Abiding on the treadmill

I've been running on a treadmill this week. It kind of feels like I'm cheating or something, but...

It was bitter cold Monday, and I wasn't feeling the greatest, so I swallowed hard and decided to use a treadmill at the Y instead of running outside. I admit, I had grown a little uppity about treadmill running. I had become a road-runner, not an indoor runner. Rain, sleet, snow... cold or hot... it didn't matter. I was a tough guy. (I know, right? It's laughable.)

Anyway, Monday morning I walked into the Y I used to work at, and there were several friends just inside the door. Right away they wondered what I was doing there. I sheepishly admitted I was running on the treadmill instead of outside. I felt a little wimpy and hung my head.

However, it finally dawned on me: At least I was doing something! Running on a treadmill beats laying on the couch (not that I didn't also lay on the couch Monday).

Then, the more I thought about it, the better I felt. Who was I trying to impress? Yes, I would need to do the bulk of training miles for a road race on a road, but it didn't mean I had to be stupid and run outside in below-zero windchills.

So, I ran 3 miles Monday and today, 6 on Tuesday, and will likely do my 12 on a treadmill Friday. Why not? 

Then, in the latest book I read, they talked about the idea of "abiding," that John uses in his gospel.

Slow Theology, by A.J. Swoboda and Nijay Gupta was pretty good. In the final chapter ("Don't Ever Give Up") they discuss the theological meaning of the verb "Abide." Here's what they say on p.174...

"Abide" has a kind of old-timey religious ring to it; it sounds holy and spiritual (and it's used in the cult classic The Big Lebowski in the saying, "The dude abides"). "Abide sounds like a transcendent state of being and spiritual bond with the divine that is otherworldly and mysterious, doesn't it? So it is a little ironic that the Greek word that John uses here is menō, a very common and ordinary word for living, persisting, or remaining in one place. In fact, it's most basic meaning is "to stay."

The authors talk about this for several wonderful pages - times when Jesus used the word, and the theology behind God's abiding love. On p.175-176 they add...

That's Christianity at its most basic: yearning to be near Christ and to do whatever it is that he is doing. And he wants the same, to be near us... The Christian -- the one who abides in Jesus -- is the one who continues to hold firmly to their love for Christ until their very end.

It's a really beautiful section - brings a tear to my eye reading it again. The whole book was like that.

So, I'm thinking that this time spent on the treadmill is a chance for me to not only stay in one place while (still) running... but a time to abide with Jesus too. 

At least that's the excuse I'm using...