As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.
3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
I have never regretted day going in to my crossfit gym. I have often walked in the door nervous to see what WOD(workout of the day) is on the board, but never walked out thinking I should have stayed home. From what I can recollect, I have yet to meet someone else who has honestly regretted working to become a more healthy person- working out, eating well, getting enough sleep...at least on the back end of it all. I agree there is no satisfaction in many failed attempts of dieting and trying different exercise routines and everything else that many dedicate themselves to at the turn of a new year.
Sidenote: One of the biggest, if not the biggest factors in successfully becoming a healthier person, is sustainability. Find a way to eat, a way to stay active that you can do for the rest of your life. It is not 6 minutes = 6pack, it is not 60 days or 6 weeks of P90x, it is not 6 months of some agonizing diet/ fast/ cleanse and then done. It is a way of eating and being active that you can stick with 7 days a week until death do you part.
Incomparable to the happier, healthier, fitter Joel I have become, is the new life I have found in Jesus Christ. I could spend many more paragraphs and entire posts to the joy and satisfaction I have found in being a Christian. But how do I describe a transformed heart? I'm not sure I can explain my feelings, my peace and my hope in something outside of everything that has or will eventually fail me in this world. Would you take my word for it, or hundreds of more words? All I can give is personal experience; both in my crossfit experience and as a Christian. I failed at diets before, high school sports could not compete with my eating habits, I gained the freshmen 30 and averaged 10 more each year at college, eating was how I coped with the mess of life. And the same is true as who I am created to be; Legalism has been my religion, moralism has been my religion, and judging the shortcomings I see in others, which I might add were usually the very things in which I was coming up short. It all has failed and is failing. Self-reliance fails, and crossfit will eventually fail me. Crossfit can't save me from gravity, from getting older and ultimately death.
It's all about Ephesians 2. It's about Jesus.
Merry Christmas!
Bonus: This is one of the pictures that popped up when I googled Crossfit and Jesus
