Sweat. It takes hard work to achieve it. And once you get it, it’s slimy, smelly and wet. You want it, you work your tail off to get it and then you can’t wait to wash it off. So I guess it’s not the sweat that we are working for, right? It’s the toned body, the strong heart, the lean muscles. Sweat is just the immediate indication that we are heading in that direction. Since we can’t see the results instantly, the sweat encourages us that we are working hard to do the right thing. It stinks (literally) but it gives us hope and motivation to keep going.
Sound like an analogy? I thought so, too. The stuff that we are working toward to strengthen ourselves, our hearts, our minds, our bodies requires some sweat, some pain, great effort. We long for the pain to be over, for the sweat to be washed away, but there is a part of us that recognizes what the agony symbolizes-a step in the right direction. Sacrifice. Obedience. Trust. Love. All things that give a beautiful result, the desired outcome. All things worth working and fighting and sweating for.
I sweat my butt off today. Physically, by doing five and a half miles at the gym. But I also put in some sweat hours of deliberate obedience – doing things I didn’t want to do and not doing things that I wanted to do. Self was sweating bullets. Dripping. But one step closer to the goal. And as with physical exercise, some things get smaller as other things get larger. Fat shrinks as muscle builds. So ONE DAY, my hope is, when people look at me, they will see less me and more Jesus…May I sweat MORE THAN EVER!!
