Can God Really Help You?

If you are a hardened dieter like me, you are no doubt familiar with the concept that to lose weight you need to ‘eat less and move more’!

When God first indicated that today was to be about exercise, I wondered how it would link into scripture. The only scriptures that I could think of were the ones where Paul talks about running the race, and I didn’t think I would get away with linking that to losing weight!

However, God began to impress upon me that he created us to be physically active. In the beginning, after he created Adam and Eve, he gave them the Garden of Eden and the earth to look after. He didn’t intend them to be idle. In the cool of the day God came down to walk in the garden. Think about this for a moment, the Almighty Creator of the universe liked to go for a walk. If God likes walking, surely we should too.

Throughout Biblical times, people were very physically active. Most of the work was very labour intensive and they also walked everywhere. By comparison, in this day and age, we are very inactive. We need to start moving around more. Not specifically because it will help lose weight (although it will) but because it is what we are meant to be doing. It is good for us and we will enjoy it. We were created to be moving around. 

I remember once offering a friend a lift home and she said to me “I’ll walk, that’s why God gave us legs”. Admittedly she was being flippant, but she did have a point.

Exercise is a difficult topic to address because everyone reading this will have different needs and circumstances in their lives. Some of you probably already exercise quite a lot and some may not be able to for medical reasons. I did eventually find a scripture in the Bible about exercise:

      "For physical training is of some value, but Godliness has value for all things" 1 Tim 4:8

It is important to be in shape both physically and spiritually. You owe it to yourself to give time to both.

If you do have a sedentary lifestyle, please begin to think about how you can move around more. Ask God to show you ways in which you can do this.

Today

Today (or as soon as possible) I would like you to go for a walk with God. As you walk with him, talk to him. Think of how he liked to come down and walk with Adam and Eve. Imagine he has come down to walk with you. Tell him what you are thinking. Look around you with fresh eyes; try to find things that you never noticed before. Smile at everyone you pass. Believe that he is with you.