The Role of Fitness

Does fitness play any part in your relationship with Christ? Should it? Fitness is not generally noted as a pillar of Christianity, yet we place a lot of importance on avoiding sins against the body (e.g. sexual immorality, violence, abortion, etc.). It’s true that to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to the Most Holy God, we need to pray for His help in abstaining from sin. However, should we not also use our bodies as they were intended to be used — for His glory?

Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Romans 12:1 NASB

The Benefits of Fitness

Not only does God deserve all of our worship, He actually designed our bodies to worship and glorify Him. We were made to help our families and friends, take the gospel to the ends of the earth, kneel in prayer, and raise our hands in song. In her book Liturgy of the Ordinary, Tish Harrison Warren writes that tasks required for the upkeep of our earthly bodies are not insignificant, but “necessities that keep us well enough to do the real work of worship and discipleship,” and that this bodily maintenance is a “confession that our Creator, who mysteriously became flesh, has made our bodies well and deserves worship in and through our very cells, muscles, tissues, and teeth.”i Such a confession makes not only fitness, but washing, grooming, and eating well acts of worship.

Fitness has a benefit other than mere upkeep to stay physically capable. Physical training also strengthens our minds and self-discipline. The apostle Paul told the Corinthian church that athletes practice self-control in every way to win a temporary prize, but we need self-control so that we will not be excluded from the hope we tell others about.ii I don’t know if Paul chose this analogy because he also had a fitness regimen, or he just understood the connection between fitness and self-discipline. Either way, we can learn from the comparison and use fitness as a tool for our own spiritual discipline and growth.

The Dangers of Fitness

As with everything in life, we must be cautious about keeping fitness from becoming an idol. Yes, health and a capable body are good and useful gifts, but they are only tools we use to bring glory to the Father. Fitness is important, but it is not the most important. It is important, but it is not what saves us. No matter how well we take care of ourselves, we still live in a fallen world. We’re breathing and consuming pollution and toxicity, there will be accidents ending in life-altering injuries, and we are powerless to prevent sickness and death. Thanks be to God, our hope is in the sacrifice of His Son on the cross, not in our own physicality!

The Gift of Fitness

In addition to general maintenance and spiritual discipline, physical training allows us to enjoy the bodies we were graciously given. It’s a great feeling to run further than you have before, to move something that was previously too heavy, or to hike up a mountain and take in the splendor of God’s creation. May we all train, use, and enjoy our bodies as God designed them to be used and enjoyed for as long as He allows.

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Notes:

i Tish Harrison Warren, Liturgy of the Ordinary, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2016), 41

ii 1 Corinthians 9:25–27

Fitness: An Idol, or Essential to Faith? was originally published in MyLampstand on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

A tool I often use while studying my Bible is a lexicon. A lexicon allows me to look up any verse and see the original Greek or Hebrew words used, along with their origins and definitions. This often helps me better understand what point the author was trying to make.

During a recent study of 2 Corinthians, one of the words I looked up was ministry. The Greek word used for ministry is diakonos, which, as the lexicon at Biblehub.com explains, comes from the words diá, meaning thoroughly, and konis, meaning dust. This paints the picture of someone willing to “thoroughly raise up dust by moving in a hurry” to serve others. In other words, there is a sense of urgency in ministry.

There are two important things to note about ministry. First, urgency does not mean pushy, but the fear of being wrongly accused as such cannot be an excuse to allow those around us to perish without hearing the truth of God’s love. Second, not everyone works in the same ministry. We will not all share the gospel in the same way, but we are all called to do so in some way.

Let us not be lackadaisical or complacent with the gifts God has given us to bring Him glory and further His kingdom.

Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?

2 Corinthians 3:7–8 NIV

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Ministry: A Word Study was originally published in MyLampstand on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

These four books were not published in 2023, but they are my favorites from what I read last year. Enjoy!

1. The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky

This was the first book I read in 2023, and a year later I am still thinking about quotes from Dostoevsky’s final novel. It is a murder mystery, commentary on philosophies of life and religion, and a classic for good reason. These are some of my favorite lines:

“A true realist, if he is not a believer, will always find in himself the strength and ability not to believe in miracles as well, and if a miracle stands before him as an irrefutable fact, he will sooner doubt his own senses than admit the fact.”

