Form Bruce and Stan:
“God is In the Small Stuff and it all matters”
Don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you
and was given to you by God? (1 Corinthians 6:19 NLT)
One of the great mysteries of our culture can be found in our obsession with physical fitness. The mystery isn’t that people are exercising more. The mystery is that we’re in worse shape than ever.
With the proliferation of fitness clubs, the emphasis on eating healthy foods, and the presence of at least three late-night cable shows dedicated to the latest home exercise apparatus, we should be the fittest people on the planet. Unfortunately, should never got anybody into shape.
The sad truth is that we’re gaining weight at an alarming rate, our children are in terrible shape, and even professional athletes get beaten by athletes from other countries in any sport we didn’t first invent.
What’s the problem? We think it has to do with intention and attention. You probably have every intention of getting fit, but you don’t. You say your going to pay attention to the details of diet and exercise, but you don’t. When you put those two failures together, they spell “out of shape.” And out of shape usually leads to all kinds of disadvantages, such as shortness of breath, sleepiness, lack of endurance, and obesity—none of which will add years of quality to your life.
Just like every other area of your life, the secret to getting and staying healthy lies in the details. Change won’t happen overnight. It takes time as a multitude of small disciplines are repeated daily. The process might be tedious, but the results are well worth the effort. Not only will you feel better, but you will think better, too! And a sound body can enhance a sound mind (conversely, health problems due to sloppy eating habits and sporadic exercise routines can undermine the mind).
We may be spiritual creatures at heart, but while we’re on earth our spirits are being housed in our physical bodies. Let’s do everything we can to keep the house in top shape.
. . . In the Small Stuff
Fitness of the soul should take priority over fitness of the body, but the two are not mutually exclusive.
Physical fitness should be a discipline, not an obsession.
Consistency works better when it’s linked to persistency.
Keep in shape.
Focus on where you are going rather than where you are.
It’s never too late to make a change in your life.
You usually lose interest in something that’s out of focus.
When it comes to exercise, direction is more important than speed.
If you start your day with the expectation that nothing meaningful will occur, you wont’ be disappointed.
Do it now.
What you get out of your body relates directly to what you put into it.
Don’t run with the ball unless you know the direction of the goal.
Your biggest success will be in striving to be the best you can be, and only you can succeed at that.
Don’t go for fad diets. You may lose weight in the short term, but in the long run the only thing getting slimmer will be your wallet.
A healthy and a sharp mind usually go together.
Run the race to win, even if you don’t stand a chance.
Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz, God is in the Small Stuff and it all matters (Wheaton, Ill; 1973 Promise Press), 94-99
