Being a ‘professional’ athlete, one who is in constant training, is a consuming lifestyle.
Likewise, God’s Gymnasium is NOT only a specific TIME and PLACE where you go in the morning to “work out,” i.e., do your spiritual exercises. God’s Gymnasium is a mindset, a way of life. When you know God as your Personal Trainer, you expect He will give you exercises throughout the day to increase your spiritual fitness!
While your morning “workout” will expose you to the teaching of the Word, the rest of the day you will be applying the Word to the situations you face. In other words, your workout really continues throughout the day as you “exercise” your spirit through many choices.
The result is that God’s Word permeates your thinking, regulates your emotions, and directs your will. Such is the person who has a mindset to be trained for the purpose of godliness (1 Timothy 4:7).
So, the next time someone asks you if your work out, think about God's Gymnasium.
Greg,
ReplyDeleteRecalling the days when I was heavily involved in "weight training" at college I do remember that there was always a goal in mind during my workouts. Most of the time it had to do with being able to lose inches in the waist and gain strength and inches in my shoulders, chest and arms--which would indicate and increase in strength. A stretegy was developed to keep me progressing with ever-increasing weights.
Sometimes I would plateau and a different strategy had to be employed to break the barrier of my muscular capacity. Adjustments had to be made to push through the threshhold my body had established.
Unfortunately my ultimate goal was to be attractive to the girls. I found out that weight training was not necessary to have an enjoyable dating life and that I was only impressing my coaches and fellow workout partners but that was all. It would have served a much better purpose if I had wanted to qualify myself for a certain type of work that could only come with a corresponding increase in strength. But it was rather for my own vanity at the time.
Hebrews 5:14 tells us that our workouts in God's gynmnasium have a more noble goal--"...to discern both good and evil." This is more desirable because it will affect not only ourselves but also those over whom we have stewardship and with whom we have friendship. It will also qualify us to be recipients of God's trust during specific needs of intercession!
One final observation: also in Hebrews (12) we are told that the discipline employed in God's gymnasium will yield two things with regard to our relationship to God--1) we become partakers of His holiness and 2) our life's definition (our spiritual, muscular structure) becomes that of the peaceable fruit of righteousness (continual, unbroken fellowship with God).
There was one morning a coupleof years ago when I awakened before my alarm clock and before I could start my whining and complaining about needing more rest I heard the Lord challenge me to a race to the arranged place of devotion where we were accustomed to meet early every morning (the den). Now THAT was an interesting way to start a workout! And it also enlightened me as to the extent our "Life-Coach" has in including us in His goals!
Stan
Don't you find that over time, you long for that morning workout!! Altha and I keep going to bed earlier and earlier so we can get up earlier, and have more time, with Him before the rest of the world awakes!
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely my favorite time of the day: 3 a.m. and all is quiet.