“Taking freedom to mean the increase and prompt satisfaction of needs, they distort their own nature, for they generate many meaningless and foolish desires, habits, and the most absurd fancies in themselves….to satisfy it, they will sacrifice life, honor, the love of mankind, and will even kill themselves if they are unable to satisfy it….I ask you: is such a man free?”

“Schoolboy, do not stoop to lying, first; and second, not even for a good cause.”

2. Person of Interest, by J. Warner Wallace

As a Christian, I enjoyed reading about the impact Jesus has had on history, science and every culture throughout history. I think anyone curious about Christianity or the historical Jesus would be interested in this book. Wallace was an atheist homicide detective who decided to investigate the death of Jesus as he would one of his cold-cases, and this book is the story of his findings. The most intriguing part for me was Wallace’s reasoning on why Jesus came at that specific point in time, which I wrote more about here.

3. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, translated by Simon Armitage

This was my most enjoyable reading experience of the year, albeit namely due to nostalgia. I’ve always read Arthurian retellings, and loved experiencing this classic English tale. It’s a simple story of Sir Gawain going on an adventure with a lesson in goodness and morality. Armitage kept the rhythm of the original verse, just giving a more accessible version to modern readers.

4. The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London

Jack London’s The Call of the Wild has been my favorite book since childhood, so The Sea-Wolf was also a bit of a nostalgic read. Besides being a novel of seafaring escapades, The Sea-Wolf discusses questions of idealism, and whether our morality is, or should be, more than a survival of the fittest philosophy. My favorite quote:

“He was daring destiny, and he was unafraid.”

Best Books of 2023 was originally published in BiblioPub on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Talent is often mistaken for skill.

Natural ability has a tendency to become an excuse to skip the practice necessary to further develop that talent. It won’t take long, however, for others who are learning, practicing, and honing their skill to surpass those who rely solely on natural ability. This means that just because you have an instinct for crafting sentences, you can still practice and progress further. Fortunately, this also means that just because beautiful sentences aren’t automatically flowing from your pen, you can still improve your writing by studying great writers, taking courses, and continuing to work on your skill. No matter where you are with your writing practice, here are three pieces of writing advice that have been useful to me at different points in my writing journey.

1. Write Poorly

In order to write anything, you have to start by putting words on the page. This is not necessarily as obvious as it sounds, because we want to write meaningful, catchy sentences, not terrible ones. Getting the words from our brain to the paper, however, is not going to be pretty at first (which is why it’s called a rough draft), and you have to learn to be okay with that. Once your ideas are on the page, you can then edit, and edit, and edit….

A great way to help yourself take your ideas from head to paper is to use an outline with pointed questions. For example, instead of “Hook,” your outline will say, “Why is this important to the reader?” or “What happened that sparked my writing this piece?” With the right questions on your outline, you can simply answer them and end up with a working first draft.

2. Don’t Say Everything

In How to Write a Sentence, Stanley Fish says,

“The goal is not to be comprehensive, to say everything that could possibly be said to the extent that no one could say anything else; if that were the goal, no sentence could ever be finished. The goal is to communicate forcefully whatever perspective or emphasis or hierarchy of concerns attaches to your present purposes.”

Fish’s advice is easily adaptable from sentences to longer bodies of work. If any part of your work doesn’t answer the questions from your outline, support your main point, or give pertinent background information, save it for another piece.

3. Count Rejections, Not Acceptances

Once you’ve finished writing, the process is not over. You still need to get your piece in front of publishers and readers. I don’t remember who recommended making a rejection goal, but it is a very helpful mindset to adopt. When submitting work to publications, remember that you’ll receive more rejections than acceptances, but that shouldn’t be discouraging. Rejections can be for a variety of reasons, and, unfortunately, you won’t be told the specific reason most of the time. By changing your mindset from trying to reach a certain number of acceptances to reaching a certain number of rejections, rejections won’t be disheartening, and the acceptances will just be welcome additions!

