Working out: Can what you do in the gym glorify Jesus?
Carlee Colvard, Assistant Editor
Twenty reps and a 30 minute run for the Lord is not a common mindset of people who go to the gym.
Working out is a great way to take care of your body, but did you know that it can be considered worship? In fact, the Bible calls us to take care of our bodies.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
While working out is good for you, whether or not it is worship depends on you.
“It really depends on your mindset when you do it because there is a lot of vanity to it. We’re told to glorify God with everything we do with our body. Lifting itself isn’t an act of glorifying God, but the mental approach you take towards it,” said Josh Cape, senior health and wellness major and assistant manager at North Greenville University’s Younts Fitness Center.
Cape gave the example of a musician. Musicians can use their skill on an instrument to share the Gospel or they can use it to draw all of the attention to themselves and their talent. How they use their talent is up to them.
In the same way, people can make working out about themselves. Whether it’s lifting weights to get ripped to impress the female population on campus or shedding a couple pounds to fit into skinny jeans, it’s easy for working out to become something we do for ourselves.
Paul says in 1 Timothy 4:8, “For while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”
More important than working out and showing off your muscles is the gospel and doing all that we do to glorify Christ.
He gave up his body on a cross that we may have life. Is it too much for him to ask us to take care of ours so that we may be healthy and able to be used for his purpose?
God even designed exercise for our bodies’ benefit – especially for the benefit of college students.
Exercising regularly helps boost our moods. Our brain releases different chemicals that reduce stress and cause a feeling of relaxation, which is helpful towards the end of a semester when school gets demanding.
Also, if you’ve been socializing all night – I mean studying – and haven’t gotten enough sleep, exercising can give you energy. It increases oxygen flow and helps your cardiovascular system, which gives you energy.
Next time you exercise, whether that means going to the gym or for a walk outside, evaluate your motives and do it to glorify God. Taking care of your body can be worship.
Paul writes in Colossians 3:17, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
The views and opinions expressed in this editorial are solely those of the original author. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of The Vision website or North Greenville University.
