There is more to gain than to lose.
Two things were happening simultaneously this morning on the treadmill at the gym:
I was doing a “tempo run.” For those of you who have the pleasure of never having done a tempo run, it’s a type of training run where you go long periods at a comfortably uncomfortable pace. Marcel Dinkins from Peloton inspired me to push through for this particular tempo run. Bless her. There is some grand lesson about discomfort and growth here, but I’ll save that. I’ve got 40 days to cover, after all.
I was also watching the Today show on the treadmill TV, which is my peculiar habit—streaming Peloton runs while reading the closed captioning for the TV. After a segment on “five things you should never do when you’re cooking at home, according to a professional chef” (one of those things was — never start cooking with a full dishwasher, which I appreciate), Mark Wahlberg came on with ash on his forehead to publicize his Catholic prayer app.
It’s Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. We’ve got 40 days until Easter to clean up our act, sacrifice some comforts, and dig deep. Fasting and prayer are part of my life. But, because I’m stubborn, I don’t like to be constrained to doing “Christian” things because Mark Wahlberg told me to from February 22nd until April 9th. The host of the Today show segment gave up Instagram for Lent, and I applaud her for that. Mark Wahlberg is giving up meat — good for him! My issues with Mark Wahlberg aside (find me in person if you ever want to talk about it), I was excited to see two people actively discussing their faith life on National morning TV. If Marky Mark can go on TV with ashes on his forehead, talking about his Prayer app, what’s possible for me to do?
I’ve recently been feeling a bit stuck creatively. I’m finding it harder and harder to get the discipline to write for myself since writing is such a massive part of my day job that pays the bills. So right there on that treadmill, I came up with this 40-day challenge.
What if instead of giving up one thing for 40 days, I explored 40 things I could give up for the rest of my life?
And what if that project was blasted out to my friends? What if I felt accountable to others to speak my heart daily, even if it was just one paragraph?
So that’s what this is all about. Every day, I’ll share something I’d like to give up forever. I hope you will join the conversation, share with friends, and dig in with me. I can’t promise the moon, but I can promise some laughs and camaraderie, my favorite bible verses, and pictures of my dog.
I'm scared, but let's gooo!!! 😆