I hope at least one of these tips will help you take your writing further, and if you’re looking for help with outlining, don’t forget to download a free template here!

3 Tips and Tools for Writers was originally published in ILLUMINATION on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Magatte Wade shares the story of her life, from Senegal to Silicon Valley and beyond, in her new book, The Heart of a Cheetah. The memoir has a greater purpose than simply narrating her life story, however. It is a story of Africa, how and why it has some of the poorest nations in the world, and a call to be a part of the solution. The Heart of a Cheetah feels like it’s the start of something, rather than just a look through one woman’s past.

The Cheetahs

Wade is part of the “Cheetah generation,” a phrase coined by one of her mentors, George Ayittey. Ayittey describes this generation of Africans as “problem solvers and entrepreneurs.” Rather than waiting for corrupt leaders to bring them out of poverty, they take action and work to change their circumstances. Throughout her career, Magatte has been accused by many of denying the part that colonialism played in keeping Africa poor, but she makes it clear that slavery and colonialism were horrific, stalled Africa’s economic growth and replaced it with poverty. She makes the case that although this was devastating, her home country of Senegal and all other African nations now have the chance and responsibility to take themselves out of poverty and thrive alongside Singapore, Hong Kong, and Denmark (once poor nations, but now ranking in the top of the World Bank Doing Business index).

Problems and Solutions

One of the aftereffects of colonialism is the erroneous idea that it is inextricably linked to capitalism, thereby making capitalism and free markets seem like the enemies. Wade argues that in pre-slavery and colonialist Africa, free markets were ingrained into the culture. Current socialist and bad business policies came later, and are now what keep Africa’s barriers to prosperity in place, not capitalism.

If poverty is the problem, money would be the solution. Money comes from jobs, and jobs come from businesses, i.e. the private, for-profit sector. Summarizing the situation however, is much easier than executing a plan to combat the issue. First, more people need to understand the importance and necessity of capitalism, and then a path through corrupt bureaucratic systems must be cleared for aspiring entrepreneurs. Wade’s book describes her own experience coming to these realizations, and the many obstacles she faced while building her own African businesses. This book is a great start for anyone interested in learning about economic freedom, starting a business, or helping Africa out of poverty. Magatte’s work has shown her that without a change in business policies, economic freedom will not exist in Senegal or any other African nation. To prosper, Magatte says, every citizen needs “three essential tools: property rights, the rule of law, and freedom. In the course of the last century, every nation that has provided its citizens with access to these tools has become prosperous.”

Playing Our Part

What can we, African or not, do to help? Research and read books like The Heart of a Cheetah to learn more about economic freedom and how other countries have achieved it. Spread the word about the need for better business practices, and invest in private African businesses. There’s no quick fix, but there is real hope for the Cheetah generation to lead Africa and other nations around the world out of poverty and into prosperity.

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Achieving Economic Freedom in Africa was originally published in ILLUMINATION on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

With Halloween approaching, there is an inevitable increase in pumpkins, skeletons, and “Should Christians…?” content. I live in America, where, according to Investopedia, we currently spend just over $10 billion on candy, costumes, and decorations to celebrate the holiday.

Along with scary decorations and dubious origins, Halloween brings the question, “should Christians participate?” Bible verses such as 1 Corinthians 9:22 (I have become all things to all people, so that I may by all means save some) and 1 Corinthians 10:23 (all things are permitted, but not all things are of benefit) are used on both sides of the argument, confusing those who genuinely want to do the right thing and are looking for guidance.

My advice is to look for guidance from the Holy Spirit instead of random people on the internet (like me for instance). If you’re questioning whether you should do anything, pray about your specific situation, and then follow the prompting you receive. If you are still uneasy about participating in a certain event after praying, do not join in. If you decide to abstain, stay strong in your conviction. Our main requirement is to follow God, not man.

