There are times in our busy lives that we need to sit back and just ask...why? Today is one of those days. i knew I wanted to do a long run this morning (before it got hot) so I put on my trusty Garmin Forerunner and started out from the house. I was thinking ...maybe 10 or 12 would be nice. I was feeling pretty good, so I just kept going. When I finally started to fatigue a bit I looked at my mileage and realized I had done 16 and still was not home. Here is when I began thinking ...why? By the time I made it to the house I had done 18.3 and was feeling pretty bad. My wife just looked at me upon entering the house and she likewise asked the question of the day...why? My answer was about as profound as I could muster at that point. "Well, cough, I just thought if I could do it..why not" Those of you who are not runners will have a hard time understanding the logic in that, but my fellow runners are nodding their heads in total comprehension. One of the things I like about running is that sometimes there is no real explanation for spending 3 hours on a Saturday morning pushing yourself, you just do it because you can. And I believe I am a better person for it.
Hello fellow runners. I did 8 today outside. Hot, hot, hot ,hot! Needless to say, it was slow...about a 9 1/2 pace. But hey, I was out there (what a great way to spend a lunch). Listened to Phidipiddations podcast. Other great running podcasts I frequent are running from the reaper, dump runners club, fitness rocks, and The final sprint podcast. Check out all these on Itunes or podcast ally.
Prayer in the Workplace
As a physician who promotes healing on a daily basis, I am intrigued with the idea of incorporating prayer into my medical practice. Believing as I do, I have to incorporate prayer into my practice to be consistent with my values. I must pray for and with my patients. I understand that patients come to me as a physician first and foremost, yet I can’t ignore my calling to be a witness for Christ. If I ignored that testimony, would it be tantamount to spiritual malpractice? …I hope no attorneys are paying attention…. This is an area of great controversy and debate in the medical profession. I agree with some critics that proselytizing in the office may not be appropriate given the dynamics of the doctor patient relationship; however, since a patient’s spiritual beliefs may impact their health, it is imperative and appropriate for me to understand and inquire about those beliefs. Taking a spiritual history is often equally as important as the physical exam. Understand that my role as a physician is not limited to Christian patients. I have a virtual smorgasbord of religions practiced by patients I care for. Their religious practices impact their health just as much as a Christian’s beliefs impact theirs.
This understanding has been a transformational journey for me. For years it was if I would walk into my office and put God on the coat rack and then pick Him up again at the end of the day. I was living on two parallel tracks, my job and my religion, and each was aware of the other, yet they never seemed to interact. Many of you may be living this same dichotomy. The dissonance eventually forced me to find some way of merging the secular and the spiritual. If I was to be consistent to both the science and the faith, I had to successfully integrate the two without compromising either. In order to merge these seemingly divergent beliefs into a lifestyle, I began to ask questions.
Are prayer and science compatible? Can they coexist or are they mutually exclusive? Can prayer be tested? What is the evidence that prayer is effective? Is this an issue solely of faith, or can science demonstrate its effectiveness?
If I lived in the Inquisition, some church elders would be collecting the lighter fluid and marshmallows because they would burn me at the stake for asking such heretical questions. But these and other questions must be carefully and thoughtfully addressed before an integration of science and faith can be accomplished. The God of the universe is not threatened or intimidated by questions; He encourages them, because the answers you seek are based in truth. All truth is of God, so if we seek the truth …and that is the goal of science…, we are seeking to better know God. We know by faith that prayer heals. Is this to be left to the realm of the mystic, or are we to utilize God-given techniques to bolster our faith?
Whew! I was on call this weekend and had three deliveries dispersed throughout, but was able to get in a 12 miler Saturday AM. Sunday I rested (Sabbath and all) and Monday, today I think, I did a hilly three early in the AM. I have another baby due tomorrow, so I will try to get in an early three on the treadmill. I would love to get up to a base of about 50 miles a week to prepare for the next marathon training cycle. I am still looking for a Fall run in the South, let me know of any suggestions.
