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I Corinthians 9:25 We Are Called to Run With Discipline

I Corinthians 9:25 Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to inherit a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable

In about eight days I will be running the Wrightsville half-marathon in Wilmington, North Carolina. Though this is my fifth half-marathon race I’m taking this one very seriously because I want to get a PR [1].

Since running my second half-marathon this time last year my goal has been to finish under two hours..I’ve been able to come close (within four minutes) but have yet to reach it.

The difference between running a 2:04 half and a 1:58 half mostly comes down to mental preparation instead of anything physical. By mile twelve everybody is hurting (if you aren’t hurting your not doing it right) so it’s about who is able to keep pushing through the pain.

Of course I can’t just wake up the morning of that race and say “okay I’m going to start pushing through the pain today!” Instead continuing to run hard even though it hurts is a habit that has to be developed over the weeks leading up to race-day.

Not everyone is going to run a half-marathon (I can hear your laughter from here) but we all know the importance of displaying self-control or discipline in order to gain a reward.

You continue working hard so you can get a promotion
You study all night so that you can pass the test
You pursue that dream so that you can experience it as a reality

The idea of not giving up just because somethings hard is a huge part of our daily life…but we sometimes find applying that to our spiritual lives difficult.

One of the biggest reasons for this is we don’t have a physical reward like celebrating a new personal record while crossing the finish line, or getting that promotion. In most cases there needs to someting tangible (we can see it) that can be used as motivation when things are difficult.

The apostle Paul knows this so he gives a good reminder that our reward in Christ will be eternal (imperishable)

Specifically he is talking about a crown (wreath) that was given to the winner of a race in those days, and looking forward to the golden crown Believers will be able to lay down at the feet of Jesus in Heaven. But there is also a sense where we will celebrate our Salvation for eternity.

The Bible is very clear that there will be no suffering, pain or death in Heaven (Revelation 21:4-5) which is a greater prize than any physical reward. So as we climb the spiritual valley’s of life our eyes can be fixed on eternity in the presence of God.

I look forward to my normal celebratory meal of pizza after the half-marathon (while buying an extra large tube of icy hot) and can guarantee you in that moment all the pain and hard work will be worth it. At the same time in a small way I pray this can be a reminder of how awesome it will be to tell God the pain I experienced was worth it for all eternity.

personal record ↩

The Adventures of JB

Fitness is About Healthy Snacks

One strange part of our fitness issues is most of us eat healthy meals every day, but still seem to gain weight.

This can be confusing and frustrating, but it doesn’t take long to figure our where those extra pounds come from.

Fitness (whether or not we will keep weight off) is decided by the snacks we eat.

Described another way, what you eat at 3:00 in the afternoon will decide if your going to lose weight or not.

I believe most people know the importance of snacks, but unfortunately aren’t sure what food the should be snacking on. With that in mind this morning I’m going to share some of my favorite healthy snacks.

For clarity I’ve organized them by beginner (just starting to eat right) intermediate (already started losing weight) and advanced (trying to keep weight off) categories.

Beginner Snacks:

One cup of Dry cereal that is low in sugar, and preferably gluten-free (chex or cheerios is a good choice).
A small cup of Greek yogurt with fruit (high fat content but this will be helpful at the beginning)
Fresh Fruit (I suggest apples, oranges, or bananas)
Carrots or celery dipped in ranch (preferably low-fat ranch)
Smoothies that focus on tasting good (frozen pineapple, banana, apple juice, and protein powder make a smoothie that tastes sweeter than any candy bar)
String cheese, or a piece of block cheese (cheddar)

Intermediate Snacks:

Vegetables in ranch (brocoli, cauliflower, radishes, green pepper) Used here because they are harder to eat than carrots or celery
Fruit juice (make sure that you get a drink that says 100% fruit juice on the bottle, most fruit drinks have around 10%)
Small cup of low-fat yogurt (add some grape nuts into it if you want to
Handful of frozen fruit defrosted in the microwave (strawberries work really well)
Smoothie that emphasizes vitamins or nutrients from fruit more than a sweet taste (two whole apples sliced into the blender with juice and a protein shake)
Protein shake made with milk in blender (don’t use low-fat or non-fat milk)

Advanced Snacks:

Plain vegetables with no ranch
Non-fat flavored yogurt
Vegetable Juice (V8 or 100% tomato juice)
Protein shake made with cold water
Smoothie that uses vegetables as it’s base (carrots, spinach, ect)
Handful of almonds or walnuts

There are many other snack ideas, but hopefully this explains there are many options other than potato chips, or jelly donut.

