Are You in Shape?

Luke 6:45, "A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart. (NLT)

Getting in shape is a buzz word that is very popular in our society today. People may say such things as "I am headed for my workout. I am going to get my exercise in today. How far have you walked today? I have to lose fifteen pounds before the wedding." I understand the need for good health. I believe that we are to be good stewards of the body that God has given to each of us and there is a need to live a healthy lifestyle. 

But what about the shape of the spiritual side of mankind? How healthy is our soul? How healthy is our relationship with Christ? Are we taking anytime for our spiritual workout (prayer, mediation, Bible reading, church attendance, etc)? How far have you walked in the Bible today? Have you invested any of your time in drawing nearer to God? Have you ingested healthy portions of time with God and time with fellow believers who are on the same spiritual pursuit as you? We will spiritually produce what we are placing in our heart (seat of our emotions, seat of our will). What are we feeding the spiritual side of our lives? 

Former NFL coach Joe Gibbs and current NASCAR owner explains it this way. Every year when NFL training camp rolls around, there are guys who come in hungry and fired up, fresh from an off-season workout regimen that has gotten them in playing shape right from the get-go. But every team also has players who show up fat and flabby, twenty pounds over their goal weight, gasping for breath at the first sight of wind sprints. Failure to stick to a plan has cost them the stamina they need to get started on the right foot. They may be able to fool some people with their athletic looks and muscular bodies. But NFL coaches can tell when a guy's been dogging it since January.

You're probably not a professional ball player, but the same principle still applies to you. The concept Jesus taught that "no good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit" (Luke 6:43) has a universal draw on every man. Steady doses of unhealthy choices and activities will bear themselves out in the way we feel, the way we think, the way we stand up to stressful situations. If we're not willing to make sacrifices and faithful habits a regular part of our day, fatigue will not only become a way of life, it will become a belt size everyone else can see better than we can.

Take a moment to look in the "mirror" and see what you look like!!