Fit

There are parts of the Bible that it can be a real struggle to read through and get anything out of. Leviticus is a great example. Over the past couple of weeks I have been reading it as my daily Bible reading plan has instructed me to. And for much of it, I’m not going to lie, it was a real drag.
But 2^nd Timothy says “all scripture is by God” (3:16). Yet so little of it seems relevant to us today. And then, in Leviticus 13 and 14 I found the gem of insight that made it all worth while.
Because slipped in between instructions of what animals are clean and unclean (Leviticus 11) and a warning not to touch a woman who is in her “menstrual period” (Leviticus 15 – I’ve no idea how you were meant to check that by the way!) are a couple of chapters about skin disease.
At this point you probably are wondering what on earth is so significant about skin diseases. But you see, in Leviticus it was made clear that when the Israelites got a skin disease the person they needed to see was their priest. The same person who was responsible for their spiritual wellbeing was responsible for their physical wellbeing – in other words the two are interlinked in God’s eyes.
And that is the point I want to look at. Because for us today, I think our spiritual wellbeing and physical health are seen as two separate things with no link. But reading through Leviticus 13 and 14 it just really struck me that maybe we could benefit from rediscovering the link between the two. Because we all know the importance of being fit physically, and we all know we need to be ‘fit’ spiritually, or spiritually tanked as I like to call it…. In 1^st Timothy 4:8 Paul says: “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” But he doesn’t say that those trainings need to be separate things.
See with the help of podcasts, worship CDs and contemporary Christian music we can combine getting physically fit with getting spiritually tanked. It could be as simple as listening to a sermon podcast while going for a walk on a regular basis. Or maybe going for a jog with some worship blasting in your ears. Or doing circuits while listening to music with a Christian message to it.
(Some podcasts I’d recommend are:
Desiring God radio – a 25 minute podcast with a talk from John Piper, 4 times a week (each podcast is ½ the talk)
Ask Pastor John – a 2-5 minute podcast with John Piper answering a question about Christianity, great for listening to while doing a short exercise
The Message Podcast – talks from The Message in Manchester
Let my people Think – 30 minute Ravi Zacharius talk (each podcast is ½ the talk), once a week
Rocknations – teaching and music from the band RPM
Audacious – chat and banter in the style of the Chris Moyles or Scott Mills show, only from a more Christian background
And of course the All4God podcast (when it ever gets updated…) )
Maybe not a very spiritually “deep” revelation, but a principle, that if we act on it, could have a huge impact on both our physical and spiritual life.