Working out with God
This summer was a rough one in regards to my gym routine. When the summer started I was going an average of 4 days a week, 3 of which were to do weights since I don't like cardo.
We started the summer with a 15 day trip that did not give us any gym time. We returned to paint the lower two levels of our house. Though we did go to the gym for the first few days of this, it was on the day that I worked shoulders and then came home to paint that I decided to forgo my workout to ensure the house got done by July 4th.
We were able to go for two weeks after that until we left for Texas. This 8-day trip turned into a 23-day trip due to car problems. Though I worked for my dad moving and refinishing antiques this was not part of my normal routine. I still felt strong and looked pretty much the same, I was getting a little soft around the middle from vacation eating.
Last week was the first time we were able to get to the gym. Though some of the power was still there in the first two sets of each exercise, the endurance was not there. Later that day and into the next you could feel the workout taking its toll! The odd thing about this pain is that it actually makes you not want to go back to the gym.
The same seems to be true with our relationship with God. We get on a role of prayer and reading our Bible but the routine is disrupted for some reason: vacation, start of school, new job, relationships, etc. Then after a few days (week or years) we decide it's time to start up where we left off at. This is never quite the case.
The first few days of starting up our old routine is rough. We feel crushed for time, am not sure if God is listening, and may not like what we read or pray because we know there needs to be some change in our life. Instead of pushing through the "burn" to renew the routine, we decide the pain is too much and maybe when life gets easier then we'll start up again.
Problem is life doesn't get easier. Relationships don't get better by ignoring them but by interaction. God is there and does not hold it against you for not being able to push your old weight. He is your spotter; He will work with you to get to where you were and to help you push to even new levels.
We started the summer with a 15 day trip that did not give us any gym time. We returned to paint the lower two levels of our house. Though we did go to the gym for the first few days of this, it was on the day that I worked shoulders and then came home to paint that I decided to forgo my workout to ensure the house got done by July 4th.
We were able to go for two weeks after that until we left for Texas. This 8-day trip turned into a 23-day trip due to car problems. Though I worked for my dad moving and refinishing antiques this was not part of my normal routine. I still felt strong and looked pretty much the same, I was getting a little soft around the middle from vacation eating.
Last week was the first time we were able to get to the gym. Though some of the power was still there in the first two sets of each exercise, the endurance was not there. Later that day and into the next you could feel the workout taking its toll! The odd thing about this pain is that it actually makes you not want to go back to the gym.
The same seems to be true with our relationship with God. We get on a role of prayer and reading our Bible but the routine is disrupted for some reason: vacation, start of school, new job, relationships, etc. Then after a few days (week or years) we decide it's time to start up where we left off at. This is never quite the case.
The first few days of starting up our old routine is rough. We feel crushed for time, am not sure if God is listening, and may not like what we read or pray because we know there needs to be some change in our life. Instead of pushing through the "burn" to renew the routine, we decide the pain is too much and maybe when life gets easier then we'll start up again.
Problem is life doesn't get easier. Relationships don't get better by ignoring them but by interaction. God is there and does not hold it against you for not being able to push your old weight. He is your spotter; He will work with you to get to where you were and to help you push to even new levels.
posted by Ryan Lindsey at
1:21 PM
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