Wayne Gretzky. Babe Ruth. Michael Jordan. Arnold Palmer. Jackie Joyner-Kersee. They are all great athletes. They trained. They were disciplined.

Through my work in online book promotion, I’ve come across Unlocking Your Spiritual Greatness by Jim Greene. In the book’s description it says the following, “Just like there are specific physical exercises that are good for physical conditioning, there are specific spiritual exercises that are good, in fact, essential for our spiritual conditioning and growth.”

I can’t say I’ve ever seen myself as a spiritual athlete, but in 1 Timothy 4:7-8 it says, “But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.”

Paul is instructing Timothy that a life of faith strengthened by training in the Word of God has unlimited value because it holds a promise for the present life and the life to come. We are called to be, “an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12)

Spiritual disciplines train our spirit, our mind, and our emotions to help us grow closer to God. I’m reminded of the lyrics from “Take My Life” by Micah Stampley:

Take my heart
And mold it
Take my mind
Transform it
Take my will
Conform it
To yours
To yours
Oh, Lord

Could our lives be different if we awoke each morning thinking, “How can I be an example of godliness today?”