How To Run Well
Gary Bruland
Hebrews 12:1-3
"You can lose unwanted pounds. You can gain more muscle. You can feel fit and trim. You can look years younger. You can do it all in the next 30 days, without breaking a sweat, guaranteed. But you must act now. This is a limited-time offer. Have your credit card ready. Operators are standing by." Almost every day there seems to be a new health and fitness product making incredible claims.
We smile and shake our heads at such claims. As much as we might like them to be true, we know the old saying, "if something sounds too good to be true . . . " On a deeper level, we know that good nutrition and fitness require wise decisions. We know that our decisions, day by day, will either contribute to a healthier lifestyle, or they may hinder our long-term health and wellbeing. Wise decisions are the hallmark of a well-disciplined person.
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase well-disciplined?
Admittedly, the idea of discipline may not sound very attractive or appealing. When did you last see an infomercial or scan a glossy magazine ad that focused on your self-discipline? Maybe that's why so many succumb to the latest fitness fad or health gimmick!
We may chaff at the idea of being well-disciplined. Yet, we also know that a measure of discipline is important and even necessary. Webster defines discipline as "training that produces orderliness, obedience, self-control".1 Tell me, how has your training gone lately? Are you running well or running ragged?
When it comes to health and fitness, I suspect that you and I will always benefit from encouraging words and constructive coaching. We can always gain inspiration from those who have trained and competed successfully in the past. But imagine, if you will, the greatest runner of all time extending a personal invitation to you to train under his wise coaching. Imagine this great runner promising to guide you on path that leads to greater satisfaction and accomplishment than you could ever achieve on your own. Would you begin training with him?
Suddenly that matter of discipline sounds pretty worthwhile. The truth is that Jesus ? the Greatest Runner ? makes this very offer.
lign=justify>Paul wrote to Timothy, "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" (
). Not surprisingly, to grow in spiritual fitness demands the same commitment, and many of the same disciplines that are required when we want to grow in our physical fitness. There may be plenty of diversions and detours of our own making, but there are no short-cuts on the path to spiritual maturity. Thankfully, the Greatest Runner is willing to coach us.