The Most Important Habit For Spiritual Fitness

Rick Warren writes:

We’ve been learning about how loving others the way God wants requires developing habits that keep you physically, emotionally, and spiritually renewed.

The Bible says real love “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:7-8 NIV). You can’t love people that way without God’s help. And you don’t have that kind of power when you’re running on empty spiritually.

Watch for signs that you may be headed for spiritual burnout. For instance, it may seem nothing (such as loving someone else) is worth the effort, or maybe you start blaming God for your problems. This isn’t unique to you; many of the Bible’s great heroes, like David, Moses, and Abraham, did the same things when they were in burnout stages.

You maintain spiritual fitness in the same way you stay physically fit: by being intentional and disciplined. “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:8 NLT).

No discipline is more important in developing spiritual fitness than spending regular, daily time with God.

Nothing will help your life more than time spent alone with God, where you let him talk to you through the Bible and you talk to him through prayer. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:16 that even if outwardly your body suffers wear and tear, inwardly you can be spiritually renewed by spending time alone with God. This can take just 10 minutes in your living room chair before your day starts.

You need that time alone with God because the quality of your relationship with God determines the quality of every other relationship you have.

Human love will wear out. But to love more like Jesus, make your quiet time the number one priority in your day. When you do, your relationships will be transformed by the power of God’s love through you.

Think About It:

• How does your calendar or daily routine reflect whether or not your quiet time is the priority in your life?
• In what ways have you seen your relationships affected by the amount of time you’ve spent praying and studying God’s Word?
• Do you feel like you’ll ever be able to love others with the kind of love the Bible describes in 1 Corinthians 13? Why or why not?

Adapted from “The Most Important Habit For Spiritual Fitness“