No Pain, No Gain
By
Camilla Smith
I’m about as
tired of writing
“walking”
articles as
people probably
are of reading
them. But that
is where these
little whims
come from, so I
don’t know what
else to do about
it.
I just came in
from the
beautiful
outdoors—sunny,
56
degrees. Perfect
walking weather.
Five miles
behind me, I had
an epiphany
while I was out
there. I
always walk with
ankle weights on
my legs and
wrist weights in
my hands. Well,
carrying all
that weight just
hurts. It hurts
the neck, it
hurts the
shoulders—all
those muscles
start to burn
while I am
motivating
around. And
worst of all, I
was doing my
hair the other
day and I
thought to
myself, “Does my
neck look
thick?” Oh
great. Now I’m
getting a thick
neck to go with
my thick skull.
So I quit
carrying so much
weight, cut it
back by
half. Does that
ever make that
walk move along
more quickly!
You should see
my stride. I’m
nearly skipping.
Two weeks into
that, however, I
notice the scale
is not budging.
The arms may be
sagging just a
little bit. I am
decomposing, I
suppose. I don’t
know. So I
picked up the
weights again
today—the full
amount. Two laps
into that, the
burn comes on
and I am in
agony, and I
thought to
myself, “This is
what they mean
by no pain, no
gain.” But
I wasn’t going
anywhere. In
fact, I might
have been going
in the wrong
direction, had I
stayed on this
course. So
time will tell.
Without
inserting any
musical
connotations
into this
exercise
revelation, I
realized that
that is how my
spiritual life
gets sometimes.
When I slack off
and stop putting
the gusto into
my walk with
Christ, I get
flabby and lazy
in my spiritual
journey. Cutting
back on the
prayer, leaving
out a morning
devotional, not
reading the
Bible for a
couple days --
not good. It is
amazing how
quickly you can
feel the Lord’s
presence pull
back when you
draw away from
Him.
And it is
unbelievable how
mightily He
comes bounding
back to you when
you seek Him
out.
Instantaneously,
He is
there. Obviously,
He never left,
but the
closeness you
feel with Him
does, when you
shortchange your
time with the
Lord. I would
call it a very
empty feeling—a
feeling that is
lacking of any
joy. Pastor
Adrian Rogers,
in one of his
masterful
sermons
described it as
the
“manifestation
of God’s
presence.” It is
our definition
of worship.
While we may
worship in many
ways (for
example going to
church or
singing hymns,
tithing or
working in
ministry) is
this the
definition of
worship? “No.”
says Pastor
Rogers. “True
worship is
enjoying the
presence of
God.”
Bingo.
So how do we do
that? Admittedly,
it is growing
more and more
difficult to
actually find
the time to
worship in the
way we know we
should (and
hopefully in the
way we want to)
while trying to
stay on the
merry-go-round
of life. Some
days it is just
all one can do
to find some
semblance of
normalcy in this
rapidly
disintegrating
world in which
we live. There
really is no
norm any
more. The
familiar has
been
replaced. The
simple pleasures
in life are
fleeting. Even a
bright, sunny
day has lost a
little bit of
its appeal.
Maybe it is just
me. Maybe it is
that melancholy
time of late
autumn and the
threat of a
harsh winter
coming our
way. Maybe it is
a midlife crisis
coming on. Very
possibly it is a
little too much
information on
the news
channels. How
can we have so
much
information, but
not even really
know what is
going on? It is
not a good
feeling knowing
that the tidbits
of information
we are allowed
to hear are just
that—allowed. We
don’t get the
full story. We
are not allowed
to know it. But
that is fodder
for another,
introspection.
I think you will
agree with me
that coping with
the day-to-day
drama of the
world can be
downright
painful—physically
painful,
definitely
mentally
painful,
emotionally
painful and
oftentimes even
spiritually
painful. If we
are not walking
closely with God
and allowing
ourselves to be
filled with the
Holy Spirit, we
are depleting
our
spirituality. We
are missing out
on the vitamins
and minerals of
the soul. We are
not working out
with weights. We
are simply
strolling
along. We need
that vitality
that only Jesus
Christ can
provide.
And as close as
we are to the
Rapture, we need
to be molding
ourselves after
Christ’s perfect
example. I feel
it and I know
many of you do,
too. I sense the
nearness of
Jesus’ call for
us and I feel
the desire to
live my life
pleasing Him. He
is drawing
nearer to us and
we should be
yearning to see
Him at any
moment.
Whatever time we
have left here,
I want to devote
to listening to
His voice and
walking in His
presence. I
have yet to pick
up my Bible in
the morning and
regret the time
I spent doing
it. I have yet
to steal a few
moments from my
day and use them
for prayer and
wish I hadn’t
done it.
It just is not
possible. Any
time you can
give to God will
bless you
abundantly and
you will feel
His comfort
flood your soul.
So my humble
piece of advice
is to pick up
that Bible and
bow that
head. Work
harder at it.
Start your day
with it and end
your night with
it. Keep the
channels open
all day
long. Before
long my friends,
it will become
very clear to us
what “pain” and
“gain” really
mean. Because of
Jesus’ death and
resurrection, he
suffered the
pain, we gain
the victory. And
it is for that
simple reason we
should be
jumping through
hoops to do His
will and live in
His favor.
It doesn’t seem
fair, does it?
He suffered
immensely and we
reap the
benefits. Thank
You, Lord Jesus,
for loving me
that much.
Camilla
