Mommy Workout

I've been up since 3AM. Because Chase has been up since 3AM.

He finally is back to sleep, and I should climb back into bed myself. Except I'm sadly rather wide awake now. And the older two kids will be up in less than an hour.

So I am left to contemplate the finer things of life in the quiet of the morning...things like new year's resolutions. I have only made one resolution - to work out every morning. It's not a typical work out. It's a heart work out.

This article I wrote for our MOPS group describes it best:

P90X. Ever heard of it? It’s a workout program designed to give you abs of steel, fabulous arms and a body ready to conquer Mount Everest. I know. Sounds amazing! I started doing P90X with my husband. Let me describe it for you - torture!

As I struggle to do push-ups and shake my head at the pull-ups, I ask myself, “Why am I choosing pain?” Athletes work out so they can run faster, jump higher and throw the ball harder than their opponents. Me? Forget about beating the competition. I just want a little more energy and a little less flab! So, I (sporadically!) choose pain to reach my ultimate goal.

I think we all know that a little exercise is good for us! But watch the P90X DVD or observe the training of professional athletes, and you’ll see people who are fanatical about working out. Sometimes I wonder what we would look like as moms if we put that same passion and discipline into our workout routines. Not into physical exercise but into training our hearts for godliness.

Reminds me of these verses:

 “…train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.”
(1 Tim. 4:7b-8)

I rarely think of working out or training when I consider my relationship with God. It is, after all, a relationship. And I picture a relationship in the golden glow of sweet emotions, spontaneity and fun. Training conjures up a picture of hard work and pain. The first picture is prettier…but unrealistic.

A day into marriage, a week into mommyhood, a year into a deep friendship…you discover that relationships are more than emotions and that the golden glow does not blaze without the fuel of work, perseverance and sacrifice. Same for my relationship with Christ.

Training my heart to reflect my Savior is a daily pursuit requiring discipline and determination. It takes time.

We are moms. Time is in short supply. We usually wake up tired and go to bed exhausted. It’s easy to excuse our lack of time given to God. We even tell each other that it’s ok. We don’t possibly have time to talk to God or study his Word every day. But imagine if knowing God were our passion! If we acknowledged each other’s busy schedules but refused to sacrifice the inexpressible value of knowing God for laundry and cleaning, facebook or me-time.

Imagine what we would be like as moms if we worked out every day!

If we trained our hearts to be godly.

If we nourished our souls on the truths of our faith.

If we spurred each other on to know Christ instead of accepting excuses.

Imagine the examples we would be to our children in our speech, our actions, our love, our faith and our purity! Even better…we don’t have to imagine! God promises that our diligence in training is rewarded with progress that is evident to all. Our hearts and our lives will reflect God because we don’t just know about him. We know him – and that is worth more than any treasure we could imagine!