Day 365 of The Bible in One Year:

2 Chronicles 36:23 - "'This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: '"The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you--may the LORD his God be with him, and let him go up."'"

Malachi 4:6 - "He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse."

And with those passages (also the finishing of the 2nd readings of Revelation and John) comes the end of my first complete reading of the Bible. Did I understand it all? No. But, I figure it's not my last chance. It'll be Day 1 again tomorrow.

Day 331 of The Bible in One Year: Reading 1 Chronicles and Micah for the very first time. Re-reading 1 Peter and Luke. Looking forward to doing this again next year.

I was shopping for a card the other day. It was for the general purpose of encouragement, thinking of you, etc. So I moseyed over into the massive card section at a local store. I looked for the encouragement section, and started getting flustered! Birthdays here...anniversaries there...congratulations there...thank yous over there...where was encouragement? I looked and looked, and at last, spotted two cards or so in the miniscule encouragement section, that certainly both left something to be desired.

So I kept wandering, and eventually found myself in the Christian section. Whew! Encouragement cards were everywhere, and I settled upon my choice.

What is it that's so special about being part of Christ's family? "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." -1 Thessalonians 5:11

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Day 74 of My Pop-Free Existence: I'm experimenting with a mixed fruit smoothie the next couple of weeks. Peaches, pineapple, strawberry, and mango all crowded in there with the banana and other staples. It's pretty good!

Day 76 of The Bible in One Year: "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." -Proverbs 4:23

This is Mom and Dad right after the 2nd Annual Shamrock Shuffle on Saturday. It was Mom's first Shuffle. Don't they look great?

As for me, there was a relatively small field (around 75 or so), so I finished higher than I ever thought I would. I was 13th overall, with a time of 26:10. I can't help imagining what would've transpired had I been in top form on this day, running in the 20s. I might have been able to win this thing! But alas, that's for another year. I'll take today's time as a great debut to a season.

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Day 64 of My Pop-Free Existence: 2 Dr. Peppers while watching KU embarrass MU on Senior Day. I've gotten to where I'm not really depending on pop, so that I can now enjoy the occasional pop on the weekends. Perhaps splurging every now and then will be more effective than a full-stop, in the long run.

Day 66 of The Bible in One Year: I'm right in the heart of Exodus right now. It's amazing to me how forgetful the Israelites are of God's goodness. Less than 3 days after God miraculously parts the Red Sea and destroys their Egyptian pursuers in the process, they're already grumbling against the Lord again, wishing they were back in bondage! Seriously, does that seem absurd?

Well, sure it does...until I remember that I tend to sometimes forget God's goodness in much less than 3 days. Heck, sometimes only 15 minutes have passed since He's demonstrated His power to me, and I've already forgotten about it. I'm a lot like those Israelite grumblers sometimes. It's good to know that God continued to give the Israelites second chances in Scripture, and that He'll do the same for me.

Day 59 of My Pop-Free Existence: Do strawberry limeades count as pop? ... I'm gonna go with no. I cannot do without strawberry limeades with the fam after a rough day.

Saturday's workout: 5 miles, 48 minutes.

Monday's workout: 3 miles, 30 minutes.

...in the Same Direction:

(Last week)
Monday's workout: 3 miles, 33 minutes

Wednesday's workout: 3 miles, 33 minutes

Saturday's workout: 5 miles, 51 minutes

(This week)
Monday's workout: 3 miles, 33 minutes

Wednesday's workout: 3 miles, 29 minutes

Day 56 of My Pop-Free Existence: Still rolling...
Day 56 of The Bible in One Year: Still an unbelievable blessing...

(Post title borrowed from the title of Eugene Peterson's book, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society.)

Herm Edwards is a former NFL football coach most known for his speech where he boldly declared: "You play to win the game!"

As much as we football-types like to make fun of Herm for this, I think there is a bit of truth there. Let's stick with football a second. One of the most frustrating things about some football games is watching your team get ahead by doing all of the right things: being aggressive, executing well, and making plays...and then watching them stumble late in the game by becoming tentative. We've given that phenomenon a name in football fan circles: "Playing not to lose." And what usually ends up happening? Your team loses, not necessarily because they're not better, but because they lost their swagger. It's terrible to watch.

Some days, I find myself not being that assertive, proactive type of person that I know God made me to be. Rather, I become a passive, excuse-laden guy who is "playing not to lose." Today, I stand on 2 Timothy 1:7 (YLT): "For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

Friday’s workout: Just your basic 3-miler after a rough day. Finished it off by hitting 6 free throws in a row. Not nearly my record (34), but it’ll do for now. 3 miles, 33 min.

Saturday’s workout: Official training start for the River Run 10-K. Weekend long run, so I set out to try 5 miles. Started at 10-minute pace, and was already gassed at 2.5. So I slowed to 12-minute pace, and decided at mile 3 that I’d keep going until I fell over. It was right about then that I glanced down at the “2%” that was flashing across my treadmill’s dial every so often. It took me that long to realize: I was going on a 2% grade the whole time. Uphill. Naturally, that motivated me even more. I kicked it back up to 10-minute pace after mile 4. I’ll never forget the feeling I had at mile 4.13, with David Crowder roaring in my ears, “There is no one like you…” I realized it for the first time all day: “I’m going to make it!” 5 miles, 55 min.

I don’t really put a whole lot of stock into the caloric readouts on the treadmills I use. But still, doesn’t 818 sound like a lot of calories burned?

Day 43 of The Bible in One Year: Joseph might be my favorite character in the Bible. He was hated, betrayed, sold, deceived, sold out...and yet the Lord gave him success in all that he did, wherever he was. His attitude toward God never changed from its child-like naivete, as if to say, "How could I even think of doing wrong against God?" God rewards him greatly in the end, and gives him a chance to bless those who had betrayed him earlier in his life.

We generally consider child-like obedience a bad thing in our culture. I think we should reconsider.

Day 40 of My Pop-Free Existence:

6-8 oz. filtered water
6 oz. natural plain yogurt
1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
1 cup frozen blueberries (pictured) or strawberries or oranges or whatever you fancy
1 banana
1 tablespoon flaxseed oil (optional, and I'm out of this right now)

Nothing fancy...just a bunch of fruit and a bunch of protein that's 10 minutes, start to finish. It begs the question: "Why haven't I been doing this all along?"

I've really got to work on the whole Monday thing. When I worked out on Saturday, I felt like R. Kelly. "I believe I can fly..."



Day 34 of The Bible in One Year: I started Job today. Not sure I'm ready to have my life thrown into the harsh perspective that Job offers whenever I read it, but it's next!

Saturday's workout: Like night and day. I was full of energy, and felt my body saying it could have gone even longer and even faster than it did. Years of experience told me to call it good with what I'd planned. 3.11 miles (5 km), 33 minutes

Monday's workout: 25 days off + a busy gym + an unfamiliar (and dead) iPod + 3.5 hours of sleep = a long, ugly evening on the treadmill. 2 miles, 22 min.

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Day 25 of My Pop-Free Existence: One of the coolest finds of 2010 for me comes in the form of my new favorite pop substitute...

The numbers don't lie. Ouch! I mean, 8.3% bone mass?!? Come on!

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Day 14 of The Bible in One Year: ...the first day I blew it, and didn't get my reading in. The good news? 1. I'd already been to Bible study at 6:30 that morning. 2. It created an opportunity for an unusually rich Friday in the Word--which I seized as I made up the ground, in addition to my regular reading.

The 24-hour fitness center at my new home. Starting tomorrow.

And...here we go again.