If you decide to partake in Halloween, I believe you can do it in a way that still glorifies God, by spreading joy and love rather than darkness and fear. I think of my great-grandma who gave out homemade caramel popcorn balls every Halloween. Her treats became so well-known that she would have upward of 200 visitors each year. Walking up her front steps was a source of joy, not fear. Be known as the Christian house with good treats and fun decorations.

We are called to spread the love of God to the world, and can definitely find ways to take advantage of a day when the world literally comes knocking on our doors.

Write For New Creation

Should Christians Celebrate Halloween? was originally published in New Creation on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Hebrews 11 delineates what has become known as the “Hall of Faith,” and is described in the next chapter as “a cloud of witnesses” surrounding us; examples of faith from believers throughout the Bible. Not only can we learn from the witnesses of these believers, but also from many other Christians that have gone before us. One such example is A.W. Tozer, a pastor, author, and mentor to many. I recently read the prayer he wrote right after being ordained as a minister, and found encouragement and principles to work toward in my own life.

Be Prepared

“O Lord, I have heard Thy voice and was afraid. Thou hast called me to an awesome task in a grave and perilous hour. Thou are about to shake all nations and the earth and also heaven, that the things that cannot be shaken may remain.”

When tough and chaotic times come, we will be afraid, shaken, and lost if we do not have a strong foundation of knowledge and trust in the Lord. There is an adage often attributed to a Navy SEAL which says, “Under pressure, you don’t rise to the occasion, you sink to the level of your training.” We need to be consistently training ourselves to follow the Holy Spirit’s promptings, rather than our own flesh, so that when times of sifting come, we will remain in the Lord.

Remember Who Changes Hearts

“My God, I shall not waste time deploring my weakness nor my unfittedness for the work. The responsibility is not mine but Thine. Thou hast said, ‘I knew thee — I ordained thee — I sanctified thee,’ and Thou has also said, ‘Thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.’”

God delights in using us to expand His kingdom, but it is He who ultimately softens and convicts hearts. We will never be fully fit for this honor while still in our bodies of clay. Rather than discourage us from trying however, this knowledge should inspire us to work free from the pressure of perfection, knowing that it is God who is truly at work.

Speak Boldly

“I beseech Thee, give me sharp eyes to detect the presence of the enemy; give me understanding to distinguish the false friend from the true. Give me vision to see and courage to report what I see faithfully. Make my voice so like Thine own that even the sick sheep will recognize it and follow Thee.”

Our time in study and prayer should equip us for time spent in the world. Dependence on the Holy Spirit gives us discernment to avoid the enemy’s schemes, and courage to declare the goodness of God we’ve experienced in our lives. I don’t remember where I heard this phrase, but I often use it in my prayers, “May whatever is spoken in heaven be spoken through me.”

Stay Alert

“Let me not waste my days puttering around the house. Lay Thy terror upon me, O God, and drive me to the place of prayer where I may wrestle with principalities and powers and the rulers of the darkness of this world. Deliver me from overeating and late sleeping. Teach me self-discipline that I may be a good soldier of Jesus Christ.”

It’s not always the obvious which ensnares us. Comfort, complacency, and laziness so easily creep into our lives and diminish our desire to serve. In 2 Corinthians, Paul mentions the “ministry of the Spirit” to which we belong. The roots of the term “ministry” are from the Greek words meaning “thoroughly” and “dust,” painting a picture of stirring up dust while completing a task. Ask for God’s help in maintaining this sense of urgency in the service of others and not falling into the trap of an easy life.

“Then, dear Lord, when I am old and weary and too tired to go on, have a place ready for me above, and make me to be numbered with Thy saints in glory everlasting. Amen.”

Ordination Prayer: Four Principles from A.W. Tozer was originally published in MyLampstand on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

A constant struggle is happening in and around us. As Paul warned the Ephesians, this battle is “not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12NASB) Battered by lies, we have a hard time identifying the real enemies, not to mention shielding ourselves from them.

How Do We Fight Such Enemies?

Our compromised human natures do not supply what is needed for this type of war. In the midst of such chaos, we must rely on someone greater than ourselves. Paul describes the tools God gives us as the armor of God; truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and the word of God (Eph. 6:14–17).

