fit4tubing!

I went snow tubing today. Have you ever done it? It is a BLAST! I went for two primary reasons...most importantly because my youngest daughter asked me to... and also simply because I can!

Just a few short years ago, I would have been in NO condition...physically, intellectually, emotionally or even spiritually...to have EVER considered doing what we did today.

I very easliy would have come up with 5, 10, 15 reasons why I should NOT honor my daughter's request.

"I'm too busy with work today", "I have too many things to get done around here", "I'm too old for that kind of nonsense", "I'm liable to break my neck"...are just a few of the rationale that would have been employed to avoid sliding down a snow covered hill at breathtakingly speedy speeds!

That was before I better understood what "complete living for total giving" really means. Every last excuse I would have handed to my daughter would have resulted in a very disappointed young lady. Please note that none of the excuses that would have been advanced by me were focused where they should have been...on her wish to spend time with her dad.

"I", I'm", "I'll"...me, me, me would have been all that I could have come up with...never considering the opportunities that would be missed by that kind of self-centered thinking.

Don't get me wrong...some of the reasons for not doing it may have been valid. My work is very demanding. I do have a ton of responsibility. Speaking as the senior member of fit4service... I am old and I could break my neck!

But I now better understand that being fit to serve my family means always trying to do the things that keep me in shape and ready to serve. It means always trying to take better care of my health, always trying to manage my time better, always striving to live a more balanced life and always praising God for keeping my eyes, mind and heart open to the value of His blessings in my life.

A life in service to others is very demanding. It's hard work. It takes commitment and focus. It is not for the feint of heart. But it is always worthwhile.

Sometimes it means swallowing your pride. Sometimes it means facing the unknown. Sometimes it means skipping the dessert. Sometimes it means doing the lunges when you really don't want to do the lunges...ever!

All so that you may be fit to serve. Whether you're staying up all night with a newborn or comforting a grieving friend or giving it your all in a new business venture or careening down a huge hill hanging out all over the sides of an overblown innertube just to make your daughter laugh her head off when she sees her old man wipeout with a face full of snow...being fit4service is always worthwhile!