Punching the Air
Simone Biles made the headlines again recently, for winning her 8th US national championship. Remarkably, at age 26 she is considered the oldest woman to do so. Her technique was nearly flawless and extremely difficult. Naturally, this level of talent requires an immense amount of training. In one interview I read, Simone shared that she went to the gym six hours a day for six days a week in preparation for the Rio Olympics.
Many of us have a tremendous amount of respect, even awe, when we hear what great lengths athletes will go to in order to compete. It makes sense to us. Achievements like Simone’s don’t come from nowhere. It’s no surprise to me, then, that Biblical authors use sports as a metaphor for the with-God life. One of my favorites is Paul, in 1 Corinthians 9:24-26:
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.
Paul seems to be saying here that there’s a kind of training that followers of Jesus can get into for the purposes of the deeper life, the eternal life. Indeed, he goes on to tell his disciple Timothy, “train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.”
Consider this: just as Simone Biles reaps the benefits of a six-hour-a-day exercise routine, followers of Jesus reap the benefits of intentional and disciplined spiritual practices. The truth is, many of us have never been trained or taught what that might look like.
Enter Practicing the Way. We like to say this course helps people think through how to be with Jesus, be like Jesus, and do what Jesus did. In other words, godliness training. This course goes through practices of faith that Jesus followers have utilized throughout the centuries and provides folks with the space to begin crafting their own “exercise routine.”
What I’ve loved about this course as I’ve led it is how its not so much something people are taught as much as it is something people experience. It’s been exciting to see how people discover new ways of experiencing Jesus. I’ve loved seeing people experience community and friendship through the meals and conversations. Our times meeting together have been Practicing the Way as much as they have been about learning how to Practice the Way.
This will be our third time doing this course and I encourage you to jump in for this Fall. It’ll be 10 weeks starting on September 11th at 6pm. Every meeting begins with a meal (usually with gluten-free options). The course is designed to be gracious for busy lives, so if you’re wanting to come but feel nervous about whether it will fit in your schedule, please talk to me about how that might work.
I’m excited to see how God continues to shape our community through this course!
- Pastor Larry
