Steve Argue recently commented on Twitter that he doesn’t wear headphones because – I don’t want to distract myself from facing ‘me’. Most of us who run would understand the situation he described. Good running pushes us through our barriers, past our limits, and flushes out toxins (both physically and emotionally). Good running strips away the pretty exterior, the excuses of inactivity, and fosters a prolonged period of combined physical strain and repetitive silence. I find when I run, it feels as if I’m overcoming depressed feelings, laziness, and anxiety, reminding body and mind that they are to be alive, vibrant, and active.
Steve’s comment also points to the ongoing internal conversations with self that often take place during extended exercise. These therapeutic reflections help us process problems, reflect on past conversations, and engage in creative thinking (if only we had a pen to write those down!). In fact, the old creative adage is that we have our most creative thoughts at one of the three “B’s” – bath, bed, and bike. We have some of our best ideas just before we go to sleep or while in the shower or while outside biking/running.
I remember when Don Miller wrote in Blue Like Jazz that one of Satan’s schemes would be to get us busy. I also think his scheme includes a dumbing-down of our thinking and fortitude. We prop ourselves and our lives up on technology, surrounding ourselves with noise and constant entertainment. We walk down the street to a soundtrack and we avoid the deeper things as we stay dependent on external stimuli. We literally don’t hear ourselves think for very long any more. So, our depths become shallower, our foundations less solid, and the winds of circumstances become easier to push us around.
I have found that I need to, like Moses, take off my protective measures, unlace the sandals, and just be still to see what God might want me to hear. Like Elijah, I need to come out of where I hide and be able to hear the whisper of God. And, sometimes like Job that means I need to brace myself and be ready for some deeper truths and reminders about who God is – and who I am.
In a class I teach at Bethel, I have our adult students spend 2-3 hours in silence and solitude. They are terrified of it in advance! They report later that they were dreading the experience and entered it scared. Many report breaking down and crying during the time alone. In the end, they report that they found it to be one of the most profound experiences, one that they’d do again, and a place where they learned more about who God is, about his Word, and about themselves.
What distracts you from facing ‘you’? How have you let noise, hurry, and crowds push out your availability to let God get your attention? What steps can you and I take this week to make sure we’re taking the basic steps before we get running too fast?
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