I am training for the Disney Half Marathon. Not the princess marathon, or the star wars marathon, I am training for the Wine and Dine Marathon. If I’m going to work that hard I want to eat well afterward. And enjoy a nice glass of wine.
People presume all sorts of good reasons for setting such a goal—to lose weight, to treat depression, to see Mickey Mouse—but I have exactly one reason. I want my body to work better. There are people who believe that food is medicine; I don’t believe that. There are people who believe that exercise helps you lose weight; that is not true. There are people who believe that walking long distances is fun; that has not been my experience. But I am confident that more exercise will make my body work better. I am my body. I hang out with many spiritual people. Church folk, of course, and pastors, and also people who see the spirit in magic and in the trees and in the wind. I connect with people who are looking for that indescribable part of life, the piece of us that can’t be explained. We call that spirit, or soul, or god, or God. Spiritual people work on their connections to spirit. I have a prayer routine and a meditation practice, I gather with others for worship, for good works, for community. Wherever two or three are gathered, there we feel the spirit’s presence. And when I’m with people who feel that sense of the spirit someone invariably says “this is what’s real” or “this gets at who I really am.” When I work with people who have homes there is a desire to know “what’s really there” in people who don’t have homes or who are food insecure. When we practice how to be spiritual companions for people someone often says “we have to find the real spirit in the person.” Good, compassionate goals. But I don’t think that who we are is only the spiritual part of us. I don’t think that all of who we are is hidden by our physical selves. We are not spiritual beings trapped in bodies. We are not only a spirit. The body is not only a costume, it is not only something that hides who we really are. I am my body. You are your body. Those we meet have bodies that are a part of who they are. Unfortunately, bodies give us trouble. In the search for the fast-enough Half Marathon I have had to have my heart checked, my knees poked, and I am now sitting with leg up to reduce swelling in my ankle. I take medicines that keep my lungs accepting air, and my stomach digesting food. As I struggle to make my body better, my body responds with listing the parts that need more work. This is true for every person we meet. Some people’s bodies struggle with addictions, others with brain disease the cause mental health challenges. Some bodies have hands or fingers or lips that are less nimble, or legs or ankles or feet that are less able to carry them forward. All of this bodied-ness interferes with living our lives to the fullest. And all of this bodied-ness is part of who we are. We cannot help people by focusing only on what is happening with their spiritual lives. It is not enough to assist only with bodily needs. To see people as they are we are called to see people’s spirits and their bodies. Ask me about my prayer life, but ask me also about my upcoming race.
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1 Corinthians 13:12 (The Message)
We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! Reflection I find it hard to not know the whole plan. I like to lay out the details of what's coming, put items on my calendar, make to-do lists. A well planned day has all the places I'm going, the times to be there and the travel times, who I am meeting and what we are the goals of each meeting. In Myers-Briggs language, I am about as "J" as a person can be. The Poor People's Campaign is, according to Myers-Briggs, a "P". P is for possibility and the campaign is all about that. We will possibly find out more, we will possibly have a meeting, perhaps at this location, perhaps at this other. Its all a fog, I am peering through a mist. To be honest its exactly what I don't like about God--God seems to wait until the last minute to make decisions, and rarely tells me the plan. So I go to meetings, more, probably, than I need to, because I'm hoping I'll find out additional information, I go to meetings and sit telling myself to be patient. Telling myself it won't be long before the campaign will be as clear to me as it is to God. In six weeks it will be over and I will know what happened. In just a few days I'll have been to one Rally and one Action and I'll know how it goes. In some ways, this is the lament of a person who is used to being in charge. As an ordained white person with organizational skills, I often get to tell other people where to go, and what to do when they get there. But for this campaign, I am determined to learn how to follow. And to follow without spending the whole time telling the leaders that they should do it differently. So I'll show up at the common at 10 in order to be in time for a meeting that is at 10 or 11 or 12. And I'll check-in at two locations, they are not that far apart. I'll risk that I'll be late to one meeting or another. I'm going to trust that God is in that fog. I'll show up. I trust that God will show up, too. Prayer: Holy One, creator of time, give me the skills to sit with unknown time. Give me the patience to wait. Guide me in the work of faithful following. Amen. From 5/11/2018 |
My ThoughtsFor my organized thoughts, see my book Five Loaves, Two Fish, Twelve Volunteers: Developing Relational Food Ministries. In this spot are thoughts that appear for a moment--about food programs, mission, church, building community, writing, and whatever else pops into my head. History
January 2024
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