September 8 - Narrow is the gate

September 8 - Narrow is the gate

I got fat. . . 

During our time of planning and moving, I didn’t have a gym to go to, and to be honest, we ate out a lot with people who wanted to connect before we left. I don’t think at any point I woke up and said, “I hope I put on a ton of weight.” Yet, as we rolled into Costa Mesa, I was unloading our PODS and felt this overwhelming sense of discomfort. My chest was pounding, my head hurt, I was sweating to death, and I was not feeling good in any way shape or form! 

How did I get here? 

I looked in the mirror, and understood what a dad-bod really was. And it is rough!!!!!

One day I asked Kristi, “Hey are my feet down there? When I look down I don’t see them.” Now I was being a little dramatic, but at the same time, I felt ways I never wanted to feel. And to be sure, I am still working to remedy the results of the past year. It was a time that many describe as “letting my body go.” I just ate what I wanted to eat, and sat around not working to burn off any excess energy I was storing up for winter. . . . 

It’s funny isn't it. . . You have to work so hard to get in a physical shape you want, yet it takes literally no effort at all to let your body take off and head a direction you never wanted it to go. Now please hear me. I am not body shaming anyone! IN fact, you know if you feel good in your body or not. What I’m talking about isn’t a state of social acceptance toward how you look. I’m simply talking about feeling healthy and able to do the things you want to do. It takes little to no effort to miss those opportunities. Yet if you want to stay in a shape that allows you the opportunity to pursue your goals, you have to work at it. 

Take an athlete for instance. They don’t get the chance to be the way they are on accident. Sure, they have a natural gift that allows them to play the sport they play. But if they didn’t self care in a way that promoted health, they would quickly fall out of shape and be eliminated from the chance to play the sport that they love. They just wouldn’t be able to keep up with everyone else. 

I jokingly said to my daughter yesterday, what if it was reverse. What if tacos, pizza and ice cream were what allowed you body to stay in shape and feel healthy. Wouldn’t that be a wonderful world? But unfortunately that’s not how it works. We are stewards of our own body. I

You can either become a person who is fit and healthy to do the things God calls you to, or you can ignore your health and disqualify yourself from being able to feel healthy and strong enough to fulfill your dreams. 

It’s just the way our bodies work. We have other care for them. We can’t just ignore them. 

So it is with our spiritual life as well. In fact, I would say it is the same with our mental and emotional life too. But let’s focus on the spiritual for a minute. 

If we neglect our growth toward God, do you think it will naturally grow? 

It is the same as our physical body in the sense that we are constantly being fed corruption all day long. It doesn’t take much to hear someone talking inappropriately, or to see a billboard or an ad that suggestively leads your mind where it should’t be. Our flesh is fighting against spirit and causing thoughts and emotions that want to cause us pain and frustration. If we choose to do nothing in order to grow and mature, we will decay. It’s the natural progression. We have to take accountability for our health in every form. 

Jesus addresses this in the sermon on the mount. 

Matthew 7:13-14

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. 

Ok, stop there Pastor Michael. . 

Sounds like both you and Jesus are contradicting what you started this whole conversation around the Sermon on the Mount with. You said we don’t have to DO more, we just have to BE who God designed us to be. . . 

Don’t worry, I will get to that. The short answer - You just have to focus on Being. That hasn’t changed. But there is work to develop our human BEING. It doesn’t happen on its own. 

Atrophy. Do you know what that means/ It is the gradual decline in effectiveness or vigor due to underuse or neglect. 

Muscles atrophy. Brain Cells atrophy. Reflexes and nerves atrophy. And your spiritual muscles atrophy as well. 

You have to decide to build them. It takes practice. The wide gate - that represents people who are not interested in building the spiritual muscles to become who God designed them to be. These people are obvious by their fruit. They are selfish, mean to others, quick to make sure they get what they want, and care only for themselves. They represent the mentality of the world. They don’t care about what is righteous and only want what makes them feel good in the moment. 

Now these people are in contrast with those who are working to build their spiritual muscles. They enter through the narrow gate. Why? Because it takes work. You don’t naturally fall into this gate. It is not easy, it takes discipline, it is counter to everything the flesh desires. It’s why Paul talks about this person in athletic terms. He says they are like an athlete beating their body into submission. They learn to control their desires and pursue the things of God. 

How do they do that? 

Guess where I am going to point back? 

I’ll give you a clue. it’s the beginning verses of the Sermon on the Mount. 

They go to the Beatitudes. 

They practice being real with their need for a savior. This helps them become poor in spirit, they mourn the brokenness they carry, desiring to be right with God. They are meek and hunger and thirst for righteousness. They practice being merciful and not doing to others what they have already been forgiven for. They practice finding ways to purify their heart and let go of things that are full of darkness. They make peace with others whenever they can. 

And you know what happens? 

These people are also noticeable by their fruit.  - you know, Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control. . . And just so you know, this isn’t fruitS of the Spirit. This is fruit of the Spirit. They come as a total package. You don’t pick and choose different ones. They are a collective result of becoming who God designed you to be. 

So what does your exercise routine look like? 

I’m not talking your physical routine. I’m talking about your spiritual routine. 

Let me just say this. I love doing this podcast with you. But if this is your spiritual workout. . . You are in trouble friends. This is not the substance you need to maintain a spiritually healthy body. You need much more. 

Let me tell you some of my practices I do. 

• scripture memorization. I am half way done with memorizing Romans 6. I have 1-5 memorized. My goal is to finish Romans by the end of the year and then go bak to Hebrew which I started years ago and gave up on. . . 


• Prayer. I have a daily time of prayer and often turn the radio off while I’m driving by myself so that I can pray aloud. Prayer is a vital part of aligning our heart with God. 


• Solitude. I need my alone time with the LORD. I ride about 100 miles a week on my bike. And while I am riding, I only listen to worship music while I focus on God. Most days I stop at the beach and sit on some rocks while just being alone with God


• Journaling. I journal regularly in order to know what I’m processing and how I am working it out with the LORD. It is an important time to be real with how I feel. 


• Serving. I try to find ways to serve others and support them. I look for ways to encourage and help others. It’s a practice that pulls it all into place for me. 


• Tithing and offerings. This helps me remember who is in control while honoring my heavenly father. It reminds me that he is LORD of all things in my life, not just my salvation. 

Look, my goal, be intentional enough with becoming a man of God, that I don’t have the chance to haphazardly slip through and end up in the wide gate that is easily trapping. 

So you have to chose. Will you work at becoming the person God designed you to be? Or will you just allow yourself to slip into the wide gate that everyone falls into without trying. 

Maybe, if you don’t do the habits I just listed that I practice, take just one of them and put it into your routine this week. See what God does as you start to build those spiritual muscles. Because as you do, I know you will begin to understand what you believe, and why you believe it to be true. But even more, as you develop those spiritual disciplines and grow closer to the Lord, May God bless you!