Stretched Beyond Limits
Theme of the Week: A Spiritual Workout
David Shepherd
Saturday, April 17, 2004
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Q. What do you make of the bumps and bruises that accumulate in our spiritual lives?
A. Ever pulled a muscle or suffered a sprain? What happens a day or so after the injury? It loses flexibility and gets stiff. What does it take to get that muscle moving again? A tolerance of pain. If you've ever experienced a good, solid massage you know what I mean. Physiotherapists knead and grind an injured place causing excruciating pain. Pushing, pulling, cranking, stretching—it's all a part of getting well, and it's all going to hurt.
I've been to physiotherapists a few times—once for wrist injuries from a cycling accident and recently for a shoulder I injured during a marathon 12–hour computer session. Both times I had to endure several sessions of therapy and a full range of exercises to get the injured joints working again. It's amazing how quickly I found reasons not to do those simple exercise.
This produces a vivid picture in my mind: Like the therapist, the God of the universe works out our sin–stiffened limbs, bringing them back to life—kneading, stretching, pushing, pulling, broadening our range of motion, loosening each tendon and ligament, allowing us greater freedom to truly live and breathe and have our being.
We need those exercises, those daily soul–stretches, to keep us limber and ward off freezing up. To function spiritually, we must take the time to pray, read the Word and words of wiser men, and stay connected with each other for encouragement.
David Shepherd is a recording studio sound engineer in Alberta.
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Lord, give me power to live a disciplined spiritual life that will keep our relationship strong.
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