Working Out and God-time

There are two things that that give me energy, motivate me, and encourage me. The first is working out. I feel a whole lot better if I get my exercise in for the day. I've recently started running again, and it feels great! There's something about running that clears my head and helps me sort out my feelings. It's just me, and my music, and my feet pounding on the pavement. There's also something inspiring about running. There are many times I want to give up before I've reached my goal distance, but when I push through and get that "second wind", it feels so rewarding!

The second thing that makes my day better is spending time with God. Reading my Bible puts things in perspective and gives me peace of mind. I learn so much and discover so much about myself- and about God. Right now I'm doing a study on Paul and it's been really amazing and encouraging! I also starting reading a book about why the study of God is so important. The book is by J.I. Packer, and it's called "Knowing God". He quotes,

"Knowing God is crucially important for the living of our lives. As it would be cruel to an Amazonian tribesman to fly him to London, put him down without explanation in Trafalgar Square and leave him, as one who knew nothing of English or England, to fend for himself, so we are cruel to ourselves if we try to live in this world without knowing God whose world it is and who runs it. The world becomes a strange, mad, painful place, and life in it a disappointing and unpleasant business, for those who do not know God. Disregard the study of God, and you sentence yourself to stumble and blunder through life blindfolded, as it were, with no sense of direction and no under-standing of what surrounds you. This way you can waste your life and lose your soul."

 The sad thing is that these things are the first things to go when I get stressed out! Whenever I feel like I have too much on my plate, I stop working out and I stop reading my Bible. I don't know why, because those are the very things that help me de-stress! So my goal for the future is to not let my mental, spiritual, and physical health fall by the wayside. I want to make an effort to set aside time for working out and spending time with God, even when I'm really busy. My goal is to make these things a priority this summer, and continue it into next semester, when I'll be taking 21 credits. With 21 credits, I'll definitely need to take some time to de-stress!