By Jade Whitehurst
Happy New Year, friends! As we step into a brand-new year, many of us feel a renewed desire to grow stronger – both in our faith and in our fitness goals. This season invites us to realign our priorities, reset our routines, and recommit to the habits that draw us closer to God while learning to steward the bodies He entrusted us with. It is my greatest joy to encourage you to experience God and create disciplines that serve you and your fitness goals this year!
My favorite saying in our house is, “Choose your hard!” Meaning, a disciplined life is hard, just as much as an undisciplined life is hard. Therefore, choose the hard that reaps the reward that will honor God and your goals.
This year, the goals God has placed on your heart – and the discipline needed to pursue them – will challenge you beyond your comfort zone, as they should. It is in these moments we have to lean into the hard and trust the process. There are going to be days you want to quit. Moments when you think, “This isn’t worth it.” But I want to encourage you to engrave these two verses onto your heart and mind and let the Holy Spirit convict you with them on the hard days:
“Let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Anything else comes from the evil one.”
– Matthew 5:37
“Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we do not give up.”
– Galatians 6:9
When I want to throw in the towel, these verses remind me that I’m a woman of integrity who stays true to her word, and that in God’s perfect timing, I’ll reap the reward He sees fit to give me. As God’s creation, we are more precious than rubies, and it is important that we live a life that radiates it by doing what we say we will do through daily disciplines.
Here are three reminders that will help you stay disciplined and experience JOY in your faith and fitness goals this year:
- Let your yes be yes! If your goal is to run a 5k or read through the whole Bible this year, then be so determined that even when life happens, because it will, you dust yourself off, embrace a little grit and grace, and see it through.
- Spend time with God daily! There is no better way to grow in your faith and discipline than gleaning from God’s Word. You cannot hate yourself to a godly self-love. Replace negative self-talk with godly truth so you can show up not out of obligation but out of a genuine love that motivates you to action!
- Invite God into your goals! This disarms the pressure of pleasing others. Taking care of our bodies is not about vanity. It’s about stewarding our bodies well so we can be the hands and feet of Jesus. God cares about your goals, and He wants to be Lord over them!
Jade Whitehurst is a wife, mom, and certified Pilates instructor who focuses on faith-driven fitness. For more encouragement in your faith, fitness, and health goals, follow her on Instagram @jadewhitehurst_ or @pulsepilateswithjade.