Just Keep Moving Forward

At the risk of losing my cool card, I’m going to let you in on a little secret previously only known by my wife. Saturday evening after the kids went to bed, for the first time ever, I worked out with my wife…AND our friend Jillian Michaels (via DVD). Okay, now that it is out there, I must explain.

See my wife & I are fairly active people that are unfortunately in the midst of a very busy season. Our opportunities to go for a run have been sparse & establishing any kind of workout routine has recently felt nearly impossible. So knowing we needed some exercise, I agreed to swallow my pride and join my wife and the three other ladies on TV for a few cardio circuits. As we burned calories together, I learned a few things.

For starters, if my wife is in need of a laugh, performing the kickboxing repertoire I learned from Jillian & the girls should do the trick. Secondly and more importantly, doing something is always better than doing nothing. Sometimes the thought of what we’ve done in the past sets an unrealistic goal of what we should be doing now. For instance, my wife has run a marathon before and just last summer, I was summiting 14ers like a boss. However, she currently is not ready to go 26.2 and I am getting winded just thinking of hitting a trailhead. To hold ourselves to those same standards in this hectic season of life would only set us up for disappointment. Yet on occasion when time or energy will not allow us to achieve certain things, we do nothing. We must remember that something is better than nothing.

I also learned that sometimes it takes a partner to help you to move forward. Neither Brittany nor I were particularly in the mood to do burpees at 9pm but we knew of our shared desire to get in a workout. So, we held each other accountable and encouraged one another, and we got something started. And though it was a far cry from previous feats, it was a step in the right direction.

"So what’s the point Matt?" Well as silly as it sounds, this struggle is not isolated to exercise but rather all facets of life, especially in regard to our spiritual growth. We often think back to earlier times in our faith when we read scripture more often or prayed more faithfully and we are disappointed that we are not currently there. Possibly we are frustrated in our seemingly slow progress. Maybe we are unsure of how to engage our children or co-workers in a dialogue that points them to Jesus. Perhaps we are hesitant to lead a family devotion time. Might I remind you, something is better than nothing.

Or then again, you may be realizing your need for accountability and support. Might I encourage you to get plugged-in to a discipleship group? God has wired us for community (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 & 2 Timothy 2:22). How will you know what you’re missing until you try?

I’ll close with this: if you are waiting until you feel ready and adequate for the task, you’ll never move onward. But that’s the beauty of the gospel. God did not wait until we were clean and presentable and well disciplined to save us. It was while we were yet sinners that Christ died for us. In fact, we were enemies of the cross (Romans 5:6-10). And guess what? He loves you right now – not a future version of you, but you right now. The “you” that is lazy, fearful, and hesitant…He loves you!

Or perhaps the best illustration I’ve heard likens our progress to a baby that is learning to walk. Although there are many more crashes than successful strides, these steps can captivate an audience of adults. Parents cheer and applaud every wobble from the ottoman to the couch but never rebuke their child for the many falls along the way. Rather there is great rejoicing in each step taken. And so it is with our heavenly Father. He is for you! He lifts us up when we fall & beckons us to trust Him and keep moving forward.

So, what step do you need to take this week?