Godly Exercise

“Train yourself in godliness, for, while physical training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way…”          1 Timothy 4:7-8

But if then, such and so many pains are borne untiringly for temporal and unsure rewards, what ought we to endure for eternal, true, and sure ones, whose conclusion is eternal?    St. Columba, Sermon IV

My wife is always asking me if I’m ever going back to the gym and start exercising. She thinks I need to get in shape, but I tell her that round is a shape. I heard one noted Good Shepherd theologian (if I may be so bold), say, “You know, people who exercise, die.” Seriously, I realize that exercise should be a part of one’s routine, but “muscling” up the energy to get started seems to take more effort than actually exercising.

However, St. Paul and St. Columba have a different kind of exercise in mind in their writings. St. Columba was offering an observation about how people get along in life. If one wants to be successful, enjoy life as well as the good things that life can offer, one must give one’s full attention to each task and see it through. Endeavors such as raising a family or improving at one’s job; tasks that require so much effort but are often “borne untiringly” out by one who wants to succeed in life. St. Columba is asking the question, if one is so willing to regiment our lives in order to achieve “temporal and unsure rewards”, what are we willing to undergo for eternal and true rewards?

Americans are known for their hard work ethic as well as being known for their love of hard play. Many people exert great effort to get ahead in their jobs or to stay in good physical shape. This includes many American Christians because we know that we have to perform to the best of our abilities at work, and this ethic often spills over into our fitness ethic or even our hard play. Most of us Americans want to be the best we can be, and there is a myriad of websites that espouse ways to achieve this goal. Basically, we are no different from a non-believer when it comes to pursuing what St. Columba called, “temporal and unsure rewards”.

However, we should be different. This is not to say that we shouldn’t work hard or not exercise or not enjoy hobbies. St. Columba and St. Paul are calling us to not give our best effort to that which will pass away with time; they are letting us know that there is much more to life – more to Christian life – those “eternal, true and sure rewards” which are eternal life.

For many Christians, their rule of life – their spiritual discipline - is dreadfully lacking. We tend to not make prayer an important part of our lives; as if prayer didn’t really make a difference. We also find reading, studying, and meditation to be monotonous and not nearly as entertaining as watching TV, playing a game, or any other kind of amusement. We don’t do the necessary “ground work” that leads us to the promises of Christ.

Are we lazy? Perhaps, but are we being encouraged by fellow Christians to exert the effort to practice the things that draw us closer to Christ and eternal life. If we are going to truly exercise our spiritual practices, we should resolve that this course of godly exercise will define our lives from here on out. In doing so, we fill out the time in our lives with the exercises that can help us achieve more of the promises of God’s kingdom.

Each and every one of us can grow in Christ, but it takes effort, it takes godly exercise.

Again, thanks to T. M. Moore for the ideas behind this publication.

Curtis +