Getting into Better Shape

I wish I was in better shape.

I just returned from a trip to Atlanta. While I was there, I rode through several hilly neighborhoods where it seemed like everywhere I looked there were people running. Ipods strapped to their arms. Sweat pouring from their lean, fit bodies. Eyes focused on the road ahead.

I was impressed. And discouraged.

The last time I tried running, I thought I must have run three miles through my flat neighborhood. When I measured it with my car, the odometer said I ran just over a mile.

Stupid odometer.

I keep waiting for my “running gene” to kick in. After all I have an older sister who runs. Nephews and nieces that run. And an older brother who runs Iron Man competitions. That’s over two miles of swimming, 112 miles of cycling, and 26 miles of running. In the same day! I might have done that in my lifetime. My idea of an Iron Man is playing 27 holes of golf…carrying my bag. Maybe with an extra 2-iron thrown in.

A real “iron man.”

I mean my mind keeps telling me that I am 20, that I can run and jump with the best of them if I simply tried. But my body keeps telling me that I am 45, that Advil and ibuprofen are my best friends when I try to run and jump like I’m 20. 

It is a hard reality to face.

And as much as I wish or dream for physical fitness there is one simple truth that won’t go away. Physical fitness takes work. And not just one day, but day after day. It is a lifestyle. Discipline. Consistency. Self-control. Making better choices. Putting my health over my immediate happiness. Watching my diet. Exercising when I don’t feel like it. Pushing myself whenever I can….even when I would rather “sleep in” or veg on the couch watching other people play sports.

There are no short cuts or “magic pills” to physical fitness. OK, some people use steroids to bulk up quicker…but they adversely affect their health in other ways. And some TV ads promise that you can look ripped, fit, and tan in 14 days through some revolutionary product. But despite the promises, the results are never what people expect. And most of that stuff you can find at a garage sale two months later.

To be physically fit takes discipline. Day after day. Week after week. For the rest of your life. And what keeps you motivated? The goal of feeling better, looking better, and hopefully adding a few healthy years to this all-too-brief life.

The same principle holds true for “spiritual fitness” as well.

As a pastor, I don’t know how many people I have met who expect spiritual health in an instant. They read their Bible and expect instant answers. They go to church and want an immediate “high.” They pray a few times and expect a “magic wand” to wave away all their problems…and then get discouraged or mad when it doesn’t happen.

“I prayed, pastor, and nothing happened.”

“I tried to read my Bible but it was too hard to understand so I gave up.”

“I hate going to church. I don’t see the point.”

It would be like me saying:

“I did a few push-ups this morning but nothing happened.”

“I tried to run around the block but it was too hard to keep my legs moving so I gave up.”

“I ate a salad a year ago and I don’t feel any better today. It just doesn’t work.”

There are no short cuts or “magic pills” to spiritual health. OK, some religious gurus hock “spiritual steroids” to get prayers answered quicker and God’s blessings flowing faster…but they all adversely affect your faith in other ways. And some TV preachers promise that you can be richer, healthier, and more successful if you follow their revolutionary formula or say some “secret” prayer…usually accompanied with a generous donation to their ministry. But the results are never what people expect. And their books, tapes, and prayer cloths end up in a garage sale a few years later.

Spiritual health doesn’t happen overnight. It takes work. It is following Jesus step by step, day by day. Discipline. Consistency. Self-control. Putting holiness above your immediate gratification. Reading Scripture and praying when you don’t feel like it. Watching what you put into your mind. Pushing yourself…through the power of the Spirit…even when you would rather do lesser things.

Run in such a way to win the prize (1 Corinthians 9:24b).

And what’s the prize? Pleasing the Father, fulfilling His purpose for our lives, experiencing His blessings. Inner joy. Growing contentment. Greater love. Abiding hope. Eternal reward.  

So sit up in the morning with God’s Word. Lift up your hands in praise. Run to God in prayer. Avoid the “sugar” of sin and the carbs of complacency. Visit your local spiritual gymnasium (church). Stretch your faith in ministry. Press forward in love. Be pushed by godly friends.

As iron sharpens iron… (Proverbs 27:17)

An “iron man” for Christ. 

Postscript Note: Spiritual fitness begins with a new heart in Christ. Just as physical fitness will not cure a person needing a heart transplant due to a life-threatening defect (in fact, it may hasten their death if they ignore it), so spiritual fitness only occurs after a person has recognized their sin and embraced Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. This is the free gift of eternal life in Christ (Romans 6:23). However, many professing believers seem to forget that although salvation happens in an instant, sanctification (becoming more and more like Christ) is a lifetime process. And though grace showers us and empowers us all along the way, it is not an excuse for passivity or a false hope in "instant answers." We often run to quick spiritual fixes because we simply do not want to face our own selfishness, repent of our sin, discipline our bodies, and pursue holiness step by step. Scripture is clear that we must exercise ourselves toward godliness for bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:7b-8). We can't expect the benefits of godliness if we are unwilling to exercise spiritual disicpline just as we cannot expect the benefits of physical fitness if we are unwilling to do the work. 

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