Daily Scripture: 1 Timothy 4:8 For although physical exercise does have some value, godliness is valuable for everything, since it holds promise both for the present life and for the life to come. 9 Here is a statement you can trust, one that fully deserves to be accepted 10 (indeed, it is for this that we toil and strive): we have our hope set on a living God who is the deliverer of all humanity, especially of those who trust.
11 Command these things and teach them. 12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because of your youth; on the contrary, set the believers an example in your speech, behavior, love, trust and purity. 13 Until I come, pay attention to the public reading of the Scriptures. 14 Do not neglect your gift, which you were given through a prophecy when the body of elders gave you s’mikhah. 15 Be diligent about this work, throw yourself into it, so that your progress may be clear to everyone. 16 Pay attention to yourself and to the teaching, continue in it, for by so doing you will deliver both yourself and those who hear you.
Reflection Questions:Cardinal great Lou Brock said, “You can't be afraid to make errors! You can't be afraid to be naked before the crowd, because no one can ever master the game of baseball, or conquer it. You can only challenge it.” His comment captured well the essence of what Paul told his friend and protégé Timothy about life. Don’t be afraid--you cannot be a “great” Christian without continued learning, growth and experience.
- Scholar N. T. Wright said, “For genuine godliness…you need to go into training just as much as an athlete does. And this sort of training is even more worthwhile….[It] will make you…the kind of person who reflects God’s image….We expect and want to be told that ‘spirituality’ is simply the sense I have of being in God’s presence, surrounded with his love, sensing a transcendent dimension in the affairs of everyday life. It comes as a shock to be told that it’s something you have to work at—and something, moreover, which will take the same kind of hard work as going into training for athletics.” How’s your appetite for spiritual training? Are you “in shape” or “out of shape” spiritually?
- Not sure how to “train” spiritually? Go tohttp://www.renovare.org/formation/practical-strategy/ for a balanced list of 12 “spiritual disciplines,” with definitions and ideas of how to get started. See also http://www.umc.org/how-we-serve/the-wesleyan-means-of-grace.
Lord, whatever my physical circumstances and condition, help me to be more of a “gym rat” than a “couch potato” spiritually. Give me an inner hunger and thirst for your righteousness. Amen.Insights from Brandon Gregory
Brandon Gregory is a volunteer for the worship and missions teams at Church of the Resurrection. He helps lead worship at the Vibe, West, and Downtown services, and is involved with the Malawi missions team at home.
When I think of training, I think of one person: Bruce Lee. That’s right, the martial artist/actor that made martial arts cool. The guy was obsessive about his training regimen. Every time he was walking and came across a hill, he would run up it. When traveling, he would often pack weights and training equipment and leave behind frivolous things like clothes and toiletries that could be bought wherever they were traveling to. He incorporated weights into his training regimen at a time when no other martial artists were doing so. And it paid off–Bruce Lee is widely regarded as one of the best martial artists in history.
My point isn’t that Bruce Lee is cool (although he is); my point is that, for Bruce Lee, training wasn’t just something that happened in a gym when he had time for it. His life was focused toward a singular goal: to be the best martial artist in the world. And, in view of this goal, training became a way of life for him. He trained whenever and however he could. He relished every chance he had to train because it brought him one step closer to his goal. In short, training wasn’t something he fit into his life; training was his life.
I wonder how different our lives would be if we were as focused on spiritual training–if we sought to be the most kind, loving, faithful, and pure people in the world. What if, for every person we bumped into each day, we saw a chance to practice kindness? What if, for every chance we had to do something wrong when no one was watching, we saw a chance to practice purity? What if, every time someone came to us with a problem, we saw a chance to speak love and encouragement?
I once worked with a guy who said that there are no challenges, there are only opportunities. I used to scoff at this, because my life was full of challenges. But Bruce Lee saw each hill as an opportunity for training. To be the best at something, we need to adopt this mindset–and God wants us to be the best at emulating Him.
So remember, every interaction, every challenge, every hill you see is a chance to train. And every moment spent training, whether at church or on our own time, brings us closer to our goal: to be the best in the world at being like God. That doesn’t happen without training that borders on obsessive.
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avnue
When I think of training, I think of one person: Bruce Lee. That’s right, the martial artist/actor that made martial arts cool. The guy was obsessive about his training regimen. Every time he was walking and came across a hill, he would run up it. When traveling, he would often pack weights and training equipment and leave behind frivolous things like clothes and toiletries that could be bought wherever they were traveling to. He incorporated weights into his training regimen at a time when no other martial artists were doing so. And it paid off–Bruce Lee is widely regarded as one of the best martial artists in history.
My point isn’t that Bruce Lee is cool (although he is); my point is that, for Bruce Lee, training wasn’t just something that happened in a gym when he had time for it. His life was focused toward a singular goal: to be the best martial artist in the world. And, in view of this goal, training became a way of life for him. He trained whenever and however he could. He relished every chance he had to train because it brought him one step closer to his goal. In short, training wasn’t something he fit into his life; training was his life.
I wonder how different our lives would be if we were as focused on spiritual training–if we sought to be the most kind, loving, faithful, and pure people in the world. What if, for every person we bumped into each day, we saw a chance to practice kindness? What if, for every chance we had to do something wrong when no one was watching, we saw a chance to practice purity? What if, every time someone came to us with a problem, we saw a chance to speak love and encouragement?
I once worked with a guy who said that there are no challenges, there are only opportunities. I used to scoff at this, because my life was full of challenges. But Bruce Lee saw each hill as an opportunity for training. To be the best at something, we need to adopt this mindset–and God wants us to be the best at emulating Him.
So remember, every interaction, every challenge, every hill you see is a chance to train. And every moment spent training, whether at church or on our own time, brings us closer to our goal: to be the best in the world at being like God. That doesn’t happen without training that borders on obsessive.
Download the GPS App
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avnue
Leawood, Kansas 66224 United States
913.897.0120
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