I would like to tackle a couple of topics this morning: moderation in all things–including our spiritual growth–and working daily with excellence and joy.

1. Moderation
I have written several times in the last few weeks on New Year’s Resolutions. I think they are, by and large, a good thing. However, they often become quite ambitious: “lose 30 pounds, eat healthy every day and exercise 45 minutes a day.” The problem, of course, with overly-ambitious resolutions is that quickly we give up on them. Or, sometimes we go strong for a few weeks, delighting in the new life upon which we have embarked, and then crash and burn when sometime interrupts the flow.

This is one reason, I think, why we often fail at dieting. Rather than see a diet as a lifestyle, we adopt a strict asceticism in our eating and then, when we fall and eat the whole pint of ice cream, throw up our arms and say, “Well, I guess I failed at that, so I might as well give up altogether.” Then the floodgates open.

It is no secret among those in the fitness field that the gyms are packed in January and that by February the numbers are back to normal, except for the number of annual memberships sold! The “regulars” at the gym, so I am told, sometimes even stay away during January because it is too hard to get a treadmill.

This all concerns me because I see this attitude also being adopted when we consider spiritual growth. Disappointed at the state of our soul, we embark, New-Year’s-Resolution-style, on an ambitious project of spiritual renewal: an intense prayer, Scripture reading, fasting or works of mercy regimen. My guess is that many of us crash and burn by late January in this area too.

So what then shall we do? Give up altogether when we have fallen and eaten the whole pint of ice cream? Not at all. I think our ambitious projects, even in faith, and our subsequent failures invite us to a different way. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus invites us to take up our cross daily and follow him (Luke 9:23). In other words, just as moderation in eating and exercise is beneficial for our bodies, so too moderation in the spiritual disciplines is also beneficial for us. In other words: baby steps.

Both world-class athletes and professional musicians will tell you the key to their success is daily practice. First you master the basics, even if they are tedious, before stepping up to the next level. So I invite you to consider your life in terms of prayer, Scripture reading and works of mercy. Where would you like to be at the end of January… 2010? And then ask: How can small steps, a daily routine, be taken so that we might take up our cross daily and follow our Lord Christ?

2. Excellence and Joy in Daily Work
Speaking of the daily grind, I always see a lot of grimaces come January. Perhaps it is because of the winter perma-cloud that descends on NW Ohio this time of year. Perhaps it is the winter blahs. I wonder if this not a time to recover delight in our daily grind, in our everyday work, in our “toil.”

Now what I am speaking of is not simply a “grin and bear it” attitude (which in my mind is just a grimace with a thin veneer of a smile). Nor am I encouraging an artificial “positive attitude” wherein we do helpful self-talk. Remember the Stuart Smalley character from Saturday Night Live? “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me.” No, instead God desires for us something much deeper.

God has given us the gift of work (even when it is “toil” as in the book of Ecclesiastes) and God expects diligence and excellence in the tasks which God sets before us. If you are a builder, work to be the best builder you can be, by God’s grace. If you scrub floors, scrub those floors to God’s glory. If you are charged with the care of children (in my humble opinion, one of the highest callings, and here I am including teachers), care for them with God’s own tender mercy and love, and in doing so you will raise up children for the Kingdom. Whatever “state” (vocation) you find yourself in, do it to God’s glory.

When we recover this excellence in our daily work, then true joy is found. This is not ephemeral, wistful happiness, but a deep joy that rests in the conviction that God has given us the gift of work and has provided an inherent satisfaction in doing that work well.

Peace be with you this week.

Calendar
You may want to check out our calendar for upcoming events. The newsletter also has more detailed information on many of these activities. Finally, remember that the e100 Bible reading challenge begins in just a few weeks… spread the word!

Next Sunday: January 18
You are invited to join us for a youth luncheon this Sunday (1/18/09) after 10:30 am worship and a Creative Arts and Puppet Ministry workshop beginning at 12:30 pm. All are also invited to a public performance at 6pm as part of this workshop.