The Road to Our Redeemer

1Cor 9:24 We are Called to Run With A Purpose

1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.

On October 30, 2002 Herm Edwards, coach of the New York Jets football team (which had two wins that year) delivered a statement that would forever define his career [1].

When asked if his team had already given up, Edwards responded by saying “hello! You play to win the game! You don’t play it to just play it! [2]

It’s obvious from the coaches response that in his eyes many of his players were just playing it to play it (realizing this was a losing season they didn’t give it their all). And more than ten-years later it’s believed he made that statement more as a message to those players than a response to a question.

If the Apostle Paul was alive today he may have paraphrased 1 Corinthians 9:24 by saying “Hello! You play to win the game!”

Many Christians in the Corinthian church had begun only giving themselves half-heartedly to the cause of Christ. Their attempt to obey God and their own desires at the same time resulted in a destroyed testimony.

Paul in this verse gives a stern reminder that only one person is able to win a race…and they should stop just playing around with the Christian life.

It’s important to note the prize isn’t receiving eternal life since this is promised to all of those who place their faith in Christ. Instead the prize is being able to accomplish God’s purpose.

Our purpose as Christians is to fulfill the Great Commission [3] which includes Salvation, discipleship, and involvement in the local Church so that all mankind can dwell with God in Heaven.

It’s true that God’s glorified with those who run their race with endurance, but there is also a need for us to run with a purpose. So I believe Paul’s point here is only those who are completely focused on the prize [4] will truly glorify God.

I often find myself playing at Christianity (only giving 75% or 80% instead of everything) and can almost hear the voice of God say “Hello! You play to win the game!”

This doesn’t we will always do the right thing (we are humans after all). But it does mean with the Lord’s help we will be completely focused on reaching other with the Gospel for His glory.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/shutdown-corner/10-years-later-herm-edwards-play-win-game–225650424–nfl.html ↩
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5-iJUuPWis ↩
Matthew 28:16–20 ↩
fulfilling the great commission ↩

The Adventures of JB

Why Fitness is About Eating More

A few weeks ago I met some good friends for coffee, and was absolutely amazed at how much weight they had lost (he was about forty pounds lighter). After asking how in the world they did this she told me they ate six small meals a day.

In recent years this idea of eating something every two to three hours has gained popularity because it actually works, and proves you don’t have to starve yourself in order to lose weight.

Sadly most of us when pursuing fitness don’t take this six small meal philosophy. The biggest reason is we are looking for dramatic weight loss that happens very quickly.

The majority of diets begin with a two-week physical detox process with big eating changes, and of course massive weight loss. Eating six small meals a day will help us lose pounds, but at a much slower rate [1].

So why should we take the slow road to weight loss by eating more? Because the two-week crash dieting isn’t an eating plan that can be continued.

You will lack the energy to accomplish daily tasks
There will be less self-control of anger or frustration since such a huge eating change had taken place overnight
The weight loss in crash diets comes from eating far too few calories, which means all the weight will be gained back when you start eating normally
They are far too restrictive (no carbs, no sugar)

A focus on weight-loss instead of fitness (having the energy to be productive all day) can result in another poor eating style that I’ve actually struggled with all of my life.

It’s eating less during the day to lose weight

This may sound like the two-week crash diet at first but there are some differences:

It isn’t as restrictive with what you can eat
It’s focused on not eating till your body “tells you that your hungry”
Meals are put off till later so your eating every five to six hours instead of every two to three

I used to embrace this idea of putting off eating for as long as possible since in my mind it helped my body burn extra calories [2]

The truth is our body needs calories and nutrients during the day for “fuel” and if we aren’t giving the proper amount of healthy food then it will start giving off warning signs.

