Posted by Recently I’ve begun to exercise regularly (thanks to my roommate). In the past, my exercising has consisted of running… a lot. I like cardio. I’m good at cardio. But all I’ve been doing lately is strength training. Everyday this week I have been sore and tired while exercising, but I wake up in the morning feeling fine. Most mornings I wake up and feel as though I didn’t even break a sweat the day before. This means, plain and simply that I haven’t been pushing myself hard enough. This reminds me of the verses in 1 Peter 1 that say:
“In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
I didn’t know how strong my body was until I tested it. Now I know that I can handle much more than I had originally thought. The same thing is true for us spiritually. Our faith has to be tested, it has to be exercised. This is not a fun process, but at the end of it we will have grown closer to God if we continue to search and strive after Him.
It’s really easy to say this stuff when you’re not going through a trial, but I am typing this right now in the middle of a test. God is testing my faith in a big way. Everyday I have to wake up and decide that even though my outward circumstances are not ideal, God is in control. I have to, sometimes minute by minute, make a conscious decision to continue to trust in Him.
If you are going through a test or a trial right now, remember that God is still God. He is a God who loves you as His precious child. This test will be hard, but you will come out of it better and stronger than you were before. Continue to seek after Him, continue to press on toward the prize-Him!
Work in Progress 