Unmodified

I have been blessed by having the opportunity to exercise here on a regular basis and after a year of the same routine I got into a rut and was looking for something different.  I came across a website helping hunters get into mountain shape, that is the ability to get into the mountains, carry heavy loads and be successful in their pursuit of game. The website is www.traintohunt.com. Following their protocol and also learning about CrossFit  principles has really changed my approach to training and physical well being. It has been a great gift and one I am thankful for. I could post about my thankfulness in discovering this path of fitness but my point is slightly different.

In doing the workouts listed on the TTH website I find myself modifying many of them since I don’t have the strength to complete them as prescribed. I modify the workouts which is fine. However when they asked us (subscribers to the site) to reflect on our 2012 fitness goals I thought growing to the place of being able to perform the workouts unmodified was a good goal. It will take intentionality and focus for me be able to train unmodified by year’s end. When talking with a friend about my goal he suggested that unmodified become my theme word for the year to give me focus. It made me think about following Christ. I asked myself the question about my discipleship. Here is the question:  am I seeking to live as an unmodified disciple of Christ?

It is tempting to want to take only Christ’s invitation and not his challenge. We like being invited to everlasting life, being part of a group of people and a sort of eternal security. However, at times we can shy away from his challenge to learn to live life as he lives life. We can resist altering our use of time and money. We hold back from examining our values and seeing if they are consistent with his values. We know doing all of this will change our lives and we aren’t sure we want the life change, or if we do we want it on our terms. In other words we are living modified. The challenge is to live unmodified.

Unmodified looks something like this prayer by Charles de Foucauld:

Father, I abandon myself into your hands. Do with me what You will, whatever You do, I will thank You, I am ready for all, I accept all. Let only Your will be done in me, as in all your creatures, and I’ll ask nothing else, my Lord.

Into your hands I commend my spirit; I give it to You with all the love of my heart, for I love You, Lord, and so need to give myself, to surrender myself into Your hands with a trust beyond measure, because You are my Father.

Praying this way takes courage and trust. It takes courage to take the focus off ourselves and onto Christ. Instead of us being the center of our lives Jesus and his kingdom take center stage. It takes trust because we don’t see the future; we simply see the cross and know that we are giving ourselves into the hands of the One who loves us beyond words and our comprehension. The result is that we find life in all its fullest. For it is learning to live as Jesus’ disciple that we both lose all and gain all. It is good and right to surrender ourselves into the hands of the One who made a redeemed us. Let us live unmodified.