Hi all. I did 13 Sunday on the treadmill at a comfortable 91/2 minute pace. It felt okay but it is starting to get hot here. My treadmill is in a stand alone makeshift building in the back yard (my wife calls it the dungeon since there are no windows) but I have a fan, a TV and a lot of water. A man needs nothing else! Work has been very busy the last few days (several babies!) so I have fallen off my schedule, but I hope to do 6 or 7 tomorrow listening to Phidippidations pod cast with Steve Runner. If you guys use an ipod I highly recommend subscribing to this and several other great running podcast from podcast ally. Hop on their website, (podcastally.com)and search running. Its great stuff and helps make the miles fly by.
Run long!
Run long!
Before we progress too far into this discussion, I feel compelled to outline my bias. Everything you read is presented through the often myoptic lens of the writer’s worldview, and this naturally influences their presentation of even objective facts. I am a Christian …big surprise there…, and I believe in an omniscient, omnipotent, loving, and healing God. John Wesley, the father of Methodism, wrote extensively about healing, the use of “natural” remedies, and the power of healing prayer. Wesley’s treatises on the importance of healing the whole person, physically and spiritually have influenced many, including myself. So I am initiating this discussion based on the firm belief that prayer is a wonderfully miraculous force for healing.
I am a physician, and as such I was trained to be analytical and logical in my approach to healing. I was taught that “first do no harm” meant don’t subject a patient to any therapy that is either unproven or more hazardous than its potential benefit. You expect your health care provider to suggest treatments that are efficacious, practical, and safe. The old adage, “People don’t care what you know as long as they know that you care,” is true to a degree. You do care that your doctor is competent, knowledgeable, and compassionate. Leaps of faith should be used sparingly in medicine, because if you leap indiscriminately you can land in some deep holes. It is with this background, a strong belief in a healing God and a devotion to the scientific method, that I want to consider the relationship between religion and health.
DEFINITIONS
Healing refers to much more than just ridding the body of disease. The origin of the word “ to heal” is haelan, which means to make whole. Whole in this sense is the equilibrium among mind, body, and spirit. This is the healing triad where each component is dependent on the other, and, to achieve balance, all parts must be in harmony. It is like a three legged stool, where all the legs must be balanced or the stool teeters and totters. In this concept, health is defined as achieving a balance of all three components. Simply getting rid of a sore throat with an antibiotic is curing, and that is a good thing; however, healing involves going beyond the bacteria and exploring causes such as diet, stress, relationships, and spiritual well-being, all of which may play a role in initiating, perpetuating, or healing that sore throat.
I am not a theologian. I aspire to the KISS philosophy, Keep It Simple …and Scriptural. My definition of prayer is simple; communication with God. Prayer can take many different forms. Many would assume that it is talking out loud in English to a patriarchal male with a long flowing beard somewhere in the sky. That image and approach is okay, but this communication can be many other things. It can be songs, music, dance, or meditative silence. It can be anytime you and God are together, and that is all the time! This is the essence of what Paul meant when he entreated the Ephesians to “pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.” …Ephesians
I am not normal. You see, I run marathons for fun! When I run, often I pray. As I lope along the riverbank and the fog creeps down the river and the sun gushes over the crown of the trees, I feel very close to God. It’s like when the Psalmist bathes in the glory of creation as the fingerprints of God. The physical experience of running in God’s beauty is overwhelming. I have had some real heart-to-heart talks with God on those long runs. Granted, at times I am praying, “God please let me make it back before I die of exhaustion!” But, for the most part, it is a joyful time alone with the Creator in which I renew and refresh.
Prayer is a dialogue. It is two-way communication. If you spend all of your time talking, how will you ever hear answers to your prayers? Think about constructing a relationship with your spouse. If you spent all your time talking and never listening, you wouldn’t know him at all. So it is with God. How can you expect to strengthen a relationship unless you hear Him? Be still, be quiet, and be open.