Although God equips us, at times we have a tendency to lose focus on things above and become tired, or fearful. When the battle seems overwhelming, we need not despair, but remember on whose strength we truly depend. The God who loved us so much that He sent His only Son to die for our sins also shelters and fights for us. Bad times will come and go, but God is in control throughout.

Stand Firm

God will fight for you when it takes everything to simply stand. Don’t give any ground to the enemy by watering down your testimony, or chipping away at your convictions. Rather, trust that even in the midst of war, God’s love abounds. He knows we need rest and replenishment, and will not let us be overcome.

Ephesians 6:13 …and having done everything, to stand firm.

Our Hope in the Midst of War was originally published in MyLampstand on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

“And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them; I will say ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’” Zechariah 13:9 NASB

There is a line in Lauren Daigle’s song, You Say, which asks, “Am I more than just the sum of every high and every low?” Often, this is how we live our lives — high on Sunday at church, and low on patience with our coworkers or neighbors during the week.

How do we escape this roller coaster?

Refinement by God.

The trouble is, many of us want the results of eternal joy and peace, but are afraid of the process of refinement. We think we can skip ahead, leaving impurities that hinder true obedience to the Holy Spirit. Obedience from obligation does not last. Only obedience from an overflow of love and power from the Holy Spirit inside of us lasts.

Give us grace to be in awe of Your love and power, and may the fear of Lord erase all other fears and impurities.

Refined by Fire was originally published in New Creation on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

There are few things more frustrating than working as hard as you can without any noticeable results. You may be surprised to learn that working as hard as you can may actually be part of the problem. Fortunately, a basic understanding of the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) can help you realize one or two of the mistakes that might be contributing to your plateau.

What is RPE?

The rate of perceived exertion is how hard someone feels they are working, or how much energy they feel they are exerting. The most common way to measure RPE is a simple scale of 1–10; 1 being a low feeling of energy expenditure, and 10 being the highest. On this scale, a light jog might be considered a 3–4, while a sprint would feel like a 9–10.

The important thing to remember about RPE is that just because you feel as though you’re exerting a lot of energy, it doesn’t mean you actually are (i.e. perceived exertion ≠ actual exertion). This means progression may have stalled because your body is not accurately measuring the intensity of your workouts, thereby expending less energy than you realize. The closer your perceived exertion is to your actual exertion, the easier it will be for you to effectively plan a workout that helps you reach your goals.

Here are three ways to minimize the difference between your perceived and actual exertion:

Use Proper Rest Times

Between each set of any exercise, rest times can be anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes. Without sufficient rest, the next set might feel too taxing to complete. However, with an extra minute or two of rest, you will be able to expend more energy on the next set by using better form with more reps.

Remember that rest times vary based on the individual and their goals. A very general rule for resistance training is shorter rests when training for muscle endurance and hypertrophy, and longer rests when training for strength and power.

Recover Between Workouts

Forcing yourself through difficult workout after difficult workout hinders your progress. If proper recovery time is not given between workouts, you will start a session with lower energy, and feel as though you’re working harder than you truly are. This mistake can not only be avoided by taking some rest days, but also by choosing a variety of workouts.

Not every session needs to feel as difficult (not as high on the RPE scale) as possible. For example, rather than making every workout a 10 on the RPE scale, mix it up with some sessions at a 3–6 energy output, and just one or two per week at an 8–10 energy output.

Fuel Your Body

Perhaps you’ve had plenty of rest, yet you still feel sluggish or weak during a workout. A body that is not properly fueled going into a workout will not have the energy needed to complete an optimal training session. Our body’s fuel, of course, is food.

Food intake needs are different for each person, but there are general rules we can all follow. A good starting point is to make sure each meal contains all of the macronutrients (carbs, fats, and protein) and plenty of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). Balanced, unprocessed foods will give your body the lasting energy it needs.

Keep these tips in mind when planning your workouts, and, most importantly, don’t give up on your goals!

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Why You Aren’t Seeing Results from Your Workouts was originally published in Second Nature (formerly In Fitness & In Health) on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.