Every year millions of people make resolutions to get in better shape. For many, if not most, not much progress is made. Much the same is true of believers getting in spiritual shape (see Hebrews 5:11-13).
Have you ever set a goal to get in shape but nothing changed? Here's one person's experience in setting New Year's Resolutions:
Resolution #1: 2005 - I will read at least 20 good books a year. 2006 - I will read 5 books a year. 2007 - I will finish The Pelican Brief. 2008 - I will read some articles in the newspaper this year. 2009 - I will try and finish the comics section this year.
For many years I set a goal to get in better physical shape but nothing changed? But in 1992 things were different. At the time I weighed in at 135 lbs of skin and bones. I resolved to get in shape and made some big changes. In a few short years I became thirty five pounds heavier, 80% stronger, and had much more endurance. In the last few years I've added ten extra pounds of fat that I need to lose. I hope to do so this year through proper exercise and diet.• Resolution #2: 2006 - I will get my weight down below 180. 2007 - I will watch my calories until I get below 190. 2008 - I will follow my diet religiously until I get below 200. 2009 - I will try to develop a realistic attitude about my weight.
• Resolution #3: 2007 - I will work out 5 days a week. 2008 - I will work out 3 days a week. 2009 - I will try to drive past a gym at least once a week.
• Resolution #4: 2005 - I will not spend my money frivolously. 2006 - I will pay off my bank loan promptly. 2007 - I will pay off my bank loans promptly. 2008 - I will try to pay off the debt interest by the end of the year. 2009 - I will try to be out of the country by 2010.
Each year I also resolve to get in spiritual shape. This is hard to measure, but I've learned a great deal from my physical transformation that has also helped spiritually. In fact, I've discovered that physical training provides a helpful spiritual metaphor for spiritual training.
The Apostle Paul wrote, Train yourself to be godly. 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 (1 Tim 4:7b, 8). The Greek word for "training" is "gymnasia." This is the word we get for gymnasium. We are to put ourselves in God's gymnasium for training in godliness. We can outline the passage this way:
Train to be godly.
1. Bodily discipline has limited profit.
2. Godliness has unlimited profit.
a. It has profit for this life.
b. It has profit for the life to come.
There are many principles of physical training that have spiritual corollaries. Physical training requires a multifaceted plan. Such a plan incorporates several things like nutrition, strength training, and aerobics. A spiritual training plan does the same thing. With a comprehensive plan, you don't rely on just one thing to help you grow. By combining several things such as Bible reading, Bible study, prayer, fellowship, spiritual accountability, and so on, you get a synergistic effect. Here are ten principles of physical training that have helped me grow spiritually as well.
1. Assess yourself. Get an accurate look at your current health.
In 1992 I joined the Coppell YMCA and met with Lance, a physical trainer. The first thing I received was a fitness assessment or evaluation. This included tests to measure my muscular strength, flexibility, cardiovascular endurance, and body composition. The results of these different tests gave a baseline measurement to understand how fit I was in these different areas of physical fitness. This also served as a guide for Lance to design a program for me so that I could make improvements, especially in those areas where I was weak.
We need to make a spiritual assessment of ourselves. The psalmist prayed, Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way. This verse is from Psalm 139:23-24 and it speaks to the importance of asking God to help us assess our behavior and our hearts. We need God's help in pointing out flaws in our lifestyle and shortcomings in our hearts. To take stock of the spiritual dimension of our lives and to do it thoroughly we need God to guide us and help us. We need to be open to the changes He prods us to make after we have completed the spiritual assessment.
When was the last time you asked God to help you look deep inside yourself and took a snapshot of the spiritual dimension of your life? Let's consider some items of a Spiritual Fitness Assessment. As you hear these statements take stock of your spiritual fitness. Rate them 1-5 (1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = undecided, 4 = agree, 5 = strongly agree).
• I believe in Jesus for eternal life.
• I know that I have eternal life.
• My relationship with Christ is the foundation for how I live my life.
• My faith gives me a strong sense of meaning and purpose.
• My faith in God gives me hope.
• I try my best to understand the principles and commandments of the Bible.
• I am obedient to the principles and commandments of the Bible.
• I have close relationships with other believers who influence my life's direction.
• I rely on strength from God's Spirit for choices and changes in my life.
• I tend not to hold grudges for a long time when people hurt me.
• I have forgiven those who have hurt me.
• I cry out to God when I need His help.
• I attend regularly worship services, fellowship activities, and Bible studies.
• I confess my wrongdoings/sins to God and experience His forgiveness.
• I volunteer at church and in my community.
• I cheerfully and consistently honor the Lord by giving from the first of my income.
• I share the saving message with people I meet.
• Other than at mealtime I pray and talk with God.
• I read or study the Bible privately.
• My biblical beliefs affect every aspect of my life.
2. Set the right goal.
I set goals in the years I failed to get in physical shape, but they were the wrong kind. I'd set goals like "run four days a week" or "lift weights every Monday, Wednesday and Friday." I discovered several problems with goals like these. First, they didn't inspire me. Second, it was easy to believe I failed if I missed a day or two. Third, I hadn't really set goals; I had made plans. I had confused the means for the end. So when I set my physical goal in 1992, I changed it from how often I would exercise to what I wanted to look like.
Similarly I've missed spiritual goals I've set, such as "read five chapters in the Bible everyday" or "pray a half-hour a day." Again, I wasn't inspired. I felt defeated if I missed a day or more, and I had confused the means for the end. I noticed another trap with these kinds of spiritual goals. If I was doing well, I had the tendency to be prideful about it - the exact opposite effect it should have.
