Gaining Grounds

Galatians 5:1

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

About a year ago, I decided to move most of my fitness to the morning before work. Since then, I have been pretty consistent with lifting three days, riding the exercise bike three days, and then taking a day off. My morning routine is timed to be like clockwork. Up at 5:00, breakfast until 5:20. Devotional reading from 5:20-5:30. Reflection until 5:40. Work-out from 5:45 to 6:05. Shower, dress, and out the door by 6:45. Work by 7:15. I also do assorted aerobic activities such as biking, running, and kayaking, in substitute or in addition to the exercise bike, usually though in the PM.

It is one of those paradoxes that discipline gives freedom. I don't spend a lot of time hemming and hawing about my morning routine. I follow the path and remove it from consideration. When I used to work-out at night, I typically would spend a large amount of time delaying. Now, with that out of the way, I come home with that over and out. It has freed me. I have two close friends who both recently said individually that they observed that I am disciplined. Like other arenas of life, discipline can be learned.

Coffee plays an important role in my morning routine. But, in order to make the morning schedule work, I have to make it ahead in the French Press and then microwave it for two minutes in the mug and then drink it down promptly to provide the caffeine boost. Compromises sometimes are necessary to complete the goal at hand. I also don't like being somewhat sweaty when I leave the house in the morning, even after showering, but it is a trade-off for accomplishing my exercise strategy.

I don't like coffee makers and brew in stainless steel. My goal when I make the coffee ahead of time is to make enough for two days and the French Press is not big enough to do that. I used to just add cold water to the already brewed grounds and try to bring the brewed coffee up to a quart. I had the insight recently, in order to make the 2nd part of the coffee brewing to be comparable strength-wise, is that I need to re-add hot water to the existing grounds.

There is still life and taste in the grounds yet to access it I realized that more hot water was needed.

I am at the point of my life, nearly 54, where my first-round of grounds have been brewed. I make a decision now to either toss the existing grounds and coast. Or to add a ho-hum cold water maintenance attitude to the grounds. Or, I approach the grounds with a hot attitude and get everything I can out of the time that remains. I am tempted to disengage and not dream big dreams anymore. Everyone tells us to dream big but we usually don't hear much about the dark side of dreaming. This disappointment, the suffering and pain, and the disruption that dreaming requires. Money and attention wind up not being what we hoped for--and then I know I have then drilled down into what the dream was constituted of in the first place: God, Ego, Other, Some combination of mixed motives?

There are positive returns but also a decent amount of rubble and ruin. It is an imperfect process and product. Not a win or lose proposition, probabilities versus certainties. I have nothing to prove anymore and that permits me to do good things for the right reasons.

One final note: Don't expect people to be grateful and appreciative overtly. A lot of doing good is just keeping your head down and not looking for accolades. Does the plant thank the ground and pay tribute? But, no ground, no plant, no fruit.

Trust that God has His eye on the sparrow and so does He have his eye on us.