Begin with two minutes of silence and stillness before God.
In this passage, Paul reminds Timothy to train and exercise toward godliness as he would bodily exercise. Through the years I’ve trained my body in many different ways trying to look a certain way or to be in good enough health to perform an action, such as hiking a longer trail or lifting a certain amount of weight. I’ve read studies on how to most effectively train your body, and I’ve bought many programs to best meet my training goals.
Through these years, one statement stood out to me and really changed my perspective on training my body. That statement was “train to the point that your training is a hygiene.” The thought is that you don’t have to be an expert at exercise science to have the most ideal training sessions in the gym; you just have to show up and do something in order to make training a habit, or a hygiene. It may be a 10-minute walk that day, but that was better than not having a 10-minute walk. And as you become accustomed to a daily 10-minute walk, it begins to be easier and easier. It’s like a habit or a hygiene if you will. Then you are able to add to that a little at a time and continue working toward your goals because that consistency is where things change in your physical exercise.
The same is true in our study of scripture and our exercises toward godliness. You may have known that you needed to begin reading your Bible more, but you didn’t know where to start. Start with something that can be consistent and repeatable. Maybe you can start with a verse or two a day. Or maybe a chapter a day. Once that becomes easy and it’s a habit, you can then begin to add to that. Maybe it’s reading more, journaling your prayers, or studying more in-depth with a commentary. Let’s work to make our spiritual exercise like a hygiene and I know God will teach us and grow us exponentially.
Take two minutes to reflect in silence.