All Weekly Sharpening Posts

November 2, 2023

Living Lean (Part 1)

Jeremy Renner, the actor who played Hawkeye in the Avenger movies, among many other roles, was crushed and nearly died when his snow-removal tractor fell on him.  Like a hero in a movie, he was trying to prevent the tractor from sliding into his nephew.  He broke several bones, including eight ribs, an eye socket, a knee, and a shoulder.

He has recovered physically from this accident he suffered last January, but the experience has marked him.

In a CNN interview, he said:

“I just feel very blessed and very lucky to be upright and walk around and to live life,” Renner said. “I’m very, very clear. My life is really lean, if that makes sense. There’s no fat in my life anymore. I don’t have time for that. So, there’s something really beautiful about having that superpower.”

He’s very, very clear, and his life is really lean.

Those words jumped out to me.  Is my mind and focus clear?  Is my life lean?  The alternative would be living a foggy, fat life, and I know I don’t want that.  I’m not talking about body weight, of course, but a life that doesn’t make room for waste or excess.

Renner continued:

“I was really clear about how I want to spend my time, and who I want to spend my time with,” he said. “This to me feels like family, sort of lifestyle things we talk about all the time. And then we have the spirit itself, it’s much more the shared experience. And that to me is where I want to spend my time.”

The Apostle Paul also has something to say about the clear and lean life in Ephesians 5:15-17.

Look carefully then how you walk (live), not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

The Christian man who understands his life is a mission must carefully examine how he is living.  Are you living lean?  Or do you have a lot of fat in your life that needs trimming?  Are you living wisely and making the best use of your time?

The days are evil, and they will drain you of your spiritual energy and missional pursuits unless you seek the Lord’s will is.

This shouldn’t require a near-death experience with a snow-removal tractor first.

The Lord has a will, plan, and purpose for you every day.  This makes life exciting.  We miss the good stuff when we fill our days with fluff that fogs our vision and makes us fat.

I’ll look at this more next week.