Phillips Brooks said, “The great purpose of life—the shaping of character by truth.” Godly character and conduct are far more important than golf trophies or home-run records, though it is possible for a person to have both. Paul challenged Timothy to be as devoted to godliness as an athlete is to his sport. We are living and laboring for eternity.

A Christian, like an athlete, must make his body his servant and not his master. When I see high school football squads and baseball teams under the hot summer sun, going through their calisthenics, I am reminded that there are spiritual exercises that I ought to be doing. Prayer, meditation, self-examination, fellowship, service, sacrifice, submission to the will of others, witness— all of these can assist me, through the Spirit, to become a more godly person.

Spiritual exercise is not easy; we must “labor and suffer reproach” (1 Timothy 4:10). “For this we labor and strive” (NIV).

The word translated “strive” is an athletic word from which we get our English word “agonize.” It is the picture of an athlete straining and giving his best to win. A Christian who wants to excel must really work at it, by the grace of God and to the glory of God.

Verse for today: “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, 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 Timothy 4:7-8, NIV).

Also: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; Hebrews 5:14; 1 Timothy 4:12.

Action assignment: Write down your spiritual purpose for life and the exercises you can do to obtain it. Ask God to help you maintain the right balance between spiritual and physical exercise.