Physical Training

“for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.” (1 Timothy 4:8, ESV)

In the previous devotion, I described the issue of diet for a healthy body. It was not an exhaustive article for I am not a nutritionist. I just explained my dilemma with weight and what I sought to do about it. Yet diet alone did not completely resolve the issue, but it was a start.

As I got my diet under control, I dropped a lot of weight fast. However, after months of dieting, I still missed my target weight, leveling off at about 14 pounds short of the goal. I then began walking on the treadmill every evening for about 30 minutes. The weight continued to drop once again until I hit my target weight.

Paul wrote some pertinent words to Timothy regarding training.

“for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.” (1 Timothy 4:8, ESV)

Here he presented the idea of priorities. His point was that physical training had only temporal value and that godliness had value here and for all eternity. Unfortunately, some could take this verse out of context as an excuse to ignore our physical wellbeing in lieu of pursuing godliness. Paul does indicate that physical training has some value or profitability for us. Thus, it cannot be ignored.

To ignore godliness in the pursuit of the physical would be to miss the mark entirely. It could end up making physical fitness training an idol that would steal our devotion to the Lord our God and control our lives.

So, we must get the priorities correct. We must pursue godliness while also taking care of our physical condition. The reasons are obvious as stated in prior devotions. Since our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit, and the vessel designed to display the glory of God in the world, we must prioritize godliness while caring for the body we have.

Now, with regards to physical training we must be wise. After some months of walking 30 minutes per day, I began jogging, and eventually decided to try running a charity 5k race. Later I ended up training for a half-marathon. The reason I bring this up is that from the time I began getting my diet under control until I ran the half was probably about a year and a half. I spent three months in training just for the half-marathon. Everything was done in a controlled and gradual way.

My point of caution is this. Do not think that if you are not in peak physical condition that you could start off running a marathon. To attempt this would be both foolish and potentially disastrous. Remember that Rome was not built in a day. Things will take time. Before starting in any physical training check with your primary care physician and go gradually into a physical training regimen. You might seek the guidance of a certified physical trainer to get you on the right protocol.