A dear friend of mine is working on a 40 Days of Community program at her church. It got her thinking about how this "40 days" idea can be carried over into various other areas of life. We get so bogged down in "things" and in "commitments." But, what if we knew something was short term, if we knew something would end at some time in the foreseeable future at which point we could choose to continue or not?
With this in mind, this friend and I have started compiling a list of what we might possible do or not do for our specific 40 days. She is in New Orleans right now and will be back on July 26 at which point there will be approximately 40 days before the start of the new academic year. What do I want to change, taken on, give up, etc. for that brief time? What challenge can I offer myself that may turn to habit or may turn to hell?
You have to understand, I am not one to give up something for Lent or make grandiose New Years resolutions. When I find something about myself I want to change, I try to change it. Monday is usually a fine starting day for me. This will be different. I will challenge myself to do or not do something for those 40 days and with my accountability partner, I will work toward some change in my life that will impact me and others for the better. So...here is my list and I think it is final...
1. 40 days of Prayer. I have gotten away from prayer for some reason. It is so true that when we need God or when we have a reason for rejoice, God is really awesome and we acknowledge that. When we have contentment...we forget that this is also His miraculous gift to us. So, each day I will specifically set aside time for prayer whether I am in trial or I am filled with peace. The prayers of others I will take seriously and bring them before God daily.
2. 40 days of increased activity. I am not saying I will run 5 miles a day or even every day but again, I have fallen off the wagon (or the treadmill, more appropriately). This summer has been a struggle in terms of my exercise and it is hurting. I felt so good 3 months ago, having dropped a good amount of weight and having been exercising regularly. I was pretty invincible. Well, the stress, the long nights of rehearsal, etc. and the exercise took a back seat to life. It had not become life so took the first hit. I forgot how good I feel! I need that back. So...even if it's adding a block to the dogs routine or jogging while I watch NCIS (cuz I can't miss that!!!), the activity will increase.
3. 40 days of no red meat. Yeah...you heard it. I have always wondered if I could go without it. Now, I love a good burger or a prime steak but let's face it, going down is awesome. It's that feeling like you are going to either explode or settle in for a long winters nap afterward that makes me wonder if it's worth it. So, for 40 days I will put away the burgers (and then maybe the french fries will wander away as well?), the steaks, the thick-cut BBQ Pork Chops, the bacon and sausage...and see what happens. God made all this awesome stuff for us to eat, why not eat more of what is naturally healthier for me...chicken, fish...oh yeah...VEGETABLES. Those pesky green things? yeah, I'm supposed to eat those too. So...gonna try and see what happens.
4. 40 days of journaling. When I was a kid I wrote like a starving man eats, as if there is no tomorrow, only what is before me today. Life was filled with little dramas to record, hurts that only the blank page could understand, loves that could only be confessed with paper and pen. I never kept diaries, just wrote on whatever I could find; scrap paper, notebooks, insides of book covers...anywhere. As I grew older my 'ramblings' turns to more poetic expressions of what was in my heart and head. Admittedly there were some 'bottom of the barrel' periods and my poetry reflects that but it was a release, an intense expression of teenage angst, fear, joy, confusion, longing, and a million other HUMAN and real thoughts and feelings. At some point, I stopped. As if the pen had run dry and no replacement was available. I have no idea why but I do know, the desire is there. So...for this stretch of time I am going to daily put fingers to keyboard and pour out my thoughts. I am sure some of that will be done here or the ideas and insights will end up here, shared with all. So...the ink well will be opened and the quill readied.
Those are my 40 day ideas. They are not grandiose but, the grand scheme of things, I don't think they need to be. Sometimes it is the smallest changes that lead to great and marvelous things. In this minor alterations in my lifestyle, I will be reminded, every day in very concrete and tactile ways that God has given me choice and I must make a choice every day to live with Him or without Him. Each moment is an opportunity to make a better choice than before. Each meal, each moment of free time, each morning when I wake or prepare for sleep...choices are made. Will I choose to pray, to write, to eat better, to exercise? Who knows. But, for 40 days I will try to make the right choice and then reflect on it's effect on my life.
So...I challenge you. Can you do 40 days? Can you set one goal; to take on one change for that short time? Join me. Find a partner to work with you and set some goals whether it's 40 days of training for a marathon or 40 days without gummy bears, challenge yourself. Jesus was tested in the desert for how long? He had God on His side but...oh...WAIT! We do to! Go ahead! Test yourself and let's see if we can start changing our lives, with His help and each others, 40 days at a time.
Well, technically Pork is a white meat not a red meat (though declared an unclean animal in the bible), but except for the very rare exception of something my husband has made when there isn't much else to eat (and it's always really lean), I haven't had red meat as a staple in my diet since I was 15. It can be done, and it's surprisingly easy. My parents cooked with a lot of high-fat red meat when I was growing up and when I gave it up, I felt so much healthier. And now if I try to eat any fatty red meat (like a non-lean hamburger), it makes me feel ill.
ReplyDelete1 Thess. 5:17 says to pray without ceasing. :) I think God wants us to be in constant communion with Him and more prayer even the fleeting thought or word while doing things makes it all more bearable. When I feel grumpy about doing laundry, I make myself pause and utter a thanks to God that I have clothes to wear and children to clothe, when washing dishes that we had food to eat. It is a mind-change and a habit of blessings that helps with attitude.