Preaching Through Spiritual Drought
MOST DAYS AROUND 11:45 a.m., I turn on my screen saver, grab my gym bag, and walk two blocks to SportsMed, a gym owned and operated by a local medical practice. Sue or Brenda greets me by name and hands me a locker key and a couple of towels. A few old men, their workout finished, sit at tables and argue over coffee about why Chicago winters aren't as tough as they used to be. I change, then join the dozens already working out. The faint strains of techno-pop come from the aerobics room, full of bouncing dancers, mostly women. The free weights are mostly unoccupied, while over at the Cybex machines, a guy who looks like the Skipper from Gilligan's Island is getting pumped up. The Schwarzenegger types don't seem to like the atmosphere here; they work out at some gym over on North Avenue called "Heavy Metal." For the most part, we in this congregation are ordinary people with lumps and limps and laproscopic scars. Some of the people sweating around me are staff from the clinic next door: orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists, and other support personnel using their lunch hour to work out. Sans lab coats, I can't really tell the healers from the wounded. We don't talk much, I and the lunch-time crowd, but we know each other by sight and nod, affirming one another's faithful presence. I imagine each person's story, his or her motive for being here, the dreams. Over by the mirrors is the woman I call "the Dancer," thick through the middle, hair faded to white, gently moving her arthritic joints to a graceful heart song. A therapist with a clipboard is watching "Duck Boy" as he waddles around the track in a University of Michigan sweatshirt, dipping and pausing at each step. Fresh scars on both knees indicate his ungainly gait must ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 18,013 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
