Exercise

I’ve been working on riding a stationary bike since Christmas. I started slow and for a small amount of time. I realized I was not very fit at the time and needed to start slow. However, as time has passed I’ve been able to increase the speed, time, distance, and resistance level. It took a daily commitment to getting on that bike. As time went on it became less of a chore and more a part of the routine of my days. It became a habit. A healthy habit.

I also found that healthy habits are easier to break than unhealthy habits. This week I discovered how quickly I can forget all about the healthy habit, even with the bike sitting right in front of me as I enter my office each morning. It kind of snowballed. Miss one day, and it’s easier to miss the next day, and the next, and the next. Fortunately, I only made a snowball and not a whole snowman. Today I got back on the bike, but I’d lost a little ground and had to pedal slower than I had been doing. I still went the same amount of time, but the overall speed was slower and I didn’t go as far.

There are other healthy habits we need to develop in our lives. The habits of an obedient Christian take as much effort to keep as riding the bike. And, just like with the bike, if I miss one day, missing the following days becomes easier, too. The disciplines of a Christian should include daily time in the Word of God and prayer. Our spiritual muscles depend on those healthy habits as much as our physical muscles need the daily exercise. Gaining knowledge of the Word on a regular basis allows us to grow and change into the person Christ wants us to be. Prayer keeps us connected to God.

I’m thankful that I have accountability in following the Christian disciplines. There are people in my life who will ask me what I got out of the Bible for the day. They also expect me to tell them how I’m applying the truths learned. There are people who expect me to be praying for them daily. I’ve told them I will pray and I need to be a person of my word. These daily disciplines keep me spiritually fit and the more I do them, the greater benefit I get from them.

I might want to consider finding a person or people to hold me accountable to my physical discipline of riding the bike. As I think about it, accountability might be the difference between my easily breaking a physical habit and keeping my spiritual disciplines. That is something for me to think about, but thinking about it won’t translate into action unless I apply it to my life.