“Blessed are those who hear the word and obey it.” - Luke 11:28
I have a serious love/hate relationship going on with Mr. Stair Master. If you visit a gym with any degree of frequency, then maybe you can understand the mixed feelings I have toward this hideous machine.
I have to admit, I was pretty naïve the first time I laid eyes on Mr. Stair Master. “Look at those cute little steps,” I thought. “I think I’ll try them.”
I positioned myself on the device and hit the “Start” button, anticipating a pleasant, 30-minute, low-impact stroll…. What in the world was I thinking?
Three minutes into my ascent, I was sweating profusely. And let me tell you… I hate to sweat. Unlike other cardio machines, I quickly discovered that I couldn’t chit chat with the person next to me. That’s because I had to save every ounce of energy to lift my increasingly heavy legs up and down on an evil contraption that was rapidly sucking all the oxygen out of me.
It was pure torture. But somehow I managed to march a full 20 minutes before hitting the “Stop” button. Thoroughly spent and feeling quite disgusted with Mr. Stair Master, I slid off the wicked apparatus, mumbling incoherently to myself something like, “I hate you.”
I vowed to never, EVER associate with that bad boy again.
I sluggishly made my way to the nearest water fountain and took a long, refreshing drink of water. While resting next to a fan, I thought of how I could discreetly dismantle Mr. Stair Master without being noticed. Unable to come up with a good plan, I prepared to leave the gym. At that moment, I was suddenly overcome with a instant rush of adrenalin, followed by a feeling of euphoria that seemed to say, “Yippeee!!! You did it!” Where were all these happy feelings coming from? To my shock, instead of crawling out of the gym, giving a sideways death look to Mr. Stair Master on my way out, I skipped out to my car with a happy and victorious grin on my face.
Apparently, Mr. Stair Master had enabled me to feel great even though it didn’t seem that way when I was climbing one torturous step after another.
“Okay, maybe I don’t hate you after all, Mr. Stair Master. And maybe I’ll see you again tomorrow.”
The challenge of climbing a rolling staircase is a lot like applying God’s word to your daily life. We know deep down that it’s good for us, but the process of “doing the right thing” is often torturous, much like taking one burdensome step after another.
Adopting a Christ-like attitude can be downright exhausting at times. But as believers, we are called upon to do so and to always strive to be the better person.
Come on, admit it. Sometimes don’t you just want to hit the “Stop” button and jump off that “be-more-like-Jesus” machine? Sure you do. We all do. But the truth is making the effort to lead our lives according to God’s principles brings something so much greater than a temporary adrenalin rush. It brings rewards that last a lifetime.
Although the stair master – and any exercise for that matter – consumes so much of my energy, I can always sense the benefits long after I am done. I feel stronger, healthier, more alive and in sync because I have put in the effort.
The same goes for our spiritual workout. Personally, I don’t like to humble myself in front of people who don’t seem to deserve it. I loathe having to say, “I’m sorry,” when I know darn well it’s the other person who should be apologizing. However, when I’m able to hold my human nature in check and do all God asks of me, including humbling myself before others deserving or not, an indescribable peace washes over me. Perhaps you know the feeling. It’s that inner peace we all seek on a daily basis, but can’t seem to find unless it comes straight from God.
When I force myself to march on that “Spiritual Stair Master of Obedience,” I can sense God’s peace within. And that’s when I realize that the toil that comes with striving for a Christ-like attitude is worthwhile.
Believe it or not, God understands those love/hate feelings we have about being obedient to His word, just as he understands my love/hate feelings toward Mr. Stair Master. But God holds out a promise. If we make the effort… If we march onward one step at a time, the ensuing workout will be well worth it.
I have a serious love/hate relationship going on with Mr. Stair Master. If you visit a gym with any degree of frequency, then maybe you can understand the mixed feelings I have toward this hideous machine.
I have to admit, I was pretty naïve the first time I laid eyes on Mr. Stair Master. “Look at those cute little steps,” I thought. “I think I’ll try them.”
I positioned myself on the device and hit the “Start” button, anticipating a pleasant, 30-minute, low-impact stroll…. What in the world was I thinking?
Three minutes into my ascent, I was sweating profusely. And let me tell you… I hate to sweat. Unlike other cardio machines, I quickly discovered that I couldn’t chit chat with the person next to me. That’s because I had to save every ounce of energy to lift my increasingly heavy legs up and down on an evil contraption that was rapidly sucking all the oxygen out of me.
It was pure torture. But somehow I managed to march a full 20 minutes before hitting the “Stop” button. Thoroughly spent and feeling quite disgusted with Mr. Stair Master, I slid off the wicked apparatus, mumbling incoherently to myself something like, “I hate you.”
I vowed to never, EVER associate with that bad boy again.
I sluggishly made my way to the nearest water fountain and took a long, refreshing drink of water. While resting next to a fan, I thought of how I could discreetly dismantle Mr. Stair Master without being noticed. Unable to come up with a good plan, I prepared to leave the gym. At that moment, I was suddenly overcome with a instant rush of adrenalin, followed by a feeling of euphoria that seemed to say, “Yippeee!!! You did it!” Where were all these happy feelings coming from? To my shock, instead of crawling out of the gym, giving a sideways death look to Mr. Stair Master on my way out, I skipped out to my car with a happy and victorious grin on my face.
Apparently, Mr. Stair Master had enabled me to feel great even though it didn’t seem that way when I was climbing one torturous step after another.
“Okay, maybe I don’t hate you after all, Mr. Stair Master. And maybe I’ll see you again tomorrow.”
The challenge of climbing a rolling staircase is a lot like applying God’s word to your daily life. We know deep down that it’s good for us, but the process of “doing the right thing” is often torturous, much like taking one burdensome step after another.
Adopting a Christ-like attitude can be downright exhausting at times. But as believers, we are called upon to do so and to always strive to be the better person.
Come on, admit it. Sometimes don’t you just want to hit the “Stop” button and jump off that “be-more-like-Jesus” machine? Sure you do. We all do. But the truth is making the effort to lead our lives according to God’s principles brings something so much greater than a temporary adrenalin rush. It brings rewards that last a lifetime.
Although the stair master – and any exercise for that matter – consumes so much of my energy, I can always sense the benefits long after I am done. I feel stronger, healthier, more alive and in sync because I have put in the effort.
The same goes for our spiritual workout. Personally, I don’t like to humble myself in front of people who don’t seem to deserve it. I loathe having to say, “I’m sorry,” when I know darn well it’s the other person who should be apologizing. However, when I’m able to hold my human nature in check and do all God asks of me, including humbling myself before others deserving or not, an indescribable peace washes over me. Perhaps you know the feeling. It’s that inner peace we all seek on a daily basis, but can’t seem to find unless it comes straight from God.
When I force myself to march on that “Spiritual Stair Master of Obedience,” I can sense God’s peace within. And that’s when I realize that the toil that comes with striving for a Christ-like attitude is worthwhile.
Believe it or not, God understands those love/hate feelings we have about being obedient to His word, just as he understands my love/hate feelings toward Mr. Stair Master. But God holds out a promise. If we make the effort… If we march onward one step at a time, the ensuing workout will be well worth it.
