You Can't Phone This In!

One thing I do “religiously” is exercise, daily.  Sometimes I run, and on other days I work out to a video.  Lately, I’ve been doing  Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred.  It is a power-packed, nonstop routine that has you working big and small muscle groups at the same time, with no rest periods.  Yes, it’s tough, and she states that up front, but she also says that it is the best way to “shred” weight and tone muscles.  I’m a believer, after having done it for almost a month.  Even though she can’t see me in her lycra-clad audience,  she makes one thing very clear…don’t stop, do the routine correctly, and give it all that you have.  As she likes to say, “You can’t phone this in.”  I admit, there were days, at the beginning, when I thought I’d rest just a wee bit, but she caught me every time, as I tried to phone it in.  As the old adage goes, anything worth doing, is worth doing well.

It’s true in exercise, and it’s also true in our Christian walk.  When we make the decision to follow Christ, it’s much the same as embarking on a fitness regime. Both require us to study up, and even try them out.  Jesus, like Jillian, never tells us that following him is going to be easy.  Folks who say that being a disciple is all fun and games, are most likely those with spiritual iphones in their hands.  Christ did the hard work for us on the cross, but that doesn’t mean we get to sit around after being saved.  Oh no!  “For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10.

Don‘t be alarmed, you can‘t lose your salvation, and it isn‘t dependent on our works, but it is something, like our physical bodies, that we need to nurture and develop.  Let‘s say I told everyone that I was working out, don‘t you think they‘d be looking for physical changes in me?  As I said the other day, if your faith hasn’t changed you, it hasn’t saved you. Sure it‘s not easy, but with an encouraging instructor, combined with perseverance, the results will astound you, as well as those around you.

The author of Hebrews said this, “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. 12 Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble..” Hebrews 12:11-12.  Jesus, quoting the Old Testament said: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind, and all your strength..' Matthew 22:37.

God’s Holy Spirit is our Jillian Michaels, and he motivates us to do more everyday until it becomes so natural that not “working out” would seem weird. You can’t expect the body to stay healthy and toned by merely watching a video, you must participate. So too, we must keep our spiritual selves in tip top shape. “ Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.” Philippians 2:12.  And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:17.  You can’t phone this in friends, and really why would you want to…spiritual fitness feels amazing, and the long term benefits are out of this world!