Exercise – Transformed ♥ Heart

As I was going through my files, I found some more tips on aging well that I hope are helpful. First, be sure to spend time in God’s Word, praying, and participating in the spiritual activities in your church that give you godly fellowship and socialization. Then, always find reasons to be thankful (1 Thessalonians 5:18). If you feel anxious, upset, or frustrated, take the time to write down things that you are thankful for. Expressing gratitude can help you to deal with your emotions, and may prevent or reduce depression. People who are thankful tend to be physically healthier as well. Expressing gratitude often makes you feel more positive and optimistic, and saying thank you to others makes them feel appreciated and special, which will also help mend and build relationships. Being thankful and keeping a gratitude journal may help you to sleep better at night. By focusing on what you are thankful for and by keeping things in perspective rather than feeling sorry for yourself, you may find that you have a better self-concept and are more sensitive to the needs of others. As a result, others will enjoy being around you, and you will realize that you still have a purpose in life.

The following is a poem about an old man who still found purpose in his life:

“An old man going a lone highway, came at the evening, cold and gray,
to a chasm, vast and deep and wide, no bridge spanned from side to side.
The old man crossed in the twilight dim; the swollen stream had no fear for him.
But he turned when safe on the other side and built a bridge to span the tide.
“Old man”, said a fellow pilgrim near, “you’re wasting your time with building here.
You never again will pass this way; your journey will end with the close of day.
You have crossed the chasm, deep and wide. Why build you this bridge at eventide?”
The builder lifted his old gray head, “Good friend, in the way I’ve come,” he said,
“There followeth after me today a youth whose feet must pass this way.
This stream that has been as nought to me to the fair-haired youth might a pitfall be.
He, too, must cross in the twilight dim; Good friend, I’m building this bridge for him.”

(-Author unknown)

Next, take care of your physical body. Get plenty of sleep. Eat healthy, nutritious foods, and take supplements as needed. Maintain a healthy body weight, too. Many seniors eat out too often and ignore the fact that restaurant foods have a lot of added sugar and salt, and can lead to obesity and other health problems. Stay physically active by walking, swimming, or biking daily, and by participating in sports in which you are less likely to get injured. Older people don’t drink enough, so be sure to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water; and of course, avoid alcohol beverages and smoking.

Following the above tips will help limit the medications you are on, and by taking fewer trips to the doctors and hospital, you may find that you are not getting sick as often. Also, prepare the environment of your home in ways to avoid accidents. Putting a seat in the shower and having a non-slip surface on the floor of the shower will help prevent slipping and falling. Staying safe can also mean don’t become a victim of crime in your home or while out and about. Without becoming paranoid, you can learn to be more cautious; and by being aware of your surroundings and the people you see close by, you may avoid being robbed.

Here are some other ways to maintain a positive attitude, no matter what. Try to look at a glass as being “half full” rather than “half empty”. Be flexible, and embrace beneficial changes. Keep a sense of humor. Ask for help when you need it, and offer help when others need it. Don’t watch a lot of television or spend too much time on the computer. Do some other type of activity that you enjoy every day (reading, sewing, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, making or building something, birdwatching, etc.). Appreciate the simple things around you, like sunsets and rainbows in the sky, flowers, babies, and animals. Staying involved in life, and maintaining a positive attitude as you grow old, will keep you and everyone around you much happier. And always remember, if you are a follower of Christ, the best is yet to come!

I have had a couple different blogs about reflections recently. This time, I’m going a different direction with the word reflection. For some of you, a mirror may come to your mind when I say the word, and you may not like what you see in a mirror. Perhaps, it’s your physical appearance–too tall, too short, too fat, too skinny, too light, too dark, too many wrinkles, too bald, etc., or it may be a character flaw (what you know is on the inside) that you don’t like. It may be that you have an anger problem, or that you are too impatient, too hypocritical (or perhaps the opposite), too lazy (or just a lack of self-discipline to get necessary things done), too dishonest, too proud, too negative, or too much of a worrier. We’ll look at both kinds in this blog.

The first physical characteristic that I notice about myself when I look in the mirror these days is that my weight has been redistributed in my body. I’m still not very heavy (even close to the the same weight as I was in high school many years ago), but somehow it seems that my top keeps dropping to my bottom and thighs a little bit more each decade. And now, during this Covid-19 period of social distancing and quarantining, I have found that I have “bad hair” days frequently. I need a hair cut so badly to reshape what used to be a short style haircut.

Then, recently I have also seen someone in the mirror who has made too many excuses for my character flaws due to being raised (or in many ways, raising myself) in a very dysfunctional, single-parent home in the 60’s and 70’s. I don’t particularly like either of those reflections that I have been seeing. Well, should I just fret about the things that I don’t like about myself, or do something to try and change those things?

I believe that if you really want to change negative things about yourself and become more disciplined and Christ-like, God will help you. Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”; Matthew 19:26 says that “with God all things are possible”; Matthew 7:7 says, “ask, and it shall be given unto you”; and Romans 7:24 reminds of how wretched we are in ourselves, but verse 25 says that victory comes through Jesus Christ our Lord. So, to change those things that you don’t like about yourself, start by talking to God about them, and ask Him to help you change them. Then, set goals, make a realistic schedule, find someone who will help keep you accountable, and finally, thank God for what He is going to do in and through you. Don’t let the enemy discourage you (or even make a monkey out of you). Although God sometimes does things supernaturally, He often uses the natural ways to teach and grow us, so it often takes time to get rid of those bad habits and to develop good habits for Him.

My plan of action is to get up a little earlier to start each morning with a longer quiet time praying and reading the Bible (Romans 10:17 says “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God”), schedule in at least 2 forms of exercise daily (probably an aerobic and an anaerobic form), ask a family member to help keep me accountable, and to turn off (or walk away from) anything that distracts me from my goals. Then, of course, I’m going to thank and praise God for what He is doing in me.