5 Things I recommend You Do While Commuting in London (England)

I have been a London commuter for almost 7 months now (which should tell you how long I’ve been married), and I was thinking to share with you some things I recommend you do while commuting.

Commuting basically means traveling by public transport (yes, Public Transport) to get to work and back home. I basically have to take a bus, a train, Tube (circle line) and then tube again (northern line) so that I would get to work every day, almost 1.5h travel time in total one way.

1. Enjoy The Lord

No matter what you do, whether you travel or not, you need to enjoy the Lord, otherwise everything becomes dry, frustrating, and wears you out.

Especially in the morning, forget about the free newspapers, listening to music, playing games, or catching up on your sleep. Just enjoy the Lord!

You can call on His name – He’s so real and so near especially in the morning! Eat the Word by pray-reading it, praying over the Bible to inhale God.

Also, read the Morning Revival portion (see what came out of my enjoyment today here). Just touch Him. Don’t do it as a routine, but do it as a rule – enjoy the Lord!

2. Look at People’s Faces

This may sound crazy, but in London people never look at one another, never smile, and never talk to one another on public transport (unless they are super-good friends, they are family, or they are just special). Don’t just “travel to work and back”, but rather look at faces, even pray for people, seeking to maybe talk to them.

Maybe say Hi, or, Good morning. But most of all to pray for them. Especially as you see no smile on people’s faces, as you see them making sure they read something in the paper or listen to music and not pay attention to anyone and anything else… Lord, save so many of these ones!

3. Take Some Pictures – Look Around

Don’t be a paparazzi, but look around, see some cool things, learn to appreciate the design and architecture of the train stations / tube stops, and pay attention to what’s around you. Snap a photo here and there, and collect these pictures.

In London there are some amazing looking tube stations (metro stations) and train stations. Take a minute and look around, take some pictures (the iPhone is made for that!), and enjoy, observe, appreciate! Take a picture of the sunrise, the sunset, the things around you… – learn to find the little joys in life.

4. Read Something / Listen to Something

You can’t read all the time, and you can’t look at people all the time, so what you can do is also listen to something. I recommend some of the NYCYP CD’s, with good quality Christian music, or the LSM Radio, with many good eye-opening and spirit-uplifting life-study of the Bible messages and talks.

Or read a book – whether by physically reading it or by listening to an audio book (just started, A History of the World, by Andrew Marr). I also recommend listening to some podcasts 🙂 and I wish the ones at Bibles for America or Rhema would follow the ones at ageturners.com and make some podcasts on some spiritual matters…

5. Sleep – Rest!

Don’t be legal on what to do while commuting. Believe me, I tried to be legal about reading every day in the evening, and I just couldn’t do it. It’s good to rest a bit after work. Let your eyes rest, and make sure you get a seat 🙂 and even take a nap.

You can still listen to stuff in the meantime, and you have to make sure you know where you get off – don’t sleep and go past your stop! Remember: rest is very important, and a 20 mins nap will strengthen your body for the rest of the day (yes, there’s more to do besides commute and work).

Don’t be Legal about it!

The above 5 things are not the only things you can do while commuting, but I personally recommend them (in the order above). First of all, touch the Lord. Tell Him to come with you while travelling. He’s real, He understands, and His presence will shepherd your inner being. Just take Him into your boat.

Mind the people around you: don’t “mind the gap” only, but look at people and things. Use the time to read, listen to things, get some culture and some spiritual nourishment… and don’t forget to rest!

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