Are You Fit-To-Serve?

My assumption is that most of you reading this article strive to serve the people you encounter, those entrusted to your care, the best that you can at home, at work, at church, in the community, etc. Yet do you consciously follow routines for you to be truly fit to serve, to serve yourself and to serve others?

When most of us think about being fit, it’s usually around physical fitness and looking good. For most people, the lasting power for the “why” of looking good is short lived. Personally, the lasting power of looking good, losing weight, etc. was a roller coaster. My why and its lasting power got stronger when I decided my physical fitness why was to be available for our children and to be physically able to play with our grandkids.

Yet the lasting power was not where I wanted it to be. Pushing forward my “why” got stronger through a relearning moment and a light bulb moment.

The relearning for me was remembering that focusing on the outcome (e.g. weight loss, looking good) is not the way to get to the outcome. That the way to consistently get to and sustain the outcome is through the intentionality of daily building and maintaining the routines that lead to the desired outcome. Take the time to develop and maintain healthy routines that lead to your desired outcome intentionally and consistently.

A lightbulb moment came for me when reading 1 Timothy 4:8 and the clarity that physical fitness is a good goal and something we should be doing, yet it’s secondary to spiritual fitness. The why for being fit is not to be admired for looking good, yet to serve God better and longer. Since we serve others through our body and our mind, we should be taking care of both. Note that self-care is not selfish, it’s a must do. It’s selfish not to take care of yourself.

This mindset-shift to a bigger “why” for fitness led me to reframing my routines around my “why” to be fit-to-serve others, being fit-to-serve spiritually, physically, relationally, and emotionally. I also realized that I can’t do it alone. For me it’s critical to partner with the Holy Spirit daily and with my spouse as I work towards being fit-to-serve aligned with striving to glorify God daily through my thoughts, actions, and encounters.

With this bigger why to be fit-to-serve, I was in a better position to also live a simpler life and to be more present in the moment as I work to be available for family, being able to play with our grandchild, and to be better positioned to serve, to meet the needs of those entrusted to my care.

I also came to the realization that for me, the more fit I am spiritually, and the more fit I am physically, the better my relational and emotional fitness are also.

Michael Blue promotes, “The intentionality of how you order your day will determine your level of success.” This is something that I have found to be true over and over. Personally, I’d add priorities into the statement to read, “The intentionality of how you order your day ‘around your top life priorities’ will determine your level of success.” We need structure to order our day appropriately and consistently, yet too much structure can be paralyzing, we need to find the blend of structure and spontaneity that works for us, what I call spontaneous intentionality.

As an example, just an example, you need to discover your own approach… My daily focus is to strive to keep life simple, to live life the best I can, to live in the present moment, to trust in God's provision for the future, and to seek his guidance daily. With daily intentionality, it’s critical to leave room for spontaneity as the need/opportunity arises. Busy based on life priorities yet not in a hurry.

Based on my life priorities and the desire to be Fit-to-Serve spiritually, physically, relationally, and emotionally I use six (6) time blocks daily within what I call my Rhythm Week. Two of the time blocks, spiritual and physical, are nonnegotiable and the others flow with the priorities of the day. My six daily time blocks within the context of being fit-to-serve are:

Spiritual (5:45 – 7:00 am)

?? 1.?Time with God – Bible reading, Devotions, Prayer, and Silence/Reflection.

Physical?(7:00 – 9:00 am Mon, Wed, Fri | 7:00 – 8:30 am Tues, Thu, Sat | rest on Sun) ?

?? 2. Fitness (cardio and strength), Nutrition, Flexibility and Stability.

Relational?(8:30/9:00 am – 5:00/6:00 pm)

?? 3. Family and friends - be available and present.

?? 4. Vocations (spouse, father, grandfather, brother, friend, life coach, author, volunteer).

?????? > Intentionality of my life priorities – uniquely different day to day/week to week.

??????? > Daily steward my resources to serve those entrusted to my care as I strive to glorify God.

Emotional (worked in throughout the day)

? 5. Margin/Rest/Play/Learning.

? 6. End the Day?(external tracking systems and prepare self and environment for sleep). ?

My daily time block for time with God is nonnegotiable and the timeframe rarely changes. My fitness time block is also nonnegotiable, yet the time of day is more flexible based on the day yet is a must do Monday through Saturday.

The relational time block is obviously the largest one, the largest investment of my time, and is prioritized around my life priorities. When I was working full-time the activities that made up this time block were prioritized around my agreed to job to be done, the key two to four activities to succeed versus all the priorities others wanted to give me. My spiritual time block was also more like 30 to 45 minutes. In hindsight, it could have been larger, and I would have been even more successful in my life priorities. (Wisdom and habits win out over good intentions and goals every time.)

My approach, you may desire/need a different approach, for emotional well-being is based on the believe that it’s largely an outcome of being intentionally consistent with spiritual, physical, and relational fitness and my understanding of four key pillars of emotional well-being: physical activity, nutrition, sleep, and stress management.

My Sunday has the spiritual time block and an attend church time block, other than that the day is intentionally unstructured for Sabbath rest, which to me means to cease from what’s necessary, resting, playing, recharging, listening, and connecting.

Remember, the structure of intentional time blocks is critical, yet you need to leave margin time in your calendar to flex with what the day brings you, to give you space to make better decision when the “stuff” of life happens. Also please let go of any desire for perfection. Perfection is not obtainable and it’s not the intention.

Schedule a time to work your intentional priority time blocks as you grow your level of being fit-to-serve spiritually, physically, relationally, and emotionally.

Each day learn, repent, and grow, be a curious learner, and take a positive step forward. Be present in the moment, trust God’s provision of the future, and seek his guidance continually. And remember to have fun.

Message me if you have any follow-up questions.