something on your heart, seeking God’s will, and come out with peace. It’s a very long walk covering a very small space, and unless you’ve walked that particular labyrinth or pattern several times, you are always suprised at where you end up, at how the path unfolds. It’s kind of like life. I just wish I could walk life with the same kind of mindfulness as I walk a labyrinth!

This morning I stumbled on this article about the labyrinth, and thought it was a helpful piece to understand how it works and how to walk it. This article from Kingsfold is also very helpful.

If you want to find a labyrinth near you, check this Labyrinth Locator

If you want to read more about the Labyrinth, here’s a great book: Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth

Happy Walking!

Darlene

PS – you can even get a labyrinth on your iPod Touch (I ♥♥♥♥♥♥ my iPod Touch!) here: iPause

I’m still looking for sponsors for my walk on the 5th of June – can you help? Just click the badge and you’ll go right to my page.

Countdown To Race Day (5 km)

Thanks so much!  Both I and the kids benefitting from your donations greatly appreciate your generosity!

So I’ve completed my first week of “The Lord’s Table” and here are my results (note, I didn’t lose 7.5 pounds in a week. I didn’t weigh myself before I started, so I simply picked up where I left off in the last round of weight loss. I would guess I’ve lost about 3 lbs. in total this past week):

This is an amazing course for any of you who are struggling with the weight loss yo-yo and with getting rid of those stubborn pounds that wont’ budge. Not only does it deal with food, but it also deals with your mentality, your heart, your focus, and your sin (yeah, sorry, overeating needs to be called what it is: the sin of gluttony. Doesn’t sound so nice when it’s put like that, does it?)

The course encourages “feasting”, but the feasting it encourages is feasting on the word of God. Here’s an excerpt from the course materials last week:

Crave the sweet food of the Word of God. That is the beginning of holiness–to crave God’s Word. Is it worth craving? I shout an emphatic, “Yes!” Crave it, for it will satisfy. Food hasn’t satisfied you for but a nanosecond; God’s Word will satisfy you from this moment on, even throughout eternity.

Read the Word, until you long for it. Read the Word until missing your time in it in the morning is unthinkable. Read the Word until you pant for it. Read the Word, after you have tasted that it is good.

Read the Word, until you have read every book of the Bible and have favorites. Read the Word, and cling to the promises of sanctification. Read the Word that you may grow up in your salvation.

The Word is the key to holiness, to growing up in your faith. If you love the Word and God’s commands, you will become more and more like Jesus Christ. Read the Word that you may become holy.

Teen Talk, by Sarah Visser from “The Lord’s Table“

I would encourage any of you who are frustrated with your weight to take the course. It’s free, and is just so incredibly encouraging.

Darlene

I’ve been overweight the whole of my adult life. Never hugely obese, but always struggling with that extra 30-40 pounds that need to come off! Even at the height of marathon training, walking 70+ kilometers a week didn’t change that fact.

I’ve done the yo-yo thing, the “change your lifestyle” thing, and even created something that worked quite well for the PraiseWalker system, but each time, I fall off the bandwagon and gain all the weight back.

I was chatting with a friend this week, and she told me about a program that we are now trying together. It seems pretty cool as it uses weight-loss as a form of meditation – kinda like the “PraiseWalker” idea for dieting. Cooool.

Here’s the amazing part: It’s free. It’s online. You don’t change WHAT you eat at first, just how, when, and why, so no complicated food things to start with. You understand what it is that makes you overeat, or where your weight problems come from, AND God plays the biggest role in the whole thing.

In addition to that, you get a personal mentor (still for free) to walk you through, and this is someone who has successfully gone through the program and is volunteering their time to help you see the same success.

I mean, HOW COOL IS THAT?!!

So, if you want to join me, go to: “The Lord’s Table“, a free membership, print out the eating plan (use #1 for best results) and put my e-mail in to be one of your accountability partners, and let’s get this area dealt with once and for all!

Darlene

PS – still looking for sponsors for my walk on the 5th of June – can you help? Just click the badge below and you’ll go right to my page

I have an issue in my life that is causing a great deal of pain and turmoil.  I am working through different methods of healing with it, but it can often get overwhelming when it’s triggered.

Today was one of those trigger days, and I found myself wrestling with this to the point of complete frustration.  By 5:00pm I was at a loss as to how to get peace and move on.  I decided to go for my walk, which still needed to get done.

I set my Nike+iPod to a 1 hour walkand set it to play a shuffled playlist of soaking music , put on my Funky Feet, attached the dog to his leash, grabbed a poop bag, and headed out the door.

Sometimes I found myself mulling over the situation.  Other times during the walk I found myself just praying in tongues or allowing my heart to just express longing to Jesus, and sometimes I sang along – probably off key.

All around me, storm clouds were brewing, but I was in this warm place that had a lovely breeze, and I just allowed the whole experience to wash over me.

As I came to the last 1/4 mile before reaching my home at the end of the walk, I saw a whole bouquet of balloons that had been released into the air (we’d had a community celebration here at the opening of the new Transit Station behind our house) and I felt like I had been set free.  It was a symbol of the freedom that I now feel in my heart.

What a cool God we serve, Who would accompany me on such a hard, soul-wrestling walk, pour His love over me in the midst of my angst, and then end it with such a wonderful picture of healing and release.

I am blessed

We are renovating.

We attempted an en suite bathroom renovation three years ago.  It’s still ongoing.  I doubt it will ever be done.

So now, we’re doing the main floor, but we learned our lesson, and this time we’re hiring it out.  New floors, new paint.

I don’t like renovating.  I don’t even like houses – too much work for shelter.  I’m not houseproud, I don’t like decorating, and I don’t really care about style and fashion.  However, the kitchen floor is coming off, their are nail-pops in the living room, and the wall-paper is peeling.  It’s time!

While the kids and I sat there scraping off the wallpaper in prep for painting next week, I thought about how house renovations are much like soul renovations.

You have something that’s been just fine up until now, and then realize that it could be so much better, but in order to get to the better, you have to take everything apart.  It’s messy.  It’s costly.  It creates tension, anxiety, and more questions than you thought you’d ever need to ask.  You need to get advice, learn new ways of doing things, and spend a while in serious discomfort.

Then it’s all over, and if you’ve done the work well, you sense a new spring in your step, and new energy, a new excitement.

This is the kind of journey I’m on in life.  I find myself “comfortable” with things, and then realize the comfort is not healthy, so I let God renovate my soul.  God tears apart those things I’ve used as crutches so that I lean on Him instead of on false supports.  He forces me to see things in a different way so that I’m never again satisfied with the way things were.  it’s painful, it’s frustrating, it creates serious anxiety, but when it’s all over, I have a new way of living, or looking at life, or loving people, or a new adventure I get to go on, and life suddenly has a new vigour, a new energy.

You never know how much your lifestyle weighs until you remove the garbage.  I am liking this freeer lifestyle.

Who knows, I may even become a designer!

Darlene