Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Plateau

pla·teau
plaˈtō/
noun
  1. 1.
    an area of relatively level high ground.
  2. 2.
    a state of little or no change following a period of activity or progress.
verb
  1. 1.
    reach a state of little or no change after a time of activity or progress.




Some of you who know me closely know that I've been in the process of getting healthier and losing weight for a while now (about 2 years).  Over this time I've taken off approximately 70 lbs.  I'm not trying to brag, but I'm pretty proud of where I've come from, not to mention I've put on a decent amount of muscle in the process.  After losing 70 lbs, my arms are actually an inch bigger!

Anyway, it seems that I have hit a plateau. And, man, it is so frustrating. I have put on and lost the same 5 lbs since august. This week I was back up those 5 lbs again. This can be one of the most frustrating things that can happen to a person when they are in the process of losing weight.  I'm still not sure what I need to do to get past it. But I have a feeling that it will be a matter of eliminating something (wholly or partially) from my diet or adding some new physical activity to my routine.

But plateaus can happen in so many areas of life. Sometimes they happen in relationships. Other times they occur in our professional lives. Yet other times plateaus occur in our spiritual lives.

Breaking through a spiritual plateau is similar to taking on a plateau in weight loss. Chances are you'll need to either cut something unhealthy from your life or add a new physical expression of faith.

If you are feeling stuck spiritually, maybe you'll need to get rid of something you've been holding onto.  It might be something obviously sinful, like an addiction, but it might be something less apparent like spending too much time watching Netflix., too much time tracking your fantasy football team, or checking Facebook on your brand new iPhone.

Other times instead of eliminating something that is hurting your relationship with God, you need to add something new. Have you been reading your bible? If not, do it. If you are, try going a little deeper and doing a topical study on how great men and women of the bible prayed. It will not only give you some interesting reading, but it will also likely change the way you pray.  Maybe you need to find new places that you can pray. It could be that you need to be giving to your local church financially (yes, this really is important). Or maybe, just maybe, you should actually share what God is doing in your life with someone else! Tell them why it matters that you love Jesus and Jesus loves you (and I'm talking more than just fire insurance here).

Are you feeling stuck spiritually? Do something about it! Start by talking about it. Leave a comment expressing what you are going to change and how you are going to do it, then do it!

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Loving Your Job

I know it's been too long since my last post.  And I swear that while this post won't cover all of the details of what I've been doing and what's new at Shiloh, it does have a lot to do with it.  Also, more post should be coming in the near future.  So here we go:


Yup, that's right.  For the first time in my life I can honestly say that!  And it is a great feeling.  While I wouldn't say I'm a work-a-holic by any means, I really like being at work and I really like doing my job.

There's a huge "but" though.

It seems that I have been so enthralled by my job and its busy schedule that I've forgotten about other parts of my life. I've made a point to stay close with my wife, and I honestly think that our marriage is probably the best that it has ever been.  Amanda and I have found a new church home that we are extremely excited to be a part of and we are really looking forward to getting involved more there.

So what is the part of my life that I've been ignoring?  My friends.

Men often live life like they are an island...

It's easier to just talk about sports and beer...

Relationships are like bank accounts...

No, I guess I will go with the last one.  Relationships ARE like bank accounts.  You can only withdraw as much as you are willing to put in.  It seems that over the summer I failed to make just about any deposits into my "friend" bank accounts. Now my bank accounts seem all but depleted and I'm wondering why my friends seem distant and upset.

For anyone else who is dealing with this (and I really hope that is no one because this is a miserable corner to work yourself into) the most important thing I'm learning is to start fixing things now.  Don't wait until you have more time.  If you think your friendships are worth having, start investing into that savings account now!

Most of my posts end with a question to my reader, so here goes?  Have you ever alienated a friend (or group of friends)? And what did you do to help remedy it?