How Often Do You Exercise?

“How often do you exercise,” asks the doctor.  Don’t you despise that question?  Unless you’re hitting the gym on a regular basis, you’re embarrassed to answer.  I don’t think my doctor appreciated my sense of humor when I was asked that question a few years ago.  My answer to the exercise question was “every day, multiple times a day.”  The impressed look was muddied by a skeptical look.  “What do you do?” was the next question.

• I walk daily. I walk to my car, into the store, back to my car, and into the house.  The same routine is done daily in a variety of places.  In fact, I walk everywhere except for the time riding in a vehicle.
• I do the step climber. 15 steps up the stairs, 15 back down, several times per day.
• I run
• I do leg presses every time I stand up. I do arm curls every time I carry anything.  And I weight lift every time I carry items from the car to the house for my wife.

There might have been a few other examples but none of them were received with the joy with which I delivered them.  I’m almost certain that I heard the word “idiot” slip past the doctor’s lips – probably not but I’ll bet that’s what they were thinking!

I know that it’s a good idea to exercise.  It’s just hard for me to develop that “exercise” mentality.  As a junior high kid running track, we had to go to the weight room, and I absolutely could not stand it.  I didn’t have the male macho bravado that wanted to pump up and flex.  Adding more weight to the machines and keeping track of the number of pounds lifted wasn’t a record I cared to keep or break.

I was brought up to work.  That was your exercise.  That’s what built muscle mass.  It noft only built strength, but it built character.  Cut and split firewood all summer and sell it all fall and winter.  Spend a few weeks throwing bales of hay and straw and nobody will be talking to you about your abs, glutes, pecs, biceps, triceps, or quads.  You have a “farmer’s build.”

Does the Bible ever talk about exercise?  If we could ask God about His thoughts on the subject, what would He say?  Well, we don’t have to wonder.  Some form of the word “exercise” is used 18 times in the Bible.  Several of those times, the word simply means the discharge of some duty or force.  There are other times when the definition is more on the order of what we are talking about in this devotion.

Those who don’t want to get a gym membership will love the first part of 1 Timothy 4:8.  “For bodily exercise profiteth little…”  The Bible doesn’t say that bodily exercise is of no profit.  It simply states that it only profits us a little.  However, we do find an exercise regime in the Bible that profits in far greater ways.  And, in a way, it will require us to exercise the flesh as well as exercising our soul and spirit.

The remainder of 1 Timothy 4:8 says, “… but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.”  Some of the best exercise we will ever get comes from fleeing youthful lusts, idolatry, and avarice.  RUN from these things!

Another exercise we should perform is described in Acts 24:16.  “And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men.”  This is an exercise that we never stop doing.  We cannot take a break from this.

If we are exercising our bodies, trainers will tell us to get lots of protein to build muscle.  Where are we going to get protein?  The greatest source comes from meat.  Hebrews 5:14 says, “But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”  Could we call this a spiritual carnivore diet?  We are to chew on the meat of the Word of God to help us develop spiritual strength and stamina.  This exercises our senses so that we can discern what is good and evil.

Have you ever seen personal trainers get in the face of their trainee, chewing them up one side and down the other for eating the wrong things, lack luster performance in the gym, or for not really wanting to get in shape?  They can act like a military drill sergeant as they chastise and castigate their flabby clients.  Well, the Lord does the same thing to us, only His chastening is much more gentle.   Hebrews 12:11 says, “Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”

While we may not be inclined or motivated to hit the gym, hopefully we see the need to be in God’s gym, Biblically exercising ourselves in Christian disciplines and virtues.  No pain, no gain, right?  1 Peter 3:14 says, “But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye…”

Images are taken from https://pixabay.com/, https://www.pexels.com/, or https://unsplash.com/images or created in Windows Copilot.  According to the websites, they are Royalty Free and free to be used for our purposes.