The Most Important Habit for Spiritual Fitness
By Rick Warren
“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:8 (NLT)
We’ve been learning about how loving others the way God wants requires developing habits that keep you physically, emotionally, and spiritually renewed.
The Bible says real love “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:7-8 NIV). You can’t love people that way without God’s help. And you can’t have that kind of power when you’re running on empty spiritually.
You need to watch for signs that you may be headed for spiritual burnout. When that starts to happen, you may feel like nothing is worth the effort; even loving someone else may seem like too much. Or you might start blaming God for your problems.
These signs aren’t unique to you. Even many of the Bible’s great heroes, like David, Moses, and Abraham, did the same things when they were in burnout stages.
How do you maintain spiritual fitness and avoid spiritual burnout? It’s similar to how you stay physically fit: You have to be intentional and disciplined.
When you develop that discipline, the Bible promises that your spiritual fitness will reap eternal benefits: “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:8 NLT).
No discipline is more important in developing spiritual fitness than spending regular time with God. In fact, the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:16 that, even if outwardly your body suffers wear and tear, inwardly you can be spiritually renewed by spending time alone with God. This can take just 10 minutes in your living room chair before your day starts. During that time, you can let God talk to you through the Bible and you can talk to him through prayer.
You need that time alone with God, because the quality of your relationship with God determines the quality of every other relationship you have.
Human love will wear out. But God’s love never does! To love more like Jesus, make your quiet time the number one priority in your day. When you do, your relationships will be transformed by the power of God’s love through you.
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This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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