Lord give me STRENGTH to stay ACTIVE!

 

There is a group of "SENIORS" that come to the church every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday that walk inside the church, do some stretching, and a light workout. I have heard from most of them that they have to stay active physically in order to fight the battle of aging. I really believe that is so true! I can directly connect my aches and pains to lack of movement and then that sedentary lifestyle feeds on itself. The more I sit around doing nothing, the more aches and pains I have. Then I don't feel like getting up and moving around. It is an endless cycle.

I think the same thing is true with our mental and spiritual lives. I love to do puzzles, math problems, and I love digging into scripture. Those things are just as important as staying physically active. I was thinking about all of that when I was reading James 2 this morning.

"Don't you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. Ans so it happened just as the Scriptures say: 'Abraham believed God, and God counted him righteous because of his faith.' He was even called the friend of God. So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone." (James 2:21-24, NLT)

We can't just sit around SAYING HOW FAITHFUL WE ARE. We need to show our faith. Just like staying active is important, so is having an ACTIVE FAITH. 

I have to be so careful as a pastor. I can spend all my time studying, praying, preparing sermons, and telling people about JESUS, but I need to put all of that STUFF into action. Faith should spur us to action and if we do not put our faith to work, it will shrivel up, just like muscles or brains that are not used. Those dedicated to keeping their bodies in shape also need to keep their minds sharp, their spiritual muscle strong and their faith must be active. The BRIDESMAIDS in our Sunday message were lazy and didn't prepare. Don't be like them and miss out on all the glory and blessings of the kingdom!

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving me a life of activity. I feel so useful for the Kingdom when I follow you and your commands. Please Lord help me to stay spiritually strong right alongside my physical and mental strength. Give me the desire, Lord, to put my faith into action and to do it all for your glory. Amen!

What are YOU DOING FOR THE KINGDOM?