Faith & Fitness: Week 7

Week 7: PATIENCE!

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6

Fitness is a journey. The time it takes to reach your goals is a reminder that God does everything in His time. Would I like to be a size 8 tomorrow? Oh yes.  But I am confident that I am honoring God by taking care of my health, and since my body is a temple of His Holy Spirit, then my desire to take good care of my health is a desire that pleases Him.  I believe He will allow me to meet my fitness goals, but it will take time and work on my part. And when I reach those goals, I will appreciate them that much more because I worked so hard- and I will give God the glory because I know I didn’t do it all on my own.

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We just completed Faith & Fitness this week, and we are praying about the possibility of running it once a month, then running the whole 7 week series again, possibly twice a year.  I hope these posts have been a blessing to you and have helped you improve both your spiritual and physical health!

Faith & Fitness: Week 6

Week 6: SPIRITUAL WARFARE IN FITNESS

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:10-12

There are many temptations in the area of health & fitness.  We already talked about overeating, but there are other extremes as well- working too hard in the gym, possibly to the point of injury or exhaustion, showing pride when we start to reach our goals, and taking dieting to extremes. Exercise and body image can become idols. We should not work out just to look better, but because we are being good stewards of the temple God has given us. If we keep our focus on Christ, and keep everything in moderation, we will bring Him glory. I can easily take things to the extreme & keep the focus on myself & my desire to be thin, but we all need to remember that God is our strength, and we must keep our focus on Him. How easily Satan can get us to turn our attention to ourselves- whether we are meeting our goals or not! You can wallow in self-pity when you don’t see the numbers on the scale moving, or you can thank God that you are doing something good for your health, even if you don’t see results right away. You can be swept up in pride when you meet your goals & are feeling fantastic, or you can thank God because He allowed you to reach those goals.

Faith & Fitness: Week 5

Week 5: THE BLESSING OF FITNESS

“Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits” Psalm 103:1-2

A friend said to me: “I was just thinking after my workout how blessed I am to be able to workout, move my body, lift weights, etc. my health is a BLESSING and I know I can take it for granted.”

How much do we take our ability to exercise for granted? Do we feel like it’s torture? Do we feel deprived as we try to eat healthy foods & deny ourselves sweets and treats? Do we realize we are blessed to be able to move our bodies, and that some people are not that blessed? When a workout gets particularly tough, and you’re running low on strength & energy, thank God He has given you the ability to do that hard work, as difficult as it is! Don’t forget that God has blessed you to be able to move your body and He has provided you with healthy foods to eat. Instead of griping about depriving myself of sweets, I make myself a huge fancy salad that makes me feel like I’m at a restaurant, and I thank God for my delicious meal as I savor every bite!