Resistance Brings Strength

 

Does anyone out there know how muscle is built?  Weightlifting; right!  But what is weightlifting?

It’s resistance; tearing down muscle fibers.  It hurts.  The body doesn’t like it. You might experience muscle trembling, naseau and even vomiting during a hard workout.  It’s your body getting rid of toxins and breaking down in order to re-build.  It takes discipline and determination.  If you push through the pain your reward is a strong core, a good heart, and the resilience to handle daily life.

Last night our country had a presidential election.  Most Christians are not pleased with the outcome.  May I offer some optimistic insight?  As Believers I believe we have grown “over-weight” and “soft”.  We now have a choice to make.  Resistance has come our way.  We can either push through or give up.  If we give up we continue down the road of spiritual obesity and laziness.   I have clients who do both.  I have some that push through the pain and finish the process.  I have others who tell me “I can’t do that, it hurts” and they give up.  Just as we allow ourselves to get physically out of shape, I believe we as a Church have also allowed ourselves to become soft.  If we eat donuts and cheetos and sit on our butt most of the day we will be unhealthy.  If we allow prayer to be taken out of school, for public television to air filth, for marriage to be redefined, and we sit on our butt and do nothing about it our nation will stay unhealthy. 

The first thing all of my successful clients do is to “repent” to me of all the unhealthy habits and addictions they have.  Perhaps that is the first thing we as believers should do.  (This is a public confession from the United Methodist Hymnal.)

“Merciful God, we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart. We have failed to be an obedient church. We have not done your will, we have broken your law, we have rebelled against your love, we have not loved our neighbors, and we have not heard the cry of the needy. Forgive us, we pray. Free us for joyful obedience, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen"

After we as a people confess all of our “unhealthy” ways, it is time to roll up our sleeves and get busy re-building The Body.  This is an effort on behalf of EVERY MEMBER of the body.  We can’t have the legs getting a good workout if the core doesn’t want to chip in.  We are to be ONE BODY working together.  Too many times I confess to bringing division and not unity.  How about if we all work in unison to bring our nation back to being ONE NATION, UNDER GOD!  It’s not the governments job.  It’s our job.  Protestant, Catholic, Baptist, Methodist.  Let’s take the resistance we have been handed and work together with our ONE GOD to be a healthy thriving body again!  The resistance will either crush us or make us stronger.  Which will it be?