Years ago, I read a book titled “Sometimes You Win, and Sometimes You Learn” by John Maxwell. The title itself is one of my all-time favorite quotes, seeing as though that’s how you can either be successful or failing. We succeed by learning, not by winning alone. If you do not learn, you do not win.
So there we were, going throughout life as if each and every day was promised. As if each encounter, each errand, each meal, and each workout was promised. Nobody knew what was about to unfold over the course of just a few short days, but life as we know it was about to change.
As COVID-19 began to spread, things began to get cancelled and businesses began to close. Human instinct started to take over and we all began to freak out a little bit. Humans don’t like change, and your local grocery store is a perfect example of that. I still will NEVER understand why one household needs a 50+ pack of toilet paper, but that was just the beginning! Meats were gone, canned vegetables were gone, everything began to get picked over to the point where entering a grocery store was…eerie.
And then it happened…gyms started closing. As a coach, this whole thing really wasn’t all that wild until gyms started closing. Why? Because the gym is the gym. You always have the gym.
Having a bad day? You go to the gym!
Feeling driven to create change in your life? You go to the gym!
The gym is always there for us and becomes a bit of a sanctuary for most of us at one point or another. So when you start to see gyms closing their doors, reality starts to settle in.
Then it REALLY settled in…yesterday Governor DeWine announced the closure of ALL gyms and fitness centers. You sort of expected it, but when the words were said it was like getting punched in the face. “This is real” I thought to myself. “I can’t believe this is real.”
Fast forward about 24 hours, and I’m sitting in my living room when I would normally be doing a Personal Training session. I haven’t showered yet, and I’m on my 2nd cup of coffee. Life as I know it, has completely shifted for the time being, and I’m sure it has for you, too!
What I really want to bring attention to in these times is what REALLY matters.
You see, when we are forced to eliminate the vast amount of options that we have accessibility to, we are able to focus more, whether that be on good things or bad things. Think about it, we had SO MUCH ACCESS. So much freedom. So much choice. And in a matter of days, that all started to slowly disappear.
So now that we have gained a moment in time to focus more, what should we focus on?
Workouts are good. Health should be a priority for sure right now. Maintaining healthy habits is definitely important. Getting good sleep, drinking plenty of water, all great stuff! However, just because it’s good doesn’t mean it should be your god.
If you know anything about me, you know that I’m a Jesus follower. Call me a Christian, whatever you want to call it. That’s not what it’s about. I follow Jesus and profess Him as my Lord and Savior. Now-a-days, people have grown so opinionated on what being a Christian means without actually understanding it. I understand we’ve all had poor interactions with people who proclaim to be Christians (myself included), and I also understand that people are imperfect.
If we expect perfection of everyone, we’ll always be let down and hurt.
“Sometimes we create our own heartbreaks through our expectations.”
So what do I mean when I say I’m a Jesus follower? It means that I believe Jesus was real. I believe that Jesus was born here on Earth, as fully man AND fully God. It means that I believe he was crucified for everyones sins, but then rose from the dead 3 days later to prove that he had defeated sin. And because of that, we (sinners) who could not earn our own way to God (The Father), now can be in right relationship with Him because of Jesus.
You see, the Bible isn’t a book of rules to follow that give you the authority to go around shouting at people and telling them they are going to hell. The Bible (which literally means “The Good News’) is a story about God’s love for each and every one of us. It’s a story about how God so loved the world that he sent His one and only son to Earth as a man, to take down sin so that we MIGHT believe in Him. Sin separates us from God. We all have sinned and that is why we all need a savior.
Being a Christian doesn’t mean you’re perfect. It means you understand that you alone cannot save yourself from sin. There is no such thing as “perfect” outside of Jesus.
Romans 6:23 says: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Without Jesus, we all deserve hell. You simply cannot get yourself to Heaven by good works, being a “good person” or anything like that. In the Bible, Jesus says that He is “The Way, and The Truth, and The Life” and that “No one comes to the Father except through me.”
So what does this mean?
Not being able to workout at the gym sucks.
Not being able to coach classes and be face to face with my clients sucks.
Not being able to do everything that I want to do sucks.
But you know what sucks more? Knowing that there are people out there that don’t know the Lord.
Working out can’t save you. Sure, it can help make you a better human, but fitness is not God.
Being a Jesus follower isn’t about you. It’s about believing Him. It’s about following Jesus. It’s about having a relationship with Him. It’s about laying down your life to follow Him. It’s about professing Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and knowing more of who He is.
Jesus wants to be your sanctuary. Jesus wants to be the person that you rely on in every moment. Jesus wants to be Lord over everything in your life, because He loves you!
Jesus isn’t just some “good dude” that lived 2,000 years ago. Jesus is the Savior of the world. He wants to know you and wants to connect you with God.
Jeremiah 29:13 says: “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”
While there are many religions out there in the world, no religion can save you from your sin and connect you with God.
Only Jesus can save you from your sin. Only Jesus can connect you with the Father.
Jesus isn’t a religion,
He is Lord.
*As I now have a much more open schedule, I’m happy to schedule a call to chat about this if you’d like. Feel free to connect with me on my contact page and we can discuss more if you have any questions or comments!*