tired

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Not In Shape And I Didn’t Even Know It

I am not in shape, but until yesterday I didn’t know it. 

Not in shape and ai didn't even know it

Most people know when they are not in shape. They can feel when they have gained a few extra pounds. They know when they haven’t been exercising that their muscles and cardio are not where they should be.

This week I played hockey for the first time in five months. I had also come off of a month of vacation during which I ate more than I exercised. I knew going into the game that I was not going to be in great shape. 

The good thing was that many of the other guys who were playing were in the same boat as me, so I didn’t stick out like a sore thumb. But I certainly did know I was not in shape. 

Physically it’s easy to know when you are or are not in shape.

When it comes to other things, it’s not always the case. 

During our vacation I did not play pool. For a while before we left, I had been playing a bit almost every day.

I had been working on a few shots, figuring out how to hit them correctly. I was starting to get to the place of being fairly consistent with making those shots. 

But after a month of no pool, it was like I had taken a few steps backward. In other words, I was not in pool shape. I had to once again practice those shots I’d been learning, just so I could make them consistently.

When we get out of the rhythm of doing something, we will become out of shape for that activity. We’ll get rusty and need to polish our skills again. 

This week I learned something else I’m not in shape for: being back at work. 

I was not in shape for work but I didn’t realize it … well, until this morning, that is. 

I’ve been working as a pastor for 36 years. I’ve been the pastor of my present church for 25 years. A little vacation was not going to cause me to get rusty at the skills or tasks that I do. My vacation from work didn’t make my muscles flabby. 

In fact, it didn’t matter how much junk food I ate during my vacation, it had no affect on the shape I’d be in for work.

I worked my first week back, got the things done that were on my agenda and preached on Sunday. Nothing seemed to be different. It was all the same as it had been before my vacation.  

I didn’t miss a beat. 

… Except I napped Sunday afternoon and Sunday evening and slept in Monday morning. Ya, I’m a bit out of shape and I didn’t know it. 

Here’s the thing: There can be a lot of things that we are not aware of. We don’t realize it until something exposes those things. Many of us have been away from physical community with other Christians for a long time. Take some time to think about how out of shape you are with attending church and being with your brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s time to do something about it and get back in shape.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: In what way are you out of shape right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

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Why You Should Be Tired More Often

Did you know that you can be too tired to worry or be stressed about something? … It happened to me on the weekend.

be tired
TODAY viewers share the funniest spots where their kids have fallen asleep.

When you are tired, you lose some important cognitive abilities … like when I’ve fallen asleep on the couch watching TV and Lily says, “Come on Paul, it’s time for bed.” It makes perfect sense to get up and go to bed – after all, I am sleeping and our bed would be much more comfortable. 

But brain connectors get short-circuited when you are tired. You don’t see things the same way. You don’t think rationally at all. 

When Lily tells me to get off the couch, my brain tells me that the show is not over. Truthfully, I’m not watching the show – I’m asleep! My brain tells me that I’ll miss something, but actually I’ve already missed a lot of things. 

Your brain doesn’t reason well when you are tired; you accept things the way they are.

So sometimes I’ve stayed on the couch, sleeping in some weird position that I pay for in the morning … all because my brain makes me think that this is better than getting up and going immediately to bed.

I’ve been told – though I can’t verify it to be true – that you study better when you’re tired because your brain will more readily and easily accept the information you put into it. When you are alert, you question the information or challenge it. … Just make sure the information you are studying is correct or you will do brutally on your exam!

That brings me to this weekend …

Normally, when I get a phone call late in the evening, I’m immediately concerned even before I answer the call. But on Saturday night I had already nodded off when my cell phone started ringing. 

I just instinctively reached for it.

It was my guest speaker for our church service the next day. Very quickly he told me that his plane had been grounded and he would not be able to make it to speak at our church in the morning. 

Now, normally that would send me into a little bit of a panic. What will I do? What should I speak on? How can I possibly prepare something in time? 

But I was tired and I just accepted the information, jumped into bed and went to sleep. 

No panic, no stress, no worry. I was so tired that my brain didn’t challenge the information. It just accepted it. 

In the morning, I remembered I had spoken at a men’s breakfast a few weeks earlier. I pulled out that talk, spent about forty-five minutes editing it, and was ready to preach. 

