SPIRITUAL FITNESS FOR THE NEW YEAR

“Train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.   (1 Timothy 4:7b-8 NIV)

A new year invites us to reset our priorities. Many of us will focus on physical health -- dieting, exercising, or finally using that gym membership. Paul reminds us this has value, but he also points us to something far more lasting: training in godliness.

John Ortberg writes in "The Life You've Always Wanted" that if we want to grow spiritually, we must “stop trying and start training.” Trying depends on momentary effort. Training builds steady habits that shape us over time. Spiritual growth doesn’t happen by accident; it grows through intentional practices that open our hearts to God’s transforming work.

This year, consider simple rhythms that strengthen your soul: Prayer as a daily conversation with God. Scripture as nourishment for your soul and guidance for the journey. Worship as a posture of reverence and gratitude. Community as the place where we support one another and grow best.  Devotional reading as the source of encouragement from those who are spiritual trainers. These practices are the gymnasium of the soul. And the promise is clear: godliness brings blessing not only for eternity, but for the life you’re living right now.

If you know of someone like you who would like to be part of a daily spiritual fitness routine this year, encourage them to follow this blog or subscribe to this e-mail through the link at the bottom of the column to the right.

As you step into the new year, may you train -- not try -- and may Christ be formed in you more deeply with every step.   

-- SOUND BITES Ministry™  

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DISCIPLESHIP… COMPASSIONATE CARING

"As God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience."  (Colossians 3:12 NIV)

South African pastor Trevor Hudson identifies compassionate caring as the distinguishing mark of faithful discipleship: “Compassionate caring creatively balances the inward-outward dynamic so characteristic of Jesus’ life, saves us from falling prey to the latest fad in the spiritual supermarket, and catapults our lives into a deeper engagement with the brokenness of our world.” 

In a world saturated with spiritual trends and political slogans, Trevor Hudson’s words cut through the noise with clarity: true discipleship is marked not by novelty, but by compassion. Jesus didn’t chase popularity or perform for applause. He moved toward the broken, the weary, the overlooked -- with a heart full of mercy and a life poured out in love.

Compassionate caring is not sentimentalism. It’s a radical posture of the heart that refuses to separate spiritual formation from social engagement. It’s the kind of love that listens deeply, acts boldly, and suffers willingly. It’s the inward transformation that spills outward into a world aching for grace.

When we embrace this rhythm -- being formed by Christ and sent in His name -- we resist the temptation to treat faith as a consumer product or a political tool. Instead, we become conduits of healing, agents of hope, and reflections of the One who came not to be served, but to serve. 

-- SOUND BITES Ministry™, compiled from a variety of sources

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MEN: YOU’VE GOT TO HAVE THE WANT-TO

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me.'”  (Matthew 16:24 NIV)

Most members of my generation are familiar with the classic Rolling Stones song “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” The lyrics may indeed speak truth in the world of human relationships and romantic love. We can’t always get what we want, but we might manage to get what we need if only we try hard enough. Tenacity pays off. Fair enough.

In the arena of spiritual growth, however, wanting turns out to be a fundamental prerequisite for making any progress at all. When our wanting lines up with God’s intention, that combination adds up to one powerful recipe. When the heartfelt longing of Christian men is the desire to walk in God’s way, look out, world! In that case, what we want is most certainly and powerfully what we are going to get.

For Christian men, wanting is absolutely the most critical variable in the equation. God will never force His hand if we fail to own the desire. Coercion is not in God’s nature, and bullying is not in His game plan. The Lord of the universe has always been gracious to respect the choices we make.

The ball is in our court. “You’ve got to have the want-to” may be a worn cliché in religious vernacular, but it turns out to be a powerful truth. In practice a large enough dose of want-to adds up to an enormously effective tool on the infrequently traveled road of ongoing spiritual formation. 

-- Derek Maul in “Get Real: A Spiritual Journey for Men” 

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THE ROLE OF SCRIPTURE IN SPIRITUAL FORMATION

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.”  (2 Timothy 3:16-17 GNT)

The how of the role of Scripture in spiritual formation is not so much a body of information, a technique, a method, a model, as it is a mode of being in relationship with God that we bring to the Scripture…

I suggest that your top priority be to listen for God. Seek to allow your attention and focus to be on listening for what God is saying to you as your read [the Scripture]… Listen for God to speak to you in and through, around and within, over and behind and out front of everything that you read. Keep asking yourself, “What is God seeking to say to me in all this?” By adopting this posture toward the text [of God’s Word] you will begin the process of reversing the learning mode that establishes you as the controlling power who seeks to master a body of information. Instead, you will begin to allow the text to become an instrument of God’s grace in your life. You will begin to open yourself to the possibility of God’s setting the agenda for your life through the text. Not only will this exercise begin to transform your approach to reading (and prepare you for the role of Scripture in spiritual formation), it will also begin to transform your whole mode of being in relationship with God in a way that will enhance genuine spiritual formation. 

