1 Timothy 4:8
Some time ago I was waking up early to exercise. I was was done having children and it was time for me to get back into shape and make my body presentable. My children were young and the best time for me was early mornings, before they woke up and kept me busy all day. At first, it was hard to wake up at 5:30 in the morning. It took time to start seeing results of my hard work so somedays it was much easier to stay in bed. Once I started noticing a difference in my health and shape I was motivated to get out of bed. People started making comments about my appearance and that really kept me going. My life was starting to revolve around that exercise. I thought about it a lot and if I didn't do it one day I could no longer just shrug it off. It began to consume me and I couldn't stand the guilt of not getting it in. Friends, exercise became my idol. I wasn't taking time to talk to God every day and I wasn't even thinking about getting into His Word. Yes, on occasion I attended bible study but that is as far as my spiritual exercise got.
Physical exercise became my god and I was thinking about it every day. I was spending my time doing it every day and I revolved my schedule around it every day. My physical exercise was keeping me healthy and fit which had a huge value in my life but unfortunately I let it take the place of God. I was not spiritually healthy something that I needed to get me a lot farther in life and in my relationships. A healthy heart and nice legs will only get me compliments and some extra years added to my life but if those years are not spent with God and living in His will they aren't really worth it.
When I finally decided to change my life and put God first I knew the exercise had to be replaced with God time. Why? For me it had become an idol and I had to tear it down completely. I could not let myself go there for fear that it would take over my life again and replace my time with God. After replacing exercise with God I was able to change my whole perspective on life. My spiritual training has prepared me for much more than looking good. It has given me a reason to live and grow with God. God keeps me coming back for more every day and the things I learn with Him will stay with me and help me for my whole life. Not like exercise that when you quit or take a break you lose all that hard work. When you are spiritually fit you will not ever lose that, even when you take a break or lose focus, God's training will always stay with you. You can't hit a peak and stop seeing results either! It is valuable and ongoing.
I am in no way telling any of you to quit exercising, in fact, it is probably time for me to get doing it too. I am just warning you of the dangers of letting exercise consume you and become your idol. I am reminding you all that a fine balance between physical and spiritual exercise is best, and if you don't have time for both then pick God first and trust Him with your health and physical appearance until you are strong enough to juggle both. God will take care of those distractions that cause you to stumble if you trust Him and give Him your time. I know that He took care that for me when I stopped exercising. I didn't gain weight and I didn't stress out about my appearance.......God allowed me to enjoy my time with Him and took away the worry about my lack of exercise. Your spiritual body and mind are way more important than getting into that swim suit this summer.
Dear God, help me to keep my focus on you and my relationship with you. There are so many distractions in life and things I should probably be doing but I know the most important is spending time with you. I want to hand over the things that are taking place over you and decide today to put you first. I love you and thank you for never ever leaving my side and being patient with me. Help me to lay down my idols and begin my spiritual exercise journey. Amen
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