exercise and faith

Susie and I just got back from our Anniversary weekend in Nags Head. It was awesome!! We stayed in a three story house overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The view was breathe taking.

Well Susie and I awoke on Saturday morning and, being the husband of the year that I am, I cooked her breakfast. After a wonderful breakfast I asked what she wanted to do, to which she responded “hey isn’t there an outlet mall right up the road? Let’s go Shopping”. Now I know that many men out there hate shopping, but I am not one of them. I made my way to the Gap and Famous Footwear. Once inside the shoe store I noticed that they were having a huge sale. So I decided to purchase a new pair of running shoes. Mind you, I have not been running in about 6 months. Now I am not saying that is a good thing it is actually horrible, but once you get out of the routine it is very difficult to get back into it.

So after my purchase Susie quickly reminded me that I no longer have an excuse for not working out, because I have been using the excuse that I do not have any shoes. So Sunday evening I began the beginning of a whole new me. I went running. I actually made it 2 miles, not bad for just getting back into it. Now I know for some of you like my friend Perry Noble who is running a marathon this weekend that sounds weak but I had to start somewhere. Perry has actually inspired me without even knowing it so thanks Perry for the push; you seem to be the one who always pushes me over the cliff. (That’s a good thing)

After the run I actually thought I was going to see Jesus right there on the driveway of my friends house, but I made it. Well, Monday Susie and I were traveling all day so I could not run which was not good, because when starting something like exercising, consistency is the key to success. So this morning I got up and got the kids ready for school, kissed Susie and headed for the YMCA. Upon arrival I knew that I made the right choice yet I hated myself and the treadmill I was on after the first 10 minutes. However, once I made it to 20 minutes I settled in and actually made it to 35 minutes without much pain. I actually feel pretty good right now as I am sipping on my latte while writing this entry.

So what does exercise have to do with our faith? Well I think that it has a great deal to do with it. You see physical fitness takes pain, time, and endurance and our faith, if it is going to be fit, requires the same thing. The problem is that many people have let their physical bodies and their spiritual bodies turn from fab to flab because of just neglect. So what do we do to turn the tide in our spiritual fitness? Here are some of things that may help you on your journey.

1. Start with attainable goals- Most people have heard the saying that if you don’t have a goal you will hit it every time. Yet many times in peoples spiritual journey they set out like they are running a marathon at a sprinters pace and they end up quitting shortly into the run. When I am running I set short attainable goals on my quest to finish the run that I have started. In our spiritual life we need to do the same. We need to set small attainable goals as we develop in our faith. I know it sounds spiritual to have a 3 hour quiet time everyday but if you are just starting out I think that may seem a little daunting. Set small goals and as you achieve them they will give you the stamina to achieve larger ones.
2. Understand the principle No Pain No Gain- In my quest to reshape my physical body I am finding out that it does not want to cooperate. My muscles are sore and fatigued and quite frankly I would just as soon quite then put my body through any more pain. However, I know if I can push through this quitting point it will get easier. The same is true in our faith. Many times we come to a place where things are just not easy and it seems like it would be easier to quite serving God and for the immediate time it may be, however in the long run we usually will experience more pain if we are not willing to endure the short term pain of becoming spiritually fit. I am not saying it is going to be easy, it is not. When you start the treadmill of spiritual fitness God will begin to shed the pounds of unwanted fat off of you, just remember when there is no Pain there is no Gain. I know in my own life I have learned far more through the painful experiences than all of the easy experiences put together. Because pain develops a greater dependence on God. Don’t avoid the pain.
3. Time to lace up- some people never make it out of the starting blocks of life because they will just not lace up and start running. Hey make excuses like “I have screwed up to bad”, or “I have tried that religion thing and it didn’t work for me” or my personal favorite “I need to think about that” Well here are my responses to theses excuses for not lacing up.

1. I have screwed up to bad- Take a walk through the Bible because last I checked it was full of screw-ups like murders, adulterers, whores, drunks, thieves, and crooks all who found that God’s grace was enough for them so I think it is probably enough for you too.
   
2. I have tried the religion thing and it didn’t work for me- Great religion didn’t work for me either and from what I can tell Jesus got pretty ticked at those spouting their religion without ever experiencing the changing power of a relationship with God. Religion will always leave you empty but a genuine relationship with God through His son Jesus will satisfy you completely.
   
3. I need some time to think about it- If I was giving out free hundred dollar bills I dare say many people would not have to think about it very long before they took one. So why is it that when offered something as priceless as eternal life do we say we need to think about it? I guess we are just not real good with investments after all.