Recently, I joined a gym near my home in Beech Grove. Three mornings a week, I attend strength and fitness classes. Though I have lifted weights for years, it has always been in a rather off-and-on, desultory fashion. I had no clear idea of proper form or technique, warm up or cool down practices, and of course there was no camaraderie. Now, I meet with a small handful of encouraging regulars. The instructor shows us how to do the different exercises of the day and corrects our form (I have a tendency to drop my supporting heel during lunges). And the music is loud, blaring, and upbeat. I recently found myself singing along and timing my movements to Maroon 5’s 2010 hit, Moves Like Jagger.
No, I will never move like Mick Jagger. Nor do I particularly want to. But I do want my movements in the gym to be effective and without undue strain.
Afterwards, it struck me that for Christians, the church is like a gym. Yes, we should study our Bible and pray on our own, but it is in the church we really learn to move like Jesus. It’s in the church that we learn to care for one another the way Jesus cares for us. It’s in the chair we learn to be as abundantly generous as Jesus was. It’s in the church we lift our voices with other regulars and become part of the heavenly choir. It’s in the church we join in praying the prayer Jesus taught us, and learn to pray for others. And just as my instructor at the gym explains the nuances of which muscles are being worked and how they help us stay healthy, so it’s in the church we learn the nuances of Scripture and how it strengthens us to live healthy lives.
Being regularly active at the gym is making a difference in my physical health. Some days are more productive than others. And it helps if I arrive well rested and with a good attitude. I will never look like Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime, nor do I particularly want to. But by working out regularly, I will be as fit as I can be.
Being regularly active in our church will make a difference in our spiritual health. Like the gym, it helps if we have a good attitude and are not falling asleep or are too distracted by other concerns. Regular worship and participating in our church’s life and ministries will probably not turn us into a saint. Nor would we particularly want to. But it will help us grow in faith and so experience God’s abundant love more fully and do better ministry.
No push-ups next Sunday, I promise! But I hope that our worship will inspire us and strengthen us all in our faith.
God’s Peace to us all,
Pastor Ken.