No stress, no worry. … Man I’m glad I was tired when I got that phone call!

Here’s the thing: There was one more thing I did do that night as my head hit the pillow. I prayed and asked God to somehow give me a sermon or something to preach. And very quickly in the morning the idea of preaching that men’s message popped into my head. It seemed like God was saying, “Here you go”. It would have made more sense to be stressed and start to work on something right away. But really we should rely more on God to supply our need … and maybe be more tired, so we don’t stress or worry about how He’s going to come through.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What are you stressed about right now that you should ask God for? Leave your questions and comments below.

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I Was Tricked Into What I Liked

The other day I got tricked into doing something I liked. That might sound crazy because why would anyone need to be tricked into doing something they liked doing?

Well, it happened; let me explain.

I got a text from one of the former players of the Kingston Frontenacs OHL hockey team. He was going to be in town and wondered if I was going to the Fronts game that night so we could see each other. 

The reason he was in town was because he now plays hockey for an Ontario university and they were playing the Queens University hockey team the next night. 

I thought this was great. We would be able to catch up on Friday night at the Fronts’ hockey game and then I would get to see him play the next night at the Queens vs Guelph hockey game.

When I let him know that I would be at both games, he said his game was going to be a sell out because it was a championship match. So I immediately went online and purchased tickets. 

As we continued to text, he mentioned that he probably wouldn’t be playing. I thought he meant he wouldn’t get many shifts on the ice. 

I learned later that he wasn’t even going to dress for the game. He is a first year player and, since the team has a ton of 4th and 5th year guys, he would sit this one out. 

When he said that, I thought, “That’s okay. There’s another former Frontenac who plays for Queens and I’ll at least get to see him play. All is good.”

Saturday rolled around, and it was a busy day. I had lots of little things to do to get ready for Sunday and, by the end of the day, I was tired … but I had tickets to the game. 

My wife, Lily, was also tired and at one point said, “Maybe we should just not go.” 

When she said that I was really tempted to stay home. Both tickets had only cost $16 and I was so tired. I also knew I would have more to do after the game, so staying home would be the smart play.

We even paused by the font door and considered it again. But I had said I would go, so out we trudged to the car.

We had a tough time finding a place to park near the arena – it really was a sell out crowd. But when we got inside and up to the stands, the energy in the arena was invigorating. It was like I got a second wind just being in that crowd. 

The game was end to end in each of the periods. The third period started with a 1-1 tie. 

In the end, the home town Queens University team won the game and the championship. 

Lily and I were so glad we went to the game and had been part of it. 

Here’s the thing: Sometimes our tiredness tempts us to do things we shouldn’t, or not do things we should. We all lead busy lives and that causes us to sometimes be tired. It is often clear to us what God would want us to do or not do when we have a decision to make. Don’t let tiredness keep you from making the right decision. If you follow God, you will be glad you did. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: When you are tired, what do you base your decision-making on? Leave your comments below.

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It Was My Most Difficult Drive Ever

Even though the driving conditions were excellent, last night was one of the most difficult drives I have made.

I’ve driven through snowstorms when all you could see were the big flakes coming right at the windshield. 

I’ve driven in rainstorms that were so heavy and dark that I was thankful when lightning flashed so I could see the lines on the highway.

But a drive like the other night’s ranked up there as one of my all-time most dreaded times behind the wheel.

Ironically, the weather couldn’t have been better. The roads were dry; the sky was so clear the moon and stars lit up the road.

The traffic was light and I was never hindered by trucks or cars from passing slower vehicles. 

What made the trip one of the worst was that I was tired … really tired.

I’d done a lot of driving in the previous two days, and had some late nights. Earlier in the afternoon we’d taken a two hour trip to see Lily’s mother for Mother’s Day.

I never go to bed at 9:30 pm but that night I could have. Instead, we were just starting to make the two hour trek back home.

I’ve had some scary night drives in the past. When I was young and foolish, I fell asleep in a buddy’s car driving back home from out-of-town.

When he woke me up, I thought we were home. He instead said we had a flat tire. I also noticed that my shoulder was a little sore.

I couldn’t get out of my side of the car, but when I climbed out the driver’s side and came around to my side, I noticed we had two flat tires, and racing stripe-like indents all along the body of the car from the steel cable on the guard rail. 

