Sunday Morning, Jan 13, 2008,

Who would think of competing in the Olympics without first training for it? How silly, right? 

So is trying to live a Christian life without training / exercising often. The Bible uses various athletic terms to describe the Christian walk (a race, Heb 12:1; a wrestling match, Eph 6:12, 2 Tim 4:7) and just as in any sport, training and exercise is mandatory before competition. At least, if you want a chance at winning. 

This morning with Bro Joe taking the lead, we discussed spiritual exercise and how one must make time for it in order to “win this Christian race”. Prayer, meditation, and Bible study are all ways to build our strength. Laying aside “weights” or things that hinder us as a Christian are all ways to help us run better and to continuing to resist wrong choices and do the right things. All these things work to build our stamina to make it through this life. Then one day we can say, as did Paul “I have finished the course”.  

After the meeting, four of the boys who are presently taking Karate lessons did a short synchronized demonstration of the skills they are learning. The saints enjoyed watching them.