Week 362

Positive post Sunday, February 4, 2024…. Week 362.  My passion for the Triangle of Life has been well documented in several of my PPS writings, including Positive post Sunday, September 24, 2023…. Week 343 where I shared verses from the Holy Bible related to Faith, Family and Fitness that inspire and guide me.  This week I, once again, decided to turn to the Holy Bible to seek a deeper biblical view of the Triangle of Life: Faith, Family & Fitness.

Faith makes all things possible: “Faith makes all things possible” is a variation of a quote from the Bible.  Mark 9:23 says, “‘If You can?’ All things are possible for the one who believes.”  Although Jesus was responding to a dad who was struggling with doubt about Jesus being able to heal his son, there is a message hear for all of us.  If we truly believe with all our heart and soul, all things are possible.  When we seek God’s guidance and support with patience and persistence, putting our needs before Him humbly and with great humility, he will respond.

Although not in the Holy Bible, I found the following quote from Montel Williams to be simple yet insightful.  He said, “If you have faith, you can move mountains. If you have faith in something bigger than yourself — in God, community, family, whatever — then anything is possible. Faith alone will give you the strength to clear any obstacle in your way”.

Family makes life worth living:  With my large, loving and faith filled family at the center of my life, I can certainly relate to this.  From a biblical perspective, I have gained many insights into family from listening to readings and sermons at Mass on Sundays (mostly Saturday nights) and reading the Holy Bible. 

In the very first book of the Holy Bible, Genesis, God sets the stage for the family, with the creation of man and woman.  Genesis 26-28: 26 Then God said: Let us make human beings in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the tame animals, all the wild animals, and all the creatures that crawl on the earth. 27 God created mankind in his image; in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and God said to them: Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that crawl on the earth.

There are numerous other references to family in the Holy Bible.  One verse that continues to resonate with me is Joshua 24:15: If it is displeasing to you to serve the LORD, choose today whom you will serve, the gods your ancestors served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are dwelling. As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” 

I am hopeful that I have given my children and grandchildren the greatest gift I could ever imagine, a foundation of faith grounded in serving our Lord through serving others in His name.

Fitness strengthens physical, mental and spiritual health: Those who know me, know I have a passion for fitness.  However, most see my passion as just physical fitness.  Those that know me best, know that my passion for fitness is also a triangle, consisting of physical, mental and, most importantly, spiritual fitness.  I think of it as my Triangle of Fitness!

So, let’s look to the Holy Bible for inspiration and insight into the Triangle of Fitness.  Yes, there are verses in the Holy Bible related to fitness!  One of my favorites is 1 Corinthians 9:24-27: 24 Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race, but only one wins the prize? Run so as to win. 25 Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. 26 Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing. 27 No, I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I myself should be disqualified. 

I find these verses to be very deep in meaning, covering all legs of the Triangle of Fitness.  Beyond the obvious metaphor related to physical fitness, is the implied importance of mental fitness and the discipline required to, “run so as to win”.  And, most importantly, spiritual fitness is revealed by noting that physical runners run for a perishable crown and, in my words, spiritual runners run for an imperishable crown, which I believe to be everlasting life.  Finally, I acknowledge and appreciate that those of us who share the Lord’s Word, also need to focus on our own fitness as to not be disqualified, a reference to 1 Corinthians 9:14: 14

In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the gospel should live by the gospel.  Simply put, practice what we preach!

As referenced in the Holy Bible, Faith, Family and Fitness are foundational for all Christians.  We live in an overly complex and volatile world with much turmoil and polarization.  This makes it even more challenging to outwardly live our spiritual lives, proclaiming our beliefs and God’s Word.  These challenging times also amplify the importance of making time in our busy lives to grow our Faith, love and spend quality time with our Family and be disciplined to deepen our physical, mental and most importantly our spiritual Fitness, a challenge I accept, and hope others will as well.

All my positive posts are now available at www.positivepostsunday.com. 

What verses in the Holy Bible inspire and guide you?

How are you accepting the challenge of outwardly living your spiritual life, proclaiming your beliefs and God’s Word?