Unfortunately since our lives are so busy we don’t notice the warning signs our body gives to us till the moment a red light starts going off [3]. So we respond by eating a huge amount of food.

The strange thing is even with the large meals our body still craves more nutrients (we are meant to eat every two to three hours) so we become incredibly hungry after slowing down or relaxing.

This is why less than two-hours after eating dinner my body will be demanding ice-cream, popcorn, cake, and other kinds of snacks…it’s trying to make up for the food that it didn’t get during the day

It used to be when thinking about eating I would ask myself “am I hungry?” but that was a very bad question since lots of times I wouldn’t actually feel hungry when the body needed fuel [4]. By the time I felt hungry it would be too late.

Instead my question today is “how long has it been since I’ve eaten?” or “do I need to eat?.” For me the time-period between healthy snacks is about three-hours, so if it’s been that long I make myself eat something healthy.

The idea of eating more to lose weight is strange I know. But as someone who used to put off eating in order to lose weight let me assure you that it doesn’t work.

my friends lost weight over three months ↩
which is how you lose weight ↩
severe hunger, headache from not eating properly, lack of energy ↩
combination of stress, and moving from one thing to another constantly ↩

The Road to Our Redeemer

Hebrews 13:1-We Are Called to Run With Endurance

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

Ask any runner what their biggest challenge is on the day of a race and most will tell you it’s pacing themselves. Or just running their race, and not trying to keep up with everyone else.

This is especially difficult at the beginning of a race when everyone is full of energy, and will probably run at a speed that cannot be continued for long.

Unfortunately for me the importance of pacing myself was learned the hard way.

I can remember running a 5k in 2013 knowing that the right pace was around an 8:30 minute mile (which is quite fast). After the starting gun went off however I found myself trying to keep up with everyone in front of me. When we crossed the one-mile mark a glance down at my running revealed the first mile had been run at a 7:45 pace.

Meanwhile one of my training partners was having a very hard time during mile-one, and ended up running a much slower pace as planned.

I’m sure you can imagine what happened

Around the beginning of mile two my legs started to cramp up on me because my first mile was way too fast…as I struggled my way up a hill who do you think passed me by?

You guessed it…the same training partner who I had left in the dust.

That race was a painful experience, but also ensured that I wouldn’t try to keep up with everyone else [1]

Paul in the book of Hebrews has just gotten finished writing to Believers about heroes of the faith [2]who were faithful to the plan of God for their lives (even if it involved pain). He then follows up in Hebrews 12:1 by encouraging these Christians to run “a race of endurance” just like those heroes.

Running with endurance gives the idea of consistency (like my training partner) instead of giving too much at the beginning, and then fading out soon after like me.

This verse is convicting because there are few Christians who run their race with endurance (I fail to do it very often) but there is a deeper truth here that should convict us even more.

God is most glorified by endurance

Jesus when He was on the earth told a parable (story) about a sower that threw seed onto different kinds of ground (Matthew 13:3–9). Later on Christ explained to his disciples that the ground in this story actually illustrated different kinds of people.

Seed on the path is an unsaved person who doesn’t understand the Gospel (13:4, 19)
Seed on rocks is a Christian who grows quickly at first, but doesn’t endure (13:5, 20–21)
Seeds on thorns are Christians who falls into a sinful lifestyle (13:7, 22)
Then the seeds on good soil that produce fruit are Christians who obey the truths of Scripture (13:8, 23)

Christ is clear that the Christian who started too quickly (seed on rocks) and the one who didn’t finish (seed on weeds) didn’t bring Him glory. instead this is reserved for the one who consistently brought forth fruit.

This doesn’t mean that our relationship with God is based on works since fruit is only produced through a relationship with Him (John 15:1–5). Instead running with endurance means constantly seeking, and obeying the Will of God.

The greatest challenge for me from Hebrews 12:1 is I’m not a very good finisher.

I’m awesome at sprinting away from the starting line spiritually, or keeping up with the leaders. But don’t look for me around mile three because I will be long gone.

At some point we need to understand the people who run the fastest don’t bring as much glory to God as the one who faithfully runs their own race.

Or as my training partners like to say, “don’t chase the rabbits” ↩
Hebrews 11:1–35 ↩