When my daughter was about five years old, I was attempting to teach her about prayer. I creatively used the analogy that prayer is like a long distance phone call to God. This seemed to click with her. A few nights later when we were saying her prayers, she looked up and said, “Daddy, I know now why we always pray at night.”
“Why is that darling?” I asked.
She replied, “That’s when the rates are lowest!”
Hi Yall,
Did 5.45 (with my trusty Garmin Forerunner 305) yesterday at about a 8:45 pace and 3 today easy. I have a meeting in the AM so I plan to do my long run Sunday AM if being on call allows. I'm looking for a Fall marathon somewhere in the Southeast, so if anyone has any suggestions, let me know on the comment page. I have found that if I don't have a specific goal, my motivation flounders.
Run Long.
Did 5.45 (with my trusty Garmin Forerunner 305) yesterday at about a 8:45 pace and 3 today easy. I have a meeting in the AM so I plan to do my long run Sunday AM if being on call allows. I'm looking for a Fall marathon somewhere in the Southeast, so if anyone has any suggestions, let me know on the comment page. I have found that if I don't have a specific goal, my motivation flounders.
Run Long.
I did a quick 3 on Monday on the treadmill. I was on call so I had to be near a phone. I have found the biggest challenge to my running schedule is being flexible enough to vary the distances based on time available. I would drive myself nuts if I tried to maintain a rigid schedule because sometimes silly things like work and family take precedence!
Today I did an easy six, but the wind made it challenging. I can only imagine the way the Boston crowd felt on Patriot's day at about mile 23 when the wind hit them full force. Not a pleasant experience. The last time I did Boston was 2005, and it was in the 80's. That was no fun either. I am thinking about doing the big one again in 2008 (I'm too slow to qualify, I get in with the American Runners Association). It's such an amazing experience being there with all these great runners. I love taking my family and sharing the experience. Maybe...just maybe they will remember what an important role fitness played in their mom and dad's lives, and it will rub off on them.
Today I did an easy six, but the wind made it challenging. I can only imagine the way the Boston crowd felt on Patriot's day at about mile 23 when the wind hit them full force. Not a pleasant experience. The last time I did Boston was 2005, and it was in the 80's. That was no fun either. I am thinking about doing the big one again in 2008 (I'm too slow to qualify, I get in with the American Runners Association). It's such an amazing experience being there with all these great runners. I love taking my family and sharing the experience. Maybe...just maybe they will remember what an important role fitness played in their mom and dad's lives, and it will rub off on them.
I did 13 on the treadmill today. The weather stinks outside as rain is finally resurfacing in the Southlands. I wanted to go outdoors today, but just couldn't bring myself to battle the conditions. The treadmill has been a great tool for me given the 100+ degree weather that we see here in the Summer. I realize there are those purist who thumb their elitist noses at treadmills, but if it is the difference between running and not running (and staying injury free) I'll take my occasional jaunt on the rubber mat. I'll see how I feel tomorrow. It may be a rest day (Sabbath and all) but I don't consider running work, so if I feel up to it I might get a short one in.
A while ago, my younger brother Bruce drove himself to the hospital with a severely infected appendix. He drove himself because he doesn’t understand the concept of contraception. Let me explain. At the time, Bruce had four children, all under the age of six. As you can imagine, there was no getting this crowd up and dressed at four in the morning for something as silly as a ruptured appendix. So, because of his galloping fertility, he ended up driving solo to surgery.
As I was thinking about him the next day, it occurred to me that during his hospitalization and recovery he would deal with three distinct yet interrelated modes of healing.
The first, and by far the most immediate, is the mechanical mode of healing. This is surgery to remove the infected tissue. No intelligent person would disagree that this is a necessary and helpful tool in this situation. As young surgeons in training we are taught, “When in doubt, cut it out!” Before surgery and anesthesia was rendered relatively safe, many died from rupture of the appendix and subsequent sepsis. So utilizing the mechanical healing model is highly effective and desirable in this scenario.
