Posted by: Anna The Olympics are coming up! My family isn't all that into them, but we do enjoy watching some of the events on TV now and again. Probably the most notable thing when you're watching the competitors perform is how impressive their abilities are. That's kind of the point, right? For example, when we watch the running events, I'm always kind of awed by how those people can run. Goodness. I can barely run a mile, and it takes me quite a while too. And here they are running such extreme distances, or at such grueling speeds. But how did they get so good? The answer is pretty obvious. No one is born that good at running. Some people may be naturally better at it than others, but the fact is still that the athletes train. They train long and hard to get the results they do. Reading through 1 Timothy, I came across a verse I've never noticed before. Here it is: "Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way," -1 Timothy 4:7-8 Let me repeat: the people competing in the Olympics had to train to get as good as they are. It didn't happen by itself, and it didn't happen overnight. Neither does godliness. It's a commitment. It takes training. Some days, I wake up and the sun is shining. I get out of bed, ready to change the world. I put on my favorite smile, I grab my favorite piece of joy to take with me through the day. It's easy to be loving and kind to the world. It's easy to be humble and gentle, to trust God and to encourage others. Other days, I wake up like a Gollum whose ring has been stolen. (Sorry, I couldn't help using a LotR reference.) The world is a stupid place where everybody is annoying, everybody has failed me, or everybody is just a jerk. Me though, I've got it under control. What's everyone else's problem? Can't they just figure this out? Come on, people. And on other days, I wake up with my own personal storm cloud spitting rain on my head. And unlike Olaf's little cloud with its pretty snowflakes (and now a Frozen reference), this one doesn't give cause for a smile. I drag myself through the day, miserable and sad. How could I be such a terrible person? Why would anyone ever love me? I never do anything right. And this world of ours. . . man it's messed up. It's just a terrible place. I don't have it in me to extend love and kindness. I don't have it in me to find my peace in God. On those days where the sun is shining, sure- godliness isn't too big a problem. I'm rip-roaring ready to go and love people. But on those other days. . . it sure doesn't come natural. It sure isn't my first inclination. It isn't what I feel like doing. In fact, it's miserable and I might want to quit. What do you think- do athletes have days like that? Where running is just not enjoyable. It hurts and it's hard- what's the point? And if they haven't trained for it, if they haven't strengthened themselves for the trying days. . . they won't make it. But if they have, they'll be able to endure. They'll know how to keep going, how to keep it up even when it's not working out. "Fight the good fight of faith." -1 Timothy 6:12 What does 'fight' imply? A struggle, right? So what we can assume based off that verse. . . faith will be a struggle. It'll be a battle. But it's a good fight. It's worth the struggle. And, it's worth the training. Because the training sure comes in handy when you're in the middle of a battle. Let's step forward to look at this another way, to look at how we apply it, basically. "Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness." -1 Timothy 6:11 Take a look at that verse word, that verb. Pursue. Paul could have said permit righteousness and godliness and all that. He could have said "If it's easy, take righteousness. . ." Or "Accept it when it comes." Nope. Pursue it. We've been watching the Bourne movies, in preparation of the new one that's coming out. And in each one, there's at least one "high-speed pursuit". Basically, five minutes of shaky filming, honking cars, dramatic close-ups of drivers, and close-calls. In these scenes, Bourne is either pursuing or being pursued. And why the drama? Why make it such a big deal? It could just be him driving along, playing it safe. He'll get the bad guy if he can, but he isn't about to put in too much effort for it. That's not how it goes. He wants to catch that person. (Or those police want to catch him) It is his goal, and it's a goal he's willing to fight for. Willing to pursue. To pursue is to "follow something in order to catch it", or to "strive to gain; seek to attain or accomplish". It implies endeavor. We aren't to only practice righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness when it's easy. When it 'comes naturally'. When the mood strikes. We are to pursue it. To strive for it. We want to catch it- we want it. So we fight for it. That's where training comes in. On the days when godliness isn't coming naturally, you can't rely on 'instinct', so to speak, to do it. You need to know how. You need to be able to enact those beliefs and practices, even if it's not easy. Since you've conditioned yourself for it, you can. What does it mean to train for godliness? Well, I think that first and foremost, it's as simple as striving for it. Sometimes these things are hard to do, because they're such ambiguous concepts. But we won't get anywhere if we don't try. One of the ways we can try is to educate ourselves in what success looks like. The Bible is the best source when it comes to finding out what godliness looks like. Study it, imitate it. Training takes sacrifice. You might (okay, so will) have to set aside your desire to just be cranky in order to be gentle and loving. You might (okay, so will) have to not give in to a certain temptation in order to be righteous and godly. Here's the summary. You have to be willing to train for godliness. You have to be willing to practice it--so that you can get better at it--even when you don't feel like it. You have to be willing to do it, whether you're in a spiritual high or a spiritual low. You have to be willing to get in your Bible and discover what godliness implies, and how you can attain it. You have to be willing to do hard things. You have to be willing be kind when it would be easier to be mean, and to love when it would be easier to hate, and to forgive when it would be easier to hold onto your anger- because by so doing, you will build yourself up to godliness. You have to be willing to pursue. "Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress." -1 Timothy 4:15
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