~1 Timothy 4:8~ "8 For athletic training only benefits you for a short season, but righteousness brings lasting benefit in everything; for righteousness contains the promise of life, for time and eternity." (TBT) "8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." (KJV)
I have learnt that there are a lot of principles from exercising and healthy living that can be applied to our spiritual lives. So what is spiritual exercise? Just like there are many different types of exercise I believe there are different forms of spiritual training like exercising your faith by trusting God daily, going into your prayer closet daily to prepare yourself for spiritual warfare, and searching the scriptures daily to draw strength from or use to encourage someone else with.
You exercise to lose weight or stay healthy - You need to get rid of that which is weighing you down and keeping you from being the best possible version of yourself. The burdens of sin, fear, temptations and whatever other weight you may have gained over the years from an unhealthy spiritual lifestyle.
You exercise to get stronger - We train spiritually to be prepared and strong enough to face the spiritual warfares we face daily and the times we have to intercede on behalf of others.
You exercise to be energized and feel good - When you constantly find yourself in God's presence and mediate on His Word day and night He will give you joy that surpasses all understanding. You will have a new zeal for life as the Holy Spirit refreshes you and the Lord fills your cup daily.
1. What you put in is what you get out - The saying goes, "What the heart is full of, the mouth shall speak". This is why mediating on the Word is so important.
2. Summer bodies are created in winter - Your quiet time with God is important. Seeking His face daily is important. Those are the moments when your breakthrough and transformations occur.
3. You have to push through the pain to get through the pain - When you start gyming, the beginning stages are always the worst. Your muscles can ache for days but you have to push through that if you want to see change in your body. Sometimes the pains of life make you want to just stop and give up but you have to push through it and in the end, the reward will make it all worth it.
4. You have to eat right too - Exercise is only half the work, you need to eat right to. You need to feast on God's Word and make sure you stay away from the junk.
5. Sometimes the scale lies - Sometimes the scale remains the same but you are still losing cm around your waist and everywhere else. Sometimes the scale remains the same because you are burning fat and gaining muscle. Maybe your scale is broken, in that case you won't get the correct reading. Maybe we are trying to measure up against the world and in that case we will always come up short because the scale of the world is broken. So don't stop. It doesn't matter how slow you go as long as you keep going.
6. Gyming is always better when you do it together.
It is always better when you have a support group and as a Christian that is exactly why belonging to a church fellowship is so important. Surrounding yourself with people who are on the same journey as you gives you the encouragement you need to keep pushing on.
Prayer: Dear Father, help me today to exercise my faith and to keep going even when I don't always see the bigger picture just yet. Help me to become a stronger, healthier and better version of myself. The version You want me to be. In Jesus name Amen.
