Preperation
I’ve been thinking of joining the gym…again. I’ve joined the gym in the past…more than once. When I join the gym, I’m all for it at first. I go several days in a row and then, next thing you know, I’m tired. When I’m tired, I want to skip the gym, and, due to a lack of will-power and motivation, I don’t go. After a few days of this, I give up all together. And, like many of you, I continue to pay for the gym for months before I finally get the courage to go in an cancel the membership. (BTW - they make you cancel in person to guilt you into keeping the membership)
I know I should be going to the gym and keeping my body in shape (round doesn’t count as a shape here). I know if I want to keep eating the way that I do, I will eventually have to go to the gym. Today’s not that day. It’s too cold to go outside.
When it comes to our faith, we need to be training. 1 Timothy says:
“ for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”
Training in godliness is something that we need everyday, not just when our super-great metabolism slows down. If we don’t invest in our walk with the Lord, we are going to get spiritually anemic. This is not a good thing, so here are a few ways that you can train in godliness.
#1 - Get to know God.
This one sounds pretty easy. Read God’s special revelation to you. Read the Bible each and every day. Studies have shown that people who read Scripture 4 or more days a week see a significant impact on their daily living.
#2 - Love others
We’re told that this is how people will know that we are disciples of Jesus - if we love one another. Try to love your neighbor as yourself by putting their needs first. If you’re out shoveling snow off your sidewalk, get theirs too.
#3 - Sing
When we came to Christ, He put a song in our hearts. Scripture tells us over and over again that we are to sings psalms and hymns to one another. I can’t sing, but I still sing. God doesn’t care what it sounds like, just that the song of my heart is not kept to myself.