-- M. Robert Mulholland, Jr. in “Shaped by the Word”

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THE GOAL OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH

“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of Him who is the head, that is, Christ.”  (Ephesians 4:14-15 NIV)

I am called to become the person God had in mind when He originally designed me. This is what is behind Kierkegaard's wonderful prayer, "And now Lord, with Your help I shall become myself." …[Spiritual growth] is about that holy and mysterious process described by the apostle Paul when he said he was "in the pain of childbirth until Christ is formed in you." (Galatians 4:19) The goal of such growth is to live as if Jesus held unhindered sway over our bodies. Of course, it is still we doing the living. We are called by God to live as our uniquely created selves -- our temperament, our gene pool, our history. But to grow spiritually means to live increasingly as Jesus would in our unique place -- to perceive what Jesus would perceive if He looked through our eyes, to think what He would think, to feel what He would feel, and therefore to do what He would do.

-- John Ortberg in “The Life You've Always Wanted”

SPIRITUAL PREPARATION FOR MISSION

When we expect spiritually immature people suddenly to become committed to outreach, we end up asking people to serve a compulsion, not God. Look at the example of Jesus and His disciples. He did not call them and immediately ask them to care for the poor, clothe the naked, visit the imprisoned, heal the sick, and make disciples of all nations. Instead, He spent the early part of His ministry preparing them. He focused on forming their faith. Eventually He gave them small missions of teaching and healing. When they failed and became discouraged, He encouraged them and taught them how to succeed. It was only toward the end of His life that He gave them the authority to fully serve Him in mission, and it was only after His death and resurrection that He commanded them to go out and share the gospel. Mission and ministry were the result of spiritual preparation and maturation.

In far too many… churches there has not been enough focus on preparing people spiritually for mission. We prepare people for mission by creating an environment of trust, encouragement, compassion, vision, selflessness, and sacrifice. Spiritual leaders recognize the importance of first forming people spiritually for their mission. 

-- N. Graham Standish in “Becoming a Blessed Church: Forming a Church of Spiritual Purpose, Presence, and Power”

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GOD’S RESTORATION WORK

“Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from Him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God -- truly righteous and holy.”  (Ephesians 4:21-24 NLT)

One metaphor I’ve found useful for describing God’s work in the life of Christians is that of restoring old cars… I remember interviewing the guys who ran the Mustang junkyard in Kansas City. I asked one of them, “What do you see when you look at these dilapidated Mustangs in the salvage yard?” He said, “I don’t see them as they are. I see what they could be.”

What a powerful picture of how God views us. The church is God’s salvage yard, and He sees what we could be. Our task is to invite Him to restore us. As we do, little by little He strips us down to the bare metal and then begins perfectly restoring us.

If we’re willing to pursue the Christian life, if we’re willing to say, “Take me, Lord -- my heart, my life, my all -- and make me what You want me to be,” then God, through the Spirit, will restore us. 

-- Adam Hamilton in “Revival: Faith as Wesley Lived It”

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RESISTING TEMPTATION

Foundational to gaining strength to resist temptation is a life lived in God. I can remember times in my life when I felt spiritually flat and emotionally exhausted. I know how vulnerable I was. I thank God daily for the many times He has protected me when I have not had the good sense to take care of myself.

Be regular in fellowship with Christians. Be regular in worship. Be regular in your devotional life. I have found my men’s Bible study to be an essential part of the spiritual foundation for my life. Men need a place where they can discuss openly and honestly with other men the tensions and problems they encounter in life. If you are not in a study like this, seek one. Make certain it has the element of personal sharing in it. Also, find your place of ministry through your local church. Where can you serve God with your gifts?  Being in a place of service for God helps us to be accountable in our lives. 

-- Tom L. Eisenman in “Temptations Men Face”

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SPIRITUAL FORMATION

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”  (Romans 12:2 NLT)

Being a people in mission is not merely a matter of strategies and methods; it is a matter of spiritual formation. Being in mission requires us to have a trusting relationship with God and ourselves that is more than the mere learning of facts. Formation is a process through which a relationship develops and shapes our very personality. Out of that deep personal experience, values and commitments originate and love grows. 

-- Bishop Raymond Schultz, ELC in Canada

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SPIRITUAL FORMATION

“You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.” (2 Timothy 2:2 NLT)

One of the biggest complaints I have heard from liberal, moderate, and conservative Christians about the spiritual formation movement is that it emphasizes self-focused navel gazing. These critics complain that the study of spirituality and spiritual practices teaches people to become self-consumed rather than mission oriented. That’s not true. Spiritual formation’s detractors create a false dichotomy. Rarely do I find someone truly devoted to spiritual practices who isn’t also devoted to outreach of some kind. A relationship with God always compels us to acts of loving sacrifice. True prayer always leads to action. The real problem arises when people act without prayer, because then the focus is on themselves, not on serving God.

