No pain, no gain...

 Today's Readings: OT - Isaiah 23 / NT + - 1 Timothy 4

"Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, 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 4:7-8

We bought a treadmill for Christmas some years ago and located it in our home "gymnasium" along with the stationary bicycle, weight set and total gym. Like so many people today, we were on a roller coaster of exercise programs. The reason most people find this pursuit an up and down effort is due to the hard work of training. The old adage is too true; No pain, no gain.

In many ways, times have changed very little. Paul knew of those in his day that spent great effort in physical training. He knew there was value in such activities, but not as much as training in godliness. His instruction was like a coach to an athlete as he encouraged Timothy to train himself to be godly. Godliness comes to those who are willing to do the hard work of training because... No pain, no gain.

Will you be in the gym today? Will you be training your body to look like a Roman Gladiator? Or will you simply workout to keep trim? Now, will you pour out the same effort to become like Christ? Will you schedule your time to be in the Word of God and prayer, training to be godly? Yes, training to be godly is hard work, but... No pain, no gain.

Tomorrow's Readings: OT - Isaiah 24 / NT + - 1 Timothy 5