Show Up for What God Has for You

What’s more comfortable than getting up before dawn on a cold winter morning?

Staying in bed, that’s what.

But for the past couple of years (including cold winter mornings), I’ve been getting up early and going to the gym. Not every day, of course—just a few times a week. And before you jump to conclusions about the kind of person I am based on what I just wrote …

If you took into account every single year of my life up until I was in my 50s, “going to the gym” was a completely foreign and detestable concept to me. It could not have been more out of character or less expected in my life. But somehow I’ve developed this new habit, and sure enough, it’s paying off in terms of my health and fitness. Not only that, I’ve grown to really enjoy it and I miss it when I can’t go.

This article isn’t to encourage you to go to the gym, though. It’s also not about those Bible verses on the benefits of rising early (unless you want to read them—which is entirely optional: Mark 1:35, Psalm 63:1, Psalm 5:3, Psalm 119:147).

What I really want to talk about is that no-filter picture above, of a gorgeous sunrise. The sunrise that I never would have seen if I hadn’t made a difficult decision, months before, to move past my inertia and my fear of change and my feelings of intimidation.

I’d been going to a physical therapy facility for many months (originally for shoulder bursitis), but using the equipment there was no longer a good fit for me. I could have just stopped working out altogether, which would have been easier, cheaper, and much more convenient. But my conscience was nagging at me to keep up the momentum and continue, for my own future health benefits.

There was a small gym across the parking lot from the therapy place, and I was extremely intimidated by it. It was one thing to have a doctor give me a referral for physical therapy, and then continue things for a while on my own. But to deliberately, consciously make the choice to walk into a new gym, talk to someone, sign an agreement, and then, worst of all, start using unfamiliar equipment in the presence of people who knew what they were doing? Terrifying. Unthinkable. Super easy to avoid.

I did it anyway. And it turned out, as these things often do, that the experience was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I felt awkward for a while (but no more) and I felt like an imposter (also no more) as I bumbled around learning new things. But I quickly saw that no one was making me feel odd or unwelcome, and in fact they weren’t paying much attention to me at all, except for an occasional smile or brief hello. I learned at my own pace and got comfortable, and now I truly feel as if I belong there.

One morning—it must have been right after the time change last fall—I was walking on the treadmill and the most amazing thing began happening right in front of me. The windows of my new gym face east, and I had a front row seat to an incredible sunrise. I couldn’t help but take pictures, and I wasn’t the only one with this idea. Day after day on that treadmill, I got to witness God’s ever-changing heavenly artistry. It wasn’t lost on me that he had been putting on a similar spectacular display every single day … I just hadn’t been present for it before. It took overcoming my fears, combined with showing up in the right place at the right time, to be a witness to what was often the most beautiful thing I’d see all day.

Notice how these pictures aren’t perfect, though? There are large, distracting light fixtures, bulky cars on a sea of asphalt, and a strip mall skyline that obstructs your view. It would be easy to dwell on those imperfections and say, “This photo isn’t worth sharing,” or perhaps not even worth taking at all. But it was worth taking, and it is worth sharing. The view may not be perfect, but it’s worth getting up early for it. It’s worth my effort to show up.

Woody Allen once famously said, “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” He might have meant it in a more worldly sense, but I can apply it in a different way. God is going to paint that sky every single day no matter what I do or don’t do. And I’m going to miss the whole thing if I don’t show up for it.

While sunrises (and sunsets) are a feast for our eyes, they’re not the only feasts that God makes available to us, day after day, year after year. The richness of his Word, fellowship with other Christians, and a more intimate relationship with him through study and prayer are other tables filled with abundance that he lays before us with an invitation to join in:

• Going to church every Sunday
• Bible study, by yourself or (even better) with others
• Reading or listening to the Bible during the week
• Your church’s small groups or community groups
• Scripture writing
• Scripture memory
• Regular, intentional prayer
• Christian music or hymns during the week
• Daily devotionals

When it comes to these kinds of spiritual disciplines, maybe you’re like me with that overdue gym transfer, needing to move past your own inertia or fear of change or feelings of intimidation. It can be hard to show up for something new when you have obstacles to overcome and you simply have to trust in the long-term gains.

I want to offer you this encouragement: show up, and you’ll be amazed at the sunrise—the unexpected blessings and benefits—that God has for you. Maybe not every single time … sometimes there will be cloud cover and you’ll miss out, or there will be annoying imperfections to deal with or overlook. But look at that list above and see all the opportunities God has provided for you to grow in your knowledge of him, your relationship with Jesus, and your fellowship with other Christians.

You only need to show up for it.