On Spiritual Fitness

Our family recently signed up for private health insurance.  There were many reasons we did so.  The primary reason was that if we did not to opt for private health insurance in Australia within the first 12 months of being permanent residents, there would be a sizable rate increase we would have to pay for the rest of our lives.  Basically, the government strongly advocates private health care as well as public.  The cost of private health care through Bupa is about half of what we were paying for international health care through Aetna, so we're actually saving money!

There are many benefits to private health coverage I was aware of, but there was a promotion I was not aware of.  After signing up for Bupa, we were given the choice of three gifts:  a $200 New Balance shoe vocher, 20 movie tickets, or a Fitbit One wireless activity and sleep tracker.  After mulling over the options, we decided to go with the Fitbit One.  It's an amazing piece of technology, very small and clever.  It keeps track of how many steps you take, calories burned, distance walked and incline climbed.  The tracker syncs with your mobile device and computer, keeping track of how you are doing.  It notifies you when you have reached a goal and new goals can be set.  You are able to input exactly what foods you eat and how much water you drink.  Strap it on your wrist at night and it keeps track of how long you were in bed and how long you were restless or awake.  My, the things I'm learning about myself!

What is great about this device is not only that it keeps track of what you do, but it also pushes you on to do more.  It is a silent encouragement in my pocket to be more active and to consider my health with eating and drinking choices.  I thought to myself:  what if we did the same with our Christian walk?  It might be very useful to know how long I have prayed, how much screen time I have had during the evenings, and how often my mind intentionally considered scripture.  After walking yesterday and looking at how many calories I burned, I was unimpressed:  "I only burned 130 calories after all that?!!" (I did go over 3,000 for the day)  I wonder how many of us actually gauge how effective our spiritual exercises are.  Our means of measuring is far more subjective.  But we don't need to clip devices on our pockets to be able to answer these pertinent questions:  what did God say to me in prayer?  How can I apply that passage to my life today?  Am I intentional in sharing my faith with others?  Do I have new stories about how God has revealed Himself to me?  We need to take careful stock of our spiritual health, even as it is beneficial to carefully observe our activities, food choices, and sleeping habits.

How spiritually healthy are you?  What sort of things are you putting in your mind?  Are you standing strong in the LORD and in the power of His might?  Are you utilising the gifts God has entrusted to you?  If all we did is eat without exercise, we would balloon up.  If all we do is gain knowledge through scripture without putting it into practice, we become the equivalent of a couch-potato Christian - someone who impacts furniture more than people.  Let's get moving!  We all have room to grow in Christ, and He will lead the way.  We cannot only be content with what we have done yesterday, but be spurned on to do more today for God's glory!