The Squat

I recently resumed doing the king of all weight lifting exercises -- the squat.  The squat is not for the faint of heart and is usually avoided in most gyms (I've been avoiding it since college).  The squat hurts while doing it and afterwards ... sometimes for days. The squat defines the phrase: "No pain, no gain." So today my legs hate me and I'm walking like a guy who spent too much time riding a horse. 

Yet here is the funny thing -- after completing my second squat workout this week, I'm already feeling better.  Sure it still hurts but my legs seem to be responding and in a sick sort of way, I'm looking forward to my next squat routine (tenatively scheduled for Friday).

I think there are lot of parallels between the squat and our spiritually workouts.  A lot of us avoid church, personal Bible study, prayer, inviting friends to church, and passionate worship because it seems a bit intimidating and often times makes us uncomfortable in areas we don't like to be uncomfortable.  Yet like the squat, spiritual "exercises" work and produce results; the second time around is usually better; and our character will respond ... our walk with Christ will grow stronger ... and suddenly we'll find ourselves looking forward to what we once avoided.Â