“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.”
I’m fascinated by the Navy
SEALs. They are the military’s most
elite fighting force able to bring the fight to the enemy in the sea, through
the air, or on land. SEALS. They begin with the most rigorous weed out
process, BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL), before continuing on with
combat diving, land warfare, and jump school training. Through mental and physical strain, these men
are brought to edge of their breaking point.
And they are kept there for weeks on end. They are the best of the best and some of
them will aspire to join SEAL Team 6, the top 1% of the Navy SEALs, ready to
deploy at any moment to engage insurmountable odds against the most dangerous
enemy forces on the planet.
Imagine the average teenager
waking up at 10:00am in the summer, sitting on a couch, watching some
documentary on the SEALs, putting his bag of potato chips down and shouting, “I
could do that!” Your response would be,
“Riiigghhhttt," as you roll your eyes and keep walking. No one, and I mean no one, fights and
survives and thrives against the enemy like a SEAL without the most aggressive,
ongoing training available.
The same is true in our faith.
Paul tells young Timothy to have nothing to do with godless wastes of time, but to train hard to be godly. We too have a hate-filled enemy, the devil himself. To walk in victory, we must train as well. What’s more, no one who merely wants godliness becomes more godly. Only those who combine that desire with the training of the body obtain it. Like a Navy SEAL trains regularly, so Christians must realize that there are no short-cuts to usefulness in His kingdom. We must set alarms and get up when we are still tired to hear from God’s word. We must fight regularly to pray alone and to pray with other Christians. We must carve out times to meet with other Christ followers and work hard to obey what God is showing us. We must learn to severely limit Redbox and TV and Facebook and Angry Birds and a thousand lesser joys if we will grow in godliness and joy in Christ. Physical discipline benefits us in this lifetime. It’s good. But spiritual discipline blesses us now and stores up blessing for you that you will realize and enjoy in heaven. It’s going to be awesome. It’s going to be worth it. It’s going to be the privilege of all who will discipline themselves to know and follow God.
God, I am by nature, lazy and distracted. The truth is, it’s easy to sit around and do
nothing. And it’s easy to fill my life
with a thousand lesser pleasures. Help
me to embrace a path of spiritual discipline so that I can be a warrior for
You. Help me to look honestly at my
schedule and change it so that it reflects a life of spiritual discipline. And help me to realize that intimacy with
You, usefulness to You, joy and power and future blessing are all held in store
for me as I pursue You wholeheartedly.
Help Candeo to not be a lazy church, but aggressive in our pursuit of
You, for Your glory and our joy. Amen.
