It’s been
over two weeks since I stopped exercising.
The first half was because by neck and shoulders tensed up so bad that I
started taking anti inflammatory pills and believed the running would make the
situation worse. Then I got sick and
could barely walk let alone run. (Of
course, breathing is necessary to run and when I tried to breath I had coughing
fits.) I’m still recuperating from that
one so hopefully tomorrow- all is good to go.
It’s been
years since I didn’t exercise six days a week.
Every morning I get up and complain (in my head) about having to do it,
but I do it anyway. Oh wait, last year
there was a few weeks in June when my lungs went kabluey… Anyway, you’d think I’m looking forward to
starting again, but not so. To me
exercise is necessary but not fun. It’s
okay though, because I’ll do it anyway.
Nothing makes you health motivated like a couple rounds of chemo.
I have
noticed that I don’t feel as physically capable of getting done what I need to
everyday. While a part of that is due to
being sick, the other part is lack of exercise.
Found this really great list of the benefits of exercise most of which I
never even considered:
-Exercise
keeps arteries malleable, flexible.
-Losing as
little as 6.5% weight improves blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol levels.
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| Mustard seed |
-Prevents fat
in mid section (belly) that contributes to
diabetes.
-also prevents
damaged blood vessels, heart and liver
disease, Alzheimer’s.
-Lifts your
mood by increasing serotonin.
-Can be social
activity which is known for increased
happiness.
-Strength
training improves bone strength, prevents
osteoporosis.
-Strength
training and flexibility prevent physical injuries.
-Team sports
enhance hand-eye coordination, reflexes.
-Tones your
muscles, makes you leaner.
www.methodisthealth.com
Exercising
our faith is quite the same. If we
decide not to do it one day it won’t kill us but it becomes easier to miss the
next day as well. That becomes two or
three days. Pretty soon, all the excuses
come out of the closet: I’m too busy,
too tired, too afraid, too anything…
…God has dealt to every man the measure of faith. Rm.
12:3 (see also Ep. 2:8)
And the apostles said to the Lord, Give us more
faith. And the Lord said, If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you
might say to this sycamine tree, Be rooted up and be planted in the sea! And it
would obey you. Lk. 17:5,6
Then faith is
of hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. Rm. 10:17
But without faith it is
impossible to please Him, for he who
comes to God must believe that He is and that
He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hb. 11:6
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| told this is a mustard tree |
According to
Scripture, God has given each of us an amount of faith. It doesn’t matter how much it is, we can
increase it. The disciples tried asking
Jesus for more faith, but His reply indicates they don’t need more, they just
need a tiny bit and since God has given every man a measure, we each have at
least a bit! Instead, what they needed
to do was use it. We must put ourselves
out there and use that faith: to pray for a sick person, give to someone in
need, tell a person about Jesus, visit a shut in, call a distant friend. Muscles not used atrophy; muscles used become
stronger.
Read the
Word, listen to the Word, meditate on it day and night. This will increase our faith because the more
we read with Holy Spirit understanding, the more we know God, the more we trust
God and have faith IN HIM. We will also
increase faith by diligently
seeking Him. That’s not a quick
‘hello’ in the morning and forgetting Him the rest of the day, but a thorough,
careful with attention to detail going after Him, to know Him more and be more
like Him- ALL DAY LONG. Just like when
we were in love wanting every moment to be with that person- to learn everything about them.
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| exercising faith |
But the
biggest thing imo is using the faith
that we have. “Use it or lose it” isn’t
found in the Bible per se, but the meaning is; in Mt. 25:14-30 and the parable
of the talents. God gives ALL of us
talents according to our abilities,
but we can’t be so afraid to use them that we bury them (v.25). If He gave them to us we are ABLE to use them
for His glory. To do or say less is
calling Him a liar. I don’t wanna do
that!
On a personal
note, when I stopped saying, “I’ll pray for you,” walking away and keep them
in my prayers, but rather started saying, “Let’s pray right now, is that okay?” that
an amazing thing happened. Prayers got
answered. Not because my faith was so
great, not because my prayers were so good or perfect and not because I’m any more
special than anyone else. Simply put,
God moved because His child prayed and He wanted to move- it’s all on Him, about Him
and because of Him. His power, not
mine. That’s the way it should be!