Spiritual Fitness

The Fitness Craze

Turn on the TV and it doesn't take long before you see someone touting the benefits of health and fitness. 

"Buy this gadget, slim down by drinking the latest gut buster drink, or follow my super fitness plan and you will lose..." 

It doesn't take long before you realize that fitness is big business.

People should be concerned about their physical health and fitness, but why is it that with all the money and resources put into promoting good health and fitness, research statistics show that we are in an obesity epidemic?

If you do a google search on the topic of health and fitness, why do you get one expert saying one thing, and another expert giving the opposite advice.

It is wise to be physically fit and healthy, but one must remember that each individual is different from the next.  You are unique and something that works for one may not work for the other.

We Are Not Just A Body

A serious study of the Bible will reveal that we are not just a body, but also a soul and spirit.  We also know that one day our bodies will die and turn to dust.  But the Bible tells us that our soul is eternal and will live forever.  It also tells us that our eternal soul will exist in one of two places - Heaven or Hell.  That fact of whether we believe it or not, doesn't change the fact of the existence of these two places!

As such, wouldn't it be wiser for a person to consider the matters of the spirit, more important than the matters of the body.

What are the Signs of a Healthy Spirit?

The signs of a healthy spirit can be seen in the way we live, or our fruit.  Below are 9 proofs of a healthy spirit:

1.    Love - Do you genuinely love others?  Are you concerned about other people’s welfare?

2.    Joy - Do you have real joy in your life?  Do you believe that there is no real joy in life?

3.    Peace - Do you have peace especially when things in your life get tough (relationships, sickness, finances...)

4.    Long-suffering - Do you endure trouble or suffer without complaint?

5.    Kindness - Do you show real kindness toward others, in their sufferings?

6.    Goodness - Do you uphold good things over evil?

7.    Faithfulness - Are you a person of faith?  Can you be trusted by other people to do what you say?

8.    Gentleness - Am I gentle when dealing with others around me?

9.    Self-control - If I had self-control, I would not need to lose weight and get fit?

So, how did you fair against this list?

If not very well, keep following this blog as I touch on these things in the coming weeks!