When I was a child one of my favorite classes in school was P.E. (Physical Education). This was a much needed class that provided my brain with a break from numbers, words, and memorization. It usually meant playing basketball, indoor hockey, dodgeball, etc. Most of these activities were fun no matter how physically fit you were.
The only time of year I did not like PE was during the Presidential Fitness Test. This was torturous for a young overweight kid.It was a time when they would test how many sit-ups you could do, how far you could do the V-Stretch, etc. One area they tested was how many pull-ups you could do. Easy...I can do zero. Test done.
If you could do none however, they would allow you a different form of torture (all of you unfit kids know what I'm talking about). The Flexed Arm Hang was a pull-up substitute by which you would hang from the pull-up bar as long a you could. It was fine for the first 5-10 seconds. After that your arms began to feel like they were stretching off of your body. It was tiring and painful. It was the perceived stretching that hurt.
Spiritual stretching can be the same way. God calls us to do something we do not do normally, or we are totally uncomfortable doing it. Our first reaction is to politely decline God's call. That doesn't often work long-term with God. He has His own will and plan for your life.
In Acts 1, Jesus told His followers to be witnesses for Him in Jerusalem (easy), Judea (inconvenient), Samaria (uncomfortable), and the uttermost part of the world (impossible to man). They did fine witnessing in Jerusalem, but stayed close to home only. Soon, a murderer of Christians, a man by the name of Saul, martyred Stephen. When that happened, Christians were forced to flee Jerusalem. Where did they go? Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world.
It wasn't their first choice, but God left them with NO choice.
Where is the Samaria in your life? Be obedient to God's call on your life. He will bless you for it. Also... strengthen those arms... because stretching hurts.
The only time of year I did not like PE was during the Presidential Fitness Test. This was torturous for a young overweight kid.It was a time when they would test how many sit-ups you could do, how far you could do the V-Stretch, etc. One area they tested was how many pull-ups you could do. Easy...I can do zero. Test done.
If you could do none however, they would allow you a different form of torture (all of you unfit kids know what I'm talking about). The Flexed Arm Hang was a pull-up substitute by which you would hang from the pull-up bar as long a you could. It was fine for the first 5-10 seconds. After that your arms began to feel like they were stretching off of your body. It was tiring and painful. It was the perceived stretching that hurt.
Spiritual stretching can be the same way. God calls us to do something we do not do normally, or we are totally uncomfortable doing it. Our first reaction is to politely decline God's call. That doesn't often work long-term with God. He has His own will and plan for your life.
In Acts 1, Jesus told His followers to be witnesses for Him in Jerusalem (easy), Judea (inconvenient), Samaria (uncomfortable), and the uttermost part of the world (impossible to man). They did fine witnessing in Jerusalem, but stayed close to home only. Soon, a murderer of Christians, a man by the name of Saul, martyred Stephen. When that happened, Christians were forced to flee Jerusalem. Where did they go? Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world.
It wasn't their first choice, but God left them with NO choice.
Where is the Samaria in your life? Be obedient to God's call on your life. He will bless you for it. Also... strengthen those arms... because stretching hurts.
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