My friend, who was driving, had also fallen asleep. 

Another time in my 20’s, I was driving up to my girlfriend’s cottage late at night after working all day and leading a youth group activity in the evening. 

My girlfriend was tired and said she was just going to close her eyes. I turned up the music but it didn’t help. I woke up when we hit the shoulder. I swerved back onto the road, and eventually stopped the car about twenty feet down in the ditch between the highway.

I sure didn’t want that to happen this time, but I was so tired it could have. I snacked on a few things, changed my position often, and kept shaking my head.

I leaned forward so that my chin was almost on the steering wheel. Lily rubbed my back and pinched my shoulders – anything just to keep me awake.

We talked to our daughter on the phone for about thirty minutes of the trip. It was a good thing because just being involved in that conversation helped to keep me from closing my eyes.  

I was never happier to turn into our driveway. I think I was asleep within minutes of walking into the house.

Here’s the thing: When you are tired, there is a tremendous pull to give in, close your eyes and rest – even when you know that it’s dangerous to give in to that temptation. The urge is so strong, it can be overpowering. The best way to prevent that danger is to not put yourself in the situation at all. … When it comes to sin, the same is true: don’t put yourself in a place where the temptation is too great to resist.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you do to keep yourself from temptation? Leave your comments below.

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Don’t Get Tired Of The Routines Of Life

Routines – some people have them and some people don’t. They can be a blessing and sometimes a curse.

In my home, one of us has a number of routines while the other one is not very routined at all.

It may surprise those who know Lily and me, but it’s me that’s the routined one and not Lily.

It’s not like my life is completely scheduled or set up to flow a certain way. It’s more like I have several things that I do the say way, or that I do at certain times on a regular basis … things like  when I get up in the morning, how I go about making my breakfast, or my weekly wings night.

It also goes way beyond that to when and how I study for my sermons each week, when I write for my blog, and making sure I exercise each day.

In some ways it drives Lily nuts that I have to do things a certain way.

She just wishes I would do something different instead of being so predictable … like maybe not have wings on a Saturday night, and instead sit down with her to a nice, leafy arugula salad with delicious oil and vinaigrette dressing.

On the other hand, she takes comfort in those routines because she knows what I’m doing, when I’m doing it, and for how long.

What freaks her out sometimes is when I break a routine … like the other day.

She was in a panic when I got home from hockey, and wanted to know if I was alright, if I had heart pain or something.

After Saturday morning hockey, I usually get home around 8:20 am. This week I was talking with one of the guys when I left and we kept talking in the parking lot for over 20 minutes.

Lily was worried that she would get a call from the hospital that I had had another heart attack.

Now on the other hand, I don’t say too much but I can see how Lily could be a little more efficient if she had a few routines in her life.

Routines take the thinking out of what you do next. They give you tracks to work in. For example, I know the first thing I’m going to be doing Tuesday mornings at work; I don’t have to ponder where I’m going to start or what I should do next.

The routine thing for me has developed over the years because I did not grow up being very routined at all. But I have come to learn that having some routines in life helps you plan and schedule better, and ultimately keeps you moving in the right directions.

Some people see routine as being boring but, in reality, routines help you have more time to be creative because routines open up space and space is what you need to be creative. Did you hear that, Lily?

Here’s the thing: When we don’t have routines, things get squeezed out of our lives in favour of other things – maybe some good things, but not best things. One of the best things you can do is create a routine for your time with God. The space you create there will become an amazing environment to develop your relationship with God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What’s one routine you try to stick to? Leave your comment below.

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I Was So Tired After My Recent Road Trip

There is something about being on the road that tires me out.

I’m not sure what it is … maybe it’s not sleeping in my own bed or maybe it’s keeping later hours, but being away from home just tires me out!

I don’t know how many times I’ve come home after a vacation and said, “Man, I need a vacation from my vacation!”

The whole idea of vacation is to relax and rest, but I’m always tired after my rest and relaxation time way.

It must be a bit of a mental thing, because when I lived in a dorm for four years I was able to feel rested, even though home was really halfway across the country.

Home is where you tell yourself it is, but once you settle on it, you get your full rest there; anything else kind of drains you a little.

This past week both my wife, Lily, and I were away from home – in separate directions. I was in the Toronto area for three days and Lily was in Ottawa for that same period of time.

