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&In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths&

"Use it or Lose it"

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We've all heard the phrase, "Use it or lose it".  Most often, this phrase is used in referring to muscles.  Not many years ago, I took up weight lifting as a hobby and to try and get into shape.  In the process of doing so, I was able to make some pretty substantial gains in the amount of weight I was able to lift and in the structure of my body.  When I first started lifting weights, I joined a gym which cost quite a bit of money.  Now, the people who run the gym could care less if I ever came to the gym, but I was free to go there any time they were open.  I went quite often and as I said, I made some pretty substantial gains.  At one point I was able to squat 225 pounds, which means I could place a bar with some weights on it weighing 225 pounds on my shoulders and squat down until my thighs were parallel with the floor and then stand back up with it several times.  Now, 225 pounds may not seem like a whole lot to some people, but when one considers that I only weigh about 120 pounds, then 225 pounds is quite a bit of weight.  Then I hurt my back at work and had to quit lifting weights.  Since then, I have had a knee injury and it would be quite painful for me to squat down and pick up a dime off the floor.  Even before the knee injury though, it would be impossible for me to even lift 225 pounds much less to squat with that kind of weight on my shoulders.  So the phrase, "Use it or lose it" proved true.

At the time I was lifting those weights, I didn't know the Lord and I was quite proud of the gains I was able to make, but did you know that the Lord Himself exercises?  The Bible speaks several times of exercise, (In eight verses to be exact), but in Jeremiah chapter 9 and verses 23-24 we read, "Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches:  But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord".  Man, does He ever exercise, and that makes my little 225 pounds look like feathers.  The pride that I had in my gains was indeed vain as I truly had nothing to glory in.  The fact remains that the gains He allowed me to obtain are past now and though it may be possible for me to regain them, it would truly be most difficult.

Another such verse of scripture concerning exercise can be found in 1 Timothy 4:8 where we read, "But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.  For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come."  That exercise that I was so in to back then, though it seemed profitable to me at the time, was in essence a waste of time, because even if I had been able to continue it until the day I die, all of it would have been lost.

There is indeed another life after this one and now that I do have something to glory in that I know the Lord which exercises lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, there is some very profitable exercises which I can do that if continued will last not only through this life, but throughout the one I now look so forward to.  The Apostle Paul, in defending his faith before Felix said, "And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust.  And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men."  Acts 24:15-16.  Now that's some exercise you can take with you!  That's not to say that we won't have any enemies.  Paul had many enemies and any child of God is sure to have enemies, but to not have offence toward them is quite another thing whereby another door is opened unto us for exercise that will last.

That wonderful door is to the gymnasium of intercession.  What a real joy it is when the Lord sends someone into our lives who though we are most unworthy, has the confidence in our prayers to ask us to pray for them.  What a real joy just to know such a person, but to have them in our spiritual gymnasium is beyond words.

Once in a very great while,

someone enters your life

whose demeanor is gentle,

whose soul is wholesome,

whose spirit is sweet,

whose very presence is encouraging.

You almost wonder

if that person is not,

in fact, an angel from glory.

Such a person is most precious.

And then to have that person say, "Would you pray for me?", is beyond all manner of expression.  If it would be possible for me to stand up in front of millions and to squat all the weights that you could fit into a gym, I would be less honored than to be able to kneel before my Lord and say to Him, "Lord, __________ asked me to pray for them."  Friends, that is something you cannot lose.

When I was working out physically in the gym, I had what is known as a training partner who worked out with me.  This training partner would always be there to help me if I got into some difficulty that I could not handle.  They would also be responsible for offering me encouragement when I reached a point to where I thought my potential had been met or exceeded.  I always found that when I went to the gym without my training partner present, I could not lift nearly as much weight as I could when they were there.  This training partner was a very vital part of my weight training.  Likewise, such a partner is very helpful and indeed vital in the spiritual gymnasium.  One who you can count on to be there at just that right time when you need them.  One who will have confidence in you when you lack confidence in yourself.  One who will encourage you when you think your potential has been met.  One who cares when you struggle and lends support.

Praying for these dear precious people who the Lord gives us is indeed an honor and a privilege and though it is such a joy to have them and to have them ask us to pray for them, the joy doesn't stop there.  Remember those enemies I mentioned before?  They too are a most precious door.  Jesus said, "But, I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;"  Matthew 5:44.  Yes, this too is a very fulfilling exercise which always proves most rewarding.  I'm sure I have many enemies, but most of the time these enemies don't make themselves known.  Not too very long ago however, I had an enemy to make herself very known to me to the point that she nearly caused me to lose my job.  Now, I didn't hate this person, but she made it very clear that she hated me.  One day, this person in need of some time off from work came to me and said that her father had been diagnosed with a terminal cancer and that she needed to be out of work to be with him.  I told her that I would do all that I could to arrange for her to be off and then I told her that I would pray for him.  Suddenly, this strange, surprised look came over her.  I did pray for her father and for her as well, but I told the Lord that I knew what His Word said about heaping coals of fire upon our enemies head, but that I really didn't want to do that.  Well, her father had surgery for the cancer and he has since recovered fully for which I am so thankful, but since that time, this person who once made it so clear that she hated me, now comes to where I am sitting when she sees me in the cafeteria or something and sits down there and starts conversation with me.  But even greater than that is the fact that I have been afforded the opportunity on many occasions to assure her that God is very real and that there is power in prayer.  Friend, that kind of exercise cannot be had in the gymnasiums of this world at any price and the glory of it is in knowing the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness.

There was a man named Moses who had a very great enemy.  His name was Pharoah.  Now, the Lord had really plagued this enemy of Moses and Pharoah asked Moses to pray for him.  "Then Pharoah called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the Lord, that He may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord."  Exodus 8:8.  Now Moses could have told old Pharoah that he was getting what he deserved, but instead he told him that he would be happy to pray for him, "And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharoah: and Moses cried unto the Lord because of the frogs which He had brought against Pharoah.  And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields."  Exodus 8:12-13.  Now, Pharoah still remained Moses' enemy, but that didn't stop Moses from praying for him as if you will continue to read, you will see other occasions where this enemy Pharoah asked Moses to pray for him and each time, Moses did pray for him.  Many times when we are concerned about things we should do, people will ask us if we feel good about it and they encourage us to rely upon that as to whether it is right or not, but quite often, we won't feel very good about doing the will of the Lord, but His Word and the examples He gives us tell us that they are right.  As with the gym and the physical exercise, if we don't use it we will lose it, so too is the power of prayer.  We will never lose the privilege of prayer, but the power will diminish from it.  Let us forever be thankful for this wonderful privilege and let us take full advantage of it as we pray for those who hate us as well as those we hold so precious who we love so dearly.