Although the Olympics is only a few days old the excitement around Michael Phelps continues to grow. With the two gold medals he won yesterday he now has captured more gold medals than anyone else in history, and he's not done yet! He is an amazing athlete.
Now, I have a question for you. Has he earned those medals because he has tried really hard or because he trained for years to put himself in this position? I could try really hard and probably not swim the length of the pool. Phelps would be able to swim the length of the pool by trying real hard but not in record time, and he wouldn't have won any gold medals just by trying. He has spent hours every day for years training for this opportunity. As a result, he is now living his dream.
Another question: Can you and I grow as believers by trying really hard or by training ourselves to practice the spiritual disciplines that will enable us to achieve the kind of transformation in our lives that God wants us to have? Much of the time I seem to believe that transformation and spiritual growth will just happen. If I become convicted that it isn't happening as it should I'll determine to try harder to read my Bible more and pray harder, but it never seems to last.
The apostle Paul tells us we compete for a prize that will never fade away. The prize we are seeking is more valuable than any gold medal, so we should be just as serious about training ourselves to compete as the Olympic athletes. We must discipline ourselves to read the Scriptures, pray, and do the other spiritual disciplines that will lead to spiritual growth in our lives. I encourage you to read Richard Foster's book, Celebration of Discipline, or John Ortberg's book, The Life You've Always Wanted. Ask God to show you the practices that will help you grow spiritually and commit yourself to those practices. It will make a difference in your life.
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