I have been reminded this week of the joys of getting back into the swing of exercising on a regular basis.  Today marks day three.  I am still in the phase of not being able to walk normally nor straighten my arms.  I told myself I would “ease” back into it slowly.  But as has been my pattern in the past, I worked up the desire to get back into the gym and once there, over did it – now I am paying the price.

However, I know from experience that the answer to my pain is consistency.  Eventually, the pain will subside and over time, the sacrifice of a little sleep will result in more energy and better flexibility.

I have found that my spiritual walk shares many of the same characteristics.  The key to any spiritual practice is consistency.  So often we allow ourselves to relax in our commitment to pray and read the Bible and before we are fully aware of it, we have gone weeks without spending time with God.  So we resolve to jump in and often overdo it – overcommitting ourselves and soon we are burned out and even worse, feeling guilty about it.

But if we can ease into a routine of spending time with God, carving out 20 minutes or so, 3 or 4 times per week and remain consistent, then in a matter of days we will begin to feel more energy, peace and joy in our lives than we have ever experienced.

Spiritual progression comes from God, but we have to persistently do our part.  Commit today to stay consistent in your routine of spiritual practices – your walk in following the Way and then stick with it – don’t let up.

You will never regret time spent with the Creator of the Universe!

As a young man, he felt the call of God to the ministry.  He studied theology and began preaching.  He had a passion for teaching and so in 1910, shortly after his marriage to a young woman he met on a ship to America, the newly weds found a house and opened a school in London.  He taught and his wife took shorthand of his lectures.  She had been blessed with the ability to take shorthand at the amazing rate of 250 words per minute.

When World War I broke out, they sensed that God was calling them to serve their country some how.  And so he enlisted as a chaplain in the British military and was stationed in Egypt.  His wife and young daughter joined him there.

He continued his teaching in a small hut in the desert of Egypt and his wife continued to take his teachings down in shorthand.  The soldiers were skeptical at first but eventually, he earned the respect of the men.  His ministry would not have been recognized by the world as “successful.”  He had a meager attendance at most of his meetings.  But he inspired the men and he served God faithfully doing what he believed God had called him to do.

In 1917, he died in Egypt due to complications with a routine appendectomy and the soldiers gave him a full military service with all the honors.  He was laid to rest in the sands of Egypt.  His wife and child returned to London.

After settling in London, his wife began the laborious task of  transcribing her notes from the years of lectures and teaching.  Over time, family and friends began to ask to read some of the work.  Different lectures began to be pulled together into pamphlets and then later, the pamphlets were pulled together into a book.  Many books have followed, but one stands out.

The man was Oswald Chambers and his wife was Gertrude (or Biddy, as he called her) and the book – My Utmost for His Highest, published first in 1927.

What would have been seen at the time  by most to have been a simple, ordinary, uneventful ministry has been used by God to touch people all over the world and continues to do so today.  Thanks to Oswald’s faithfulness and Biddy’s hard work, the world has been moved.

What has God called you to do today?  It does not matter how mundane it may seem, if God has called you to the task, God will bless it.  God never calls us to be “successful” – simply faithful.

Be faithful today!