I stayed one night in a hotel and the next night at our daughter’s place. Lily spent her nights at her mother’s. We were both in pretty familiar and friendly territory.

But when we both arrived home Saturday afternoon, we were wiped. If we hadn’t had things to do, both of us could have easily taken a big ol’ afternoon nap.

In fact, that might have made us more productive!

Our time away was spend with people we knew well. Both of us had a mixture of business and family time in our itineraries. But it seemed to drain us and not give us renewed energy.

I’ve talked to other people who share similar thoughts. The consensus is if you can make it back home after a full day away, it’s better being home than staying overnight somewhere else and getting back the next day.

You might think this feeling would be detrimental to hotels and resorts, but they seem to be able to sustain a good business. We like home, but obviously we also like to travel and experience other places.

I’ve been on vacations, missions trips, and business trips, some lasting as many as four weeks. But no matter where I’ve been, or how long I’ve been away, when I get back home it feels different.

When you get home, that’s when you really are at rest. Your whole body relaxes physically and mentally … that is unless you’ve been at home for a long period of time and find yourself a little stir-crazy. That’s when some time away from home will “reset” home for you.

It’s like a computer that’s been working for a while but then freezes. You can’t get it to do anything; the mouse won’t work and pressing the buttons does nothing.

All you have to do is hit reset and the computer comes back on, working like it always did.

A brief time away resets home so that coming back, walking in the door, flopping on your bed brings you back to the rest that comforts your body, soul and mind.

It’s home!

Here’s the thing: When you spend regular time with the Lord, that’s home. You know the place, the setup, the atmosphere; there is rest there. But sometimes that regular time gets disrupted, making you spiritually tired. You need to reset, get back to your time with God and find rest.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: When was the last time you reset your time with God? Leave your questions below.

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Have You Ever Got Tired Of Trying To Plan A Vacation?

I have taken a winter vacation about three times in my life. One time doesn’t count because I was in my early 20’s. At that age, you neither appreciate nor understand any benefits of a winter vacation. A great portion of your life is vacation!

beach

The other two winter vacations have both been in the last 14 years. One was a trip to Florida, and Disney World, near the end of a winter, and the other more recent one was a Caribbean Cruise at the beginning of a new year.

Both times I’ve told myself that this winter vacation thing is a great idea, and we should do it again. But with ten years between the first two, and four years since the last one, we really haven’t made it a habit.

There are always very good reasons why we don’t. Scheduling is a big deal. It’s not like I can just book any time and go. I have lots of arrangements to make, and then sometimes there are meetings and activities that I can’t get out of.

Money is always an issue. It would be nice to go on a winter vacation and it not affect your wallet but, no matter how cheap people say their trip was, when you start to look for a winter vacation, there are never those kinds of deals.

Lil and I decided to take a winter vacation this year to somewhere warm. At first we had big plans – some all-inclusive resort, where the beaches have white sand and the sun never stops shining.

But every place we checked looked like it would be a way more than we wanted to spend. We then had plans of using a relative’s time share, which would cut the cost down considerably. But when we looked at the dates we could go, there was nothing available.

Now things at work are changing and I may have to change my vacation dates to make it fit. I’m thinking that if we want a winter vacation it might have to involve setting up a tent in our living room for a week!

In some ways, that’s kind of Biblical. There was a festival in Israel, called the Feast of Tabernacles, where they all set up booths (tents) and lived in them for a week. Mind you, the purpose of that was to remember that God had the Israelites live in tents when they left Egypt.

I wonder if that’s where we got the idea for modern camping … where after a week of camping you begin rejoicing that you have a solid roof over your head, a bed that doesn’t stir up claustrophobic nightmares, and you can cook without lighting a match or rubbing a couple of sticks together.

Wow, I’m getting tired and fed up with trying to figure out a winter vacation. Maybe that’s the real reason we have done it so infrequently. You feel like you need another vacation from trying to plan for one.

Here’s the thing:  We often think that if God is in something, it will just fall into place. Well, sometimes things are difficult and take a lot of work, even when God is in them. Sometimes we might have doubts along the way, even when God is in it. Many times it’s not until it’s over that we can look back and say, “See, God was in it the whole time.” … Don’t give up.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is something you had doubts about, but, in the end, saw God in it all? Leave your comment below.