The second mode of healing that is available to Bruce is mind-body healing, the mental mode. This is healing that is influenced by how we think, feel, and believe. Unfortunately many Christians have incorrectly associated this type of healing with various “New Age” philosophies, so they have an unfounded bias in accepting the legitimacy of this healing tool. God designed this relationship between mind and body as part of His perfect plan for our healthy existence. We are much more than just our physical bodies. For example, how you feel about an illness can dramatically affect its course. There is a new branch of science called psychoneuroimmunology that studies how thoughts and emotions impact your immune system. It has been scientifically proven that emotions such as anxiety and anger can actually decrease the function of white blood cells, your body’s defense against disease. So, how stressed Bruce is, how much faith he has in his surgeon, and his belief about his own state of health all can impact his healing.
The third mode of healing that I envision for Bruce is the healing power of prayer, the spiritual mode. To date this has not been as scientifically validated as the first two modes,…as it will not need be… yet I firmly believe its role is just as powerful and effective as the other two. In fact, it predates the other two as a healing tool. Prayer has long been associated with healing, and it is only recently that this unnatural separation has developed. For thousands of years the healer in a community was often also the religious leader. There was an acknowledgement of the dualistic nature of health: physical and spiritual. With the advent of the Enlightenment and the age of reason, science began to separate from faith. Science measured the observable and faith dealt with the unobservable. Through the years this chasm has widened to the point now where, for many, there is an impenetrable demarcation separating science and religion. This is unfortunate,…and unnecessary… but there are signs of change on the horizon.
These three approaches, biomechanical, mind-body, and spirit are not exclusive to one another. They work best to achieve healing when they work together. The wise person is the one who doesn’t focus on only one mode but embraces all the gifts and graces that are given so freely. It is impossible to be totally healed without some influence from each area: the biomechanical, the mental, and the spiritual.
I am going to intersperse the rambling thoughts with my training log for running my next marathon. I haven't set a definate goal yet, but I will be picking something soon. I did weights today. I can't stress enough that weight training is important even for hard core runners. It builds strength and endurance. I hope to do a longer run tomorrow. I did just buy the Garmin forerunner 305 ( a great deal online) and it is real fun to play with.
Beginning today I will post a series dealing with health and spirituality. You may find this strange on a site dealing with fitness and nutrition, but in my Christian worldview, there is a direct link to our physical health and spiritual well being. I hope you enjoy.
God heals! Whether it is PMS, menopause, AIDS, or cancer, your physical health and mental well-being are intimately linked to your spiritual health. This is not meant to imply that the only way to physical health is through supernatural healing. Don’t misunderstand. There are many physically and mentally healthy individuals who have no interest in their spiritual development. However, to achieve lasting, true, joyous well-being and balance, the spirit…that part of you that makes you human… can’t be excluded. Daily prayer can be as vital to a healthy midlife experience as exercise, herbs, and diet. Open your mind and heart to the possibility that prayer can be a powerful mode of healing and an essential part of health. Prayer is the thread that is woven throughout the tapestry of midlife giving it strength and unity.
For many, the association of prayer and healing is a natural one. You may have grown up in a tradition where the connection between your physical health and your religious beliefs was encouraged and supported. For others, the correlation between prayer with healing may be weak or even unrecognized. You may identify prayer and healing with a self-righteous, leisure-suited, television evangelist touching the screen and yelling, “Be gone, you evil hot-flash demon!” That is a sad but true caricature of healing prayer and not the focus of this chapter. I am concerned with a revitalization of the idea of unity of mind, body, and spirit.
