Recently, at Crossfit Unite (Crossfit = the world’s best method of working out…ever), we had to perform a workout consisting of forty-five 225 lb deadlifts and forty-five hand stand push-ups. It didn’t look too difficult on paper, but before the workout, something was telling me that I should probably not attempt the prescribed weight of 225 lbs. I knew a weight that heavy, with that many reps, would lead to bad form, and possibly even injury. However, I decided not to listen to that prompting.
After about twenty-five deadlifts, I realized that I had put myself in a dangerous situation. The weight was too heavy for me, which lead to bad form. I had to make a choice: keep going, and risk injury, or swallow my pride and go stretch. Thankfully, a coach noticed my bad form and told me I needed to drop weight. I dropped weight, but my back had already tightened up, so I stopped.
So how does this relate to our walk with Christ? I’m glad you asked. How many of us have found ourselves in situations which we knew we had no business being in? It is as if our eyes were suddenly opened and we realized that we were about to do something that would absolutely ruin our testimony. How, we might ask, did we ever get in that situation? Did we just all of the sudden choose to rebel against God? Probably not. The truth is, we made little compromises along the way, and now we have strayed much further than we ever thought we were capable.
The biggest mistake we made was when we decided that reading our Bible every day was not that important. Deuteronomy 8:3 says that “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” We are dying spiritually because we decided not to feed our spirit. The situation in which we found ourselves, was a direct result of our decision to stop reading God’s Word…much like the situation I found myself—where I was about to injure myself because I had gotten lazy in my form.
I was about to mess up my back doing deadlifts because I had neglected the importance of doing things the right way. I can promise you, that will lead to certain injury. Likewise, if we neglect following the standards set forth by the Word of Almighty God, we will certainly face a large fall in the near future. Thankfully, I listened to the advice of a coach warning me to go back. The Holy Spirit works much like a coach. He will smack us in the mouth if needed, and let us know that we are out of line. The question is, will we listen to Him, or will we continue to do things our own way?
So how is your form? Are you neglecting God’s Word? Have you strayed from the strong spiritual disciplines you once had? If so, I can almost guarantee that your walk with Christ is not as strong is it once was. Perhaps you have even turned your back on him completely. Turn back now. I can assure you that it is not too late. After I realized my stupidity with my deadlifts, it didn’t take much time to roll out my back muscles and I was back. From here on out, I am going to make sure I don’t forget the importance of good form. So I would like to encourage you to get back to the basics in your walk with Christ. All you have to do is repent. Repentance changes everything.
Perhaps you have never even begun your journey with Christ. I have great news for you! No matter what you have done, everything can change. All of your sins can be washed away in one moment. You just need to call on His name. Go here if you have any questions: http://www.needgod.com