Get Cut

The title of this blog is terminology we use in the gym to describe the body of a person who has worked hard to "get cut" or physically fit. In the next three blogs, I am going to write about three essential characteristics every person should possess if they want to "get cut" on God's word and develop a strong life of faith.

Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

The first characteristic is a desire for God’s word.

It is impossible to be great at anything without desire. Elite athletes, skillful doctors, successful business men and women, great preachers, excellent parents and brilliant professors all contain a passion for their profession.

Therefore, any great man or woman of God throughout history has had a desire to please God and obey His word. David was a young man who represented this fact. He was known as a person after God’s own heart; someone who would do everything the Lord wanted him to do (Acts 13:22).

In Psalm 40: 6-8 David writes, “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require. 7 Then I said, "Here I am, I have come— it is written about me in the scroll. 8 I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart."

David was able to change his world because he desired God’s will. In other words, God was with him. He administered justice, conquered kingdoms and gained what was promised because he had wisdom and revelation about the purpose of the Lord in his lifetime.

Acts 13:36 says, “For when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his fathers and his body decayed.”His desire manifested in a diligence to make sure God’s law was in his heart.

When I first became a Christian during my junior year of college while playing basketball at FSU, I used to take my Bible with me and read it while we traveled to our contests during the week. Many hours were spent on buses and planes reading through the Holy Scriptures.

One time while in the Atlanta airport reading my Bible during a layover, a lady sat next to me and commented about my attentiveness to God’s word. Encouraged to see a young man reading the Bible, she questioned me about my faith and shared her salvation experience with me. I told her that I had recently received Jesus as my Lord and Savior, and explained to her my desire to make up for lost time by learning everything about God and His will. All of a sudden her enthusiasm turned to skepticism as she said, “Enjoy it while it lasts.”

Two things were obvious from talking to this lady. First, she once had a legitimate experience and love for the Lord. Second, she had “lost that loving feeling”. Reflecting back on our conversation, it is now apparent that she was an empty person because she had lost her desire for God and His Word.

What do you do when you wake up and realize that you don’t hunger and thirst for God?

Stay tuned for my next blog and remember: God‘s word is as important to the nourishment of your soul and spirit as food is to your physical body.