ARE YOU GETTING PLENTY OF EXERCISE?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value
for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the
life to come. This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full
acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we have
put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people,
and especially of those who believe.
(1 Timothy 4:8-10)

MEDITATION:
Have you ever reached a point in your life when you decided
you needed to start exercising more? You may have allowed
yourself to get out of shape, or maybe you are in good shape
but you know that without exercising, your muscles will lose
their tone.

Have you ever wondered what the scriptures have to say about exercise?
The Bible tells us that exercise has some value, (“physical training is of
some value”), but it is limited. In other words, physical training can
improve our physical body, but even though it might also improve our
attitudes and our general outlook on everything, it has no impact on
our life in eternity.

So, in summary, physical training is a good thing, but there is something
much better for us. If we practice ‘godly training’, our benefits are much
greater than what we receive from ‘physical training’. Since the scriptures
tell us that physical training has ‘some value’, maybe it has an impact on
our ‘godly training’ too. How? For one thing, when we are exercising, we
aren’t spending time (or energy) thinking sinful thoughts.

Regardless of whether we include physical exercise or not, God’s Word
encourages us to practice godliness. When we strengthen our godliness,
we can experience a much better life on earth, and more importantly,
we can ensure our eternal happiness.

Strengthening our godliness (righteousness) means we are putting our
hope in the One we can completely depend on – our Heavenly Father.
    You were taught, with regard to your former way of life,
    to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its
    deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your
    minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God
    in true righteousness and holiness.
    (Ephesians 4:22-24)

    Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one
    who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by
    my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to
    them.”
    (John 14:21)

    Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness,
    faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the
    Lord out of a pure heart.
    (2 Timothy 2:22)

    You were taught, with regard to your former way of life,
    to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its
    deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your
    minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God
    in true righteousness and holiness.
    (Ephesians 4:22-24)

    If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing
    our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in
    it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they
    were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not
    to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known
    it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that 
    was passed on to them.
    (2 Peter 2:20-21)

Let’s be honest, is there anyone, or anything on earth we can
confidently depend on…at all times? We know that anything
manmade is subject to failure (as an example, the Titanic was
supposed to be unsinkable).

Some people we know lose their dependability at the point of
inconvenience. In other words, some are more than willing to
help us as long as it doesn’t cost them time, or require them
to leave their comfort zone, or cause them to inconvenience
themselves in some way.

How many times have you heard someone say,
    “Let me know if you need anything”?
It sounds good, but what would happen if you needed something and
called on them? Would they be willing to go out of their way to help
you, or would they make excuses for not helping?

I have a friend who has told me multiple times to let him know if I
needed anything and he would help in any way he could. One day
I had a need and called on him, and guess what? He was more than
willing to be available. As it turned out, what I needed him for on
that day, was moved to another day and I would be notified later
of the date and time. I told my friend, and he said, “Whenever and
wherever, just let me know and I’ll be there”.

Hopefully we all have that ‘one person’ we can rely on in almost any
circumstance. When we have a need, we know they will make every
effort to be there for us. But when we place our hope in God it means
we will have unconditional dependability from the One who created 
us, loves us, and wants to help us in our weak or dark moments.

Look at His promise to Moses when he faced a major challenge:
    But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to
    Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God
    said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you
    that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the
    people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”
    (Exodus 3:11-12)

Jesus also gives us a promise of God’s
presence with us in the form of the Holy Spirit:
    “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask
      the Father, and he will give you another advocate to
      help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.
      The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees
      him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives
      with you and will be in you.”
      (John 14:15-17)

Did you notice the qualification He included for receiving help from
the Holy Spirit? The ‘key’ to receiving the Holy Spirit is, proving we
love Jesus by “keeping (obeying) His commands”. Training ourselves
in godliness will help us develop love and obedience as a natural part
of our lives. It will define who we are and where we have placed our
faith.

If we are not physically exercising, our muscles will weaken and
become less useful for us. The same is true with our godliness; we
have to train and exercise to keep it toned and active in our lives.

ACTION:
How much godliness are you practicing/exercising? Do you believe
you have more godliness today than you did a year ago? How would
you describe the level of godliness in your life? What would others
say about your level of godliness? What would God say about the
sincerity of your godliness and your dependability in serving Him?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for being the One I can always
depend on. You are the One I put my hope in. You are constant,
consistent and unchangeable so I know I can rely on You. Teach
me more about being godly and help me to exercise godliness in
all that I do. I want to be more righteous and to eliminate anything
that prevents me from developing godliness. Where I am weak, give
me strength; where I am uninformed, make me knowledgeable;
where I am selfish, help me to give more of myself. Becoming more
righteous is not something I can achieve on my own; I need Your
help. Thank You in advance for how You will guide me in developing
more godliness in my own life, so I will become more spiritually
mature and usable by You.”

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