The New Year Workout PlanSample

Day 1- Exercise Your Faith

Today’s spiritual workout is all about your faith! The strength of every believer lies in the strength of their faith. I think we all could agree that without a strong faith, enduring life’s circumstances and overcoming challenges would be downright impossible! The Bible says in Hebrews 11:6, “But without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

As human beings, I believe we try to appear strong to others for fear of looking weak. We are hard-pressed to convince our families and friends we are “alright” and that “everything is just fine.” The reality is that our faith muscle is hard to strengthen and to grow. Why? Because it requires an ability to trust God for an outcome that seems virtually impossible in the face of a storm or hardship.

Faith is the core of our belief system, and it’s a muscle that MUST grow in us spiritually. At this point, you may be asking, so how do I grow and strengthen my faith muscle? I’m so glad you asked! Let’s gets started with the first portion of our faith exercise:

STUDYING the WORD OF GOD

• Everything we need is in the Word of God! It is our blueprint for living and our guide for walking through many of life’s challenges. I believe we struggle in our faith because we’re unarmed with enough of God’s word to be able to speak life when the enemy confronts them with lies. Romans 10:17 KJV says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” In other words, your faith grows stronger when you hear more of the word of God.” The more you feed your spirit with the Word of God, the easier it will be to refute the lies of the enemy and believe God for more significant outcomes in your life.

• STUDY- I know, I know, the word study almost feels like a bad word. I don’t know too many people who enjoy studying. The moment you crack open your Bible, instant sleepiness comes over, and the yawns begin! This is a trick to get you to close your Bible and miss out on this critical workout.

However, the Bible is clear about the importance of the study. 2 Timothy 2:15 KJV, “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Studying helps get the thing you are studying embedded in your heart, mind, and spirit. The only real way that the Word of God is going to stick is if it is embedded and alive on the inside of you.

So, if your Bible is dusty, you haven’t cracked it open all year long, or you started well but fell off the wagon, don’t worry; it’s not too late to get back in the spiritual gym! Grab your Bible, your favorite journal, your favorite highlighter color, and begin studying. If you are stumped on where to begin, the next page includes some scriptures to help you get started.