In The Way Ministry, I have been taught that one of the greatest activating principles of human life is the motivation to serve. I have found this to be true as I have seen that believers love to serve. We love to run ministry classes, we love to teach the Bible in our homes, we love to help with work projects, and we love to contribute in many other aspects of moving God’s Word and taking care of God’s people. Maintaining physical strength helps us to be able to give our utmost in our service.
There are many Biblical examples of believers who were better able to serve God by maintaining physical strength. We will look at a few records where physical fitness is implied and evident, as demonstrated by the actions taken.
Let’s start at the very beginning with the first human being, Adam. After God formed Adam’s body of the dust of the ground, we see in Genesis 2:15 that God put Adam to work in the garden of Eden.
Genesis 2:15:
And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
The garden referred to all of life that was available to Adam. God wanted Adam to “dress it.” This means Adam was to labor in it and serve in it. Adam had to exert himself physically and give effort to accomplish this task. God also wanted Adam to “keep it.” This means Adam was to diligently protect it, oversee it, and preserve it. Adam had to be persistent and provide attentive care. In order to handle these responsibilities, Adam’s physical body needed to be capable of carrying out this work. God formed and made the human body to be able to work hard and to enjoy physical labor. One point to take note of in Genesis is that work was part of God’s original plan. God did not intend for it to be a burden. He knew that physical activity and labor would be a blessing—it would be fulfilling and satisfying to mankind. Adam was better able to serve God by maintaining physical strength.
Noah is another vivid example. In Genesis 6:14-21 God instructed Noah to build the ark, load it with specimens of “every living thing of all flesh,” and to take with him “of all food that is eaten.” It took faithful physical exertion year after year to complete building the ark and then to gather all the animals and food for the voyage. Imagine how much work was involved to build an ark of the size and complexity of Noah’s ark and then to collect all those animals and food! But Noah did it.
Genesis 6:22:
Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.
The physical fitness, the strength, the stamina, the endurance this would have required is astonishing to contemplate. Noah lived a robust lifestyle. He must have been full of good health as he faithfully maintained his physical strength. God designed our bodies to be hardy, energetic, and lively. Noah was better able to serve God by maintaining his physical strength.
Another tremendous example of a believer maintaining his physical strength is Caleb, as we read in the Book of Joshua.
Joshua 14:10,11:
And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.
As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.
In speaking to Joshua, Caleb declared that he was just as strong at age eighty-five as he had been at age forty. Wow! Caleb must have remained faithful to God, training and working heartily unto the Lord, and keeping his body strong. This enabled him to endure hardship and stress, so he could persevere and withstand fatigue. Caleb was better able to serve God by maintaining his physical strength.
Maintaining physical strength helps empower us to give our utmost in our service. God designed our bodies to be able to work hard and enjoy physical labor. Physical activity and labor can be a blessing and can be very satisfying. We can develop strength, stamina, and endurance so that we can have robust, healthy, and fulfilling lives. Adam, Noah, and Caleb were all better able to serve God by maintaining physical strength.
Let’s maintain a healthy lifestyle for God, knowing that maintaining our physical strength helps us to be able to give our utmost for His highest!