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Strengthening Your Faith Muscle It’s important to strength train your body to make sure your physical muscles are in the best shape possible to help you live your life. Similarly, it’s important to strengthen your spiritual muscles so they can help you deal with the demands of the world. You can strengthen your faith muscle with sayings, verses, poems, and quotations. Doing so can revitalize your soul. As I have tried to describe who God is to me and how I have come to understand and know Him better, I've discovered a wonderful picture of Him through parenthood. I have probably learned more about a strong faith walk with God since having children than ever before. To know how deeply I love my children, that I would die for them, literally, and forgive them (regularly) for breaking the rules, gives me but a glimpse of what God has promised me. I have also developed a better understanding of unanswered prayer. When things don't go the way I want, despite my best efforts, I can trust God is still providing me with the best answer for me. He has a greater perspective than I. It’s my job to try to listen to God as best I can. One of my favorite quotes on prayer is, "Prayer does not change God, it changes me." That's why I pray--to change me. I can get anxious easily if I don't keep my guard up. When I do the best I can and let the results go to God, I can rest assured. That is true comfort in a world that expects so much out of each of us. A suggestion for getting and staying in shape spiritually is to be more concerned with what God has to say to you than with what you have to say to God. To get in touch with God and your spirituality, do the following workin and workout exercises. WORKINS Workins are designed to shift your thinking, perceptions and attitudes by strengthening and stretching your mindset. Reflect and write your responses to the following: • Faith (to me) means/involves _______________________________. • Have I intentionally sat down and reviewed, reflected upon, and carefully considered what I believe and in whom I believe as an adult? What have I discovered? • What or whom do I serve with my life? • Do guidelines exist for me to live by? If yes, what are they? • How deeply do I believe in these guidelines, laws, or principles? • Am I willing to follow these laws or principles despite the cost? If not, do I really believe they are valuable and true? If yes, how will I stay strong in my beliefs? • What do I regularly need to do (or not do) to sustain a strong faith and healthy spiritual perspective in my life? • What do I want to say is true of me and my faith walk a year from now? • What is the first step I can take to make that become a reality? WORKOUTS These workout exercises are action oriented so you can proactively apply the concepts of this article to your life. • Sit down with someone you respect for their faith walk; that may be someone who you observe manages his or her stress, fears, and anxiety differently or better than you. (Up until now!) Consider where and how God has been a part of your life. If you can't think of any ways in which God has played a part, ask friends where they have seen God at work. (Sometimes their ability to point out how their life has been impacted will enable you to see it in your own life.) • Memorize a verse referred to earlier on worry, Matthew 6:34 (NIV): “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” And/ or Matthew 6:34b (LAB) “Live one day at a time.” In fact, you can refer to all of chapter six in the New Testament book of Matthew. It’s called the worry chapter and is a balm for the anxious soul. • Memorize, repeat, and reflect upon the Serenity Prayer. "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change [other people and circumstances], the courage to change the things I can [that includes proactive attitudes and actions], and the wisdom to know the difference [help get my ego, fear, insecurities, and limiting beliefs out of the way]." excerpt from Progress Not Perfection: Your Journey Matters by Kate Larsen (Expert Publishing Inc.: 2007 ) ----- Great Read: Smart Women Don’t Retire—They Break Free by The Transition Network and Gail Rentsch I have noticed a surge in articles and media attention to the topic of retirement describing how Boomers are redefining what retirement looks like. Jack, my husband, and I have been visiting that topic ourselves. Our conversations have centered on what do we want to do with the next half of our lives. We have the energy, capacity and interest to think beyond the routine of our lives in our younger seasons. So, when I saw a description of Smart Women Don’t Retire—They Break Free, I ran out to buy one to read. Here is what the short snippet said; “This book is a blueprint for women redefining retirement. It’s a practical guide for these women, showing how to choose what to do next, whether it’s pursuing a new career, volunteering, or becoming an entrepreneur. This book shows you how to create your own whole new set of life choices.” I have found the book to be all of those things which includes a lengthy resources guide at the back. As I read it, I thought of both clients and friends who would be encouraged or challenged by reading it. So, even if you are not near the time of retirement (age may or may not have anything to do with it), you likely know women who are. This book would be a solid suggestion. Oh yeah, they have also created the “only nonprofit focused on women over 50 with over 1400 members nationwide.” These are smart women who are using their experience, intelligence and energy to continue making a powerful difference in the world. Count me in! Visit their website at: http://www.smartwomendontretire.com ----- |
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