I always strive to see the hand of God in everyday life. I try to see Him in the Starbucks, over the internet, and in the weather. With such being the case God gives me unusual inspiration through my usual experiences. This week was no different. As I was working out a few days ago I felt a strain in my back and chest. I'm not exactly "the Rock" (yet) but I work out enough to know that pain is part of the process so I stretched and took a day off to rest. Two days later I was back under the weight bar and feeling more exhausted than usual but fought to finish my workout anyway. Again, "no pain, no gain" right? WRONG! At least it was this time. When I completed my workout I recognized that I had strained a muscle in the previous workout and going through with this workout as if nothing was wrong actually made the problem worse. I could try to walk it off and act like I didn't feel it but something in my chest (the pain) said that I was wrong. This time I had to pause and acknowledge the issue so that I could recover. I believe such is also the case with sin.
All of us have areas of our lives where we have tried to press on as if nothing is wrong but in our chest we know we took a hit. We can feel the strain, we can feel the pressure and the more we try to go about our daily business acting like nothing is wrong the worse the problem becomes. I have chosen to take a break from the weights for a week or two because that is what's necessary for this muscle strain to heal but what is needed to heal a heart of sin? If you have been feeling the strain of sin on your heart or in your mind I'd like to direct your attention to one of my favorite scriptures; 1 John 1:9 which says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." Just like all I need to heal this strain is to lay on the couch and relax all you have to do to heal the strain of your sin is to confess and reflect. Confess to the God who already knows what you have done and reflect on the steps that got you to those bad decisions so that you can avoid them the next go round.
As for me, I'll stretch a little better next time before a workout. The pain of a muscle strain is too much to deal with when I know it can be prevented. How about you? What could you do to avoid the pain of sinful decisions? You may need a stretch of your own...a stretch for new friends, a stretch away from negative influences, a stretch toward reading the Bible more or getting more out of church. What ever your stretch may be to avoid the strain of sin in your life, trust me when I tell you that it's a lot better than sitting down out of the game waiting to recover. Consider, confess, and continue to stretch!
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