So taking a cue from my physical goal, I realized I needed to change my spiritual goal too. Instead of how much I would read and pray, I determined what I wanted to look like - more like Jesus. The notion of spirituality can be so vague, but when I say getting in spiritual shape as a Christian, I explicitly mean becoming like Jesus. This should be the goal of every Christian. You might have a unique way of phrasing your goal, but the core and motive for it should be becoming like Jesus. This can best be revealed by your love for God - measured by obedience (John 14:15), and your love for others - measured by service (Matt 23:11).
A while back on a talk show, the guest was a body builder. During the interview, the host asked "Why do you develop those particular muscles?" The body builder simply stepped forward and flexed a series of well-defined muscles from chest to calf. The audience applauded. "What do you use all those muscles for?" the host asked. Again, the muscular specimen flexed, and biceps and triceps sprouted to impressive proportions. "But what do you USE those muscles for?" the host persisted. The body builder was bewildered. He didn't have an answer other than to display his well-developed frame. I was reminded that our spiritual exercises - Bible study, prayer, reading Christian books - are also for a purpose. They're meant to strengthen our ability to serve God, not simply to improve our pose before an admiring audience.
3. Recruit a partner. Find support.
The greatest support or partner is the Holy Spirit. We also need fellow believers. Spiritual training is best done in relationships - vertical and horizontal. When I have invited others to study and pray with me, not only am I faithful in doing it, but I also remember why I'm doing it (see Ecc 4:9-12; Heb 10:23-25). My spiritual growth happens best when I do it with others and for others. Participate in a discipleship triad this year.
4. Establish healthy nutrition habits. Eat healthy.
Probably the most important progress in physical health comes from adjusting diet. Changing what we put in our bodies reshapes our bodies. Eat junk, get flabby. Don't eat at all and starve. The same is true spiritually. Bible reading and study is to the spiritual life what eating is to the physical life. Jesus said that Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Mat 4:4). And Heb 5:14 says, solid food if for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. Read through the Bible this year. Participate in a Bible study.
5. Take supplements.
In addition to eating more healthy meals, trainers also recommend taking vitamins and drinking "shakes" to get enough protein. The supplements aren't the center of a diet, but they add to it. The spiritual equivalent to nutritional supplements is devotional books and commentaries. You can go to a Christian bookstore and find a special section for each. There are a variety of older and newer devotional books available to help you. I like to use commentaries as a Biblical supplement. So, for example, if you are currently studying the book of Matthew, buy a couple of commentaries on Matthew. These books will supplement your Biblical diet. The Grace Evangelical Society is coming out with a commentary on the New Testament. I plan to get many copies and make them available to you.
6. Do aerobic training.
Essential to any physical regimen is aerobic exercise. It increases stamina, strengthening heart and lungs. Aerobic training is literally the breath of life. Prayer is to the spiritual life what breathing is to the physical life. You wouldn't want to breathe for fifteen minutes in the morning and hope that it gets you through the rest of the day. Praying should be happening all day. Pray without ceasing (1 Thes 5:17). Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God (Phil 4:6). What do you worry about? Turn your worries into prayers.
7. Do strength training.
My favorite part of getting physically fit is going to the gym to lift weights. At first all those machines intimidated me. I was afraid I would get on one backwards and upside down. But as I became familiar with each one, I could appreciate how it was specifically designed to strengthen certain muscles.
We are to put ourselves into a gymnasium for training in godliness. Spiritual practices such as Bible study, worship, confession, fellowship, service are a sort of "spiritual gymnasium," with different stations exercising different aspects of the soul, each one helping us become more like Jesus.
8. Apply intensity.
In the world of weight training, "intensity" means lifting slowly. It is easier to lift weight quickly, but lifting slowly gives you more results. A gym motto says it best: "It's not how much you lift, but how you lift that matters."
Intensity applies to spiritual training as well. It is easier to read your Bible quickly, speed through a prayer list, but going slowly gives greater results. The gym motto has its own spiritual equivalent in the saying "It's not how much of the Bible you go through, but how much goes through you." Apply intensity to your spiritual exercises. Don't rush through your prayer list. Instead, be specific about your prayers and those you are praying for. Don't speed-read the Bible. Instead, let its message marinate your heart. For example, I usually get more out of reading one chapter three times than reading three chapters once.
9. Rest.
You can over-train. That's because your body doesn't get stronger when you exercise unless you allow rest. Exercising tears down the body; it is the recovery of the body that builds strength.
This is an important lesson in the spiritual life as well. Your growth is not all up to you. Becoming Christlike is partly up to you, but the bigger part is what God does in, through, and for you. God uses your life - your successes, failures, heartbreaks, and relationships to grow you. Jesus invited, "Come to me all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and 'you will find rest for your souls.' For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" (Mat 11:28-30).
10. Celebrate.
Being in physical shape is its own reward. It feels good to feel good. This is ever truer for getting in spiritual shape. Becoming more like Christ is its own amazing reward. It's certainly no sin to recognize what God has done in and for you and celebrate it! If you've been growing, celebrate it! Share what God is doing in your life. Invite some friends over and rejoice together.
Conclusion
Getting in shape doesn't come by accident - physically or spiritually. And though we will never fully become like Jesus in this life, we can make tremendous progress if we train. Train to be godly.