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C omfort is defined in the dictionary as “a condition or feel- ing of pleasurable ease, well-being and contentment.”I’m sure all of us enjoy the feeling from time to time. Many of us have a favorite article of clothing, pair of shoes, bathrobe or place in our home to relax in that brings us to a place of comfort. Comfort is something we all seek on occasion. Comfort is also defined as“solace in time of grief or fear”and in that sense we all have needed comfort at some point in our lives. The bible talks about that kind of comfort in one of its most well know passages; Psalm 23. In verse 4 the writer states,“Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me”. So comfort is not always a bad thing. It can however be a dangerous thing if we let it control our lives. You see we as humans tend to be like running water, we seek the path of least resistance. We do it in our training and many times in our relationships. Including our most important relationship the one we have with our Heavenly Father. We want the good things that we hear that God offers his children but most of us don’t want to put in the work. We find a place for God in our hearts and lives that are comfortable for us and the lifestyle we want to lead. If the Lord lays something in our path that chal- lenges us or calls us to a higher level of commitment, we change direction and avoid it. So many of us fail to apply the valuable lessons we’ve learned in our physical training to our relationship with God. It doesn’t take a Master’s degree in Physiol- ogy to know that if you continue to do the same exercise at the same resistance for too long, your body is doing nothing more than maintaining and is growing any stronger. We all seem be to be able to spot plateaus in our training, but overlook them completely when it comes to spiritual growth. I’m always fascinated to watch how many people at my gym are trying the latest exercise or train- ing regimen to see if it will benefit them. Tractor tires, chains, Zumba, Pilates, cross-fit training, and now functional training are just some of the things that have caught fire the last few years. Let’s be honest…most of us have added something new to our workouts in the last year to try and get greater results. Yet when it comes to our spiritual training, we fall back on what’s comfortable or has always worked. We need to remember that our relationship with God is a living thing, and like all liv- ing things, if it isn’t growing it’s dying. We need to be seeking a way to get out of our comfort zoneand find new challenges to help ourselves grow in Lord. Paul exhorts us in 1 Corinthians 9:24 to run the race in such a way as to get the prize. That doesn’t sound to me like we’re supposed to just lay back and keep doing the same old, same old every day because it’s always worked before. In fact the opposite is true; God wants us to press on toward the mark of the high calling of God. In Mark chapter 10, we read the story of Christ encountering a blind man named Bartimaeus. I’m sure by the point in his life that we begin the story; Bartimaeus had his daily routine down pat. He was sitting by the road begging, something he most likely did in the same spot every day. If you’ve ever been around someone who is blind, you know that their lives are very structured and ordered. There is a place for everything and everything is in its place. Bartimaeus would have been no different. As a beggar, he would have been wearing a cloak that was large enough so that he could wear it, while also spread- ing some of it out when he sat so that passers-by could drop money on to it. When he felt the money fall onto the cloak, he would pick it up and place it in the pockets of the cloak, to hide it from thieves. The cloak would have had a place for his other valuables as well, and probably held any food he brought with him to eat during the day. The cloak would have also given him a feeling of com- fort and security. But when he heard that Jesus was passing by, his mindset changed. He no longer wanted to beg of money, but wanted to have his life transformed by the Master. You see he had heard of Jesus’healing others of their blindness. He knew that the“Son of David”could have mercy on him and deliver him from his affliction. When Jesus called Bartimaeus to him, Mark 10:50 says he“Threw his cloak to the side, jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.”He left everything he was comfortable with and came to the Savior. When Christ heals him, he immediately followed Jesus. He didn’t turn back and retrieve his cloak; he didn’t sit back down and start begging again, he began a new life in Jesus Christ. That’s the challenge for us each day. To seek to follow Jesus in new and challenging ways, to seek to grow daily in our spiritual life the way we do in the gym. As James warns us in verse 1:14 we have to be on guard not to let our desires draw us into tempta- tion. That temptation can include the desire to be comfortable instead of responding to some- thing challenging. But my sincere hope for you is that you will daily seek to grow in spiritual fitness the way you do in your physical fitness. That you will choose to commit to the words Paul wrote to Timothy; for while bodily train- ing 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. by Ms Fitness America Sherry Goggin and Pastor Dean Marini Sherry Goggin, Ms. Fitness America, reigns as The Most Photographed Fitness model in history. She shines as author, producer and role model for women everywhere. Bright, articulate and full of energy, Goggin has broken the stereotype of the fitness model to become an author, producer, fitness guru, clothes designer and just about anything else she puts her mind to. Sherry Goggin is the definitive version of a 'renaissance woman' and once she sets her mind to something, nothing gets in her way. And right now, she has her mind set on being a success. While Goggin is a fitness expert, her real strengths may lie in the area of being a top-notch business entrepreneur. She also acts as VP and director of the women's fitness division of the Private Trainers association, www.propta.com. Sherry also has a new clothing line, "Fit Girl Wear" that is available for purchase now. All of Sherry's merchandise is available for purchase at any of her websites including www.SherryGoggin.com, facebook.com/sherrygoggin and modelmayhem. com/sherrygoggin. Photo by: BillyBow Photography. Spiritual Fitness: “It’s easy to fall into habits and routines if we allow ourselves to do it. It’s even easier to fall back into them when trouble or difficult times come along.“ ReachoutofyourComfortZone Summer/Fall 2013 • FitnessX.com 27. WELLNESS