Sore Muscles and a Humbled Ego

So I thought I was doing pretty well staying physically fit at 60.  I've dropped a few pounds over the last year.  I swim for 50 minutes every other day, and on alternate days I do 45 hard minutes on an elliptical trainer.  My cholesterol is down, and my cardio strength is good.  I decided I had hit a good level and was pretty satisfied with the level I had achieved.  All was well, I thought.

Then some new friends at our church suggested I might want to look into core training and toning.  They suggested an iPhone app that would guide me through a series of exercises to this end.  So I downloaded the app and looked at the exercise set.  "This looks totally do-able," I thought, arrogantly.  "As good a shape as I'm in I'll barely break a sweat or increase my heartbeat.". And I did the exercise set.

Every muscle in my body hurt.  I could barely move the next day.  I was sore for week.  Imposing ashes on foreheads on what is known as Ash Wednesday, I could barely raise a shaky right arm!

Lesson learned:  If you think you've arrived, you haven't.  If you think there are no next levels to reach, you're not thinking.  While some muscles may be hitting on all cylinders, others are dormant.  If you believe all challenges have been mastered, you're dead in the water.  If you're not improving, you're stagnating.  This applies to individuals, groups, teams, businesses...and to the Church, the Body of Christ, the hope of the world.

Getting better requires humility, or getting humbled.  Sometimes unused, untoned muscles get sore.  I'll see you around the next bend in the river.