-- N. Graham Standish in “Becoming a Blessed Church: Forming a Church of Spiritual Purpose, Presence, and Power”


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FITNESS TRAINING FOR THE NEW YEAR

"Physical training is of some value," Paul tells us in I Timothy 4:8, "but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."

My guess is that our hopes and resolutions for the New Year are quite similar. Like myself, many of you have probably committed to dieting, making better use of your long neglected gym membership and reestablishing a quiet time with God. Our commitments to dieting and gym membership require elaborate preparations and consistent training. After all, we must not only choose our diet, but we must train ourselves to stay away from sweets or that extra serving of mashed potatoes. Similarly, we must not only carve out time in our schedule for the gym, we must commit ourselves to, and stick with, a rigorous training schedule.

Unfortunately, when it comes to our spiritual fitness, we often fail to make any specific preparations at all. So, while we try to spend more time in prayer, we fail to schedule time to be on our knees. Likewise, although we would like to explore fasting, we fail to train ourselves to sustain a fast. While we try to read the Bible, we fail to place ourselves in a small group Bible study that will hold us accountable. If you are like me, you know that trying often gets us nowhere. As John Ortberg teaches so clearly in "The Life You've Always Wanted", if we want to grow into godliness we need to "stop trying and start training." We need to train ourselves in godliness. Spiritual practices and disciplines will help us to grow in the godliness that holds "promise for both the present life and the life to come." 

-- Adapted from the Christian Living Newsletter from Christianbook.com 


SPIRITUAL FITNESS NOTE: If you know of someone like you who would like to be part of a daily spiritual fitness routine this year, encourage them to follow this blog, find us on Facebook, or subscribe via e-mail.


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SPIRITUAL FORMATION

It’s tempting to describe spiritual formation in terms we can really master or regulate, like a check list or a huddle or listening to a series of recorded teachings. Such schemes can too readily become perfunctory, another sort of legalism, a way to avoid exploration and mystery, or little more than formulaic.

Being a Christian is not about us; it’s about Jesus! Spiritual formation is about the life of Jesus being made visible in our bodies; it’s about engaging the Spirit because we are hungry for God; it’s about becoming disciples so that Jesus can pour His life into us. It’s about learning to love God with our heart, mind, body, and soul. It’s about having the courage to actually follow Jesus -- to place one foot in front of the other, to dare to live a life of grace.

Paul summed it up well: “I am confident in this, that the One who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). 

-- Derek Maul in “Get Real: A Spiritual Journey for Men”


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THE SPIRIT-CONTROLLED MIND

As I monitor my mind, I will encounter many thoughts that are unwelcome visitors:  I get anxious.  I catastrophize.  I envy.  But I will also begin to recognize what kind of thoughts the Spirit flows in.  The apostle Paul gives us a great framework for understanding which are the thoughts and attitudes that come from the Spirit.  He writes, “The mind controlled by the sinful nature is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6)

Take any thought, especially thoughts that feel weighty or that you find yourself turning over and over in your mind, and ask, What direction do those thoughts lead me in?  Are they leading me toward life -- toward God’s best version of me?  Or in the other direction?

-- John Ortberg in “The Me I Want To Be”

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IN PROXIMITY TO JESUS

“Four out of five ministers surveyed”…  OK, the correct number is more like “110 of 110 spiritual leaders interviewed,” but ever since the series of classic commercials aired featuring the ubiquitous “four out of five dentists,” I’ve had the image stuck in my head. The phrase “four out of five surveyed” has assumed a cache of gravitas I simply can’t pass up.

I may not know a lot of dentists, but over the past three years I have interviewed well over one hundred Christian ministers and published almost as many news stories about their work. Without exception these spiritual leaders have always defined the process of spiritual formation directly in terms of our relationship with Christ.

One United Methodist leader said it well: “My growth as a Christian happens in direct proportion to my willingness to place myself in proximity to Jesus.”

Yet at the same time the clerics were unequivocal regarding our need to be saturated with the Word of God. “Actually, that’s one of the primary ways I get to know God,” one Lutheran pastor told me. “God reveals His character specifically through the inspired words of the Bible. Sometimes when I read the Gospels it’s like having Jesus Himself sitting in an easy chair and sharing His heart with me one-on-one.”

-- Derek Maul in “Get Real: A Spiritual Journey for Men”

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SPIRITUAL FORMATION

Spiritual formation is that dynamic process of receiving through faith and appropriating through commitment, discipline, and action, the living Christ into our own life to the end that our life will conform to, and manifest the reality of Christ's presence in the world.

-- Maxie Dunnam

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