PRAYER AS A DAILY PRACTICE
Consider prayer as a daily discipline for healthy living. Just as you would get up in the morning and brush your teeth …or soak your dentures… and reach for the vitamins, so you could …and should… have prayer as a part of your daily regimen. This is not meant to equate prayer and dental hygiene, but to illustrate how contemplation and talking with God should be a daily, common practice. For a long time I, like many others, thought of the relationship of prayer with healing from a last-resort mentality: When all else fails, pray. Prayer was the fail safe, hail Mary, attempt to pull it out at the end. I lived under this falsehood for the first few years of my medical practice. I would pray for folks when I believed nothing else…medical therapeutics or surgery… could alter the outcome. Scripture teaches that this is only a superficial understanding of what prayer is. This understanding of prayer places it on par with the Lottery. The reality is that prayer is essential, helpful, and comforting even when you are not in a crisis mode. Certainly there is a place for intercessory prayer in desperate situations, yet connecting daily with God provides a perpetual healing salve to the spirit. Don’t wait until you are sick to utilize this wonderful and powerful gift. Prayer is more than a tool, it is a sacred privilege. God heals through His grace and wisdom, and prayer has an impact. Effective healing prayer begins with a humble and repentant spirit that is more concerned with knowing God than healing. Praying or going to church in order to only “get healed” …external religiosity… has been shown to be ineffective, inauthentic, and unworthy.
You don’t conquer the marathon, you survive it! I am writing this on the way back from the inaugural
The marathon has been used a metaphor for many things, and rightly so. It has elements that pervade various endeavors, discipline, persistence, training, and obsession. But I found myself thinking of how it illustrated how we approach the health and welfare of our families. First, like the marathon, wellness is a long tem endeavor. We live in a society that cherishes the quick and easy. People are rewarded for figuring out short cuts, minimizing effort, and simplifying complex tasks. Certainly, some of those approaches do a lot for improving our lives. I will forever be indebted to the fine person who invented digital cameras, as I can now immediately eliminate the hundreds of pictures of the wall, floor, and heads cut off, that I once paid Eckerd’s thousands to develop for me. There is something painfully frustrating about paying twenty dollars for 25 photographs of the back of a lens cap. Anyway, when it comes to your family’s health, there are no short cuts. Face it, accept it, practice it! If you and your family are to be fit and healthy, you must realize that you are in it for the long haul. For example, diets are horrible because they imply that they are only temporary. What you need is a permanent change in lifestyle, not some temporary fix me up, that really won’t accomplish anything anyway. Think long term when considering any family health related issue. Whether it is eating or exercise or regular checkups, know that, God willing, you are going to be on this planet around 80 years, and what you do now affects the quality of those years towards the end.
The marathon is a daunting task if you look at it whole. Even today if I think of going out and running 26.2 miles, I get intimidated. But if I think of it as just about four six mile courses, it becomes much less intimidating psychologically. Likewise, if you approach health changes in your family and think of the task as being too immense, the key is to break it down into smaller, more manageable segments. For example, don’t take on a new exercise regimen and also quit smoking. Get rid of the cancer sticks first; reward yourself, and then move on to a walking program. Teach your children that small steps will eventually get you to the finish line. A young child may revolt if you radically change their after-school snacks, but a slow subtle change from Twinkies to fruit slices will be more tolerable. Before I ran my first marathon ten years ago, the farthest I had run at any one time was 4 miles, but a slow steady buildup over time allowed me to run the
No one runs and survives a marathon without two key characteristics, persistence and discipline. There comes a point in every race where the head takes over for the legs and you have to decide that you are going to finish in spite of the pain. So, I believe, no one can achieve family fitness and health without a degree of “stick-to-it-tiveness” and commitment. There will be times that the necessary choices will be painful, but you have to stick to your principles and persist. If you won’t do it for yourself, do it for your children. You are the greatest teacher your kids will ever have. Lead by example. This changes your motivation. Seeing health and wellness from a family perspective changes “me” thinking to “we” thinking, and that can have powerful effects on your motivation. Nothing will substitute for committing to a goal and deciding that achieving that goal is non-negotiable. Leaving your children a legacy of good health is one of the greatest gifts you can give.
Indeed, the marathon is a metaphor for many things, and I find its most compelling comparison to a family’s health. Now if I can just spend the next three weeks in my whirlpool bathtub, I will feel human again!
