DIY for the SoulSample

Is there something that you were good at in your youth, but then you tried to do it as an adult and were quickly humbled by how bad you are at it now?

We have all heard the saying "use it or lose it", but the older I get the more I realize just how true that statement is. 

Years ago I decided that I would train for a half ironman. A half ironman is a triathlon race where you swim 1.2 miles, then bike 56 miles, and end with a 13.1 mile run. Determined to succeed, I bought books about how to train. I read blogs on diet and nutrition. I even joined a training group that would hold me accountable and challenge me to do things I knew I simply wouldn’t do on my own. For months I would plan out exactly how I would get my workout in that day so that it didn’t interfere, as much as possible, with my family or work. Oftentimes this meant waking up early in the morning while everyone was sleeping or having my wife drive me to work on her way to drop the kids off at school so that I could literally run home after work. 

After 7 months of training I completed the event, crossing the finish line, giving it everything I had in me. After the race I determined I needed a break from training. That break went from days to weeks and from weeks to months until finally I realized I need to get back out there. 

I laced up my shoes, as I had done so many times before, and set out for a run. Only this time I was much slower and had to stop much sooner than before. What I realized is that when I stopped training, I didn’t put my fitness level on pause only to be able to pick it back up where I left off. In fact, it was the opposite. Every day that I went without doing something, I was falling further and further away from where I used to be.

In this scripture from 1 Corinthians, Paul compares our spiritual health with our physical health. However, the prize our soul seeks is not a medal that will rust and fade, but an eternal prize that is everlasting. 

When we step away from the Word of God we might think we are putting the relationship with God on pause just to pick it back up where we left off. In reality, each day we spend away from Him and outside of His Word we drift further away.  

Why is it important to be in the word daily? Is there a time where you felt you have put your relationship with God on pause? If so, how did you feel during that time? Has there been a time in your life when you have been in the Word daily? If so, how did you feel during that time? Do you have an accountability group that can keep you on track and challenge you?