Recently I have begun exercising. It has been a while since I have been on an exercise regimen so my body has been resistant. Even though I know I will feel so much better after exercising, I still have difficulty mustering up the strength to get up, get dressed and go to the track.
Over the years I have been on several health and exercise programs which have caused me to learn a great deal on the subject. As my trainer tells me which exercise we are about to begin, I can tell exactly which muscle groups will be worked. She often reminds me, "You know it, but you must apply it."
After exercising, it seems to take me a few days to recover from the rigorous workout. I exercise about twice a week with my trainer, which is really not enough to make a significant impact in a short period of time. I am supposed to work out on my own throughout the week. Unfortunately, when my trainer is not around I don’t feel motivated to do it. To be honest, I don’t feel it even when she is around, but she at least she is there to compel me.
The last trainer I had was for my PE online class that I took two years ago. I took it thinking it would be a cinch, but it turned out to be quite challenging. My teacher always knew if I was not keeping up with my exercise regimen during the tests and weigh-ins. There was one particular endurance test that gave me much difficulty; it was a step exercise. I had to go up and down steps for three minutes. The first time I could not make it past one minute and a half. The second time and third time I was able to finish. But although I was able to finish, my teacher was not happy with my results. When I asked what she was looking for, she told me that my recovery time was too long. In other words, the time it took me to recover from the physical exertion of the activity was more than what it should be at my level.
With this in mind I trained harder so that I could recover faster during the last test, and to my joy, I was able to accomplish this goal! As Christians we sometimes have some difficult tests and trials that come our way. They seem to knock us off balance and make us want to give up. We may even take a long time to recover, but God wants us to be able to recover speedily. As we grow in Him, He is able to teach us how to recover faster. We must exercise our faith in Him and allow God to mature us. One good way of testing your growth in God is seeing how long it takes you to recover from situations you face. If it’s taking you longer, you have more exercising of your faith to do. Let us get recover and do a great work for the Lord!