Revive

Date night for many couples might involve dinner and a movie. For my wife and I, this past Friday, it was a spin class. This is why date night is not as frequent as my wife might like. It was not just any spin class, mind you, it was an old hip-hop, glow-in-the-dark, dance while you pedal, spin class. In between trying not to fall off the bike and avoid a seizure from the strobe lights, I spent most of the class observing the other participants in my class. What struck me was how packed this class was with young people and how into it they were. “You came because you wanted to be transformed!” shouted the instructor over the bass booming through the walls. “You came because you know that change is hard work. You’re not happy unless you’re working to be more.” As the instructor yelled, I wondered if this packed crowd was really there for the glow sticks and the music, or a push in their lives. Perhaps what they were drawn to was a community, where you come to go beyond your comfort zone and to make yourself better. In my faith community, do I model the value of sweat equity toward the ideals of the Christian life? As a Catholic leader, do I engage people with novelty or do I offer an authentic call to be more? I may not return to Revive Studio for another neon class, but maybe I can revive the belief for myself and others that there’s no greater transformation than the exercise of discipleship.